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- Days before the Prom..
“So, anong plano mo?”
Wala.
Hansol shook his head habang pilit na ngumingiti sa kaibigan niya. “Wala naman akong magagawa kung papayag siya kay Mingyu. Desisyon niya ‘yon.”
Seungcheol rolled his eyes, “Bobo mo, p’re.”
He is. Aminado naman si Hansol, lalo na kapag siya ang dahilan.
“Isipin mo ‘to ha.” Pagsisimula ni Seungcheol after drinking from his bottle of coke. “Kanino siya lumalapit kapag gusto na niyang patayin sarili niya kakaaral? Sa’yo ‘di ba? Kanino siya tumatawag ng alas tres ng madaling araw kapag nagb’breakdown siya? Sinong naghahatid-sundo sa kanya kadalasan? Sinong sinasama niya tuwing may nalalaman siya na bagong pasyalan? O kaya movie nights? Sinong inaasar-asar niya pero pikon naman kapag hindi mo pinansin?” Seungcheol faces him and points a finger at him, “Ikaw ‘yun, tanga. Si Mingyu, last month niya lang nakausap. What made you think na kapag niyaya niyo siya, kay Mingyu agad sasama?”
Ano nga ba?
Their friendship? Nahihiya siya? A combination of the two?
‘Yun lang naman ang posibleng dahilan.
Hansol sighed, “Hindi ko alam, Cheol. Minsan gusto ko na magsalita but I’m scared.”
And then, there was a vibrating phone on Seungcheol’s pocket. Hansol raised an eyebrow at his bestfriend, “Hoy, gago. Bakit ‘di ka nagsurrender ng phone? May boyfriend ka ‘no?”
But Seungcheol just winked at him and quickly typed a reply to whoever he was talking to. He turned to him, “Alam mo, Hansol, hindi ka makakausad kung lagi ka na lang matatakot.”
First of all, paano kung ayaw niyang umusad? They’re too young, madami pa ang pwedeng mangyari. What if he’s beyond contented with how they already are?
But, is he really.. contented?
“Let me ask you these few questions.” After a few minutes of silence, Seungcheol started again, “Okay ba sa’yo kung si Mingyu ang ka-date niya sa prom? Kahit isayaw siya magdamag ni Mingyu? What if si Mingyu kasama niya hanggang college? Tapos ikasal siya kay Mingyu? Okay lang na si Mingyu kasama niya pagtanda?”
Hansol rolled his eyes at him. Oo, gusto niya ‘yung tao. Pero Seungcheol is thinking way too forward. “Prom lang pinag-uusapan natin kanina, ang layo nang naabot ng tanong mo.”
“Dude, if you’re taking him to the prom, especially kung may feelings ka, malamang dapat pang-matagalan na ‘yung mindset mo.”
Okay, gusto pa lang naman niya. Hindi pa naman siguro mahal.
But things don’t sit right with Hansol just by thinking about his friend’s questions.
Of course not. Kung may chance man siya, bakit siya papayag mapunta sa iba?
Pero kung sa iba naman nakatadhana, wala na din naman siya magagawa.
Hansol’s thoughts got cut off when the door to the rooftop opened, revealing the only person that he can never stop admiring.
“Sabi ko na nga ba nandito ka na naman, Chwe Hansol!”
Seungcheol waves at him, “Hi, Jisoo! Iwan ko muna kayo.” And then taps Hansol’s shoulder, “Isipin mo lahat ng tinanong ko pati ‘yung kanina. Never let a golden heart go.”
Hansol just smiled at him, before facing him.
Hong Jisoo.
He’s the guy that Hansol has been trying his best to not say a single word of his feelings for. Even though all of them are for him.
As young as 15, Hansol understands how difficult it is to be living in a society where judgements are bad. And Jisoo accepted him, wholeheartedly. Aside from Seungcheol, si Jisoo ang taong itinuturing ni Hansol na human diary. And a guidance counselor. Minsan, he doesn’t have to say something, makita pa lang siya ni Jisoo alam na nito kung may problema.
Jisoo sighs, “You’re eating lightly again, kapag ikaw nagkasakit uli, hindi na kita ipagsusulat ng notes, sige ka.”
And the thing with Jisoo is that, as much as he says he’s not good with words, he still delivers the right words at the right time.
Jisoo lays his head on Hansol’s shoulder, “Hindi ako magaling mag-advice, pero alam ko naman na kaya mo ‘yan. Naalala mo noong takot na takot ka last year na baka ‘di ka makapasok sa varsity team? Pero look at you now, oh! Hindi na lang about basketball ang problema mo, may dagdag na academics na!” And then, he laughs.
