skip to main |
skip to sidebar
It was a few days after that emotional night on the Love Bus. The memory of Brenda leaning on my shoulder, pretending we were a couple again, still lingered in my mind like a sweet but dangerous dream. I tried to focus on work, on daily routines, on anything that would keep my thoughts from drifting back to her. But fate, it seemed, had other plans.
One cold October evening in 2007, Brenda messaged me again.
bru:
Franz, tara. Ride tayo. May importante akong sasabihin sa’yo.
Her message was short, but I could feel the weight behind it. I met her at our usual stop. She looked beautiful as always, but there was something different in her eyes, a mix of excitement and nervousness.
We found our paired seats near the middle. The bus was not too crowded, so the world outside felt distant. For the first few minutes, we talked about small things, the weather, her work, my latest project. But I could sense she was building up to something big.
Finally, after the bus crossed the next Intersection, she turned to me.
Franz… Rich proposed. At pumayag ako.
She looked at me with those eyes that had always seen through me.
Franz… alam ko na masasaktan kita. Pero kailangan mong malaman. Mahal ko si Rich. Pero ikaw… ikaw ‘yung best friend ko. ‘Yung taong laging nandito kahit kailan. Hindi ko kayang itago ‘to sa’yo.
I stared out the window, watching the passing lights blur into streaks.
Bakit ngayon mo sinasabi sa’kin? I asked quietly.
Kasi ayaw kong maging lihim ‘to sa atin. Kasi importante ka sa’kin. Kasi… kahit pumayag ako kay Rich, may parte pa rin sa’kin na hindi makalimot sa’yo, she confessed, her voice cracking slightly.
The bus continued its journey through the night. We sat in heavy silence for a long time. I wanted to tell her how much I still loved her, how every ride without her felt empty, how the thought of her marrying someone else was tearing me apart inside. But I held back. She had made her choice.
Franz, she whispered after a while, sabihin mo lang kung ayaw mo na akong makita. Kung masakit sa’yo ‘to, pwede nating bawasan ‘yung usapan natin.
I shook my head.
Hindi. Nandito pa rin ako. Best friend mo pa rin ako. Kahit masakit, nandito pa rin ako.
She leaned her head on my shoulder again, not pretending this time, but seeking comfort.
Salamat. Hindi ko alam kung ano’ng gagawin ko kung wala ka.
As the bus neared her stop, she squeezed my hand one last time.
Ingat ka pauwi ha. Tawag ako.
→ story continues tomorrow!
I watched her walk away into the night. The paired seat felt colder than ever. That night, as the Love Bus carried me home alone, a quiet thought came to me… life is full of crossroads. Some paths we choose, some paths choose us. And sometimes, the hardest thing is watching someone we love walk down a different road while we remain standing at the intersection, still holding on to what could have been. The threads of destiny were tightening, pulling us in directions we never expected.
Updated June 25, 2026 from original post date January 16, 2011.
Previous
