Unwavering

Chapter 23

CHAPTER 23
Lunch

A week later and im back to my old routine. Pero hindi na ito iyong katulad ng dati. Ilang beses kong tinawagan si mama noong nakalabas na kami ni papa sa hospital at nakabalik sa bahay but she did not answered at hanggang ngayon ay hindi ko parin alam kung nasaan sya, even papa doesn't know where to look for her.

Humupa narin ang mga usap-usapan tungkol sa nangyari but there are still few people who talked about it, lalo na kapag nakikita nila ako. Well, it doesn't surprise me at all, matagal ng driver ni mayor si papa at halos magkasama sila sa lahat ng lakad at mga whereabouts ni mayor as though they were close to being brothers.

Maging sa school ay usap-usapan rin ang nangyari. Tatlong araw palang ng muli akong nakabalik sa schools and as expected ay dumami ang mga kailangan kong habulin na requirements at projects.
Even the teacher's was aware about my family situation.

At some point, sa tuwing naglalakad ako sa hallway ay naririnig ko ang mga tao na pinag-uusapan ako from behind, though it's uncomfortable to feel ngunit hindi ko na lang pinapakita na naaapektuhan ako, well not that it really doesn't affect me. I just needed to act out, ayoko rin namang kaawaan ako ng mga tao sa paligid ko.

"Yan' ba yung anak nung kabet ni Mayor Richard?" Narinig ko mula sa usap-usapan ng dalawang ale na nagtatrabaho sa cafeteria. They were looking at me with pity, mag-oorder sana ako but hearing what they just said made me stop an inch from the counter. I froze feeling embarrassed.

"Oo, kawawa no?—" Napalunok ako ng bahagya at tsaka pinili nalang na tumalikod at bumalik sa table kung nasaan sina Ana.

Ngunit bago pa man ako makaalis mula doon ay muli akong natigilan ng makita ang lalaking hindi ko inaasahan. Because of what papa said about him last time ay na realize ko na tama pala talaga na huwag ko siyang buntungan ng galit dahil wala siyang kasalanan sa nangyari.

I know that he was also embarrassed and ashamed of whay happened between me and his family. Between my parents and his tito. Noong nakabalik ako sa school ay gusto kong humingi ng tawad, I tried to approach him but he seemed avoiding me. Tila parang bumaliktad ang mundo. Kung noon ako ang umiiwas, ngayon ay siya naman.

At first I thought I was mistaken at his behavior towards me pero kalaunan ay mas naging obvious din ang pinapakita niya, na ayaw nya akong kausap o makasama man lang saglit. Siguro ay nagalit rin sya nung tinaboy ko sya noon at sinisi dahil sa nangyari.

I was so stupid dahil sa huli ko na narealize ang mali ko. I was really sorry about what I did. But why do I care about his presence so much? Hindi ba't eto rin naman ang gusto kong mangyari noon pa? Na layuan niya ako.

But why do I feel so sad about it now that's it's already happening. Bakit nalulungkot ako at nagtatampo, nagagalit sa sarili kung bakit ko ginawa yung hindi ko dapat gawin. On the other hand, I didn't get to see his cousin, Aiden around. Mukhang hindi ito pumasok ng school. Ang sabi ni Ana, simula raw nung naging unconscious ako sa hospital ay hindi na sya nagpakita sa school.

It made me worried. Lahat kami naaapektuhan sa nangyari. Alam ko naman na nasasaktan rin maging si  Angelo at lalo ma si Aiden, that's why gusto ko rin silang makausap tungkol sa matter na ito pero hindi ko magawa dahil maging si Angelo na mismo ang umiiwas saakin and as much as it upsets me, it also hurts...

It hurts knowing that the guy who cares for me from the very starts, is now avoiding me. It hurts, that the guy who was once determined to court me, feels like doesn't care about me right now.

And he's right here in front of me, standing for about three meters. Handsomely tall and staring at me darkly as if I did something wrong that made him mad. Muli akong napalunok, my heart beginning to beat fast not because of feeling nervous but because of something...