Never Again

Chapter 8

The weekend passed like a blur. Kung gaano kami kasaya sa beach, heto kami ngayon at puno na ng pawis. We're very busy that we neglected the time, I can't even feel any hunger. Our schedule was jammed. Matapos kaming magjudge sa opening, nagreready na naman para sa cheerdance. Opening day pa lang pero ang stress na. Most hated event of the year, Ugh.

"Pres! Sure ka kaya mo 'yan?" Ken was also carrying a box. It's heavy, yes, but I can manage. Tumango nalang ako at ipinagpatuloy ang paglalakad. Wala akong mautusan dahil may kaniya-kaniya silang ginagawa. This is too stressful.

"Watch it!" Sigaw ko roon sa babaeng muntik na akong mabangga. Too stressed to deal with kids. Ang laki-laki ng hallway tapos babanggain ako? Oh, not today honey.

"Let me help you," Cha appeared beside me and tried grabbing the second box from my arms. I silently thank her for that. "This is quite heavy, mabuti naman at nakaya mo?" She laughed lightly.

"Hi, Cha! Hindi ka pa mag-aayos para sa pageant?" Ken asked from behind. Magkakilala sila?

"Tutulungan ko muna si Sy," She answered politely. Naks naman. Sana all. She was already wearing a makeup on her face, which added her beauty.

"I think you should... go?" I suggested. I might be the reason why her makeup will be ruined. Ayaw kong magkaroon ng scandal.

"Magjowa ba kayo ni Mat?" She asked with a straight face. She was looking in front, hindi man lang niya ako sinulyapan.

What is she talking about? Bakit nasali si Kat dito? "Ano?"

"Sinagot mo na ba siya?" She repeated. That's odd, her face in the first glance looked so calm, but her voice was hard. It's as if it was a warning.

"What is it to you?" I countered. "You two are just friends, right?" Nothing more, nothing less. It's not up to her if sinagot ko si Mat or hindi. She's off limits.

"So kayo na nga?" Pagkaklaro niya. Of course not yet, why is she concluding things? Don't tell me she has a crush on her friend? My brows arched because of that thought. "You don't even know him." It was almost a whisper but I still heard it anyway.

"Ano ang pake mo sa buhay niya?" Finally, I said it. Matagal ko rin 'yang dinamdam. You always show up and even took an advantage to hug Mat. "And wala ka nang pakealam talaga kung sasagutin ko man siya o hindi. If you know that he's pursuing me, know your distance."

"But you don't know him—"

"Process, Cha. Process," I cut her off. She's lowkey irritating and I hate it. Mukhang hindi naman naririnig ni Ken ang pinag-uusapan namin ni Cha, he was too busy greeting other people. "Kung ganiyan ka makaasta, bakit hindi nalang ikaw ang maging jowa niya?" Total kanina ka pa tanong nang tanong. Feeler. My blood's boiling at the moment.

Chill.

Hindi siya nakasagot. "See? You can't interfere. Kaibigan ka lang." I feel really empowered, I don't know if it is a good thing or not. He slept beside me that night. May puntos ako. What am I saying?

"Just... Just stay away from him. Tita might not like it." Ultimatum niya bago niya ulit ibinalik sa akin ang box at naglakad papalayo.

I can't help but scoff in disbelief. The audacity of this ditz was higher than these boxes.

Alas tres na noong nagsimula ang cheerdance. It was our responsibility to attend it, para may mag-aasikaso sa judges from DepEd. Pawis na pawis na ako and I bet I smell so awful right now, malagkit na ang aking balat dahil sa naugang mga pawis. Gosh. I even forgot to bring an extra shirt. My stomach kept on rumbling, I badly wanted to eat but I can't.

Someone pinch my shoulder. Sa inis ay lumingon ako at muntik nang magulat dahil si Mat lang pala. His face was too close! Surpise was also evident in his eyes. I composed my self and mumbled, "What?"

"Let's go," He murmured back. The next thing I remembered was that he was dragging me away from the court. I tried to unattach his hand on my wrist but to no avail.

"I can't—" I couldn't finish my sentence.

"Kasali ka ba sa intrams? you know, swimming..."

My brows knitted when I saw where he was taking me. Sa lugawan. "I didn't apply for the intrams. Diretso na ako sa regional— and can you please let go of my hand?" He didn't let go, instead he loosened his grip.

"Ano ang gusto mo?" He asked calmly whilst gazing at the menu. There were a lot of options. He didn't budge with my mad-faced look.

