Oblivious (A short SamVon FanFiction) - Chapter 6

Chapter 6

“You can do this Devon, kaya mo ‘to!” I keep muttering to myself as I walk down the hallway to the dance studio. When I got to the door, I inhaled deeply and pushed the door open, preparing myself for the worst part.

Fortunately, he wasn’t here yet. I sighed. Thank God for that.

“Hi Devon!”

“Ay butiki!” I jumped and turned at the culprit. It was Enrique, smiling and amused at my reaction. I immediately gave him my famous hand-slap in the shoulder.

“Aray!” He whined.

I raised an eyebrow at him. “Anong aray? Kasalanan mo kay? At tsaka, kalalaki mong tao, ang laki laki ng mga muscles mo, umaaray ka pa jan.”

He chuckled and suddenly he turned serious. “Okay ka lang ba”, he asked, concern etched all over his face.

Of course I knew what he meant but being the girl that I am, I played the oblivious one. “Oo naman. Kahapon pa nga nawala lagnat ko eh. Bakit mo naitanong?” I inwardly flinched at how high-pitched my voice sounded and I cursed at myself in my head for babbling. Yeah, I know. I’ve never been more pathetic.

He scrutinized me for a second and then sighed. Damn, he saw right through me. He saw the hurt lurking in my eyes.  “Alam mong hindi ‘yun ang ibig kong sabihin at alam mo kung bakit pero hindi kita pipilitin. Tandaan mo lang Devs na andito lang ako kapag gusto mo nang kausap.”

I can’t help but smile at what he was doing, and my smile was genuine. But behind my smile, tears were building behind my eyes.

He swore when he saw it. “Devon, may sinabi ba akong mali?” He panicked.

“Wala.” I put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it softly, assuring him. “Salamat ha? Alam ko naman ‘yun. At okay lang ako…” My voice faltered at the end and I laughed faintly.

Looking around, he saw that the studio was slowly filling up with people but still no Sam in sight so he steered me by the elbow to an empty corner of the room. When we stopped, he wasted no time.

“Tell me truth Devs, okay ka lang ba talaga?”

I looked him in the eyes and what I saw in his eyes undid me. I sobbed. He instantly put his arms around me and hugged me. I rested my forehead on his chest, my face hidden with my hair. I cried softly. I cried at my stupidity. I cried at my helplessness.

“Ang tanga ko.” I mumbled into his shirt, “Ang tanga, tanga ko talaga – alam ko namang kaibigan lang ang tingin niya sa akin – pero ang sakit – ang sakit palang marinig sa kanya ang katotohanan – and  dammit, he’s been giving me signs, akala ko --  akala ko…” I couldn’t finish so I cried harder.

Enrique was silent the whole time I was voicing out my feelings. He kept rubbing my back soothingly and whispered words of comfort in my ear. I didn’t bother on being embarrassed by crying because I knew that whatever happens in this studio stays inside the four walls and I knew that everyone was respectful to everyone’s private life that no one will tell the world what happened today.

After my break down and when I was perfectly sure that there were no tears left, I untangled myself from him. I smiled at him even when my lips were still quivering. “Thanks. I really need that. I owe you.”

“No probs.” He smiled back and then grinned. “Ilibre mo na lang ako mamaya.”

It was the icebreaker and then we were laughing like nothing happened. Halfway through it, I hugged him again. “Really, thank you. If it weren’t for you, I would have been quite a mess right now.”

 He made no comment about it; he only pushed me softly away from him but without getting his hands from my shoulders. He looked me intently in the eyes and asked, “So okay ka na?”

I thought hard about my answer. I knew I was really not okay but it was not the way it was before. Knowing that I had a shoulder to cry on helped a lot.

“Hindi. Hindi ako okay ngayon, but I will be.” I wiped the remaining tears from my face. “I’ll try to be for the sake of myself and our friendship.”

He smiled. “Don’t worry, I’ll be with you every step.”

I suddenly laughed. He gave me a confused laugh. “What?”

“Eh kasi, kanina pa away-away pa tayo, ngayon, nag-iyakan na.”

“Hoy, ikaw lang kaya yung umiyak.” I laughed harder when he said, “Ano ba ‘yan Devs, sinisira mo yung drama natin.”

“Sira.” I turned and saw myself in the mirror and ta-da! Not only am I a mess on the inside, it showed on the outside as well. I laughed at my reflection. My eyes are red and my lips were puffy. Good thing I wasn’t wearing any mascara or any ghost will run at the sight of me.

I turned to Enrique once again and said, “Punta muna ako sa C.R., ayusin ko muna sarili ko.”

“Samahan na kita, baka Makita mo siya at ano pang magawa mo sa sarili mo.” I laughed. In a situation like this, I can really count on Enrique to make me laugh.

He put his arm around me and together we headed to the girls comfort room. I went in while he waited outside. Once I was inside, I turned the faucet and splashed my face with water. I looked at myself in the mirror and whispered, “I’ll forget about these feelings Sam, I’ll forget it for the sake of our friendship. And I promise, I’ll never shed a tear for you again.” And with that, I walked out of the comfort room.

We were at the door of the dance studio when I hesitated. Enrique noticed it and said, “Huwag kang mag-alala, hindi kita iiwan ngayon, kahit magsawa ka pa sa kakadikit ko sa’yo, hindi kita lulubayan.” Even if it was said in a joking style, I was still comforted.

 When he opened the door, he was all I could see. My breath hitched when he smiled at me.

I can’t do this! I was turning away when I felt my hand being taken by Enrique. He looked me in the eye and squeezed my hand in assurance, reminding me of his promise. When I saw the determination in his eyes, I resolved myself. I nodded at him and smiled. My heart was pounding when he dragged me into the center of the room where everyone was standing, where he was standing.

“Jejevon!” He exclaimed. “Salamat naman at magaling ka na!” And he surprised all of us when he pulled me away from Enrique and hugged me.