The side of my lips rose as the smell of my favorite flower filled my nostrils. Agad ko itong kinuha at iniipit sa libro. Halos mapuno na lahat ng pagitan ng mga pahina ng libro dahil sa dami ng mga bulaklak na inipit ko rito. I love drying flowers in between the pages of books. Hindi ko alam kung kanino nanggagaling ang mga bulaklak. All I know is, everytime I go to this library, there's always a flower with a note waiting in my area.
I immediately gazed around my area and as usual, I found a sticky note on the shelves with my name on it.
"Ako na lang ang mahalin mo, Zein. Ako lang Zein. You're not allowed to love another man. It's only me or no one.
That's an order from the highest Supreme Student Government and you can't do anything about it."
- Supremo Ace Craige
That's what the note says. Whoever this admirer is, I can say that he's definitely sweet. At first nag iwan lang siya ng sticky note dito and dahil nakatrip ako ng araw na iyon, I wrote a reply. Ayun. It continued up to now. I remember the first time na nabasa ko yung sulat niya. Galing siya sa isang break up. A break up with her past girlfriend. Parang wattpad lang. Parang chat pero sa sticky note naka sulat. I don't know what he looks like or what's he's name is. But I guess he knows my name.
Kinuha ko ang sticky note at itinabi iyon sa kahon na pinaglalagyan ko ng mga sticky notes niya. At first, he said he hates reading and wattpad and stuffs. So I encouraged him that reading is really fun. And then one day he started sending sticky notes with lines of fictional characters written on it. I find it swert though. Nakaka enjoy basahin. Haist. How I wish na makakita at makakilala ng lalaking mala fictional character at magkaroon ng love tory na mala wattpad. Tipong, magkalayo man kayo ng matagal, kayo pa rin sa huli. Destined ika nga. Well, that's every reader's dream.
Agad kong kinuha ang sticky notes ko at nagsulat ng isasagot sa kanya.
I wish you are a fictional character existing in a form of man. I wish you're Ace Craige. I wish you're like Deib Lohr Enrile. I wish you are Jeydon Lopez. I wish you're Kudos Pereseo. I wish you're like Jonaxx Boys. I wish I can see your face. I wish you can be like those fictional characters that I've dreamt to exist. I wish I can find them on you. I wish...
Nang matapos ko itong isulat ay naghanap ako ng pupwedeng mapagdikitan ng walang makakapansin. I was about to place it on one of the book's cover when I found another sticky note.
I know this may sound like a joke. But as days pass by, I feel like being addicted to your smile, specifically, to you. My day isn't complete without you. At night, you're always in my mind. It sounds fictionous, right? Parang hindi kapani-paniwala. Parang sa wattpad lang nakikita. Parang sa wattpad lang pwedeng mangyari. But trust me darling, it's true. Let's meet. 3 o'clock. Gymnasium.
My heart beats fast and I can help but to cry. Not of sadness but of joy. But, I froze when I read the time. I badly want to go, but...I can't. What to do? Pangalan ng school ang nakataya para sa laban ko mamayang 3 o clock. Shit. Damn. What should I do? I spent a couple of minutes of thinking. In the end, I chose to go. Not for him, but for my contest. Mabigat man sa loob ko, pero ito yung kailangan. If he really loves me, he'll wait. Just like how Knoxx Montefalco waited for Entice. I wish he could wait for me.
The gymnasium is filled with loud noise. Different cheers, different voices. Humahangos na tiningnan ko ang lalaking kaharap ko ngayon. Kung tutuusin mukha kaming fictional characters ng action stories ngayon. He's Luke Roces, the campus badboy. Kaming magkaschool ang natira para sa final game ng taekwondo. Either I win or lose, it's still a win-win situation for our school. Kanina pa kami naglalaban pero iilang tama lang ang nakakalusot sa amin at mahihina pa. Hindi pa rin nawawala sa isip ko yung meet up sana namin. But I guess he's watching. Kaya gagalingan ko na lang para sa kanya.
We're looking eye to eye. Well, that's a rule when it comes to battles like this. You can see the next move of your opponent by looking directly on the eyes. But in his case, iba ang nababasa ko. I can see amusement dancing on his raven black eyes.
The corner of his lips rose. "Damn beautiful eyes." He said in a low voice but I managed to hear it. I rolled my eyes but my face heated up. He's a badboy. Mala Jeydon Lopez. Plus napakabolero. Mala Rozen Elizalde. Wait, why I am even comparing him to my favorite wattpad characters? This guy's not worth it.
