Para Kang Tanga (Not An Official Title)

Chapter 2

LAWRENCE SANDOVAL

At that time 2 years ago, I really didn't expect to fall like that in the pool. Parang nagkatotoo yung sinabi before nung PE teacher nami, which is ang nakakatandang cousin ko.

Well, the only difference is that, I wasn't alone when that happened. There were many of us, and some were really rowdy that time so I fell.

:'<

What I didn't expect more is what happened next.

Nasa ilalim na 'ko ng tubig that time. It was really dark, the water is so so dark. I felt suffocated darting my eyes around. My mind is telling me to flail, float, or to grab something. Do something what I've learned during class but I didn't.

I just let myself sank in deeper to the dark waters. Not because I want to, but because I can't move.

My whole body just got rigid after the fall. Just thinking about being eaten alive by this darkness made my head murky and dizzy. I can't think straight.

Fuck, my body don't even want to move.

It felt like I was tied up.

I just continued to stare up above the waters. I can see silhouettes of my classmates— I can even hear some of them shouting...

But all of those noises and views were quickly blocked by the person who's swimming fastly towards me.

I can't recognized him at first, we weren't even classmates that time.

But he helped me.

Dahil nga di ako nakapaghanda sa majestic fall ko sa tubig at di ako naka-ipon ng hangin, the suffocation I felt, bigla nalang nawala when something soft was pressed on lips and blew air inside my mouth.

My round eyes that time went even rounder and look straight on the eyes of the perpetrator (savior).

Nagtoothbrush kaya 'to?

I wanna strangle myself for thinking like that at that time.

Because he's currently saving me, I will let it slide this time. I just don't know if I was lucky or not, but his breath didn't smell. It felt minty.

GUSH.

One of his hands slid on my waist while the other was busy pushing us to swam up, lips still connected.

I wanted to say that the air is enough but then I have read something that you could stay more in the water with this method so I just closed my eyes that time. He won't ran out of air if it stayed like that so I just let it be until both of us be saved.

When I sensed that malapit na kami sa gilid ng pool, as I was about to open my eyes, I felt a light tug on my lower lip so I slowly open them up to look at the person again.

He bit me.

He bit my lip.

Gago ba 'to?

"Haah!" I breathe in and out deep repeatedly nang makasampa sa gilid ng pool.

"Sandoval!" my cousin teacher called. But I was too out of it that I can't make myself look up. I lay my face there and catch my breath only for it to stop when the same face I saw in the waters lay next to mine. We shared the same air, same space, breathing while facing each other.

Yun ang unang araw na nakilala ko si Ezkel Ranz Mariano.

And a week after that, he started dating my best friend Emyria.

Later, I then found out and heard rumors about him. I usually just don't believe in any petty and baseless rumors but, I saw him accidentally with a girl that isn't Emyria in the parking lot of the school at night, kissing the life out of each other like hungry wolves wolfing their food.