2nd of Spring - A Sudden Interest (P1)

“Salamat sa paghatid,” Selena murmured as they reached the gate of her dormitory, gratitude lacing her soft voice.

Alexander handed her bag back, and she accepted it with a small smile. “Sige, papasok na ‘ko,” she added, turning to go inside.

“Wait.”

She halted mid-step and turned back to him, curiosity flickering in her eyes. “Hmm? Bakit?”

“You mentioned earlier na may trabaho ka pa,” he reminded her, recalling their earlier conversation.

“Ah, oo,” she sighed, rubbing her temples slightly. “Kailangan kong pumasok. May naiwan pa kasi akong trabaho do’n.”

His brow lifted. “Sa’n ka ba nagtatrabaho?”

“D’yan sa coffee shop na malapit dito,” she answered, pointing in its direction.

His brows arched slightly in recognition. “MoCafé?”

She nodded.

Alexander sighed, “Kung ako tatanungin,” he suggested, his voice firm yet gentle, “mas okay kung magpahinga ka na lang muna.”

Selena frowned, shaking her head. “Hindi pwede. Baka maalis ako sa trabaho kapag ‘di ako pumasok.”

“You have a valid reason to be absent,” he reasoned, his gaze steady. “They won’t fire you for that.”

“Pero marami pa akong naiwang trabaho,” she insisted, biting her lip. She wasn’t the type to leave tasks unfinished.

Alexander held her gaze, unwavering. “It’s fine. May valid excuse ka.”

Selena hesitated, responsibility and exhaustion tugging at her more than his words did. Finally, after a long pause, she sighed in surrender, her shoulders relaxing. “Okay, fine.”

A faint smile ghosted across Alexander’s lips. “Good. Sige, magpahinga ka na.”

“Bye,” she said, waving before disappearing inside.

Alexander watched until she was safely out of sight. Then, he pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed a number. The line rang once before someone picked up.

“Hello?”

“Good evening,” he greeted smoothly. “May I speak to Miss Jean Cruz, please?”

“This is Jean speaking,” her voice came with a warm but slightly curious response.

“It’s Alexander Fontanilla of FMC,” he introduced himself, already sensing her recognition from the subtle shift in her tone.

“Ah, Mr. Fontanilla,” Jean acknowledged. “Pleasure to receive your call. How can I help you?”

Alexander inhaled deeply, choosing his words carefully. “I need you to do me a favor.”

“Of course, sir,” Jean replied smoothly. “What do you need?”

“Give Miss Manansala the night off. But don’t let her know it was because of me.”

A brief silence stretched over the line. “But why, sir?” Jean finally asked, a hint of confusion creeping into her tone.

Alexander sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t want her to know that I was involved,” he admitted. “And I don’t want her to think she owes me anything.”

Jean seemed to consider this before replying. “Understood, sir. But what should I tell her?”

“Make up any excuse you need. She trusts you, doesn’t she?”

Jean’s voice softened with understanding. “Yes, sir. She listens to me.”

Relief washed over Alexander. “Good. Then I’m counting on you.”

“Don’t worry, Mr. Fontanilla,” Jean assured him. “I’ll handle it.”

With that, Alexander ended the call, slipping his phone back into his pocket. If anyone could stop Selena from overworking herself, it was her manager.

***

Selena dropped her bag onto her bed, grabbed her towel, and went straight to the shower. After a quick sponge bath, she changed into a loose top and a pair of shorts, pulling her hair back into a ponytail. She sat down at her desk, focusing on her assignments, though her mind kept drifting.

She considered Alexander’s advice from earlier: 

“Kung ako tatanungin, mas okay kung magpahinga ka na lang muna.”

Part of her felt tempted to follow his suggestion—she wasn’t feeling her best—but the other part worried about missing her shift. What if she got fired for not showing up?

“It’s fine. May valid excuse ka.”

Alexander’s words echoed in her mind, along with the reassuring look he’d given her. She couldn’t quite understand why he was so insistent about it.

Valid excuse? she thought, eyebrows furrowing. 

Bakit? Ano bang alam n’ya sa trabaho ko? Baka mamaya kapag ‘di ako pumasok, matanggal pa ako.

She sighed, glancing over at her teddy bear sitting comfortably on her bed, as if waiting for her to make up her mind. 

Oo nga, mabait si Miss Jean, she reasoned, pero kahit na. Ayoko naman abusuhin ‘yung kabaitan n’ya.

Besides, she continued, mayaman naman sila Alexander. Wala silang kailangan ipag-alala sa ganito, hindi naman sila kailangang kumayod.

She gave her bear a decisive nod, mentally reinforcing her plan. 

Tama. Papasok ako mamaya. Konting pahinga lang, okay na ako.

Satisfied, she returned to her desk and finished her assignments. By the time she was done, it was five o’clock. Setting her cell phone alarm for 8 p.m, she climbed into bed, clutching her teddy bear close, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

Selena was startled awake when her phone rang, not from an alarm, but from a call. With one eye closed, she stared at her phone. It was only 7:30 p.m. 

She got a missed call. She checked her phone logs to see who called her. It came from an unknown number. She had no idea who it was. She also had unread texts from the same unknown phone number. She went through the messages and read them.

Unknown:

 Hey. It's Alexander. Just wanna ask how you're feeling now, and if you still plan to go to work.

 I suggest that you rest.

 But it’s up to you if you’ll still want to work. Ingat.

She had never imagined Alexander as a worrywart. She thought he was one who doesn’t care. She waved her surprise off. She saved his number and typed her reply to him.

