Chapter 19
1604 Words
Friday – 9:17 AM – Cafeteria
It started with a voice Aira hadn’t heard in over a year.
“Uy, Santiago! Di ka na namamansin ha?”
She turned, surprised. “Justin?”
Justin from her old Literature block—tall, slightly smug, and always half-joking. The kind of person who thought teasing meant connection.
“I heard you transferred blocks. Na-offend ba kita?” he said, leaning slightly too close.
Aira stepped back politely. “No, just different sched.”
Calix, already seated at their table, watched the exchange with a still face. He didn’t interrupt. Just observed.
But when Justin ruffled Aira’s hair before leaving, Calix’s jaw clenched.
10:00 AM – Walk to Class
Aira noticed the shift.
Calix’s responses were shorter. Smile, thinner. Grip on his tumbler? Tighter.
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
She frowned. “That’s your ‘not really’ yeah.”
He exhaled. “Just… didn’t know people still ruffled your hair.”
Aira blinked—then smiled. “Jealous ka ba?”
Calix didn’t deny it.
“I just didn’t like how familiar he was,” he admitted. “You looked uncomfortable.”
She softened. “I was. But I didn’t need to say anything. Kasi I knew you were there.”
He looked at her now—really looked. “Still… it caught me off guard. That I could feel that way.”
> “I never thought I’d care this much,” he thought.
And now that he did—every little threat felt real.
11:36 AM – Aira’s POV – Lecture Room
They took different classes that morning, so Aira sat alone in her PolSci elective.
That’s when she saw her.
Girl with the white ribbon. From Calix’s org.
She remembered the name vaguely: Cheska. Always smiling. Always chatty. The kind who walked like sunshine—and sat beside Calix too often during org events.
And right now? She was laughing with him in the hallway.
Too close. Too soft.
Aira looked away before Calix even noticed her.
12:03 PM – Text from Calix
> Missed you. Meet for lunch?
Aira replied:
> Café sa may bridge. 12:30.
But didn’t add a heart. Didn’t even add a smiley.
12:31 PM – Café by the Bridge
Calix arrived with two trays and her favorite drink.
“Hey,” he greeted.
Aira gave a small smile. “Thanks.”
He noticed it instantly—her energy, cooler. Her posture, closed.
“You okay?” he asked.
“Yeah.”
He raised a brow. “That’s your ‘not really’ yeah.”
She smirked a little. “Touché.”
Silence.
Then she said, “Do you always laugh like that with Cheska?”
Calix blinked. “What?”
“In the hallway kanina. I saw you.”
He set down his fork. “She told a weird story about their cat swallowing an earring. I laughed. That was it.”
“I’m not mad,” Aira said quickly.
“But you’re… what?”
“Reminded,” she admitted. “That other people see the way you are, too. And maybe they’ll want that. And maybe you’ll want them.”
Calix leaned forward, voice low. “I didn’t wait months for you just to get distracted by sunshine girls with noisy earrings.”
Aira chuckled despite herself.
“I get it though,” he added. “What you felt. Because I felt it too kanina. With Justin.”
Her eyes widened.
“Felt like someone was reaching into something that’s already mine,” he said quietly. “Even if we haven’t said the words yet.”
> And there it was. The truth neither of them had said out loud. That they were beginning to want each other in a way that feared losing.
2:00 PM – Rooftop Garden
They sat there again, side by side.
No teasing this time. Just silence and clarity.
“Do you think it’s bad?” Aira asked. “That we felt jealous?”
“No,” Calix replied. “It means we care.”
“But what if it becomes too much?”
He reached for her pinky. Linked it with his.
“Then we talk. Like this. No guessing. No games.”
Aira nodded, her heart beating just enough to say—she trusted that.
> “If this is love,” she thought,
“then maybe it doesn’t need to be perfect.
Just honest. Just kind. Just here.”
Midnight – Aira’s Journal Entry
> “I used to think jealousy was a red flag.
Now I think… maybe it’s just proof.
That something you once feared never having,
is finally becoming something you don’t want to lose.”