"You're beautiful when you blush." Saad niya na ikinalaki ng mata ko. This is awkward. I gave him several punches but he easily dodged all of it.
"Whoa! Chill, babe. Mas lalo kang gumaganda sa paningin ko kapag galit ka."
Sa halip na kiligin, inis akong tumingin sa kanya. How dare this man call me babe. I gave him a deathly glare but he just laughed. May mga narinig pa akong pumuri na gwapo daw siya kesyo ang hot daw niyang tumawa, but I don't care. Naiinis ako sa apog ng lalaking ito. I hate his guts.
"Huwag mo akong itulad sa mga babaeng nauto mo. I'm telling you, I don't like those sluts. Just as I don't like you." Saad ko ng may diin. He again laughed. Ano ako, clown? Geez. This man is pissing me off.
"Kailan mo ba kasi ako itatali sa 'yo nang sa ganoon ay matigil na 'yang pagkakabadtrip mo tuwing nakikita mo akong may ibang babae?" He said that made me froze. That's a line from Rozen Elizalde. Baka naman nagkataon lang. Agad akong sumugod sa kanya at binigyan siya ng isang sipa sa sikmura na agad naman niyang naharang.
"I don't like you."
"One day, you'll beg for my kiss." Shoot! That's another line. I already have an idea on what is about to happen but I don't want to entertain it. Bloody no!
Isa sa mga suntok ko ang pumasok, diretso sa mukha niya. Blood immediately oozed out from it. Pero imbes na matuwa, parang may sariling buhay na lumapit ang katawan ko at pumantay sa lebel niya. Sh*t! Why is my body reacting this way? Before I could even realize, I just found myself wiping the blood on his lips. The side of his lips rose and in just a snap, we already exchanged position. Ako na ang nasa sahig habang siya naman ang nakalebel sa akin. My eyes widened because of our closeness. Shit. Ilang pulgada lang ang layo ng mukha niya sa'kin. Gosh.
Agad na nalaglag mula sa ceiling ng gymnasium ang iba't ibang papel habang sabay sabay na tumili ang mga manonood. Pansamantala kong nakalimutan ang lapit naming dalawa at agad na nanlaki ang mga mata ko ng malaman kung ano ang mga papel na iyon. Those were the letters from the mystery guy!
Bumaling ako kay Luke na ngayon ay may malaking ngisi sa kaniyang labi. Iniabot niya sa akin ang isang sticky note. Ito yung sinulat ko kanina! This means... Oh gosh..
"I can be your Ace Craige, as long as your breathing you're safe. I'll be your knight, your bulletproof, my Queen. I can be your Deib Enrile, hindi ko alam kung bakit, hindi ko alam kung pano, hindi ko alam kung kailan .. Basta ang alam ko lang, meron. Meron akong nararamdaman para sayo. My baby babe, my one and only baby babe. I can be your Elijah Montefalco, cause love is a war, and I'm your soldier. I can be your Kudos Pereseo, ikaw lang ang babaeng mamahalin ko, sa'yong sa'yo lang ako. You know why? Kasi pag ang badboy nagmahal, pati asin lalanggamin." Mahaba niyang saad na nakapagpangiti sa akin. Napalitan ang inis ko ng kilig dahil sa sinabi niya. Who may have thought na siya pala ang lalaking yon.
"You're the mystery guy." Hindi makapaniwalang saad ko. He smiled and leaned closer. "The one and only." Iniabot niya ang kamay sa akin at agad ko namang tinanggap iyon.
He looked at me eye to eye and said words that made my heart beats faster than ever. "I can be your own fictional character. Your dream guy. Only yours. I can be your Ace Craige, your Deib Lohr, your Jeydon Lopez, your Elijah Montefalco, your own Kudos Pereseo. Just promise me that you'll be my Zein Shion, my Maxpein Del Valle, my Candice Gonzales, my Klare Ty and my Angelica Bianca De Makapili. Mine and mine only."
Tears kept on falling in my eyes. Hindi ako makapaniwala sa mga nangyayari. Is a wattpad like story even exist in real life. Can this man be my dream fictional character?
I smiled and hugged him from his waist bago magsabi ng isang linya na nakapagbigay ngiti sa kanya.
"Aarte pa ba ako?"