To Xander: 

 Hi. Okay naman na ako. Nakapagpahinga na ako ng konti kaya papasok na ako mamaya. Salamat sa concern.

It was almost 8 p.m. so Selena didn't go back to sleep. She turned off her cell phone alarm and got ready for her shift. She left her dorm at quarter to nine. 

MoCafé wasn't far away, but she intended to get there early so she could work overtime and earn a bit more money. She had to. Stephen had been going in and out of the hospital because of leukemia. The salaries of her father as a construction worker and her mother from selling at the market weren't enough. So even if she felt a little dizzy again while walking, she kept motivating herself—this would help her parents provide for her brother's medical needs. 

“Ako na d'yan,” she said to her coworker working behind the counter.

A little later, Jean approached and talked to her in a corner. “Ano'ng ginagawa mo dito?” She asked. 

“Nagtatrabaho?” Selena said in a question-like manner.

Jean crossed her arms “‘Di ba dapat nagpapahinga ka ngayon?”

“Po?” Selena uttered in confusion. 

Her supervisor raised a brow. “May sakit ka, ‘di ba?”

“Ah. Okay na po ako. Nakapagpahinga na po ako ng konti,” she replied with a smile. 

She wondered how her manager knew she was sick earlier. Was that obvious?

Jean put her hands on her waist. “Konti? Tingin mo ayos na ‘yun? Namumutla ka pa nga, oh. Ang mabuti pa, umuwi ka na at magpahinga.”

“Pero, Miss Jean–”

“Kulit mo talaga, ‘no? Sige na. Umuwi ka na. Don't worry, you won't be fired. You can work next week, or once you're really fine,” she said, smiling at Selena. 

“Okay po.” She frowned. “Pero, maaga po ako papasok sa susunod!” She said then ran out.

Selena stepped out of MoCafé, her mind swirling with mixed emotions. She glanced back at the café, biting her lip as she considered going back in and convincing Miss Jean to let her work. 

Konting hilo lang naman ‘to, she thought. Nothing she hadn’t pushed through before.

But Jean had been firm, and Selena knew better than to argue further. She sighed, looking up at the night sky—a deep, ink-black expanse of velvet scattered with the cold, distant pulse of stars. She didn’t like being sent home. Work was a small distraction, a way to stay busy and, even if only for a few hours, avoid worrying about Stephen and her parents. 

Ano na’ng gagawin ko ngayon?

She hadn’t planned on having the evening free, and the unexpected rest felt strange, almost wasteful. She had so many reasons to work—to help cover her brother’s medical bills, to lift some of the burden off her parents' shoulders. And yet here she was, told to rest when she wanted nothing more than to be productive.

Her mind drifted to the bills piling up on her parents’ table, each one a reminder of their struggle. 

Isang shift pa sana, she told herself, para makadagdag sa panggastos ngayong buwan.

But tonight, it seemed, fate had other plans.

She pulled her coat closer around her, feeling the evening chill settle in as she turned toward home. 

Well, she thought with a small, reluctant smile, ’di naman nga siguro masamang magpahinga.

***

Alexander sat alone on the balcony outside his room, breathing in the cool night air. He was holding his phone, eyes fixed on Selena’s response. 

Ang kulit talaga. Just like…

He tried to stop himself from finishing the thought, but his mind drifted there anyway. He was so absorbed that he didn’t even notice his twin approaching.

“This is rare. Ngayon lang kita nakitang ngumiti ulit,” Alexis remarked, clearly amused by the sight.

Startled, Alexander felt the faint smile on his face vanish, like he’d been caught off guard.

“So, tell me,” Alexis continued, leaning against the railing with a smirk. “What’s the reason behind that smile?”

“Wala,” Alexander replied, tucking his phone into the pocket of his shorts and casting his gaze upward, focusing on the sky.

Undeterred, Alexis joined him, his voice softening. “I haven’t seen you smile like that in a long time,” Alexis said.

“…since Ella,” he added quietly.

He paused, a hint of sadness in his tone as he said her name, eyes drifting toward the stars.

The grin that had lingered on Alexander’s face moments before was now replaced by a scowl. He stayed silent, letting the memories tug at him.

“Sorry,” Alexis murmured when he noticed his brother’s expression darken. “I didn’t mean to bring her up.”

Alexander shook his head, his voice barely above a whisper. “It’s okay. I was… already thinking of her before you even said anything.”

A quiet settled between them, the kind that lingered with unspoken thoughts and shared memories.

“You still miss her?” Alexis finally asked, breaking the silence.

“I always do,” Alexander replied, looking over at his brother. “Ikaw rin naman, ‘di ba?”

Alexis nodded slowly. “She’s never left my mind. But… natanggap ko na. Alam ko na hindi na s'ya babalik.”

Alexander’s brows drew together, his expression firm. “She will be.”

A soft sigh escaped Alexis, a sadness in his eyes as he replied, “Pero halos sampung taon na ang lumipas simula nang nawala s'ya, Rex.”

“And I’m willing to wait longer,” Alexander said quietly, conviction lining his voice. “If that’s what it takes for her to come back.”

Alexis looked at him with a mix of sympathy and concern, resting a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t get your hopes too high. Baka madisappoint ka lang sa huli.” With a light squeeze on Alexander’s shoulder, he turned and left, his footsteps fading into the background.

Alone once more, Alexander let out a small sigh, tilting his gaze back up to the stars. 

Ellie.

He closed his eyes, feeling the ache in his chest intensify. Thinking of her stirred emotions he’d fought hard to keep buried, emotions that crept up now, haunting him. He needed to push them aside, to find a distraction. Otherwise, he knew it would be another sleepless night.