SAGADA Inspired by the song "SAGADA" by Cup of Joe WYATT ALEXIS GATCHALLIAN She vowed her life to God. He never believed in forever. So why does it feel like their hearts were written in the same prayer? AYOKONG IKASAL. I never dreamed of a wedding. It was beautiful, sure---for some. But not for me. Hindi 'to ang buhay na inaasahan ko. Hindi ang pinto na 'yon ang naghihintay sa'kin. Hindi sa ganitong paraan ako magsusuot ng telang puti. Hindi. Ayoko. Hindi ito ang pinlano ng Diyos para sa'kin. Because my dream was different. I thought I heard it in the stillness of dawn, in the hush of chapel walls, in the gentle rhythm of prayers. I thought I knew the life God was calling me to live. But then, he came---Wyatt Alexis Gatchallian. Parte ng isang bandang kinakabaliwan ng lahat. His life is loud music, late nights, fleeting kisses, and freedom without consequence. Palaging lasing. Palaging magulo. Palaging hindi ko maintindihan. and yet somehow, he's the one I'm told to marry. Arranged. Unexpected. Unwanted. I wanted to serve God. They wanted me to serve tradition. Now I'm stuck in the space between this mess. Between a God I've always loved and a man I never asked for... Pero bakit habang tumatagal parang hindi na makuhang lumayo pa ng mata ko sa pagtingin sa kaniya. The more I try to push him away, the more he starts to feel like a hymn I never meant to memorize. And maybe... just maybe... He's been searching for something sacred, too. How do you choose between a calling you've always known... and a love you never saw coming? 05/22/25

C O M P L E T E D W A R N I N G: MATURED CONTENT. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK. (DE AZARRO SECONDO) Virginity is one of the greatest gifts a woman can give her husband. That is what Calixta's parents told her but due to the influence of alcohol, she accidentally gave it to a stranger that she met in the bar. Two months later, after the incident, she found out that she was pregnant and a few months after, she learned that she was carrying three fetuses inside her. And now, she is carrying the green carnation's heirs. Cover Photo: LazyCaffeine

TO BE PUBLISHED UNDER TALKING PAGES Tears Series #4: Audrey Deana Valdez