The Only Reason

Chapter 4

Gusto kong sabunutan si Alys! I know what she's doing! She wants me to get closer to Lance but she doesn't know my deal with him!

"Mauna na ako. Bye, Rhea!" Naka ngiting aso si Alys. Humanda ka talaga sa akin!

"Ang weird ng kaibigan mo." He chuckled as we watch Alys walk out the door.

"I know." I blurted, killing Alys in my head. "Ano pala sadya mo dito?" I asked.

"I didn't see you when I visited Riah." He simply said.

Eto na naman. Ramdam ko ang munting pagsakit ng aking dibdib. Ang lakas ng kabog ng puso ko. I slowly clutched my chest to ease my heart.

Ang simple ng kanyang pagkasabi pero ang laki ng epekto sa akin. Bakit napaka-unfair ng mundo...

Huminga ako ng malalim bago siya sagutin

"Si Riah naman ang pinunta mo 'non." I murmured, comforting my aching heart.

"And you're my friend. Of course I wanted to see you too." He consoled.

I almost scowled at his words. Alam kong gusto niya si Riah. Tanggap ko naman yun eh. Pero wag niya akong suyuin sa kanyang mga salita. He's making the situation harder than it seems.

The bitter sensation was slowly taking over my body and I have no choice but to swallow it. A deal is a deal.

"Cut the chase, why are you here?" I snapped.

He looked surprised at my sudden outburst. Kahit ako mismo ay nagulat na nasabi ko yun kay Lance...

He cleared his throat and sat at the chair across mine.

"Is it a bad time?" He sighed staring straight to my eyes.

The bitterness was suddenly flushed down the drain. Agad itong nawala ng makita ko ang pagkabahala sa kanyang mga mata.

Naawa ako. Naawa ako sa marupok kong puso. Hanggang kailan ako

"No, it's okay." I apologized. "Stressed lang." Pagdadahilan ko.

"Why are you stressed?"

"Acads."

"Anong subject ba yan?" He asked, moving closer to the seat beside me.

He started reading the title of the book I was reading. Para akong mahihimatay sa sobrang lapit namin! Sa sobrang lapit, amoy ko ang kanyang pabango!

"Shakespeare, huh?" He read. "Nakaka-stress nga naman si Shakespeare. Ang lalim na tao no?" He chuckled.

"Yeah." I smiled.

"Despite of people saying that his work is boring, I find them very interesting." He chortled.

"I do, too." I smiled.

"Really? Anong favorite mong play niya? Sonnet?" He said, clearly amused that we share an interest to Shakespeare.

"Romeo and Juliet." Nahihiya kong sabi. His lips pursed in fascination

"Ikaw ba?" I asked back.

"Midsummer nights dream." Lance grinned.

"I like that too. Ang dami lang plots." I crinkled my nose, remembering the wild flow of the story.

"It's good to find someone who also likes Shakespeare, you know?" He chuckled

"Yeah but Riah hates Shakespeare." I blurted out of nowhere.

"Really?" His eyes twinkled with fascination with the mere mention of her name. "What else?"