"Julia, is Leandro here?" Donald asked when he saw her as he arrived at his friend's house two days after the incident. He decided to let the tension to subside before talking to Leandro, but he also realized it would be too late for the three of them to wait that long.

"No, he's not here," Julia said and walked away from her two cousins and toward him. In a hushed voice, she asked, "What's going on? He seems not with himself today."

Donald chose not to talk about it with her. Rather he said, "Nothing. I need to go. I need to find him."



For whatever reasons he didn't find Leandro at the park; instead, he found him below it. He was sitting on a boulder less than a meter away from the base of the shallow ridge, his feet submerged in the seawater. It was where they used to pick sea shells when they were younger. And it was where he was saved by Leandro from drowning.

"Lean," he said, uncertain how not to disturb him.

"I need to be alone," Leandro said without turning.

"Lean, you're not like this. This is not you," Donald said, "Please, let's talk it over."

Silence.

"I don't understand," Leandro began. "I have never felt like this before in my life. This is my very first time to feel what it is like to fall in love. But it's being snatched away from me."

"I didn't---"

"You snatched it away from me," Leandro said in a pressing tone, and then turned around and looked at him. "Why?"

"Could you please stop it?" Donald slightly raised his voice, exasperated. "I don't love her, OK? I'm not taking her away from you."

Leandro looked away.

Silence.

"I can't believe that after all these years you still don't trust me," Donald sounded hurt and resentful.

"Just leave me alone."

"Look, I can't live like this."

"DON."

Silence.

"OK," Donald gave in, sighed, and walked away. After a few steps, he turned around and said, "Remma is leaving today for Canada. In an hour. I thought you should know."



When he saw in the distance the SUV pulling from the Olandria's garage, panicked crept all over him and triggered him to ran after it. He was only a few meters away when the SUV rolled into the street that leads toward the highway. He ran even faster with Donald trailing behind him.

"REMMA! REMMA!" Leandro cried as he ran after the vehicle. "REMMA, WAIT! WAIT!"

The SUV kept running as though oblivious to his cry and presence. He nearly outrun it; he was running almost alongside it and slapped its hind side over and over as he went yelling, "REMMA, STOP THE CAR! STOP THE CAR! DON'T JUST LEAVE US LIKE THIS, REMMA! REMMA! STOP THE CAR!"

The SUV suddenly pulled over and Remma's father got out from the passenger seat and then faced him.

"Please, just leave her alone," her father said in controlled anger. "She's breaking apart, and she needs time to heal. Not this one. Not this."

Leandro was begging, but Remma's father was all stone to him. He climbed back to the SUV, drove off, accelerated, turned around the bend, and was gone. Leandro was left there standing, heartbroken, and devastated.

After a long while he turned around and stormed past Donald without looking back.



June 1. Leandro was standing under the waiting shed a few blocks from behind their house, right along the main road that leads toward the town. He was waiting for the bus that would take him to the city. Today was his schedule to go to Tagbilaran and take a flight for Manila. Though the wounds was so fresh and his heart was still broken, he had no choice but to leave this place emotionally shattered.

He was standing there with his bags beside him on the dirt road when Donald came. They were standing side by side without saying a word for several minutes. None of them had the courage to talk nor the strength to listen. They were just there feeling each other and watching people passed by. A deafening, eerie silence wrapped around them.

After a long while, Donald spoke. "I hate to see us part this way."

No response.

"We don't even have the chance to talk about it."

Silence.

"Lean, talk to me, for Christ's sake. This isn't easy for me to see you go like this. Please say something. This is killing me."

Leandro grunted, and then faced him. "What do you want me to say?"

Donald closed his eyes and sighed in exasperation. "Jesus, Lean! Stop acting like that. If you think this is my fault, I'm sorry. I told you I don't love her! I ---" he stopped himself. He couldn't do it. He couldn't say it. Because at that moment he couldn't understand why he was about to say it, or if he meant it at all, or if it was what his heart had wanted him to say all this time. He stopped to question himself. He stopped because he realized that the emotions within him was trying to surrender him and spit him out with all its might.

"What else do you want me to do?" Donald went on.

"Bring her back."

"This isn't going anywhere," Donald said while shaking his head. In the distance, the bus appeared and rolled fast toward them.

"You're right," Leandro. "This is not going anywhere."

"Lean, please," Donald said. "Think it over. This is shattering us, please listen to me."

Leandro said nothing as he waited for the bus to come to a stop.

"Come back home once in a while, OK?" Donald said. "Promise me."

Leandro reluctantly nodded.

"I'm gonna miss you, man," he was about to hug him but Leandro bent to pick up his bags and walked into the waiting bus.

Donald was left behind, staring at the leaving bus. It was the last time the two of them see each other.




The photograph used in this entry is from Arun Kumar Sinha's Flickr page. To view the owner's webpage, please click here. Thanks!