Chapter 9: Pause and Panic
382 Words
It started with one missed reply.
Zac sent a funny meme at 9:42 a.m. Usually, Hannaia would laugh-react or send a comeback within minutes. But this time—nothing.
By lunch, still no response.
He told himself not to overthink it. Maybe may duty. Maybe walang signal. Maybe tulog pa.
But come 7 p.m., when even her stories were quiet and the green dot beside her name never lit up, a tiny weight settled in his chest.
Hannaia, on the other hand, sat on a hospital bench, still in uniform, clutching her phone with tired fingers.
She stared at Zac’s message and the blinking cursor beneath it. Her day had been overwhelming—three back-to-back clinical shifts, an emotional patient case, and a breakdown she tried to hide in the restroom.
She wanted to reply. She wanted to laugh. But she felt... numb.
“Sorry,” she whispered, typing nothing, then locking her screen again.
The next day, Zac spotted her from afar—walking briskly, eyes low, shoulders heavy.
He caught up to her near the canteen.
“Hey,” he said, gently.
She stopped. “Hey.”
“You okay?”
She forced a smile. “Pagod lang. Dami lang sa utak.”
Zac nodded slowly. “You don’t have to talk about it. Pero if you need to, alam mo naman... I’m here, right?”
Her throat tightened at the sincerity. She blinked quickly.
“Thanks,” she whispered.
They walked in silence. Zac didn’t press. He just matched her pace.
That afternoon, Hannaia sent a message.
Hannaia: Sorry, Zac. Napagod lang ako. Hindi ikaw ang reason. Hindi ikaw ang iniiwasan.
Zac: Okay. Thank you sa message. Nandito lang ako, kahit tahimik ka.
Hannaia: Kahit ‘di ako masaya lagi?
Zac: Lalo na ‘pag ganun. Kasi hindi ka dapat mag-isa.
Tears pricked Hannaia’s eyes. She hadn’t realized how much she needed to hear that.
In a world full of expectations and pressure, Zac offered something else—presence. Quiet, steady, real.
It wasn’t romantic yet. It wasn’t perfect.
But it was the kind of support that reminded her: she was seen.
Even when she was silent.
Even when she felt like disappearing.
Zac still noticed.
And somehow, that made it easier to breathe again.
- Writer
