The Only Exception

Chapter 22

"Girl!" napatalon ako sa biglang pagkalabit ni Nikhaule sa akin. Binaling ko sa kanya ang tingin ko.

"You startled me." I even held my chest.

She chuckled.

"Sorry. Anyway, how's your lunch date, huh?" she teased me. Sinundot pa niya ang tagiliran ko.

I rolled my eyes and stopped her from tickling me.

"You know it's not a date." I said.

Saka nailing na pumasok sa classroom na punong puno ng estudiyanteng nagkakagulo dahil wala pa ang prof.

Agad namang sumunod sa akin si Nikhaule na hindi pa yata tapos mang asar.

"Na-ah! We all know that Conrad loves you and he takes you out for a date!" ang sabi niya.

Umupo ako sa bakanteng upuan katabi ng bintana at hindi na siya pinansin.

"Come on, say something naman. Don't play mute to me nga!" pabiro niya pang sinabunutan ang buhok ko.

"Hindi nga date 'yon, kaibigan ko lang si Conrad alam niyo naman 'yon, 'di ba?" ang sabi ko.

Tumango siya. She even flipped her hair to her back before checking her nails.

"Yes, pero does Conrad see you only as a friend rin ba?" she asked.

"Hind—"

"Oh, see? Kahit you alam na he's in love with you, and for him, those lunch outside is a go signal for him that you are allowing him to court you."

Now I know, that explains why those lunch outside schools happened again and again. I gave him a signal unknowingly. At kaya rin ba niya nasabi na nanliligaw siya dahil binigyan ko siya ng pag asa nang hindi ko nalalaman?

"Should I be more vocal to him?" I asked.

"Be honest to him." she corrected me.

Napatingin ako sa kanya.

"I mean, tell him the truth! That you have already fallen out of love at may new love ka na. The way I see it, the more na you're keeping it to him for a longer time, the more na he will hope for you. " ang sabi pa niya.

"I am just waiting for the right time, gusto kong unti-untiin ang pagsabi para hindi na masakit." I said.

"Either way, unti untiin mo man or sasabihin ng whole, it doesn't change the fact that you will still hurt him. Thats inevitable, Curns. Pain is inevitable."

Alam ko, at the end, I will still hurt him. I am just choosing which way will I take to make the pain go lesser.

"Alam ko naman," I said.

"You know pala e, then don't waste another time, tell him. Masasaktan siya, yes but he needs to accept the truth."

"Kaso...paano siya? Paano si Yngrid?"I asked.

Paano kapag nalaman ni Yngrid na hindi ko na pinaunlakan si Lester na manligaw?

"Like what I said, may people na magiging affected when you choose to love with no inhibitions. But they only have one choice, that is to accept it and move on."

Napabuntong hininga na lang ako.

She sighed too.

"Hays! Sometimes, love is like calculus... so hard to understand, and each time you try to understand, it kills you."

Natawa ako sa sinabi niya.

"Mabuti na lang nasa right person na ako!" she said.

I looked at her as she intertwined her two palms and smile at out of nowhere dreamily.