Handprints in the Dust

Ties of Valor Trilogy #2

Sua was the typical "tomboy" back in high school. Loud, tough, and more at home in a group of boys than anywhere else. She grew up with three older brothers, so teasing, wrestling, and chaos were basically her native language. Being "girly"? That felt like a foreign concept she never had to bother learning.

Pero isang araw, may nakapansin sa kanya. Ang class adviser nila na pilit tinutuklas kung anong uri ng babae ang pwedeng magtago sa likod ng maong, magaslaw na kilos, at gulo-gulong buhok. Akala ni Sua, biro lang iyon.. until Rio.

Quiet. Detached. Almost invisible, if not for the way he watched things like he was reading between lines no one else could see. He rarely spoke, but when he looked at you, it felt like he knew something you didn't even tell yourself.

At sa isang maalikabok na silid, nag-iwan sila ng bakas. Magkatabing kamay, parehong dumampi sa lumang mesa. But something lingered in that stillness. A question neither of them dared to ask out loud: What if that moment meant something more?

Would they ever find out? Or would they leave that memory behind like handprints in the dust?

Sinumulan: July 4, 2025
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