Chapter 3

The next day felt heavier than yesterday, which was funny. Hindi pa nga lumilipas ang buong linggo, pero pakiramdam ko buwan na ang pagod na iniipon ko. My body moved, but my soul was somewhere else, probably still under that acacia tree, clinging to the last pieces of yesterday’s heartbreak.

I walked slowly across campus, clutching my books close to my chest as if they could protect me from anything—or anyone—I’d rather not see.

I kept replaying Sevi’s words in my head.

“Kung sakaling hindi mo kaya… nandito ako.”

Ang dali niyang sabihin, ang hirap paniwalaan. But somehow, it made the world feel less suffocating.

Until I turned the corner.

And saw Sophie.

Her. Again.

She was standing near the bulletin board outside the student lounge, her glossy dark hair flowing perfectly, her pastel purple top hugging her tiny waist. She looked like she didn’t know how to have a bad day. Or maybe she simply didn’t have any.

I froze instantly.

Just my luck.

I considered turning around, but before I could step back, she saw me.

“Oh! Diane!” she chirped, her voice too sweet for the pounding in my chest. “Hi!”

I forced a smile. “Hi, Sophie.”

She walked toward me—small steps, but purposeful, like she had been waiting for me. “I was actually hoping to see you.”

Me?

Why?

My pulse quickened. Not the romantic kind, the panic kind.

“I was worried about you,” she continued. “You looked… a little down yesterday.”

I clenched my books tighter. “I’m fine.”

She nodded slowly, studying my face too closely, eyes soft but sharp underneath. “I get it. Breakups are tough.”

The word hit me like a slap.

“I didn’t say we broke up,” I whispered, voice cracking a little before I stabilized it.

She smiled sympathetically. “You didn’t have to.”

I swallowed hard. My stomach twisted. My heartbeat refused to calm down.

“I just wanted to… check on you,” she said gently.

But something about the way she said it didn’t feel comforting. It felt… invasive. Like she was picking at a wound that hadn’t even formed a scab yet.

“Thanks,” I muttered, stepping sideways. “I have to go.”

But she moved with me, blocking my way, still smiling.

“Actually, wait. I wanted to talk to you about something.”

My eyebrows pulled together. “About what?”

She hesitated, then leaned a little closer, her perfume sweet and flowery.

“About Ryan.”

My heart stopped.

“What about him?” I managed to whisper.

She looked around first, making sure no one was within earshot, then she bit her lip as if hesitant to speak.

“I think… he needs space,” she said softly. “He told me he’s really confused lately.”

I blinked.

Confused?

“Why would he tell you that?” I asked, voice sharp despite my best efforts to stay calm.

Her expression stayed angelic. “Because we’re friends. He talks to me sometimes. About random stuff. Feelings. Stress.”

Feelings.

My chest went hollow.

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear—petite, delicate, practiced. “I really think you should give him time, Diane. He’s not in a good place emotionally.”

“I know that,” I replied tightly. “But… that’s between us.”

“Of course,” she said quickly. “Of course. I wasn’t trying to overstep or anything. I just thought… maybe it would help.”

It didn’t.

Not even close.

My blood heated with a mix of humiliation and anger I wasn’t used to feeling. I didn’t want to break down in front of her again—not when she already saw me yesterday looking like a disaster.

“Thanks for the concern,” I muttered. “But I don’t need your advice.”

The moment the words left my mouth, I regretted how weak my voice sounded. Unsteady. Cracked.

Sophie’s smile dropped slowly, replaced by something colder, barely noticeable, but enough for me to catch it.

“Oh,” she said. “Okay. I was just being nice.”

Then she gave a small, pitying shrug that felt more insulting than comforting.

“I guess some girls don’t like being helped.”

My eyes widened. “Excuse me?”

She blinked innocently. “Nothing. Forget it.”

But her tone was too sweet, too soft, too sharp.

Something snapped.

“I don’t need your help,” I said quietly, holding my ground for once.

Sophie stepped closer, lowering her voice. “You clearly do.”

My jaw tightened.

“Ryan’s been so stressed lately,” she whispered. “A relationship should make you feel lighter… but you seem so heavy around him. Don’t you think he deserves peace?”

The words shot straight through me.

My breath hitched. “Sinabi mo na kanina na naghiwalay na kami. Ano ba ang kailangan mo? Why are you saying this to me?”

She tilted her head. “Because I care.”

Liar.

I knew it. Deep in my gut, I knew something was wrong with this sugar-coated tone. With her perfectly timed “concern.” With the way she slowly chipped away at my confidence since she arrived.

And now, she wasn’t even hiding it anymore.

“I think you’re misunderstanding your place,” mahina kong sabi. Nanginginig but firm.

Her eyes sharpened again, but her lips remained in that gentle smile. “Oh sweetheart… I’m not misunderstanding anything.”

The word sweetheart made my skin crawl.

I stepped back.

