I am and He is Sam Lee Garcia Concepcion. Small World, huh?

Chapter 17

"Gosh!" she stops walking abruptly and face me slowly. She has that panicked look as if she forgot something really really important. "I uh," she lifts her wrist and looks at the time. I do the same; 4:00.

"It's still 4:00. Do you think fetching Chance and Hope will take more than thirty minutes?" she asks me. My brows furrow and I ask her instead,

"Why?"

"Nothing, just answer the question please." she pleads.

"No." I answer, although I'm unsure. But that seemed to pacify her so I decide not to tell her about my uncertainty.

Fifteen minutes later, we arrived at the Nazarene School where Hope and Chance is studying as kinders. Sam and I just walked  since we have no car. I glance at her and see she is hurrying up, as if she is running late on a deadline. 

"Why?" I ask genuinely curious.

"I have to go back to school after this," she tells me. "Come on! Where is their classroom?" Sam grabs my elbows and drags me inside the school.

"Down that stairs" I say as I shrug her hands off me. She quickly descend down the stair and peek in every classroom she walks past.

"I'm kidding!" I yell at her, since she is already twenty meters away. She shoots me an irritated look and then ascend the stairs again.

"Jerk," she mutters under her breath and then ask in a rude manner, "Where?"

"Chill." I chuckle and then start heading to the north. She walks, agitated beside me. We walk for five minutes until we reach Hope and Chance's classroom. There is onlt one room for kinders in this school so Hope and Chance are classmates. We peek inside the room and see they are already dismissed and the children, who are waiting for their fetchers, are playing.

Hope looks up and then see us on the door way. She waves frantically whisper to Chance that we already arrive. With the same enthusiasm as Hope, Chance jumps excitedly as he saw us. I can't help but smile at them. Even Sam, who was looking anxious to escape just seconds ago broke into a cheesy grin.  

They near us.

"Sam sister! Sam brother! Can we just stay for awhile so we can finish our sand castle?" Chance give us the puppy look. And when a child give you that look, you know you can't say no.

"Ask Sam sister," I say.

Chance turns to Sam. He gave Sam an even more effective look as Sam said, "That's fine. Just make it fast, okay?" She glances at her wristwatch again, I mimic her; 4:27 

She winces as soon as she saw the time. I smile in amusement. What could make her feel so unsettled?

"Why?" I ask, for the second time.

She bites her lip. "I told you, I have to be in school at 4:30."

"Again, why?" 

"Err. Well, I don't really know yet," she replies. I can tell she is honest but I can also see that she isn't giving me the real catch. She only gave me a part of the truth. 

"If you say so," 

Twenty minutes pass and the kids already completed the sand castle. They said their goodbyes and we are now walking out of the school. Sam's shoulder is slumped as she stares on her wristwatch. It's already and 4:50 and she is late to whatever she needs to go.

"I'll go take them home myself, if you badly needed to go," I found myself saying, when I saw how disappointed and sad she looks. She was shocked. But it wouldn't compare as to how I shocked myself. I'm utterly bewildered. Did I just say that I'm willing to cover her absence so she could go and do whatever she wants? 

"Uh, are you serious?" she asks, finally recovering.

"Not really," I say. My ears feels like they are burning at the moment. 

"Don't be shy!" she cheers and then grins like the cheerful girl she is. She grabs my hand and jumps up and down, exactly what Chance did awhile ago. I quickly get my hand of her as it was giving me weird feelings. 

"Just go." I say lamely, fighting off the urge to hold her arm again. My eyes bulges at what I have just thought. I curse myself silently. What the heck is happening to me? I'm frigging out of my mind! I scold myself as I watch Sam wave excitedly and run toward the direction of the school. 

Hope wriggling my arm broke me out of Sam's sight. Another string of curses floated at my mind, all just for myself. 

Luis' POV

I enter the gym 20 minutes earlier than 4:30. I want to be early so I can prepare my speech.

"Dude, we'll hang out." Drew persuades me. I shake my head and tell him,

"Thanks, but I have to meet someone here." 

"Another fling?" Quart teases and gives me a mischievous smile.

"No!" I protest. "It's my... friend," I say with a tugging smile after a while.

"Fine." they give up and leave me. I start to form in my head the things I'll tell her. 

It's already 4:30 and I'm ready with what I'll tell Sam. It's the pure truth behind what she saw the day before yesterday. I just tried to formalize and made it more heartfelt by preparing about it.

By 4:50, I'm starting to lose hope, I'm the only one left in the gym. The basketball players just went home. But I waited patiently, thinking maybe that she's just running late. I decide to play some hoops alone to pass the time,

It's already 5:10 and still Sam is nowhere to be seen.  It is obvious that she stood me up. She still thinks I'm disgusting. I laugh dryly, well, maybe I really am. But I'll wait still, maybe she'll magically come.

When my wristwatch told me it's 5:20, I give up all hope that Sam is coming. I fiercely throw the basketball on the wall. I feel a pang of unknown pain slaughter my chest. I shake the feeling and try to wrap my mind around the fact that she stood me up.

I don't blame her though, I perfectly understand her decision. What just makes me upset is that she didn't even give me the chance.

With a heavy heart, I gather my things and exit the gym. I go to my car and crank up the radio volume and sped away, not daring to look back. Hoping that by going over the speed limit the pain I currently feel will be left with the dust and wind my speeding car left behind.

______________________________________________________________________________

Here's your update peeps! :)) Comment? I feel really bad for doing this to Luis. :"(

Anyway, enjoy. :)) If I get 10 votes in this chapter, I'll upload tomorrow. If not, well, then next week. :DD