Kabanata 19
377 Words
Gavin’s POV
“Akala Ko di siya aalis — Hanggang Sa Mahanap Ko Ang Sarili Kong Naiwan.”
Akala ko hindi ko siya mamimiss.
Samantha was always just there.
My constant. My best friend.
The girl who always answered my calls — kahit madaling araw.
The girl who never made me choose — kahit alam niyang hindi siya ang pinipili ko.
For so long, I thought I could keep her beside me without giving her my heart.
Pero ngayon…
Wala na siya sa tabi ko.
Hindi siya nagagalit.
Hindi rin siya nagtatanong.
Wala. Tahimik lang siya.
At ‘yung katahimikan niya — mas malakas pa sa kahit anong sigawan.
Nakita ko siyang tumatawa kay Lucas.
I’ve seen her laugh a thousand times, but this one—this one didn’t belong to me.
Parang iba na ang mundo niya.
Parang hindi na ako kasama.
And for the first time in my life, I felt… scared.
Nag-drive ako papunta sa bahay nila nang hindi sigurado kung anong sasabihin.
Nakita ko siya sa garden, may hawak na libro, tahimik lang habang pinapainit ng araw ang balat niya.
“Sam,” I said.
She looked up, calm but distant. “Gav.”
No more soft eyes. No more waiting.
Just a girl who’s already let go — even if part of her heart still knows my name.
“Can we talk?” tanong ko.
“About what?” tanong niya, diretso, walang alinlangan.
“About… us.”
She closed the book slowly.
“You mean the ‘us’ you’ve never claimed?”
Tumama.
Walang sigawan. Walang drama.
Pero ‘yung sakit? Buo. Tahimik. Malalim.
I wanted to tell her I was sorry.
I wanted to tell her I chose wrong.
That I kept chasing someone who left me — while the one who stayed, I never even looked at properly.
Pero paano mo sasabihin ‘yon sa taong natutong mabuhay kahit wala ka?
So I stood there.
Not as her best friend.
Not as the man she used to love.
But as someone… who just realized too late.
“I miss you.”
‘Yon lang ang nasabi ko.
And she nodded, like she already knew.
But she didn’t say it back.
Because this time, I was the one left behind.
- Writer
