Rumors About Him
586 Words
Working with Liam was… surprisingly easy.
He didn’t talk, but he understood everything.
He didn’t ask questions, but he wrote the answers fast.
He didn’t smile, but he listened.
The silence between us wasn’t uncomfortable anymore.
It felt calm.
Stable.
Safe, even.
But that peace didn’t last long.
During our break, I went to the side of the classroom to refill my water bottle.
On my way back, I overheard a group of students talking near the back—too close to Liam’s desk.
At first, I didn’t want to listen, but then I heard his name.
“Basta, my cousin said—sinapak daw ni Liam yung classmate niya last year.”
“Eh kasi toxic attitude niya, diba? Lagi naman siyang galit.”
“Hala, what if ma-trigger siya bigla? Nakakatakot kaya.”
I stopped walking.
Liam was sitting right there, pretending he couldn’t hear them.
But his hands… were trembling slightly under the table.
They kept talking, louder and louder, as if he wasn’t just three feet away.
“Uy, what if magalit ‘yan bigla? Kawawa si Aya—seatmate niya pa naman.”
“True! Kung ako sa kanya lilipat na ako.”
Bit by bit, more students joined the conversation, like a snowball rolling downhill, gathering dirt.
I felt my chest tighten.
Rumors sting more when they’re aimed at someone who never defends himself.
I looked at Liam.
He didn’t flinch.
Didn’t look up.
Didn’t say a word.
But the way his shoulders slowly stiffened…
He heard everything.
I stepped forward.
“Stop,” I said firmly.
The entire group turned to me.
“Stop spreading stories,” I continued, voice steady. “You don’t know what really happened.”
They exchanged confused looks.
One girl rolled her eyes. “Ano ka ba, Aya. Totoo naman ‘yun—”
“You don’t know that.”
“But you’re new here,” another boy said. “You don’t know him like we do.”
I glanced at Liam again.
His head was lowered.
His jaw tight.
He looked small.
Tired.
Alone.
“I know enough,” I said quietly. “I sit beside him. And he hasn’t done anything wrong.”
They fell silent—not convinced, but embarrassed that I called them out.
“Whatever,” someone muttered before they walked away.
When the last of them left, the room returned to its usual noise.
But the space around Liam felt colder.
I slowly walked back to my seat and sat down.
He still wasn’t looking at me.
Not even once.
He just kept staring at the blank space on his desk.
For a moment, I didn’t know what to say.
Then…
“Thank you.”
His voice.
Soft.
Quiet.
Barely above a whisper.
But it was unmistakably his.
I turned to him, eyes widening.
He still didn’t look at me, but his hands had relaxed, and his breathing wasn’t shaky anymore.
“That’s the first time you talked to me,” I whispered.
He swallowed, then nodded slightly.
“I just… didn’t want you to feel alone,” I added.
His eyes flicked upward, meeting mine for just a second.
That tiny second felt heavier than any word he could’ve said.
Before I could say more, something unexpected happened:
Liam stood up.
He walked out of the classroom without a word.
Not angry.
Not upset.
But shaken.
And for the first time since I met him…
I realized Liam didn’t just avoid people.
He was scared of them.
- Writer