Saturday – 10:18 AM – Dorm Courtyard
Aira waited under the shade, scrolling through her phone while waiting for Calix. They were supposed to visit a pop-up book fair downtown—Calix’s idea.
When he finally arrived, he had two things in hand: a tote bag and a single flower—pressed inside a clear bookmark.
“What’s that?” she asked, puzzled.
“For your books,” he said simply. “And because I forgot to bring actual flowers the first time I liked you.”
Aira raised an eyebrow. “You liked me from the start?”
Calix laughed. “Maybe not first minute. But second day? Yeah.”
She held the bookmark gently.
“I dried it myself,” he added. “Took three tries.”
> Small gesture. Big meaning.
It wasn’t romantic in the loud way.
But it was Calix—intentional, sincere, a little awkward.
1:02 PM – Book Fair, Manila
They wandered through rows of secondhand novels and art prints. Aira gravitated toward poetry; Calix toward graphic memoirs.
While flipping through an old copy of Lang Leav, Aira heard a girl say Calix’s name.
“Calix? Is that you?”
A tall girl in a red shirt walked up—bright smile, confident energy.
“Lara,” Calix said, surprised. “Wow. It’s been a while.”
They did a brief half-hug.
Aira’s heart stilled.
“You still write?” Lara asked, glancing briefly at Aira, then back at Calix.
“Yeah, still trying,” he chuckled.
Then Lara’s voice dropped, just a bit softer. “Still with the quiet types, huh?”
Aira stepped forward slightly.
“Hi. I’m Aira,” she said, voice calm. “The quiet type, apparently.”
Lara smiled politely. “Nice to meet you. I was just teasing.”
Aira smiled back—but her hand found Calix’s as they walked away.
2:00 PM – Train Ride Back
They sat beside each other, the train packed.
Aira held her newly bought poetry book in her lap.
“Okay ka lang?” Calix asked.
“Yeah,” she said.
But her fingers were still curled around his.
“She was… something,” Aira said eventually.
Calix nodded. “She used to be someone I thought I wanted. But it never really felt right. Not like this.”
Aira looked at him, eyes narrowing just slightly.
“What does ‘this’ feel like?”
He answered without thinking. “Like something I don’t want to un-choose.”
> And in that sentence, she felt it.
That he saw her. Chose her. Every day. Even in moments she doubted it.
6:45 PM – Dorm Balcony
Later that evening, they met again outside, both carrying mugs.
“Do you believe,” Aira started, “na jealousy can be healthy?”
Calix shrugged. “I think if it makes you listen to your heart more than your fear—then maybe.”
Aira was quiet for a while.
“I got jealous today,” she admitted.
“I noticed.”
“And yesterday. With Cheska.”
“I know.”
“But… I don’t want it to ruin what we have,” she said softly. “I just want to learn how to handle it better.”
“You already are,” Calix replied. “You’re naming it. You’re not hiding it.”
Then he added, “And I want to learn too.”
Their mugs clinked gently in the air like a toast.
“To what?” Aira asked.
“To learning together.”
Flashback – Aira, 18 Years Old
Aira once told Mira, “If I ever fall again, I want someone who makes me feel safe in the silence. Someone who doesn’t run when it gets messy.”
Now, looking at Calix sipping quietly beside her, she thought—maybe this is it.
Maybe it’s already happening.
10:02 PM – Dorm Hallway
Calix walked her to her room, as always.
This time, she didn’t open the door right away.
Instead, she turned to him.
“Hey, Calix?”
“Hmm?”
“I’m not ready for a label yet. But I think I’m ready for one thing.”
He tilted his head, curious.
She took a breath, then reached up—gently kissed his cheek.
“I’m choosing you too,” she whispered.
Calix didn’t speak.
He didn’t need to.
He just smiled, eyes soft, hands in his pockets—trying not to burst.
Midnight – Calix’s POV – Dorm Room
He sat on the edge of his bed, rereading a short message on his phone.
From Aira:
> Thank you for never making me feel like I had to earn your patience.
He closed his eyes and let the quiet hold him.
> “I used to fall fast,” he thought.
“Now I’m learning what it means to fall slow, and fall safe.”
- Writer
