Behind Bars
"Talo nanaman," Sia groaned in utter disappointment. The game was so close it had me on the edge of my seat.
However, I drooped when I saw the one score difference between the two teams. Despite me feeling bad that our strand lost the game, my eyes wandered in his direction.
My breath hitched when I saw that he was already staring back. Zy smiled, tilting his head while he mouthed something. Unfortunately for him, I do not know how to lip read.
I titled my head back at him in a confused manner. He laughed at my confusion then raised an okay hand sign, pointing at it with a raised eyebrow. Oh, I get it! I gave him a thumbs up. Pleased with my response, he smiled before going back to his teammate for a celebration hug.
"Pre, ba't may pa hand sign ka diyan?"
"Nothing," I grinned as if I was not having a mental breakdown about how there's a possibility he had a crush on Cole.
I'm still light-headed at the thought, but even with my self reflection I do not know when to give up when it comes to him so my facade stays.
"Gago ka Mel, si STEM hottie ba hina-handsign-an mo?!" Gulat na gulat naman si Aizhy. Hindi ba pwedeng maging friendly with my crush?
"Maybe," I teased, causing both of them to aggressively shake me. I don't know what they wanted out of that, maybe they thought they could shake the answers out of me. Sorry but that is not happening any time soon.
"Maybe? Hala binata na siya!" Aizhy sounded so proud of me. I wonder if she would still be proud if she knew what I was cooking up. Kung alam nila pinagpla-plano ko. I would be punished by being cooked from her nagging.
"Hehe."
"Hehe!? Beh, may nag-possess ba sa'yo?" Krissia was surprised by my constant giggling. "Nabaliw na ata 'to, Ai!"
"Baliw para kay STEM Hottie!" Aizhy joined me in giggling. "Sanquite on top talaga."
"Eto naman si enabler."
"Hindi ako enabler. Supporter ako," She huffed.
"Same difference," Krissia debated, earning a dramatic gasp from Aizhy who shook her head in disagreement.
"There's a huge difference between enabling actions and supporting actions!" She rolled her eyes when she saw Krissia looking all smug ready to have another discourse.
"Explain the difference and how your actions are considered supporting."
The students were already leaving the court, forming a mob in the exit. I could hear the both of them going at each other's throats debating whether Aizhy was an enabler or not.
Either way I'm just thankful someone has my back. That includes Krissia who's evidently smirking at Aizhy's knitted eyebrows.
It might seem that Krissia does not want me to continue liking Zyle, however I want to proclaim that she probably is just overprotective over me.
After Aizhy rejected her, she's been on and off about the topic of romance. Then we learn she hates someone's guts which is not new yet it's baffling how much she hates that brunette cheerleader.
"Tangina wala na nga tayo sa 21st century lit pinapa-debate mo na ako!"
"Kung nasa 21st century tayo, you would've failed," Sia was unworried, the opposite of Ai na kulang na lang uusok na ang tenga niya sa irita.
"Okay sorry to cut your conversation short," As soon as I saw the crowd lessening, I stood up from the bench, wiping the dust that accumulated on my pants. "Let's do something to feel better after that game."
"Sure, karaoke tayo?" Sia suggested.
Aizhy eagerly nodded in response, our tone-deaf best friend somehow likes singing her heart out. Maybe because she knows even with the amount of times we joked about her voice, we love hearing her sing with so much joy.
Karaoke hang-outs are nothing without her out of pitch high notes that Krissia joins in with a random adlib. Of course I have a contribution—I harmonize with my cackling.
"Invite natin sila Quatro!"
"I don't think that's possible," I subtly sent Zy a congratulatory text. Mabilisan kong nilagay sa bulsa ko ang aking phone para 'di nila mapansin. They don't know we exchanged our contacts, okay? I'll tell them when my confession either gets accepted or rejected.
"Ahy shet oo nga, everytime natatalo sila, nagsa-samg sila!" Tumayo na din si Aizhy. "Nakakainggit naman, kung may budget lang ako."
"Kanta na lang tayo about samg, mag compose tayo," We laughed at Sia's insane proposal.
"We can title it 'always beefing' which is perfect because you two always fight like cats and dogs!" Lumakas ang tawa nila. Muntikan pa nga matapilok si Sia kakatawa.
"Tama na, hindi na ako makahinga," She said, catching her breathe as we walked towards the exit.
"Tapos yung stage name natin is Kimchi Nadals," Tawa kami nang tawa na para bang we weren't aware of our surroundings. To the point that we didn't realize we were already in front of the ktv.