"Are you even aware I am not allowed to leave there?"

He looked down to reach my eyes. He was too playful— contrasting to mine. "You're clearly hungry," He slapped my tummy softly using the back of his hand. "You should be thanking me." Ngumiwi siya at binitawan na talaga ako.

"They won't notice your absence anyway, unless you text them or something."

He settled himself on a two-sitter table. Shaking my head, I sat in front of him. Humalukipkip ako at pinagmamasdan siyang nakapalumbaba. He was grinning cutely.

Then I remembered Cha again. Mat noticed how my expression fell down. "Are you sure hindi talaga naging kayo ni Cha?"

"Bakit?" Nagtataka niyang tanong. "Hindi naging kami. May problema ba roon?"

The food arrived, I devoured it the moment the server place it in front of me. Wala na akong gana na sagutin pa si Mat, he was also looking at me funnily. I didn't care about my look anymore, goodness. Gutom na gutom na ako!

My phone pinged, binasa ko ang kung sino man ang nagtext. It was from Jelai.

From: Jelai

Where uuuuu?

Dalu-dali akong nagtipa ng isasagot.

Me:

Kumakain:( pagtakpan mo ako plsz gutom na me. with mat naman kaya no worries!

"Who's that?" Mat tried to take a peek. Iniwas ko ang phone at nagbehlat sa kaniya. His forehead furrowed even more.

"Si Jelai lang," I shrugged my shoulders and slipped my phone inside my pocket. "Oh, by the way... hindi ka ba manunuod kay Charlotte?" Though she's annoying, it still won't change the fact that she's a Queen. Worth the watch ang pageant if kasali siya. A Goddess in disguise.

"You won't mind?"

"Why would I?"

He stared at me for a couple of seconds before finalizing his decision inside his head. After eating our foods, we strolled around the campus. There were booths around and other stuffs for you to enjoy. Unfortunately, the pageant was cancelled. Bukas na raw, the school's band replaced the vacant activity. Everyone was having a lot of good time.

"Hindi ka na babalik?!" He shouted so I can hear his voice. We're just behind the stage and everyone was so loud, the drummer slammed the drums so hard and even the guitarist strummed its guitar fast. Isali mo pa ang sigawan ng mga tao.

"What?!"

Lumapit siya sa akin. His face was just an inch closer to mine, my voice almost hitched.

"Hindi ka na ba babalik sa council ngayon?" He whispered. His warm breath sent shivers down to my spine. I thought he was going to kiss me.

***

"How was your day, Sy?" Tanong ni Papa habang iniinom ang kaniyang kape. Yes, he drinks coffee everynight. Old habits die hard.

I shrugged my shoulders. "It was tiring, President Duties... and stuffs." I shrugged. Mat and I just indulged ourselves in the sea of people— listening to the band. Caught up in a moment. And other shiz.

My heart fluttered by imagining how wholesome that moment was.

"Come on!" He was grinning so wide and crouched a bit, waiting for me to hop on his back.

"Are you sure about this?" Nag-aalangan kong tanong. "Baka matumba ka."

"You're light, kaya ko naman. Bilisan mo na!"

I cackled because of the movements of his face. "Fine. Just don't try to drop me, okay?"

I wrapped my arms around his neck and let him hook my legs to his hands. He now lifted me, My heart was too happy. First, his scent. Second, I was too close. Third, he just piggy-backed me. Fourth, The scenery from up here was cool. It was as if I was on top of the world— lol. He was quite tall so yes.

"Kumapit ka ah?" He reminded me. I wanted to snuggle closer.

"Okay ka lang ba?" Mom worriedly asked me.

I came back from my reverie and sat down properly. Tumawa ng malakas si Chile sa kaniyang upuan na parang demonyo. Napasapo nalang ako sa aking noo, here we go again...

"Kasama na naman niya boyfriend niya kasi!"

I stuck out my tongue and signaled to punch her if she continues to do it.

"Sino ba kasi 'yan?" Now Papa's curious. Great!

"Jowa ni Sy, si Mat—" Mama even answered confidently!

"We're not in a relationship, Ma." Pagkaklaro ko.

"Oh, don't worry, 'nak. Soon magiging jowa mo na siya. Advance mindset lang." Mama smiled wickedly to piss of my soul.

"Sino ba kasi 'yan? papuntahin mo 'yan dito bukas." Dad declared. Both Chile and Mama burst into laugher