That Day

Chapter 5: Got an Ally

"Oh! What a handsome boy!"the maid pinched my cheek and giggled. She's at her forties if I am not mistaken..

Of course, my mom is pretty.

" Hahah, thank you po"I said, trying to laugh, ahh so not me.

"Oh, thank you for the book, my son will be even more happy that it has the signature of Mrs. Trinidad, he no longer has to stand in long lines to get one" she said and laughed heartily.

I answered with a nod.

"Please pardon me about earlier, I really thought there was a thief", she said apologizing.

"No, its okay" - I am a way too handsome for a thief.

Yeah, I almost lost my dignity minutes ago because she had mistaken me for a thief. Good thing my face has a great resemblance to that of mom that she recognized me right away. I gave her my mom's book in my bag upon knowing her daughter is a super fan of my mom's work. In exchange for the information I got from her.

"Ahm, I think I need to go."

"Oh, take care, visit, at times like this again so that Singrid doesn't see you."

She responded and winked.

I nodded and smiled a little. I asked her to keep everything a secret; our conversation and my visit and she agreed.

So it turns out that the old-named girl is a housemaid in that house and not the owner of it. Aling Sabel said her parents got separated when she was 13 and she was left to her grandmother's care. But unfortunately, the oldwoman died just months ago. And neither of her parents can be contacted. There's a rumour that both of them already had had their own family. So Aling Sabel, their neighbor, decided to bring her along here in Batangas. Their boss shouldered her education.

"So that explains her strange behavior" I said to myself, nodding.

I feel bad for her, she's very young to carry such a burden in her heart. That's probably the reason why she chose to be cold and distant. She's afraid to get attached to anyone and again be left alone.

Dad is a decade older than my mom but I know that they love each other so much, it shows everyday. Parents separation destroys the innocent souls of many children.

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All of my attempts to make myself fall asleep were in vain. It was past midnight already, yet my mind was still in chaos. I thought my mind would be at peace after feeding my curiosity, but it turned out otherwise. The image of the girl crying keeps on playing in my mind in company with her complicated life story. It seems like I'm bewitched. I don't know if it is because of pity or I simply like her. I really don't know.

Irritated, I jumped out of bed. If my mind keeps on entertaining the thought, the more I try to resist it. Now, I'll think and think about it until somnolence swallows me.

After moments of deep thinking, I finally came up with a plan. I get back to my bed feeling satisfied and with a smile on my face, I slowly drift off.

Ever since that night, I decided to make each day a less burden to her. I may not be that powerful to completely take away her burden in an instant, but I promise to myself that I'll help her unload it little by little.

Unlike yesterday, she's different today. She's still quiet and distant but glints of happiness are visible in her face. Maybe something bad happened to her yesterday. Or that day reminds her of her lola.

"It's up to you" I said and tapped Shen's shoulder, entrusting her to the thing I can't do myself.

"OK, just later, huh" he winked.

"Yes, I'll take care of it."

Each day at school, I send old-named girl flowers along with a letter of encouragement, hoping that it could atleast lift up her day. And when dismissal came, I would follow her on her way home just to make sure she got home safe. There is no certain reason why I'm doing this. All I know is I'm happy seeing those perfect curbs her face makes every time she receives my flowers and letters. I know I'm not in love, for love takes time to develop. Maybe Infatuated is the right term.

...............................................................................

"I'm sorry"old named girl said to the man infront her apologetically.

Basted!!!

My lips twitch into a smirk as I watched the bright colors fade into the boy's face. He flashed a fake smile but it failed to cover up his about-to-cry expression.

" It's okay, at least now you know my feelings for you. That is enough for me" he said, almost in a broken voice.

I shook my head, smirking,

Sorry dude, my baby is the rare type of girl whom you wouldn't get by your strumming skills and manly voice. She's hard as rock, a total babe!

He stands and carries his guitar with him. And with great disappointment he got away.

"It's okay, at least now you know my feelings for you. That's enough for me" I muttered, imitating his voice.

Haha... Liars!

The drama had ended so I got out of the place I was hiding and went straight to the school cafeteria. It’s already time for my breakfast. If only I'd informed about such play earlier, I would have asked Nana to cook some popcorn for me and brought it here.

That was not actually the first time I witnessed such a confession. It happened so many times that I lost count of how many men had confessed to her and been turned down. I told you she's pretty. So damn pretty.

"What a great morning. I'll surely eat a lot", I just told to myself.

Soon as I finished my breakfast, I headed to the classroom with overflowing joy in my heart still. I was one step away from the classroom door when a group of girls waylaid me on my way, asking for some picture with me. And because I'm in a good mood today, I allowed them.

"Aw, you really are so handsome" one of them said, looking at our pictures.

"and smart", another one added, and they all giggled.

I'm a member of our school publication. And maybe it's because of my mom's popularity, or my pretty face or the articles I've written are just great that students love it.

BLAG!!!

They stopped giggling and all of us searched for the source of the noise. The noise came inside our classroom.

It was an old-named-girl, he dropped her book on the floor.

The surroundings became quiet for a moment and my classmates' eyes were now on her. She's quiet most of the time and such an act of hers is something new to us. She's not the clamsy type.

" I'm sorry" she said and picked up her book silently.

Curious, I dismissed the girls and went inside the room.

I look at old name girl's which is now resting her head on her table.

Is she jealous or what? Wait has she found it out already ? But how?

Oh, that's nonsense self.. You're assuming things. How will she find out when she doesn't have even the slightest interest in you?

The whole day went well and it was our dismissal. I decided not to follow her today and go with our driver home. Mom is starting to get suspicious about me refusing to be fetched and choosing to commute instead. Also, we agreed to meet each other at the mall because she insists on accompanying me in choosing my suit for tomorrow's Prom. If you were to ask me, I don't really want to go, but then the thought that she might also be there made me skeptical and, in the end, I decided to come.