Dapat offended siya, but he’s not. How can he? When Jisoo sounds sincere in trying to make him feel better. And if this is how he thinks would uplift him, and so be it.
“Tingnan mo! Tumawa ka din.” Jisoo pointed at him jokingly, “I’m just joking. Basta alam ko lang na kaya mo ‘yan.”
And things started there.
It used to be just a casual admiration. Not until his strong feelings started to occur.
And he knows that there are a lot more guys na gustong i-date si Jisoo. Who wouldn’t? Jisoo is exactly the personification of perfect. Maganda. Gwapo. Mabait. A sunshine. Matalino. Polite. At higit sa lahat, he’s the most charming person he has ever met, in all aspects. So, of course, sa ayaw man at sa gusto ni Hansol, hindi malabong magkagusto din si Jisoo sa iba. He doesn’t mention a crush, anyway. Kaya walang idea si Hansol kung anong stance niya sa kaibigan.
Despite that, he’s the guy that Hansol wants to keep for himself. The only guy that made him feel something. Dati, Hansol was the so-so kind of person. ‘Yung tipong “Ah. Okay. Cool.” And that’s it. But with Jisoo, Hansol’s emotions started to lean towards appreciative. He’s now more of “Wow. Thank you.” or “That’s pretty, keep it up.” He started to value even the littlest things.
They met three years ago when Jisoo transferred to their school. And since then, Jisoo has always been the crowd’s favorite. Crush ng bayan, ika nga. Same with his step-brother, Jeonghan.
It’s still surreal para kay Hansol to even think about how they got close. Ang alam lang niya, naging seatmate niya ito sa isang subject, at simula noon, halos hindi na sila mapaghiwalay. Not very literally though, pero mostly during emergencies.
And today is one of the examples.
“Why are you here, Soo?” Tanong nito habang inaabot ang Dutch Mill sa kaibigan.
“Samahan mo ‘ko kay Ma’am. Hiram lang ako phone ko, text ko si Dad. Naiwan ko kasi baon ko, pa’no ako uuwi mamaya? Tapos ‘yung kapatid ko hindi ko mahanap. Alam mo feel ko-” Jisoo stops midway to bite on Hansol’s burger, “-feel ko talaga may boyfriend si Jeonghan eh. After ng class namin kanina nagmamadali siya, tapos akala ko pupunta siya sa canteen, so, hihiram sana ako ng pera. Pero wala siya do’n. Feel ko nasa cr ‘yon tapos may katext. Hindi siya nagsurrender ng phone eh, I’m pretty sure I saw him smiling at it while we were on our way here kaninang umaga.” Kwento ni Jisoo habang kumakain.
Hansol chuckles and waits for Jisoo to finish up eating his piece of snack.
He stood up, “Tara na sa canteen, ako na magbabayad. Samahan na din kita pauwi.”
And then, Jisoo beams at him. “Talaga? Pa’no ‘yung training mo?”
Those sparkly eyes that make his heart weak. For the sake of his wits, he looks away, “Mamaya pa naman 6 ‘yung training, besides, si Seungcheol naman captain, madali na ‘yon. Also, 5 ‘yung dismissal mo, malapit lang naman dito isang jeep lang tayo.”
“And your dinner? Saan ka magdinner?” Jisoo raises an eyebrow at him, but before he could respond, he walked to the door and opened it, “Don’t answer pala. We’ll eat na lang sa 7/11 mamaya, ‘yung near sa village namin. I’ll treat you!”
Ginulo ni Hansol ang buhok ni Jisoo, “You can’t, kasi wala kang pera, remember?”
And they continued to bicker even while Jisoo was having lunch with Hansol enjoying his view.
- Night before Basketball Championship
“Grabe ‘yung promposal kanina, nakita m-” Jeonghan stops mid-sentence because he noticed his step-brother baffled and barely eating his food. “Hoy!” Saway nito, “Anong meron? Bakit ka tulala?”
Jisoo exhaled, “Si Mingyu kasi..”
Jeonghan looks at him expectantly.
“Tinanong niya ‘ko kanina, if he asks me to be his prom date, will I accept the invitation daw ba?”
His step-brother squinted his eyes at him, “As far as I can remember, sinabi mo sa’kin dati na jowable siya, but I don’t think I am seeing the reaction I was expecting?”
Ibinaba ni Jisoo ang kanyang kubyertos at humarap kay Jeonghan, “Han.. Ayaw ko siya kasama as a date.”
“Si Mingyu?”