We went inside, still chuckling silently to not disturb the people in the lobby. We paid no mind to the woman behind the counter's judging look, "For three people po."
"Kailangan niyo pa maghintay, nakikita niyo naman na walang vacant room," The staff rudely explained. Purposely chewing her gum louder and louder by the second.
"Sige po," Sia turned to us, eyes rolling back in annoyance.
"Ang plastic ng dating mo ha."
"At least hindi ako bastos magsalita," Umupo siya sa pinakamalayong couch upang hindi makita ang pagmumukha ng babae sa counter.
"Mas worse ba si ate cheerleader kaysa dito?" She sat next to Krissia.
"Oo," That was a really quick response. She didn't even miss a single beat!
"We should change topics. I feel that Krissia's going to explode," I whispered.
Concern lang ako baka kasi sumigaw 'to sa inis niya. Grabe pa naman 'to magalit. She doesn't hurt anyone per se only her words hurt. As if she punched you! She didn't just train in physical boxing, she's a professional verbal boxer. She K.O.s people with her sharp tongue.
Aizhy clapped out of excitement. I assume she thought of a great topic to distract the impending time bomb we have nestled between us.
"Next Monday na ang foundation week!"
"Oh my gosh! I almost forgot," I admitted. Pareho silang 'di na nagulat. Sanay na sila sa sobrang makalimutin ko.
"Excited ako sa booths," Napangiti si Aizhy sa idea of the multiple booths lining up different parts of the campus—specifically the senior high portion of this university. I heard that the college has a different way of celebrating our school's anniversary.
"Last day lang daw i-o-open yung mga valentine related booths," Krissia finally slid into the conversation. Although her frown deepened at the mention of valentine's. Which I find hilarious since she was the one who brought it up.
"Luh so walang marriage booth so Monday?" Her eyes grew large. "Or yung mail booth?"
"Wala, special yung sa last kasi Feb 14 tas lahat tayo mag aabide sa color code."
I suddenly remembered the conversation we had about what color we would wear during the most awaited Valentine's event. Nothing's changed. I would still wear a pink-colored outfit—umaasa pa rin kasi ako na ako yung "Hyacinth."
"So ta-tanggalin yung ibang booths?"
"Omsim."
"If it's Valentine-related. It's only going to be the marriage and mail booth?" In that case, it would be boring if it's just those two booths. Don't get me wrong, they're a staple in romantic schemes, however, I have my expectations and it's pretty high.
"May iba pa raw eh, narinig ko 'di pa finalized yung iba pero may blind date booth daw?" She shrugged. "Di ako sure."
"That's interesting," Now that's what I like to hear! A blind date booth? I could only imagine the amount of meet-cutes that will happen in that booth. I'm very likely going to dawdle around that booth to take some inspiration.
"True! Kasi narinig ko din 'yan actually. Like saglit lang naman, but narinig ko as in, randomized daw—kahit hindi ka naka-sign in sa mismong booth basta nasa attendance list ka automatic kang kasali," Aizhy rambled on about how that concept is perfect for extroverts then later described it as an "introvert's nightmare."
"Pasok na po kayo."
Sa wakas, pinapasok na kami sa isang available room. This time, the walls were painted with broody blue and decorated with a bunch of glittery broken hearts. Of course they didn't forget a sorrowful quote: "There was never an us. There will never be an us."
Is that a 'Maybe this time' movie reference? The owner must really love Filipino romance movies. Whoever you are, we are on the same wavelength. I love Filipino movie quotes despite me not quoting them a lot. I should start doing that.
"OMG, Mel!" Aizhy tapped me to get my attention. Her shouting my name was enough to make me turn to her,but I guess for her that wasn't cutting it.
"Yes?"
"May Nameless kids! Hindi ba gusto mo 'tong band na 'to!?" She exclaimed, showing me the songbook.
"Nahawa na ata ako sa pagkalimot ni Mel, gusto niya pala sila?"
"Bobo ka talaga! Naalala mo ba nung nag drop ang live adaptation ng He's Into Her? Sabi niya parang yung OST lang nagustuhan niya!"
"Wait, I did not hate the live adaptation," I defended myself.
"Pero na-disappoint ka!" I covered my ears to childishly avoid her accusation. I'm just going to put it out here: some books are better off staying as words written on paper. Some (emphasis on this) adaptations cannot capture the amazingness of the story, okay?
The only exception I can think of is "To All The Boys I've Loved Before." Yes, I'm biased since it's my favorite movie. We can have different opinions and still be civilized unless it's about a serious topic. I will not tolerate an opinion that harms another person.
