See You Again

Untitled Part 5

once Yumi settled in manila, her relationship with Hajime was doing great but they wish they could see each other though. a few months have passed, they both graduated collage, eventually Yumi became a famous writer while Hajime worked hard to go to manila someday as a bartender in a coffee shop that him and Yumi used to go to. but those months quickly turned into years, two years to be exact. he knew Yumi had an upcoming fan meet this week so he decided to go to manila and surprise her on the day of the fan meet.

once he arrived to manila the day before the fan meet he booked a hotel. the next day he went to the venue and saw Yumi with her fans gushing over her books. the moment he saw the place, his heart started to beat faster. he couldn't wait to see Yumi again. after two years of talking with her and video chatting, he finally saw her again. 'god she's so beautiful' he thought to himself. many of Yumi's book were displayed all around the venue, he picked one up and pretended to be one of her 'fans'. he watched her as she interacted with her fans with a sense of pride and happiness. everyone loved her. everyone was a fan of her books and her writing, she became successful just like how she wanted. a sense of awkwardness was creeping in as he tried to disguise himself .

he approached the line and looked at her from afar. he couldn't believe that the girl he loved was right in front of him. he couldn't believe that time passed so quickly already. he felt nervous and anxious.

Yumi eventually had some free time from the fan meet. she was sitting alone at the back, not really expecting anyone. she was looking at her phone, when she noticed that someone was standing right in front of her. a sense of curiosity filled her mind. who was standing in front of her? her expression turned from curiosity to a huge shock as she quickly stood up.

"Hajime?"

"Yumi..." he said softly.

she looked more beautiful than he remembered. he felt a sense of awe as he looked at her.

"I'm here. I'm finally here"

happy tears filled Yumi's eyes as she hugged him tightly "i missed you so much"

their embrace was all he needed. he felt like his heart was whole once again. 

"i missed you too, Yumi" he said softly as he caressed her hair. his eyes were tearing up just from seeing her again.

he missed her presence, her smile, her face, everything about her. after they hug she kissed him softly. he didn't hesitate to kiss her back. they know that they were hidden in the back but they were in public, with a lot of Yumi's fans surrounding the venue. but Yumi didn't care. the kiss lasted for a while. they finally broke apart after that kiss.

"but wait, how did you get here? okay ka lang? paano si tita? okay lang ba sya?" she was genuinely concerned for him. he thought it was funny how she suddenly went from kissing him to worrying about things.

"mom's fine. I'm fine. everything's fine" he took her hands and looked into her eyes.

"i came here to manila to surprise you" he paused for a while.

"It's hard to explain, but I'm gonna stay here in manila to be with you, Yumi" he said with confidence in his words. Yumi was shocked  with his words. her emotions was mixed with happiness and confusion.

"seryoso?"

"I'm serious. i want to be with you."

"what? how? is your mom okay with this?"

"I already talked to her. she understands how much i want to be with you. she's okay with it." he replied with a smile on his face. he saw the look of confusion on Yumi's face. he knew that she was about to ask more questions, so he stopped her.

"I'm old enough to make my own decisions now and if that means being with you, then that is what i will do." he told her firmly. he meant what he said. it's time that they took their relationship seriously. she smiled as she hugged him tightly.

"well the event's about to end, punta tayo sa beach and watch the sunset after"

"sounds like a plan. the beach sound like the perfect place" he replied with a smile.

---

after the event, Yumi greeted her fans goodbye as Hajime was at the back stage. once people started leaving they both went to the exit. Yumi's car was parked nearby. "I'll drive"

he stayed silent for a moment. driving with Yumi for the first time was something that he never imagined, but Yumi driving was something that he was definitely fine with. all his worries and fears disappeared as he felt the sense of calmness in his heart once again. they eventually arrive. Yumi led Hajime into a bench. great timing, the sun was setting. they sat together at the bench. not saying anything. just taking their time to watch the sundown in front of them. that moment of silence made him happy beyond words. all the stress he had was now gone. Yumi rested her head on Hajime's shoulder    

"i love you always Hajime. i still can't believe you came all the way here for me" she chuckles softly. 

"i love you too, Yumi" he responded as he laid his head on her head.

"and I'll always be there for you. I promise i won't leave you, I promise that I'll be by your side until the end." 

he said firmly with a warm smile on his face. he meant what he said. he was dead serious.  maybe one day, their relationship could be stronger than ever. his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the ocean. it was like they were watching a movie, with the sound of the waves filling the silence. he was looking at the orange skies and felt himself relaxing as he took a deep breath.

they were finally together.