5.Seen
1005 Words
Brena’s POV
Netflix was on. Volume full. Lights off. But her mind? Chaotic. Gusto niyang sabunutan anmg sarili niya sa mga oras na yun.
Brena hugged her knees on the bed, fingers clutching a half-eaten pack of SkyFlakes like it owed her an explanation.
"Date daw. Eh kung date-deytin ko kaya mukha nia."
She scoffed for the fifth time that night, replaying Sevy’s smug little exit after he threw that line at her like it meant nothing.
She muted the TV and glanced at her phone for no reason. Again.
1 new message.
From the last person she wanted to hear from. “Hope you got home safe.” basa niya sa message nito.
Napasinghap siya.
That one stupid line.
After everything? After that damn basketball stunt? After the fan-girls, the smug grin, the Ate mo 'ko scene na muntik nang magpahulog sa kanya nang tuluyan? Ngayon, ganun lang?
She locked her phone then unlocked it again.
Nagtype siya ng reply.
“Why do you care?”
Delete.
“Safe naman ako. Di mo na kailangan mag-alala.”
Delete.
“Tangina mo.”
She almost hit send. But decided to delete it again. "TRang-ina lang!"
She stared at the blinking cursor. The anger was bubbling, but beneath it—hurt. Not because he left. Not even because of that Kyla girl. But because even after all this time, she still waited for that message.
And now that it’s here, she didn’t know what to do with it.
Was it guilt? Concern? Leftover habit? or was she just... convenient to care about pag wala na si Kyla sa paligid?
Tumayo siya at naglakad papunta sa vanity table. She looked at her reflection—messy hair, puffy eyes, empty expression.
"Ang panget mo na Brena."
“Anong ginagawa mo, Bren?” she whispered to herself. "Umasa ka ba talaga?” she added.
Tears welled up again, but this time, she didn’t wipe them.
She picked up her phone. Pressed long on the message. Then pressed the like button.
May reply? Ang sagot wala, none, nothing.
She locked her phone and threw it on the bed.
Then curled into herself, pretending her chest wasn’t aching like hell.
It's already late at night. She lay flat on the bed, eyes glued to the ceiling, heart pounding as if she had just run a marathon.
"Hope you got home safe."
Paulit-ulit yun na tumatakbo sa utak niya. Baka nga kung may karera sa pabilisan ng takbuhan sa utak, malamang panalo na siya.
Bakit ngayon? Bakit pa? “Wow, concerned ka?” bulong niya sa sarili, voice laced with bitterness.
Biglang bumalik sa isip niya lahat. The way he looked at her during the game—confused, a little caught off guard, but not enough to stop himself. Not enough to choose her.
Pinili pa rin niya umalis. Pinili niyang hindi ako sundan. Pinili niya 'yung Kyla na 'yon over me.
Tumagilid siya, humawak sa dibdib.
"F*ck Sevy," she muttered—but her voice cracked.
Napansin niyang nanginginig ang kamay niya, not from anger, but from holding back all the tears she swore she wouldn't cry.
FLASHBACK – earlier today
She was in the small office beside the kitchen, hunched over supplier documents and inventory reports.
“Anak, lunch muna tayo,” tawag ni Mommy mula sa dining area.
“Later, Ma! Kakatapos lang mag-deliver ni Mang Edwin. May backlog pa sa system.”
“Sigurado ka ba? Baka hindi ka na naman kumain.”
She nodded, eyes still locked on the laptop screen. “May ini-input lang, Ma. I’ll reheat later.”
She lied again.
Truth was, her appetite was long gone since last night. Her chest still carried the weight of the game—and of that one message Sevy had sent. That single line that burned through her like acid.
Pero kahit ganun, she still showed up for the business.
She signed three invoices, arranged product scheduling for the next week, replied to inquiries online, and double-checked the reports for their logistics team.
No one could say she wasn’t dependable. She was the boss’s daughter, yes—but she worked like the most underpaid employee in the room.
Still, in the quiet moments, sa pagitan ng mga numbers and updates, naiisip pa rin niya siya.
Kahit anong gawin niyang paglipat ng tab, bakit parang hindi niya malipatan ‘yung nararamdaman?
"Hay nuhay ko." wika ko.
Back to Present
It's almost midnight.
She picked up her phone again, desperate for anything to distract her.
Ayaw niya kasi ng ganito. Ma malala 'tong nararamdaman ko kesa nung una.
She heaved a sigh. Then scroll her phone till she pressed the gallery.
In her gallery, she scrolled... and scrolled... until she landed on them.
Selfies sa arcade.
That blurry shot from the Ferris wheel.
A candid pic of Sevy laughing, eyes closed, face turned slightly to her.
She stared at it for a while. Ang ganda ng ngiti niya. Parang walang baggage. Parang ang dali niyang mahalin.
She bit her lip hard, pinipigilan ang sarili.
“Para kang tanga, Brena,” she whispered. “Tumingin ka sa lalaking sinaktan ka na nga, tapos ikaw pa rin ‘tong nagpapakatanga. Move on na Adson girl.”
She zoomed in on the photo, studying the curve of his jaw, the lines of his smile, the familiar way he wrinkled his nose when laughing.
She hated how much she missed him.
While looking at his picture. Another notification lit up the screen. Not from Sevy. Just a GC meme from her cousins.
She sighed.
And before she could stop herself, she opened Sevy’s message again.
Typed. Then erased.
Typed again.
“Thanks. You too.”
Delete.
“Still alive, if that’s what you’re asking.”
Delete.
She stared at the message one last time… then swiped it away.
No reply. Seen. Period.
Because if he really cared, he wouldn’t have left in the first place.
And if he ever wanted her back—he better fight for it this time.
- Writer
