Frank could only look at the girl beside him; he even saw her about to get out of the car again.
He stopped her from opening the door.
"Can we talk, Faith?" he asked.
She didn't answer. She wasn't even looking at him. She just stared out the window, shaking off his hand as he tried to hold hers. He sighed heavily.
"Why haven't you been answering my calls and texts?" he asked quietly.
"Why are you acting like I matter to you again, when we both know this is just going to go back to how it was?" she replied, turning the question around on him.
He saw it in her eyes—how much she was hurting because of what happened between them last week, when they fought.
"Look, I was just tired that day—"
"Tired? Just say the truth—you're tired of me," she said, trying hard to control her emotions so she wouldn't cry. "I did everything to understand you. I don't want this relationship to become toxic. I just wanted you to say straight to my face that you were tired and needed to rest. I could've understood that," her voice wavered.
"That's why we're fixing it now, aren't we? Look at you, acting like the victim. When I try to talk, you avoid me," he snapped back.
"Because it always ends up the same, Frank. I can set aside my pride—really, I can—because I love you," she said, her voice soft but firm.
"Tell me—do you really love me?" she asked him.
Do I really love her? he found himself asking in his mind.
She let out a bitter, low laugh. "See? You can't even answer that question," she said, shaking her head as a tear rolled down her cheek.
"If I didn't love you, then why would I bother chasing after you like this, Faith? I'd be wasting my time," he said.
She remained silent, tears continuing to fall. "I'm going now," she said quietly.
"No one's going home until we talk this through. Wipe those tears from your face," he said firmly.
Seeing her cry tugged hard at Frank's heart. It reminded him of how he once made Mariely cry.
Damn... so this is where it was heading all along. I just wanted to stay there longer, that's all, he told himself silently.
But was that really the reason, Frank? Did you just want to stay in this fake relationship you created? Or do you actually want to be with her longer? He questioned himself inwardly.
He suddenly pulled Mariely into a hug, surprising her.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. Sometimes I just get really hot-headed, and I can't control my temper," he admitted.
"I'm sorry. Tell me how I can make it up to you," he said, wiping her tears as he looked into her eyes.
"All I wanted was to talk to you, to spend time with you. Just tell me what's wrong—that's all I ask. I don't want to keep overthinking everything," she told him.
"Yeah, I get it, I get it. Just don't cry anymore," he said, hugging her again to calm her down.
"Are we okay now?" he asked her gently.
She nodded faintly. He leaned in and kissed her on the lips, which she returned. Frank hugged her again.
"I'm sorry," he whispered once more.
Then he saw her smile at him.
"I can never really stay mad at you," she said softly.
"Let's go. My treat," he said cheerfully.
She simply nodded. His heart felt lighter seeing her smile again.
Calm down, Frank. Stick to the plan, he reminded himself.
***
Meanwhile...
"Shaina, what are you thinking?" Rodel asked his friend.
"I just can't stand seeing what I've been seeing, Rodel," she answered.
He sighed. "Haven't you thought about how this might affect someone else's feelings?" he asked.
Shaina didn't reply and just walked straight ahead. Rodel and Neil exchanged glances and followed her. They soon found themselves at the faculty room.
He shook his head. Only Miss Veron was in the room. Their adviser was always around Miss Veron, so it wasn't surprising.
"Oh? What brings you here?" Miss Veron asked.
Rodel and Neil looked at each other, unsure if they should stop Shaina or let her go through with it.
"Where's Ma'am Celestial?" Shaina asked.
"Ah, if you're looking for Ma'am Celestial, she's in the principal's office right now," Miss Veron replied.
"Ma'am Veron, this isn't related to class or our studies. But may we ask you something—something personal?" Shaina asked cautiously.
Veron's face showed surprise, but she nodded.
"What is it?" she asked.
Shaina glanced at the boys, searching for how to explain things.
"It's a personal matter, Ma'am," Neil added.
"What kind of personal matter? Is it about you two?" she asked.
"It's not about us, Ma'am... but it's something personal about Ma'am Celestial," Rodel said.
Veron was taken aback. "What do you mean by that?" she asked, now eyeing them one by one.
"Tell me," she said, her voice serious now.
"It's about her love life."
"Love life?" Veron raised her brows.
"Neil," Shaina called.
Without a word, Neil opened his phone and showed her the photos they had taken.
Veron's brow furrowed as she gasped at what she saw. She took Neil's phone and inspected the images.
"How did you know she's in a relationship with that man?" she asked.
"We weren't snooping on our teacher's love life, Ma'am. It's just... it's obvious she's in love. And we often see her with that guy," Neil explained.
"These aren't edited, right?" she asked.
They all shook their heads.
"When did you take these?" she asked, still staring at the photos.
"A while back. We live near a lot of food spots and hangout areas. We kept seeing them," Shaina said. "We were planning to show them to Ma'am Celestial."
"No, no. This isn't the right time. And it's not your responsibility to explain this to her," Veron said quickly.
"Send the photos to me," she added.
Neil nodded and sent them.
"Listen, the three of you—don't mention this to your adviser. Can I trust you with this?" Veron asked seriously.
"But Ma'am... he's been with different women," Shaina said with concern.
"Please, Shaina, can you trust me to handle this?" Veron asked again.
"Shaina, now that you've told Ma'am Veron, let's stop this already. We shouldn't interfere—no matter what we know," Rodel added.
"You know, Shai, even if you say it straight to her face, she might not believe it. Love is a very complicated thing. Let the adults deal with this," Neil said gently.
Shaina sighed and nodded. "Y—Yes, Ma'am Veron," she said softly.
"Thank you, Shaina. And if you see them together again, send it to me," Veron said.
They nodded. Rodel ruffled Shaina's hair playfully.
"At least we did something right," Neil said as they headed back to class for their last subject of the morning.