She stepped forward again.

Like a predator with a porcelain face.

“You know, Diane,” she whispered, “may rason kung bakit nakakaramdam ng pagkasakal si Ryan. Guys don’t like being dragged down emotionally.”

Napahinto ako.

“He wants a partner he can breathe around.”

My ears rang. My heart squeezed painfully.

“And sometimes,” Sophie added softly, “girls like you don’t realize when they’ve become a burden.”

Everything blurred.

Everything stung.

My throat felt tight.

“You don’t know anything about us,” I whispered hoarsely.

She shrugged lightly. “I know enough.”

Another step.

“And I know Ryan,” she said, eyes flickering. “More than you think.”

I couldn’t breathe.

Couldn’t speak.

Couldn’t move.

I hated that the tears formed before I could stop them. I hated that she saw them. I hated that my heart felt like it was being wrung out in front of her.

“Okay ka lang?” she said sweetly.

I hate you, gusto kong sabihin.

But the words wouldn’t come out.

“Just… leave me alone,” I choked.

Instead of stepping back, she smirked a little—softly, briefly, wickedly—before wiping it away with a fake look of concern.

“I didn’t mean to upset you,” she said quickly. “I’m just being honest. Bilang kaibigan mo.”

“Hindi kita kaibigan,” I snapped, voice trembling uncontrollably.

And that’s when it happened.

Sophie suddenly gasped loudly, stepping backward dramatically.

I stared at her, confused.

Before I could respond, she cried out—loud enough to echo.

“Ow! Diane, why would you push me?!”

My eyes widened, horrified. “I—what? Hindi kita tinulak—”

She clutched her arm, pretending to wince, eyes watering instantly. “That hurt!”

“Hindi nga kita hinawakan, itulak pa kaya!” I protested, panicking.

And right then—

“Sophie?”

Ryan’s voice.

My lungs collapsed.

He was walking toward us, eyes widening as he saw Sophie clutching her arm… and me standing there with tears in my eyes.

Perfect timing.

Perfect trap.

Sophie looked at him with trembling lips. “Ryan… I was just trying to help her…”

My stomach dropped.

“I swear, she just suddenly—”

“She’s lying!” I cried out, looking at Ryan desperately. “Ryan, I didn’t do anything—”

But he was already moving toward Sophie, worry etched deeply across his face.

“Sophie, okay ka lang ba!” he asked, resting a hand on her shoulder.

My heart broke again.

“No—Ryan, makinig ka sa akin,” I pleaded, stepping forward.

But Sophie flinched dramatically, hiding behind him.

“Please don’t let her come near me,” she whispered shakily.

I froze.

Ryan’s brows furrowed, and the anger in his eyes wasn’t aimed at her.

It was aimed at me.

“Diane,” he said firmly. “What’s going on?”

My voice cracked. “She’s twisting everything! Wala akong kasalanan. She’s bullying me!”

Sophie gasped, offended. “Me? Bully you? Ryan, why would I do that? I was trying to comfort her because she looked sad.”

“I wasn’t sad until she came near me!” I shot back.

“You were crying,” Sophie countered softly. “I was worried.”

Ryan turned to me, disbelief in his eyes. “Diane… bakit mo naman gagawin ’to?”

Ang sakit.

Ang hirap.

Parang pinipigil ko ang mundo na hindi ko naman kayang pigilan.

“You think I would hurt her?!” I screamed, voice cracking into a pathetic, breaking sound.

But Sophie sniffled softly behind him, and Ryan instantly wrapped an arm slightly in front of her—an instinctive move to protect her.

Protect her.

Not me.

Never me.

“Diane, tama na,” he said coldly.

The tone.

The finality.

The unfamiliar distance.

It crushed me more than yesterday’s breakup ever did.

Sophie whispered shakily, “Ryan… I don’t want trouble…”

“You’re not the problem,” he assured her gently.

And that was it.

That was the dagger.

He turned to me, every trace of affection gone, replaced with disappointment.

“I didn’t think you were capable of this,” he said quietly.

Tears spilled over my cheeks uncontrollably.

“You don’t believe me…” I sobbed, voice raw. “You really think I’d hurt her?”

He didn’t answer.

He didn’t have to.

His silence screamed everything.

Sophie stayed behind him, small and fragile—playing the role perfectly.

And me?

I felt like I was shrinking.

Breaking.

Shattering all over again.

“Ryan…” I whispered one last time.

But he looked away.

“I think you should go, Diane.”

My breath hitched painfully.

Sophie hid her face in her hands, pretending to cry.

And Ryan held her.

I stepped back.

Then another.

Then another.

Until the distance between us was wide enough for both of them to breathe.

I turned away, my vision blurred with tears that wouldn’t stop falling no matter how hard I tried. My feet stumbled blindly as I moved farther and farther from them.

I didn’t look back.

Because if I did…

I knew it would destroy me completely.