PATCHOULI
" Enjoy!" I told Sol when she told me that she and Archi had to go somewhere. She waved her hand before they walked away. Ang sabi ko kasi kay Sol ay ihahatid na ako ni Titus Maxim pauwi.
I approached Titus Maxim who was in the drinking fountain. He's been so quiet ever since he got here. Tapos na kaming mag enroll lahat pero ganoon pa rin siya, tahimik. I thought we were okay?
" Are you alright?" I asked him. Lumapit ako sa kaniya para i-check if may lagnat ba siya pero hindi naman siya mainit. He was just staring at me. Naninibago tuloy ako.
He wasn't usually quiet. In fact he was the most jolly among the group, together with Lyle and Alexandra. Ngayon, napag-iiwanan na siya ng dalawa.
" Hatid na kita." aniya lang at tinalikuran na ako. My lips parted a bit at his sudden coldness. Minsan hindi ko siya makuha. Nag-usap naman kami before. Ang sabi niya inis lang siya kay Wolfe noong bakasyon kaya hindi niya masyadong naenjoy. He was also sorry because he gave me a cold shoulder when we were in the vacation.
Tapos heto na naman siya. Bumalik na naman. I couldn't understand him.
" Sigurado ka bang ayos ka lang?" I asked him. Hinawakan ko siya sa braso para pigilan siya sa paglalakad.
Pumunta ako sa harapan niya para matitigan ko siya nang maayos. His eyes were cold and a but distant. Hindi iyon bagay sa kaniya. He was always Mister Sunshine. Palaging nakangiti and he is always a positive thinker.
" Titus Maxim, will you please talk to me?" Hinawakan ko siya sa braso pero agad din siyang umiwas. Napasinghap ako. Parang siya rin ay nagulat sa kaniyang ginawa.
" What is wrong with you? Akala ko ba okay na tayo?" I asked him. I am already confused! Confused about my feelings and confused of why he was doing this to me!
"Let's stop, Patchouli..." he suddenly said. He looked at me straight in the eyes with his stoic expression.
" What are you talking about? Nakahinto naman tayo, Maxim." I told him trying to lighten the mood because it felt heavy. Pero kinakabahan na talaga ako. Part of me wanted to deny na ito na yung oras kung saan susuko na talaga siya.
He pursed his lips. Nakatitig lang siya sa akin at parang kinakabisa iyong aking mukha. He then looked away.
" I'm going to stop courting you. I don't see the point of courting you anyways." he said. Napasinghap ako. Dumagundong iyong kaba sa aking dibdib at agad akong napaatras.
" I see that you got back together with Wolfe. I am okay with that. Sana sinabi mo sa akin. Hindi naman ako magagalit. It wasn't rightful for me to get mad in the first place. Wala lang naman ako sa'yo..."
" T-titus..."
" It's okay. It won't be awkward right?" mahina siyang tumawa. I didn't sense the humor in his laugh, though. He acts like a robot. He acts like this was a normal thing to do.
" I'll stop courting you for your peace of mind. Tara na?" binalewala niya ang tingin ko. Hindi ko alam kung ano ang sasabihin. He caught me off guard with his words that I couldn't even recover. Nakatitig lang ako sa kaniya, gulat pa rin at parang nasaktan sa kaniyang sinabi.
" Patchouli?" tawag niya at sinipat ang aking mukha. He then smiled as if nothing happened. As if he didn't slowly break my heart...
" Uh...sige..tara na."