Jisoo nodded.
“Bakit?”
Simply because he’s not comfortable with him, yet. “We barely know each other. Tapos nakukulitan ako sa kanya. I mean, he’s nice and all. Very gentleman, but I don’t know.” Jisoo looks down and starts eating again. “Nagulat nga ako tinanong niya ‘ko eh. And then I felt awkward after. Parang ang bilis lang kasi, I don’t think appropriate time ‘yon. I’ve only talked to him through messages. We don’t usually hang out personally, so parang.. out of place or.. sobrang sudden lang na he would want to take me to prom?”
Jeonghan leans back and winks at him, “Okay, gets ko ‘yung point. Pero what if si Hansol ang magtanong?”
Bigla naman tumawa si Jeonghan nang makita ang response ni Jisoo sa pangalang nabanggit.
Jisoo looked up at him with hopeful eyes, it was just a few-second reaction but it obviously gave Jeonghan the answer.
“Ayon.” Jeonghan starts again, “’Yun ‘yung point ko. Wala naman sa tagal ng pagkakilala ‘yan eh. I think it depends pa din sa tao. If you’re willing to let a person in your life, you would give them a chance sa kahit anong bagay. Remember when you told me na ‘Prom lang naman, we don’t need dates.’? But ngayon you responded with a different intention. You could have told me na ayaw mo ka-date si Mingyu kasi ayaw mo nang may date sa prom. But nope.” Jeonghan ends with a pop before sipping on his glass of water na akala mo umiinom ng wine. “I believe may iniintay ka lang din talaga.”
“Gago, wala ‘no!”
Jeonghan crossed his arms and stared at his step-brother, “Pero.. what if si Hansol magtanong kung pwede ka i-date sa prom? What would you do or say?”
Jisoo glared at him at kumain na lang uli, “Ewan ko sa’yo, finish your dinner na lang baka abutan pa tayo nina Mom and Dad.”
At dahil ipinanganak na makulit ang kanyang kapatid, “Dali na, hypothetical question lang naman. What if lang! What if.”
Jisoo just shrugged, “Don’t know.”
“Oh see!” Jeonghan claps and Jisoo can only let out a sigh, “Kapag si Mingyu, ayaw agad.”
Tumayo na si Jisoo at kinuha ang kanyang pinagkainan para mahugasan na din niya pero hindi siya nilubayan ni Jeonghan. “Han, isa. Ayan ka na naman eh, hindi ako gusto no’n, okay?”
“Are you convincing me or yourself?” Jeonghan brought his own plate to the sink as well, “Walang gusto kahit binigyan ka noong Valentine’s?”
Jisoo cursed to himself. Ito na naman tayo, Jeonghan, bakit ba hilig mo ibalik ‘to sa utak ko? “’Wag kang issue, napulot lang daw niya ‘yon.”
Jeonghan roared and lightly slapped the sink, “Naniwala ka do’n? Napulot? Allergic ‘yon sa bulaklak eh ‘di ba sabi mo? And ‘yung sunflower ba basta-basta napupulot, ha, Hong Jisoo? ‘Yung kasamang chocolates ba napulot lang din? Hulaan ko, naconfuse ka that time ‘no? Tapos kilig na kilig ka pa.” Patuloy na pang-aasar ni Jeonghan.
“Desisyon ka? Hindi ako kinilig, bobo ka.”
Nagulat naman si Jeonghan sa sinabi ni Jisoo ngunit mas lalong lumakas ang tawa nito. After some time, Jisoo heard him sigh, “Deny ka pa, kitang-kita ko inaamoy mo ‘yung sunflower tuwing gabi, tapos didiligan mo pa sa morning.”
Jisoo blushed. Nakakainis naman eh. Ipinaalala mo pa. “Oh, bakit noong may nagbigay sayo ng rose, hindi naman kita inasar?”
Inilahad ni Jeonghan ang kanyang palad sa harap ni Jisoo, “Shh, Ikaw ang topic, not me.”
- Day of Basketball Championship
“Choi and Chwe, same as planned, pasok sa second half, clear?”
The two nodded their heads and stayed seated. Hansol was too busy focusing on their opposing team’s playing strategies when Seungcheol tapped him on the shoulder, “Sol, sasabihin ko na baka makalimutan ko pa.”
Hansol turned to him, confused.
“Tinanong daw ni Mingyu si Jisoo about sa prom, pero hindi pa ata sumasagot ‘yung bebe mo.”
Nagkibit-balikat na lamang si Hansol dahil wala na din naman siya magagawa, desisyon ni Jisoo ang masusunod.
