What If's

CHAPTER 16

'Don't start your day with the broken pieces of yesterday. Every day is a fresh start. Each day is a new beginning. Every morning we wake up is the first day of our new life'

- Anonymous

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It's funny how people wish to be alone after break-ups. I mean, when I think of how I fled  after getting dumped is funny. When I choose to run away and hide instead of crawling back to the persons that truly loves me, my family for example.

In total honesty, I felt a pang of pain upon meeting with him.

Oo medyo nasaktan ako pero hindi kasing lala gaya ng inaasahan ko. Time heals all wounds sabi nga nila. 

"You know that you're free to cry right? I mean, I won't judge and it's not like I haven't saw you cry before," the blue-eyed moron said.

I just ignored him on spot. Pouring all my attention to the cone I'm holding. Strawberry ice cream, not my favorite flavour pero parang na-tempt ako kaya ito ang pinili ko. 

Despite the time being 11 in the morning the streets were empty and peaceful. Hindi masyadong mainit ang sinag ng araw. It's kinda cloudy actually, tamang tama lang para tumambay sa may sidewalk habang kumakain ng dirty ice cream.

"C'mon Alexandra, just cry already."

"Ano ba Bermundo! What's your problem?" inis kong sigaw sa kanya. 

When he asked me if I wanted a ride earlier, I immediately said yes. One is because nag-commute lang ako and second is... well, I badly need someone to accompany me and siya ang una kong nakita.  How lucky, note the sarcasm.

And for the whole duration we spent inside his car he's been forcing me to cry. Yes, pinipilit niya akong umiyak kasi raw nakakatulong ang pag-iyak para maibsan ang sakit. Ewan ko lang kung anong sakit ang pinagsasabi niya.

Biglang nagbago ang kanyang mood, from being goofy to serious. "I know you're hurting, you don't need to pretend Alexandra, especially not around me." Napatitig ako sa kanya ng ilang segundo. Come to think of it, he's always around every time I'm a tight spot. Now I am wondering why— why is he always in the right place at the right time?

"Have you been stalking me Bermundo?" I asked him. I saw something flashed in his eyes, but I'm not sure what it is. 

"Me?" he said pointing at himself, bemused. "Why would I do such a thing? I...what...are you crazy?" he continued in a slur.

"You're being defensive. You could've said no." 

Hindi siya sumagot kaya ipinagpatuloy ko ang pagkain sa sorbetes na hawak ko. 

The wind blew softly making the leaves on the trees rustle. Here in this empty street, sitting by the gutter with this man— on an extremely eventful day, I felt peace.

"I talked with him earlier," I said. "Finally after five years, I got a shot of talking to him and luckily, we had the closure we— I needed." I breathed in a huge amount of air, filling my lungs with it.

Hindi siya nagsalita, he remained quiet. Kaya nagpatuloy ako, "Oo inaamin ko, nasaktan ako, hindi naman kasi ko ipokrita para sabihing hindi. Pero alam mo anong mas nakakagulat?" Dumako ang tingin ko sa kanya, surprisingly I caught him looking at me too. Agad siyang umiling bilang sagot sa tanong ko.