The Stranger We Become

At fourteen, Kairos Frederick Corzales thought he had found the person he would never lose.

Yannah Frey Naiza was thirteen when they started dating. She was his first love, his favorite memory, and the person who slowly became part of everything he knew. Their relationship was imperfect. They argued, misunderstood each other, and struggled to understand what love meant at their age. Yet every fight brought them closer.

Until distance changed everything.

When Kairos moved away from Antique, they tried to keep their relationship alive. They survived months apart and reached their first anniversary on April 14, the date Kairos would never forget.

Then a rumor destroyed everything.

Yannah believed something terrible had been said about her. Without giving Kairos the chance to explain, she ended their relationship.

Kairos was left with questions.

What had he done?

Why didn't she ask him?

Was there even proof?

Years passed, but the questions never completely disappeared.

Kairos eventually moved to Iloilo for college, believing the past was something he had learned to live with.

Then, by chance, he saw Yannah again.

The girl he remembered was no longer the same girl standing in front of him.

And neither was he.

Sometimes, losing someone doesn't mean you stop loving them.

Sometimes, you spend years wondering whether you miss the person they became, or the person they were when they loved you.

If you still love someone after everything has changed, do you fight for them, or do you finally let them go?

The strangers we become were once everything to each other.