“Gago, once in a lifetime lang natin maexperience ‘yun, ayaw mo bang maging memorable prom mo?” Seungcheol whispered. Seungcheol, ‘wag ngayon. Ayoko madistract. “Tingin ka sa row ni Jisoo, tingnan mo sinong katabi niya.”
The thing with dumb people is, they know exactly what they’ll see, they’re sure it’ll hurt them and yet, they still do it. Parang si Hansol, alam niya kung anong imahe ang makikita niya pero sinilip pa din niya ito.
Jisoo, happily clapping his hand with a smiling Mingyu by his side. Palakpak pa, wala naman ako sa court. Hansol thought to himself.
But then, Jisoo noticed him at halos hindi makahinga si Hansol nang kumaway ito sa kanya at nagtatalon sa pwesto niya, with the widest grin he has ever seen. Napakaganda mong nilalang, Hong Jisoo.
“Sabi ko sa’yo may chance ka eh, tanungin mo na mamaya. Trust yourself, and your memories with him.”
Should he?
No one knows how it happened or why it even happened but.. maybe, that one quick glance to the bleachers when Hansol’s team won the game was what made him run to the mic’s stand.
But yeah, here he is stopping on his tracks with eyes focused on one single special person mouthing “Congratulations! You were amazing!” and a very beautiful and dreamy smile directly for him. His sparkly eyes were even more glimmering under hundreds of lights, surrounded with faint screams and claps.
Hansol confidently grabs the microphone from one of the announcers, “Hindi ako si Ricci Rivero kaya..” He pauses and swallows a huge lump of nervousness, “I just want to ask, Hong Jisoo, would you like to be my prom date?”
And then, there were loud gasps and it felt like the world stops for a second before squeals and laughter started to fill the gymnasium.
Hansol, who is expectantly smiling, stares only at one particular person. He doesn’t even know where he got the confidence and the idea from but maybe it was the way Jisoo talked a lot about the Ricci Rivero and Andrea Brillantes ‘incident’ and how it made him cringe.
“Tingnan mo ‘to si Ricci, ang lakas naman ng loob, tapos noong sumagot na ‘yung babae, hindi naman mukhang masaya.” Jisoo told him as they sat in one of the benches at their school park. “‘Di ba dapat magtatalon ka sa saya? Kasi hello! If you really like someone tapos nag’yes’ sa’yo, you should’ve been more excited.”
“Hoy! Nagiintay ng sagot mo!” Jeonghan yells to his ear. Bwiset ka talaga, Chwe Hansol! Jisoo was contemplating whether to glare or to look at him happily because Hansol just did a public promposal, let alone a similar scene with a celebrity’s ganap.
Magtata-talon sana si Jisoo kung tinanong siya ni Hansol nang sila lang dalawa, pero he announced it to the whole school which made him embarrassed but oh well, he’s been thinking a lot about Jeonghan’s question, anyway. Clearly in his mind, mas pabor sa kanya na si Hansol ang kasama sa prom other than another person. He’s most comfortable with Hansol around. He likes Hansol’s presence. He’s someone he naturally is when he is with Hansol.
With these thoughts, Jisoo found himself nodding sabay takip ng kanyang kamay sa mukha. Kung natuwa man si Hansol ay hindi niya alam dahil nagtago na ito sa kahihiyan. He just felt himself being shaken by his step-brother. He is embarrassed not because of Hansol but because of the hundred pairs of eyes watching him closely. Punyeta ka talaga, Hansol. Lagot ka sa’kin mamaya.
And then he heard a whisper on his side, “This is why hindi ko sineryoso ‘yung pagtatanong sa’yo the other day.”
It was Mingyu.
Jisoo looked up at him and showed him a small smile.
“It’s okay, Jisoo. Enjoy your prom!”
Back at the locker room, Hansol felt a tap on his shoulder, “Sabi ko sa’yo eh.” And then, Seungcheol winked.
Hansol just smiled at him before typing a quick text to Jisoo. “Wait for me, ihahatid kita pauwi.” And a cute smiley face, hoping that the other could feel how grateful he is.
- Prom Night
“Hi. You look really amazing tonight.”
“Hansol, parang tanga.” Jisoo rolled his eyes at him as they sway through the song.
With the other’s arm wrapped around his neck, Hansol smiles at him, “What? Totoo naman. I’m not even joking.”
Jisoo slaps his chest, hindi siya galit, nahihiya lang siya. He cleared his throat before asking the question that he’s been wanting to ask but couldn’t bring himself to, “Since when?”
