Gunned Down (Chasing Dreams Series #4) | C O M P L E T E D

Chapter 39

This chapter is dedicated to: SuperAlliahxx and FeveyClavero

"Ngiting-ngiti kahit namumugto ang mata! Anong kababalaghan 'yan? I-chika mo naman 'yan, teh!"

Inihapan ko 'yung iniinom na kape at idinaan na lang sa ngisi ang sinabi ng kabababa lang sa treadmill na si Bridgette. Pagkatapos magpunas, umupo siya sa katapat kong silya at kinuha 'yung tasa ng kapeng tinimpla ko para sa kanya.

"Seriously? What happened last night? Natulugan ko na 'yung files na binabasa ko kaya hindi ko napansin ang pag-uwi mo," she said while she was cooling down the coffee.

"So, may bagong kaibigan ako..." panimula ko at napangiti ulit nang naalala ang mga nangyari kagabi.

"O, tapos?"

Nginiwian ko si Bridgette. "That's the end of the story..."

"And that's bullshit! You were so down these past few days, girl! The only person who could make you smile like that was none other than Marcus Schmidt! Sige, sabihin mong mali ako."

Nag-angat ako ng ulo at sinalubong ang nanunuri niyang tingin. When she realized that she was right, she rolled her eyes and fired a smirk.

"We met last night..." I continued. "We still love each other, but we decided to be friends for now..."

She pursed her lips. "So, alam na niya 'yung totoo? Kasi kung hindi pa, ni pakikipag-kaibigan hindi niya i-o-offer sa 'yo."

"Yeah, he knows," kunot-noo akong humigop ng kape nang napansing hindi siya kuntento roon.

"Including the fact that you were gunned down that day?" um-arko ang mataray niyang kilay.

Biting my lower lip, I slowly shook my head. She sighed and shook hers as well. Ibinaba ko 'yung tasa at napabaling na lang sa glass wall kung saan malayang makikita ang pagsikat ng araw.

"You know I'd catch the bullets for him, but we were so unfortunate that day. Parehas kaming binaril... Ano'ng laban ko sa sniper? Ang importante naman ay hindi malala 'yung tama niya, eh. But what if it was fatal? Can you imagine that? His family wouldn't just ask me to go away; they would curse me. And I would've given up and followed my father..."

She clicked her tongue. "I will never forget that. Halos himatayin ako nang nakita kitang naliligo sa sarili mong dugo. Pero muntik na kitang sapukin no'ng nagising ka kasi sinabi mo na gusto mong puntahan si Marcus. You were shot twice; your condition was much worse than him. Gosh! I hated that you were so selflessly stupid!"

And my smile was a lot more bitter than the coffee. If I could forget it, I would do so. But I couldn't as it was already embedded in my heart and mind.

Bridgette finished her coffee and got up again to work on her butt. Pinapanood ko siya nang nag-ring ang cellphone ko. My eyes narrowed when I saw my grandmother's name on the screen.

"Hello, 'La? Good morning po," tinalikuran ko si Bridgette at umayos sa pagkaka-upo.

I heard her giggle. "Good morning, hija! The plane has just landed and we're on the way to Quezon City. Wala kang pasok ngayon kaya gusto sana kitang isama roon. We'll just pick you up. Medyo naipit lang kami sa traffic dahil rush hour."

Napatingin ako sa orasan. Alas siete na. Malapit lang ang airport dito kaya anumang sandali ay darating na sila.

"Sure, Lola. Gagayak na po ako," sabi ko.

"Okay! I'll just call you again," she sounded really happy.

Ibinaba ko ang tawag at nang lumingon ay huminto na pala sa pagwo-workout si Bridgette para makinig sa usapan namin.