Novel & Cerita At Least We Met

Tumaas ang kilay ko sa sinabi niya. Alam ko naman na ang tungkol sa set-up nila kaya wala na lang sa akin iyon. At sa malamang . . . kahit saan ba naman eh, nagtutukaan ang dalawang iyon. Hindi na katakataka iyon. “That’s before we met,” Walang emosyong saad ko. “Wow, taray! Napa-english.” nagtawanan na lang kami sa pag-aasar naming dalawa sa bawat isa.

"Is it okay with you, Ry?" He simply responded, "I don't mind." At the Elyxir Cafe, Zaria and I could be heard filling the air with our infectious laughter as we shared a nice seat together. Na-realize ko na marami na pala talagang nagbago at ang dami naming na-miss sa isa't isa. Even though it had been several years since we had last seen each other, it felt as though not a single moment of that time had been wasted.

Unang meet up palang na off na siya rito. Nagpatuloy siya sa pagsasalita hanggang sa siya ay natapos. Wala naman ibang natanong ang ginang at tila nagkasundo naman ang bawat panig. Natapos ang meeting ng matiwasay at walang naging problema.

He is still wearing a wedding ring. "Ano naman ang itatago ko sa 'yo? Hindi ba pwedeng ayaw lang kitang makita at makausap? How we met was not exactly pleasant." Napangiwi si Aria. "Really? Because I thought it was... pleasurable."

What matters is that they found each other. Even in the short moments we could steal, even in the uncertain future ahead of us, we would have this. We would have each other. And maybe that would be enough.

The Meeting: A Place of Vulnerability They met at a small café on the edge of the city, one that Madison had frequented during her university years. It was cozy, warm, with the smell of fresh coffee and pastries filling the air. The familiarity of the place calmed her nerves, grounding her in a way she hadn’t expected. It felt like a neutral space, far from the grandeur of his world, far from the chaos of their emotions. For a moment, she thought maybe it would be easier to talk here, away from the weight of everything else.

We were already best friends since the day we learned how to walk. Magkapitbahay lang kami. Lagi kong tinatakasan si Ate sa tuwing tatalikod siya dahil may kukunin. I would step out of our fence at maghahanap ako ng batang babae na makakasama ko sa pagbibilang kung ilan ang sasakyan na dadaan sa maliit na highway ng aming lugar. And that’s when I met her. Dahil siya ang unang bata na nakita ko at sumang-ayon sa trip ko.

bulong ko sa sarili, amused. Pero bago pa man ako makalayo, narinig ko ang yabag niya papalapit. His arms circled my waist from behind, forehead resting on my shoulder. “Meeting’s done,” he whispered. “Hmm. You’re not going to ask what I’m thinking?” I teased. “I already know,” he said, pressing a kiss to my neck. “You’re grateful.” Tama siya. We were still healing, yes. But we were no longer surviving—we were finally living.

“Hindi ko alam. Pareho naman nating hindi mahal ang pinakasalan natin, pero hindi pa rin naging tayo. Masaya ako na nakilala kita.” “Ako rin.” Natahimik na naman kaming dalawa at tanging pagsinghot lang namin ang naririnig namin. Siguro ay pareho kaming nasasaktan dahil sa nangyayari pero wala naman kaming magagawa pa.

tumalikod na ako at lumakad palabas ng hospital. Sayonara my best friend. I hope one day, we met again.