“I’m not sure, actually. Hindi ko din alam paano. Even noong time na narealize ko na, I didn’t know how. Nahuli ko lang sarili ko that day smiling at you while you were happily skipping steps palapit sa’kin when we tried food stalls sa park. You were so excited to share your food, and I saw how your eyes sparkled. Tapos ‘yun din ‘yung time na napansin ko kung ga’no kaganda mga ngiti mo. And honestly, my heart skipped a beat. Sobrang ganda mong pagmasdan lalo na kapag masaya ka. I know it’d be an honor to be a reason for your beautiful smiles.” Hansol talks so freely, smiling sheepishly as he reminisces those treasured moments. It feels so light letting all his feelings out to the person who was meant to hear them.
“Sa park? We went there so many times, though.”
Hansol nodded, “Oo, and I’m glad na ako ang tinatawag mo para pumunta doon.” He began, “Basta I just realized na my eyes would light up kapag nakikita ko name mo sa notifications ko. I don’t know but I really feel so excited. I have always liked you for a long time now, hindi ko lang talaga masabi because I don’t want to ruin what we have. I know we’re still young and we’re all not sure about the future, but, Jisoo..” Hansol stopped moving and stared at him.
“Hmm?”
“Let me show you my genuine feelings?”
Jisoo blinks. “Nanliligaw ka ba?”
Hansol chuckles, “Only if you let me.”
Despite uncertainties, and all the other risks, Jisoo smiles back.
“Finally!” The two broke apart dahil sa gulat.
Si Jeonghan lang pala who’s currently standing close to both of them, with Seungcheol.
“Siya ba ‘yung katext mo kapag hindi ka nagsusurrender?” Hansol asks his bestfriend.
Seungcheol nodded before pulling Jeonghan closer to him, “Yup! Siya din kasama ko kapag nagrraincheck ako sa lakad natin.” He looked back at Jeonghan and smiled.
Jeonghan leaned his head on Seungcheol before facing his step-brother, “Congrats, Jisoo!”
“Susumbong kita kay Dad, bawal pa dapat magboyfriend.” Sagot ni Jisoo.
Jeonghan points at him, “Pareho tayong malalagot kaya don’t try.”
And everyone laughed.
No one knows what the future holds, they don’t clearly understand what they’re risking, but at a young age, they’re both willing to try and explore.
- Some time later..
”Jisoo, kapag naka-three points ako, magprepare ka na ng sagot mo kasi anytime magtatanong na’ko, deal?”
Hansol and Seungcheol visited the step-brothers nang maisipan nilang maglaro ng basketball for fun. Ngunit sa walang tigil na pang-aasar ng couple, Hansol decided na oras na para magtry humingi ng sagot.
He’s been wooing Jisoo for six months already and he has been nothing but genuinely showing his real feelings and made sure that Jisoo felt all of them.
At ramdam ni Jisoo lahat ng ‘yon. Never did he felt so appreciated and adored before, until Hansol came. He was there like a friend, bestfriend, suitor, everything. Even did his best para magpunta at magpaalam sa parents ni Jisoo.
Although, napagsabihan si Jeonghan longer than Jisoo’s, Seungcheol eventually got accepted by their parents. As well as Hansol.
“Hansol, shooting guard ka pa naman sa team, bakit hindi mo mashoot ‘yan?” Seungcheol commands habang pinapanood magstruggle si Hansol.
He’s been trying the three-point shot for two minutes already and for someone who’s mostly responsible for the shooting position, Hansol is not doing so great this time.
“Wait, last try.”
Jisoo rolled his eyes and walked closer before grabbing the ball from him, “Ako na nga.”
And Jisoo did it miraculously!
He looked back at Hansol, “See?” He cockily shrugged, “Talo pa kita, and yes, ang sagot ko sa tanong mo.”
Suddenly, Jeonghan was screaming and hugging Jisoo because finally!
“Gago! Yes daw, oy! Galaw d’yan, p’re!” Seungcheol pushes a frozen Hansol to bring him back to his senses.
And when he did, he sprints to hug Jisoo. Embracing every single aspect of him, from his past to their future. Squeezing him into his arms like he got a reason to keep him even safer than the way he already does.
All he could utter was a series of Thank yous and I love yous and Jisoo can only giggle into his arms.
“Congratulations to the new couple! Woohoo!”
“We should definitely go on a double date.”
“Yup! Certainly.”
This is when Jeonghan and Seungcheol were completely forgotten habang matagal na nagyayakapan si Jisoo at Hansol. Jeonghan would roll his eyes, only if he doesn't see the smile on his step-brother's lips.