Snippets (One shots)

Snippet 10 - THE ONE

She trails off, thinking of more.

"365 days of love, then?"

He pauses. "No babe, not love." Her face turns sour. "More than 365 days na tayong inlove."

When she gets what he meant, she grins. The truth behind it is coated in gold. It has indeed been long since they admitted the love between them.

"Sus, ikaw talaga, kinonvert mo lang naman yung one year to days, eh. Ganun na rin yun, anniversary pa rin."

"Eh sa ayaw ko nga i define yung meron tayo by years. Gusto ko, everyday natin sinecelebrate yung tayo, because you deserve to feel that everyday is a milestone for us.. That everyday is a step to where we want to go, together," he tells her as he puts her head on his shoulder.

She smiles and snuggles closer.

She reminisces on the past year they've been together - the ups and downs, the rollercoaster that their love has been. It has been turbulent seas, she thinks. Realizing that, she couldn't be more thankful she is still sitting on the same bed she was in a year ago - cuddling with the same person, but feeling an even stronger emotion. She cherishes the time afforded to them in the early hours of the morning. She closes her eyes, letting the warmth take her away.

Then she jolts up. He does the same, too, in surprise. He finds himself watching her every move, wondering what she is up to. And when she picks up the folded note, he knows. She walks to the cabinet, opens its doors, and brings out a medium-sized mason jar. He could see the colored pieces of paper in it.

"Ano yan?" he inquires.

She offers him a smile as she giddily opens it, and drops the note inside. "You're not the only one who prefers to go through this relationship one step at a time."

He looks on in wonder.

"This," she points to the jar in her hand, "carries all the breakfast notes you've given me for 365 days. I keep them, and sometimes, when things get rough, I read them. They represent our daily memories, and they remind me why I hold on."

It was his turn to feel giddy. Calming his shaky self, he pulls himself up to get something from the drawer under the bed. It was a box.

"What's this? Don't tell me you got me new shoes again. Andami mo nang biniling shoes for me," she whines as he hands her the box.

"I guess you're not the only one with a secret stash," he says.

She puts down her jar, and delicately lifts the lid of the box off. There, she sees pictures of her, with scribbles at the back of them. She examines them one by one for a while, before looking back at him, with questions written all over her face.

"Everyday," he starts. "I take a snap of you, sleeping, laughing, whatever candid moment you're in. And then at the back of those pictures, I write notes. Those notes are all about you, everything I love about you.
You see, you always surprise me every day."

"So there are 365 of me in here?"

"365 times 5, babe," he says. She could not help but feel elated. Her tears are brimming, and she wills herself not to cry. She scavenges through the pictures some more, until she finds a solid velvet box beneath.

"What's this?"

"Oh, that," he gets the box from her and opens it. Shock is written all over her face. "This is why I'm keeping all those photos in the box. I know you're the one for me, and the box houses all the reasons why. Eventually, when God permits, our daily steps will take us to the right time when I can finally ask you to be my wife, Alyssa."

She couldnt help but let go of the unshed tears, as she looked at the intricate ring sitting in the box. It is the same ring she saw on that fateful night they became friends, as they browsed through a jewelry store. She remembers it well - how she looked at the ring, how she told him she loved the ring and how he teased her about wanting to get married already. Five years has passed. She just couldnt believe he took notice.

"Soon, Kiefer, soon. One day at a time."

365 days down, more to go.

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

To Kief and Aly,

For bravery and fearlessness,
For the hardwork and fight,
For strong minds and even stronger hearts,
For iron wills and soft spots,
For passion and commitment,
For friendship and love,
Thank you.

Keep fighting the good fight, and heartstrong.

365 days down, praying for a lifetime worth of days together to go 💙