Rinig ko na nagpapack up na ng mga silya yung event organizers pero nandito pa rin ako sa backstage. Ayoko lumabas. Natatakot ako. I think it's been 15 minutes since the program ended. Si Gab at Julia naggive up na rin sa pagpupumilit sa akin lumabas at nauna nang umuwi kasama ang parents nila.
Suddenly, my phone rang from my pocket. Kinakabahan ako.
Paano kung si Diego to? Anong una kong sasabihin?
Hi? Kamusta performance ko? Nainlove ka na ba?
Nasapak ko sarili ko. Wala nang atrasan to, diba?
I took a very deep breath and checked my phone.
Si Mama Ann.
A part of me is happy na hindi si Diego dahil hindi pa ako handa sa kung anong sasabihin niya pero a pert of me is also sad na hindi si Diego.
"Hi, Chandria! Ang galing mo!" bungad nya as soon as I picked up the call.
"Hello po. Nakauwi na ba kayo?" I asked.
"Actually, we're on our way to the house pa. Yung papa mo eto kanina pa umiiyak. Kanina ko pa to pinapatahan pero iyak lang nag iyak."
Kumunot naman ang noo ko ang biglang nangamba, "Bakit po? May masamang nangyari ba?"
I heard her laugh at the other line, "Don't worry. It's nothing really serious. Umiiyak lang siya dahil nakikita niya raw mama mo sayo kanina habang kumakanta ka kata eto iyak nang iyak."
Napafacepalm ako. Kahit kailan talaga ang drama ni Papa. "Teka, how about you? Okay lang ba kayo?"
I think she gets what I meant by that. "Chandria, gaya nang sabi ko dati, alam ko kung anong pinasok ko. Don't worry about me and umuwi ka na. I'm cooking dinner sa icelebrate natin yung performance mo. You were amazing!"
I smiled. If there's one thing I admire most about her, siguro yung tapang niya. "Thank you, Mama Ann."
"Sige na, actually I'm driving so I have to end this call. Uwi ka na at isama mo yung boyfriend mo."
"Pero hindi ko naman boyfrie-" Hindi ko na natapos yung sasabihin ko because she ended the call.
Napabuntong-hininga nalang ako. At this point, hindi ko na alam anong gagawin ko.
All of a sudden, I cleared someone cleared her throat so I looked up. Yung Adviser ko pala na paboritong-paborito ako. Out of habit, inayos ko posture ko at binati siya.
"H-hello po. Good Evening."
She looked at me intently. Grabi nakakatakot talaga mga titig ni Maám kahit ilang beses na nya akong napapagalitan, hindi pa rin ako nasasanay so I looked down.
Ano na naman ba nagawa ko? Yung tungkol sa public confession ko kanina ba?
"I'm proud of you, Ms. Marquez." agad akong napatingin sa kanya.
"What do you mean, Maám? Hindi mo ako papagalitan?"
Napatawa naman siya bigla. This is the first time I ever saw her laugh. Ang strikto kya ni Maám. "No. I said I am so proud of you."
"F-for what po?"
"For being so brave." She patted my shoulder. "When I was your age, I was inlove with somebody but I did not have the courage to confess my feelings for him. The day before his wedding, he told me that he was inlove with me and it was too late."
She smiled sadly as she recalled the memory. I'm left speechless. Hindi ko alam anong sasabihin ko. Why is she opening this up to me?
"I'm proud that you're not making the same mistake, Chandria." she hugged me and pulled away. "Now, I think your home is waiting for you outside. It's time you come home." She smiled and left.
Tama ang adviser ko. Ayokong dumating sa point na pagsisihan ko ang mga bagay na hindi ko nagawa. It's time to face Diego.
I went out the backstage and walked outside the auditorium. It's past 8pm and almost wala nang tao sa campus.
And there, I saw Diego. Nakasandal siya sa isang lamp post at parang ang lalim ng inisip. Nung narealize niyang palapit ako sa direksyon niya, bigla siyang tumayo ng maayos.
Ang bilis ng tibok ng puso ko and thankfully, dilim na kaya hindi masyadong mahahalata ang pisngi ko na for sure, pulang-pula na.
"Hi" bati ko nang kaharap ko na siya. Medyo naawkward ako kaya hindi ako makatingin sa mga mata niya. "Sorry pinaghintay kita."
"It's okay. Three years is not that long."
Agad naman akong napatingin sa mukha niya.
"Anong pinagsasabi mo?" Kumunot ang noo ko. Mga 15 minutes lang naman akong nagkulong sa backstage ah?
He ruffled my hair and let out a laugh, "Kahit kailan talaga, medyo mahina to. Anyways, ang ganda ng boses mo. I don't think I really heard you sing before."
"Tsk." inis ko namang sabi at iniwas ulit ang tingin ko. Siguro naririnig niya ang lakas ng tibok ng puso ko. Paano ba kasing hindi eh nakakaturn on tong mga compliments niya.
"Ano ba kasi yun?" tanong ko.
"I realized I have feelings for you when you told me I am your favorite person." I turned to face him again. "We were thirteen then. It was the time we watched the Little Mermaid together for the first time."
"You could have told me sooner."
"But it wouldn't feel this special, right?"
Kahit ilaw lang sa lamp post yung source of light namin, I can clearly see his eyes beaming and he's smiling as he recalled the memory.
I can't help but pull him closer to me and tiptoed as I gave him a peck on the lips.
"OH MY GOD." Pagkatapos kong halikan si Diego, dun ko lang na realize kung anong nagawa ko kaya ibinaon ko ang mukha ko sa mga palad ko. "I AM SO SORRY!"
I really did not know what I was thinking.
Pero bigla nalang niyang tinangal ang kamay ko sa mukha ko, cupped my face and pulled me in for a kiss.
I kissed him back.
And that was my first real kiss.
It's like sinasabi ni Diego sa akin na this is not the end of our story.
This is just the beginning of something even more beautiful.
And I am so happy I got to share this with my one True Love.285Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcGsElCzN7m
