Campus Royalties (Kingdom University, #1) | Published under Psicom Publishing

Epilogue

HIS POV

I thought I would never experience love again when I broke up with Tricia.

We entered the same university, and it was hard to forget her after what he did. Kahit na pakiramdam ko ay binalewala niya ang nararamdaman ko para sa kanya ay pilit ko pa ring kinukuha ang atensyon niya. I tried causing trouble, and even tried to make her jealous, but everything was all for naught.

But everything also changed when I met her.

Tiffany Damian was an interesting character. She did not fall for my looks. In fact, it seemed like she hated my whole existence. It was childish, but I enjoyed teasing her. She looked cute when she was annoyed. Gumaganti rin siya sa akin kaya na-e-excite ako sa mga susunod niyang balak.

My attention had always been directed to Tricia, but it unknowingly shifted to her the longer I spent time with her. Hanggang sa maging ako ay nalilito na rin sa sarili kong pakiramdam. Akala ko ay distracted lang ako sa kanya dahil siya ang madalas kong makasama pero noong makipagkita ako kay Tricia sa akin ay doon ko na-realize na iba na ang nararamdaman ko.

She told me she broke up with me because her parents set her up with the son of their family friend.

"I already have a fiancé," she said when we met at the back of CAL building.

"Are you serious?"

"I am, so I hope you can sort out your feelings, too. After all, mukhang may iba ka na rin namang nagugustuhan."

I could not believe she was aware of my dilemma, but Tricia was Tricia. She had always been perceptive and smart. Hindi na rin ako magtataka kung mas mauuna niya pang malaman ang nararamdaman ko kaysa sa akin.

I wanted to confirm my feelings for Steff, but before I could, she said she didn't want to associate herself with me anymore. At iyon ay dahil nakita niya akong nakikipag-usap kay Tricia. Hindi ko alam kung ano ang dapat maramdaman pagkatapos no'n. I had blown my chances before I could even use them.

Akala ko ay hindi ko na siya makikita o makakausap pa dahil patapos na rin ang sem noong nangyari 'yon kaya laking gulat ko nang i-invite ako ni Jessica sa bakasyon nila. Of course, I accepted the invitation, but I was surprised when I learned that Tricia was also there.

It turned out she was already leaving for good. She wanted to have a closure, and to explain what really transpired between us. Nang yakapin niya ako ay doon ko tuluyang napagtanto na wala na talaga akong nararamdaman para sa kanya. Maybe all I was waiting for was our closure, and she had given that to me before she left.

"Did you finally realize your feelings?" tanong niya matapos niya akong yakapin.

Napangiti naman ako dahil doon. "You're really something, aren't you? Mas nauna mo pang na-realize kaysa sa akin."

"Because you're slow when it comes to things like this," she returned. "Don't hurt her, okay? Kahit recently ko lang siya nakausap ay alam kong genuine siyang tao."

"I know."

"And you better move fast because you're not the only one who likes her."

I knitted my eyebrows. "What do you mean—"

"Oh, and please, don't let your friend ruin your relationship again."

Natahimik ako nang banggitin niya 'yon. I knew she was talking about Andrea, and I only learned recently how she suffered during high school because of her.

Nang matapos kaming mag-usap ay pinilit kong mapalapit kay Steff. Now that I know how I feel about her, I wanted to spend more time with her. She seemed less annoyed with me, too, so I thought that was already a significant improvement.