Almost Noticed

Chapter 8: Almost Noticed

“May nagpaparamdam,” Ria whispered, leaning toward Hannaia as they sat on the nursing building steps.

“Ha?” Hannaia blinked, mid-bite into her turon.

“Si Zac. Halata na. Almost araw-araw kayong nagkakachat, ‘di ba?”

Hannaia rolled her eyes, though her cheeks warmed. “Chat lang naman. Wala naman ‘yun.”

“Eh bakit nakangiti ka habang nagta-type?”

She tried to hide her smile behind her snack. The truth was, Zac had become a regular part of her day—like coffee or clinical reports. Familiar, oddly essential.

Meanwhile, across campus, Zac was sitting with his groupmates, trying to focus on their project’s structural analysis. But his phone kept buzzing.

Hannaia: Do you think people know when they’re being noticed?

He stared at the message, curious. Then replied:

Zac: Depends. Bakit? May nagpaparamdam ba sayo?

Hannaia: Secret. 😂

Zac: Baka ako ‘yun. Almost noticed mo na ba ako?

She didn’t reply immediately, and Zac found himself waiting.

Hannaia: Maybe. Almost.

His lips twitched into a grin. “Almost,” he repeated under his breath.

Later that afternoon, they bumped into each other by the school cafeteria. Quite literally.

“Uy!” Zac said, catching her elbow as she nearly dropped her tray.

“Zac! Ikaw pala. Sorry, ‘di kita nakita.”

“Well, at least now, noticed na,” he teased.

She laughed. “Corny.”

“Effective,” he countered.

They ended up sitting together under their usual acacia tree. It wasn’t planned, but neither of them seemed to mind.

“Ang hirap minsan, ‘no?” Hannaia said suddenly. “Yung lahat ng pangarap mo, parang ang layo-layo pa rin.”

Zac looked at her. “Lalo na kapag pagod ka na.”

She nodded. “Pero kahit pagod ka na, kailangan mo pa rin gumising kinabukasan.”

“Alam mo, sa totoo lang... ikaw ‘yung dahilan kung ba’t mas okay ‘yung mga araw ko ngayon,” Zac said quietly.

She blinked. “What?”

“Seriously. Dati parang routine lang lahat. Pero nung nakilala kita… ayun. Mas may kulay na kahit papano.”

There was a beat of silence.

“Ikaw din,” she said, voice softer. “You make things feel... lighter.”

Neither of them spoke after that. They didn’t need to.

Sometimes, the loudest confessions came in shared silences and half-meant jokes.

And as the sun began to set behind the rooftops of their tired campus, the two students sat together, closer now—not by chance, but by choice.

Almost noticed.

Almost something.

And almost… ready to see what might come next.