"Ang daming dada paki-cue Social Media Damn!"
"Ang jeje mo!" Kahit na sinabi niya yan, she cued up the song and it immediately played. Krissia took the mic, confidently smirking as she did the intro.
"Baby, anong name mo? Para ma-save lang," she fluidly danced to the lyrics. We hyped her up as she kept on singing.
"Hahanapin ko sa Twitter o kaya sa Instagram. Ang ganda mo talaga, ika'y pang-social media damn!"
"X na yon!" Aizhy shouted. Krissia showed her middle finger while she focused on rapping.
"Aizhy, can you add Gabi to the list?" Bulong ko sa kanya habang seryosong kumakanta si Krissia. She gave me a thumbs up, then inputted the song into the machine.
"Sino next?" Natapos na rin ang napakatagal na kanta ni Krissia. That song lasted for six minutes. I'm honestly impressed she didn't get tired of repeating the chorus.
"Me!" I raised my hand as she passed the microphone to me.
They cheered when the instrumental eased in. "Nilalamig, ilang oras nang 'di mapakali."
"Poganda ng boses!" Aizhy squealed.
"Pag ako yan si STEM hottie, nahulog na ako."
"Tas sinasabi mong enabler ako?! Hypocrite," Both of them were bantering even in the middle of the soft melody. I laughed in the middle of singing. The contrast was straight out of a sitcom.
"Isasayaw na lang dahil di mo ko gusto. Malinaw ang lahat kahit tayo'y malabo~"
I poured all the emotions I was feeling into that line. Confused, sad, happy— everything's mind-baffling and this is a contrast that doesn't make me chuckle at the absurdity. It makes me sing-shout the lyrics of a song I never related to up until this moment.
In my opinion, the chorus of this song hits different. Lalo na kung umaasa ka sa isang tao grabe mag send ng mixed signals. Or ako yung gumagawa ng malisya at wala talagang signals?
"Parang may hinuhugot 'to ha?"
"May something ba kayo 'no!"
"Kahit na hindi ako ang panalangin mo, basta't isang hiling ko lang atin ang gabing ito," I shouted the lyrics to obscure their voices. I should answer them, but I can't. I don't know kung ano ang sagot. Wala ba o meyron?
Puro na lang may "or" ang nasa isip ko. There's always an option; never a definite answer. Can I be his definitive answer? I don't want to be an "or" in his life.
"Dati-rati sabay pa natin pinangarap ang lahat," They decided to do a duet after I finished my emotional rollercoaster of a song.
My heart aches for Krissia, who's longingly staring at Aizhy, who has her eyes closed. That could be a great metaphor if I weren't so dejected to even think of a poetic line.
I'll let the wall talk for both Krissia and I, "There was never an us. There will never be an us."
"Worth it talaga ng ktv."
That one hour in that room felt like both a minute and a hundred years at the same time. I'm having one of those overdramatic moods wherein I want to go into a cocoon and undergo the process of metamorphosis in order to change my haphazard attitude.
"Ingat sa pag-uwi, Mel!" We exchanged our farewells. I was about to hop on the bus when I felt something vibrate in my pocket.
Zy ˚ʚ♡ɞ˚:
Thank you Mel!
Then, in a blink, it was already Foundation Week. All throughout those seven days of no physical interaction, we texted till we were both sleepy.
The typical 'goodnight', 'sweetdreams', and 'sleep tight' we exchanged meant something more than courtesy to me. Yes, I need to get that assumero personality fixed.
"Are you Melvyn Hyacinthus Lasquite?"
"Yes, why po?"
"You're under arrest!"
Before I could resist, I was already detained in a well-done fake prison. Damn it, I became the victim of the jail booth! Lilibot pa sana ako para makita ang iba't ibang booths. Ngayon nandidito ako magisa nakapalibot ng mga estudyanteng naka police uniform.
"Lasquite, you are arrested for 10 years as stated in your case, a traitor to HUMSS!"
I can't believe that's the reason why I'm arrested. Who requested that?! Gets ko naman pero grabe naman oh!
"They really went all out," I muttered. I couldn't even entertain myself since they took my belongings. This felt like an actual prison.
Lumipas ng ilang minuto bago mabuksan ang pintuan. I thought I was bailed out from the help of my friends however a familiar dimpled-smile was thrown into the cage.
"Sanvictores, you are in prison for five years as stated in the issued arrest you were too hot to handle!" I snorted at how the "police officer" didn't even falter—poker faced and stern. She was so serious while uttering such nonsense. Well, it's not nonsense that he's too hot.
