Bittersweet Hearts

34~ the aftermath

It was a quiet ride to Nataliya's (sister's) condo. It turns out she was house sitting for her older sister who was out of the country. Nagpaalam naman sila na they would be sleeping over here and it won't be an issue if the four of us will be joining them. Just like the good old days daw with new friends. And first time na may plus one si Julien. Kilig me.

It was past 1am when we arrived and everyone was pretty tired. Kaloka nakainom din pala nung fruit punch kanina sina Giulia and Nataliya kaya they went straight to bed after shower. I'm tired din pero I don't think I'll be sleeping tonight. Kami naman ni Mikee nagshower din and borrowed clothes from Nat. We wanted to check on Stephen din kaya lumabas na kami nung girls' room. Alam ko he was with Nick pero nagulat ako when I saw Nick hanging out with Jackson and Matty on the couch looking all fresh and it turned out it was Julien who helped Stephen.

"There you are. You guys hungry?" Tanong ni Julien as he exited the room across us like nothing weird was going on. Looks like he lent Stephen his clothes. Familiar yung green hoodie niyang STU from sophomore year. He wore that last week.

"Actually yes. Tomguts na tomguts me." Mikee told him and followed him to the kitchen.

Stephen got out of the room din looking fresh. ARANETA, J.B. was plastered on his back.

"Buti naman your lips look much better. Mawawala din siguro yan bukas." I told him.

"Yeah, thanks for being my nurse." He smiled. The first smile he had since the chaos earlier.

I tiptoed to check his lips, almost reaching out to his face to get a closer look. But then he seemed to have realized something and his expression changed.

"Pero, Andy, I was serious earlier. I'll give you your space from now on. Let's be...friends. Or siblings just like when we were kids." He forced a smile as he backed up a bit. Obviously he was creating a wall between us. Ouch.

I know this is what's best for us and I agree with him. But it still bothers me. Shet. He even called me Andy. I know I can't have the best of both worlds but it doesn't mean it will be easy adjusting to this wall. I hid my grimace and gave him a smile.

"Sure, Steph." I nodded.

He nodded back then joined the guys in watching TV. I went to Julien who was frying eggs and spam with Mikee. We also made pancit canton which we devoured quickly. Then we played some board games until 3am.

It wasn't planned but Stephen sat the farthest from me. We were across each other. Nick was sitting between Julien and me. I was relieved Julien wasn't being clingy because I didn't want to make it harder for Stephen. But thank goodness everyone clicked with one another. There were no awkward silences or dull moments. Hindi din halata na something between me and Steph changed. We just played games. Yun nga lang napaka competitive nina Matty and Jackson. We were all glad when they got tired and sleepy. Julien, Stephen, Mikee and I were the last ones standing. We were now listening to songs on MYX channel and jamming to chill tunes.

By this time magkatabi na kami ni Julien but he was a foot away from me. He didn't lean in or hold my hand. Mikee was inspecting Stephen's wounds and I was somewhat jealous kasi he didn't flinch nor move away from her. She was grabbing his face with both her hands to see if his lips were better. He was grinning and being playful. A part of me was glad that he's looking and feeling much better but the green monster in me was jealous that we won't be as close as that anymore. I fear we won't be as close as we used to even before we were just friends. Ang lungkot beh.

I didn't realize Julien was watching me. Again. He grabbed my hand under the coffee table para hindi visible sa dalawa. I smiled at him.

"Should we skip breakfast and sleep in tomorrow? Itext ko si Manong na sunduin nalang tayo before lunch." Julien told me.