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"Ikaw naman. Parang 'di ka pa aware. Mahal naman kita noon pa." Sinubukan kong pabirong sabihin.

Hindi ko kasi kinakaya ang kacheesyhan ng mga pangyayari. But he deserves to know... at least.

"Cosine. Syempre iba yung actions na may kasamang words. Actions without words is kind of meaningless at nakakalito. Hindi naman ako manghuhula. Mahirap mangapa. But this. Hearing you say it..." Medyo nagtubig ang mata niya.

"Huy."

"I would marry you now."

At lumuhod si Envinci.

Tinapik ko siya. At sasabihin sana na tumigil siya, like parang pabiro kong irereject dahil nakakagulat but considering the sincerity in his eyes, I stopped doing what I would do as Cosine.

Not because I don't want to be real, but because now that I told him about how I feel, I want to be careful with his feelings.

I want to take care of his feelings. His heart.

I don't want to hurt him or break him. No matter how small it may appear to some.

Little things matter when you love someone.

"I want that too. But not now, okay, Vin?"

"Of course, Cosine. I understand."

His warm lips met mine. Pumikit ako.

I can feel him smiling through our kiss.

It was a sweet kiss, though a little possessive and somehow desperate. Di ko maimagine pero you can feel someone's love the way they kiss you.

And I felt the love from him through it.

Bumukas ang pinto. His father was accompanied by few Pilomonads after announcing their arrival.

"Son."

Lumingon pa sa akin ang ama ni Envinci na parang hinihintay na umalis ako dahil may sasabihin itong importante.

"Father. This is Cosine. My future wife. Father, say hi."

"Good to see you, dear."

Envinci felt the importance of his father's arrival so he let go the somehow unenthusiastically greeting.

Okay lang 'yon sa akin.

Aamba na akong aalis sana pagkatapos magbow ay hinatay ako ni Envinci.

"You can say it, father. I trust her with my life."

"It's about the hourglass of vector. You need to send a team. Cipher City owns it," maingat na sabi ng tatay niya.

Napakunot ang noo ko doon. Why he, a former duke cares about the Hourglass of Vector? Anong nangyari.

Naghintay lang si Envinci sa karugtong nito.

"They... They would use it to revive a dead saint. Don't let them use the Hourglass, son."

They? Sino? Sila ba yung mga pumunta ba dito para itranslate ang text na hindi maalala ng Intel?

Until I realized why.

"I volunteer!" Napaklaro ako ng boses. "If I may speak, sir."

"You may."

"I am one of the Intel prodigies. We had a similar case before previously held by my now professors. We know how to exactly deal with it. So let me help. Send me with a team you had in mind."

"No!"

Nagulat ako sa lakas ng boses ni Envinci. Tutol siya?

"Son," tawag ng tatay ni Envinci sa kanya pero ang atensyon ay nasa akin.

"Cosine, you can't."

His eyes were glassy. I looked away abruptly pero binalik para ngitian siya. Envinci was scared. Kita sa mukha na labag sa loob niya ang pag-volunteer ko.

"Wala ka bang tiwala sa akin?" marahan kong tanong. Lumambot ang ekspresyon niya.

I was disgusted when I pulled the trust card. Pero hindi ko alam kung paano siya mapapapayag. Tintigan niya ako nang matagal bago pinutol ang tingin para huminga ng malalim.

This time he didn't look like just my lover. He looked like the Ruler of Cipher City. Humarap siya sa tatay niya nang hawak pa rin ang mga kamay ko.

"I will send Vatral with Cosine."

Pinisil ni Envinci ang kamay ko. Masama ang loob niya. Pero alam niya isa ako sa may alam kung paano iretrieve pabalik ang Hourglass of Vector nang walang namamatay.

"Very well."

His father commanded to call for Vatral. They were contractors, they didn't want to belong in any department but they belong to Cipher City. They were prodigies too that knows how to deal with these things.

Nang maiwan kami ni Envinci. May inabot siya sa akin. Nang mahawakan ko ang lumang leather ay alam ko ng Arc of Grim ito.

"Bakit mo binibigay 'to sa akin?"

Medyo kinabahan ako. Kita sa mukha ko dahil marahan na rin ang tingin niya sa akin. Seeing his emotions evident on his face make me want to retract my words. He fears I might not come back. Baka tama siyang maramdaman 'yon. But that very thought kills me.

"Tapos ko ng basahin. And I annotated some parts. Though vague ang ibang parts. It might help you... from missing me."

Natawa ako sa kalokohan ni Envinci. Nakangiti siya pero malungkot ang mata.

"You realized, you just told me you love me, tapos iiwan mo na naman ako? What if something bad happens? Paano na ako?"

Nasaktan ako sa lungkot ng boses niya.

I grabbed his face and made him look at me. Naramdaman kong natuyot ang lalamunan ko.

"Promise. Babalik ako. Have faith in me. Okay?"

His eyes were full of love, the way na tingnan niya ako. I love this man. I love Envinci. Parte siya ng lugar na 'to. Parte siya ng oras ko.

If someone threatens this place and our timeline. I would do anything to keep it whole even if I had to sacrifice a fraction of me in the process.

"If only I can come with you."

"And leave a throne open for wolves? That's foolish, Vin."

Tumango siya. He kissed me one last time. This time the kiss was a promise and at the same time the seal of our fates.

Nang tumalikod ako ay hindi na ako lumingon pa dahil baka magbago ang isip ko. Niyakap ko ang librong binigay niya sa akin at hinayaang tumulo ang luha sa paparating na hinaharap ko.

I could only hope things wouldn't go as bad as I had imagined.

-- θ --

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