"Hello, welcome," I greeted Zy. His smile widened at the sight of me. You know what ? It's not so bad to be encaged in
"Why are you here?"
"I was arrested for being a traitor," I put my forehead against the bars, defeated, as I watched the students flock on the other foods. They look like they're enjoying the eventz and I can't even move an inch away from this box.
His laugh cut off all my complaining. I shouldn't be whining about being locked in when my crush— the one I've been trying to be with for the past couple weeks— is stuck with me. A win is a win.
"That's a better reason than mine."
"Sure, Mr. Too Hot to Handle," Pang-inis ko. Lumawak ang ngiti niya, pati na rin ang tawa niya, na sigurado akong could be heard from a mile away.
Whoever requested me to be arrested, thank you so much for doing me a favor.
His laughter died down. I swear I'm not just being delusional. There was a blush forming on his cheeks, including his ears—I was about to tease him when he cleared his throat and chuckled.
"Do you think the reason for my arrest is justifiable?" Zy raised his eyebrow cockily. Sarap sabihan na ang pangit niya, but lying is a sin, so I can't even try to humble him.
"That you're guilty of being too hot?"
"So you think I'm hot?"
"I do not!" Call me a hypocrite for saying lying is a sin, then proceeding to lie.
Before he could open his mouth, I cut him off. "Let's talk about something else!" Gosh, I do deserve to be in this booth—I'm clearly guilty of lying.
"Sure whatever makes you happy," he sassed. If I didn't like him, I would've exploded on him by now. Look closely everyone, this is the perfect example of being biased. Anyways, I suggested changing the topic, and I can't even think of one.
"Do you want to play a game?" He must've noticed my hesitation in trying to start another conversation.
"I noticed that you really like games. We did 20 Questions and also a guessing game," I mentioned.
Whenever we talk, it's either us playing some sort of game or discussing random topics. I could say the same for our chats too. Always too unusual to be casual, but at the same time, it's too mundane to mean something.
Yet here I am, fawning over the idea that we could be something.
"I love games," nakangising sabi niya.
His gaze wandered around my frame. Nanatili ang kanyang titig sa aking labi ng ilang segundo bago niyang pag-desisyonan na my eyes were a better option to focus on. He keeps doing that look thing that fries my brain as I try to fathom what it means.
I need to distract myself unless I want to go into another system shutdown. Gosh, I keep having those!
"I never thought you would be the type to like video games," I attempted to face away from Zy's watchful eyes, though that did not work out as I intended it to.
His fixed gaze was captivating, locking me in place. I thought I was already in jail; however, his eyes put me behind bars, disabling me from averting my gaze.
"Hindi ako nagvi-video games. I like physical and sometimes logical games, that's why I play basketball."
That makes sense. He's so athletic that I honestly can't imagine him being glued on a screen for a long time. Not to stereotype gamers as unathletic, but the only gamer I know is Seth, and he doesn't like sports thus he's my basis.
"What should we play this time, Mr. Sanvictores?" I smiled. He bit his lower lip, his eyes that were once holding me hostage finally drifting off beyond the bars confining us.
"I spy." Nabigla ako sa suggestion niya. I thought it would be another getting-to-know-each-other game.
"That's easy, everything in this school is either green, white, or black."
"With a twist kasi, Mr. Lasquite," I pouted as he laughed. Okay, tawa ka pa diyan pag ikaw pinahirapan ko sa I spy.
"What's the twist, huh? How can you even make I spy different?" I challenged him, crossing my arms and putting on a tough front when on the inside I'm screaming at how attractive he was at this moment. I totally get why he was detained for being too hot—Zy could melt the surroundings by his sheer existence.
"Madali lang naman 'yan gawin. I spy, Valentine's edition. We will spot people who like each other. Malapit na ang Valentine's, at typical Vergel Angels are already flocking to the idea of Cupid shooting his arrow right around the corner," he grinned.
"Huh? As in, we will describe people who like each other?" Paano ko naman malalaman kung sino may gusto sa isa't-isa? But body language yadi-yadi-ya did we forget about my conversation with Sia? Point proven.
"I mentioned Cupid right? We can just assume they like each other." Did he read my mind?
"What was that word again...?" He paused for a second. "Oh, shipping!" He knows that word?!
"What, you thought I wouldn't know that word?" Confirmed. He can read minds.
"I'm just shocked!" I clutched the bars, trying to squeeze my head in between the bars to have a better look on the students that were walking by. "Let's start?"
"Ikaw muna," Zy straightened his polo that wrinkled
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