The Taste Of Vengeance

Chapter 19

"Are you tired?" tanong ni Range at inabutan ako ng tubig. He sat beside me and took out his handkerchief to wipe the sweat on my forehead.

I looked around to see if someone's watching us pero wala naman. Tumango ako bago ininuman ang tubig na binigay ni Range.

"Nasaan sila Kate?" tanong niya at siya naman ang uminom sa bote.

"C.R. Hindi na ako sumama."

He nodded and licked his lips after drinking. Nasa canteen kami ngayon, kakatapos lang ng graduation practice. Parang kailan lang ako lumipat dito, tapos ngayon ay ga-graduate na kami ng Senior High.

Mayroong mga lalakeng lumapit kay Range at kinausap siya. I silently watched him. Noong unang kita ko sa kanya ay hindi talaga pumasok sa isip ko na magugustuhan niya ako. He's not arrogant or anything pero ramdam ko agad ang pagkakaiba namin. Na tila ba ang layo niya at hindi ko siya pwedeng magustuhan.

I noticed some of the girls staring at Range while he laughed with his friends. Hindi ko talaga alam kung bakit sa dami ng babae, ako ang nagustuhan ni Range. I suddenly remember that one time I asked him about it.

He took me out and brought me to this small garden near Tagaytay. Birthday niya bukas at aalis sila ng family niya kaya inaya na niya akong mag date ngayon. Pinapayagan na siyang mag drive mag-isa ngayon kaya kaming dalawa lang ang magkasama at wala ang driver nila.

He was taking a picture of the butterfly flying on top of the pink flower. I smiled while watching him. Hindi ko alam kung dahil first time kong magkagusto sa isang tao o talagang gustong gusto ko lang si Range kaya kahit sa simpleng panonood lang sa kanya ay masaya na ako. I am not very vocal about my feelings for him but I try my best.

"Bakit mo ako nagustuhan?" I asked. Hindi ko rin alam bakit ko iyon tinanong. Basta bigla na lang pumasok sa isip ko. I didn't even realize I said it out loud until I saw Range's parted mouth while looking at me.

"Bakit hindi?" he asked me back.

I shrugged and acted cool. "I know a lot of girls like you. Hindi mo kailangan manligaw o maghintay ng matagal. I'm just curious what made you like me."

"Because you're you, Sierra," simpleng sagot niya lang. Umirap ako sa sagot niya.

"Sobrang tunog bolero ng sagot mo, alam mo?"

Tumawa siya. "Honestly, I don't know. One day, I just realized that my days are happier when I'm with you and it would break my heart if you leave. I was never a greedy person but when I met you, I wanted you to be mine, so you would never leave. So you can never leave me."

I stared at him, my heart beating so fast. If he comes closer to me, I'm afraid he can hear my heart. I wanted to say something. Anything. But I think my mind stopped working for a while.

"Okay..." That was the only thing I managed to say.

Range chuckled and held my hand. "This is my first birthday since I met you. Nakakainis, I wanted to celebrate with you on the exact day of my birthday. Bakit kasi aalis pa kami."

"Stop whining. Magkasama naman tayo ngayon."

"Pero bukas pa birthday ko, hindi naman ngayon."

Parang batang nagmamaktol si Range kaya para naman mabawasan ang sama ng loob niya ay pinagbigyan ko na lang siya sa lahat ng gusto niya nang araw na iyon.

Hinatid niya ako pauwi bago mag alas otso. Kung pwede lang ay sasamahan ko siya hanggang alas dose para mabati sa mismong araw ng birthday niya.

Nag-ayos ako sa kwarto paguwi at nagpalipas ng oras sa cellphone. I waited until twelve am and sent a message to Range.