Spaces Between Us

Chapter twenty

I placed a hand on his arm, trying to reassure him. “Pauuwiin ka rin naman. Doon na lang tayo magkita.”

His eyes softened, but then he leaned in slightly and whispered, “I can’t touch and hug you there.”

My face turned red instantly. I looked away, trying to hide my smile.

“Well… we can go to your apartment after dinner.”

His grin returned. “I like the idea.”

He grabbed a towel from his bag and wiped the sweat off his chest before slipping on the jersey.

“Stay for a while?” he asked, looking at me like I was his safe place.

Mabilis naman akong tumango. “Sure.”

He ran back to his teammates, and I found an empty spot on the bench to sit. As I turned around, I saw the girls staring at me, confused, maybe even a bit shocked.

They were probably wondering who I was. Wondering why I was the one Julio smiled at.

They didn’t know I worked for the Rodriguezes. That technically, I was just a servant in their household.

But they also didn’t know that behind all the expectations and labels… I was the girl Julio chose to see.

I tucked a few strands of my hair behind my ear, suddenly feeling self-conscious. Instead of overthinking, I focused on what Julio was doing. Palihim ko siyang kinunan ng litrato.

A memory, just for me.

I stared at the photo while zooming in, a small smile forming on my lips. He looked effortlessly flawless like he wasn’t just running, but modeling for a shoot. How could someone look that good doing something so simple?

"Uh… hey, why are you taking photos of him? Are you a stalker too?" a girl suddenly asked as she approached. Her tone wasn’t rude—more like curious.

Startled, I quickly hid my phone and glanced at Julio, who was still focused on his laps.

"D-definitely not," I stammered, but judging from her expression, she didn’t quite buy it.

Ngumiti lang siya at inilabas din ang cellphone niya. Bahagya akong nagulat nang makita si Julio sa wallpaper, though I tried to play it cool and bit my lip.

I gave her a half-smile—awkward and unsure.

"I'm Sheila. Those are my friends over there," she said, pointing at a small group of girls nearby. “Baka gusto mong sumali sa club namin—Heartbeat for Julio.”

Heartbeat for—what?

I wrinkled my nose, cringing on the inside, but quickly fixed my expression. Mukhang seryoso naman siya kaya ayaw ko siyang i-offend.

“What’s it about?” I asked politely, even though I could already guess. The name pretty much said it all.

Mas lalo siyang umurong palapit sa akin, siguro akala niya interesado din ako. “We all have a thing for Julio. But since he’s so out of reach and we’re okay admiring him from afar, we started a club. We collect details about him… basically everything.”

Mahina akong tumango.

That was... kind of creepy. Like lowkey stalking. An invasion of privacy, for sure. But then again, who was I to judge?

They gathered random facts about him. Meanwhile, I secretly imagined him with me, collected things he left behind, and pretended he was mine. Maybe I was worse.

Pero kung ganoon na ang level ng obsession nila sa kanya, paano kung may alam na din sila tungkol sa amin?

“What kind of info have you gotten?” I asked, not because I was curious but I needed to know how deep this obsession went.