Chapter 13

PAT‘s POV:

Months passed.

And somehow…

Life became normal again.

Not the same.

Never the same.

But normal.

—

My small apartment slowly became a place I was used to.

The quiet mornings.

The empty space.

The sound of my alarm before training.

The walk back home after a long day.

At first, I thought living alone would make things easier.

No distractions.

No unnecessary thoughts.

No reminders.

But I was wrong.

Because even when I was alone…

There was still one person who occupied my mind.

Katherine Reyes.

—

Even with the distance…

We never stopped talking.

Not completely.

Every night, my phone waited for her name.

Sometimes she called early.

Sometimes late.

Sometimes I waited until I fell asleep.

But somehow…

We always found our way back.

Just like our promise.

—

The only difference was…

She was busier now.

Third year nursing was not easy.

She had duties.

Requirements.

Exams.

Things I didn’t fully understand but knew were exhausting.

Sometimes she would message me:

**Kat: Sorry, Pat. Duty took longer.**

And every time…

I replied the same thing.

**Pat: It’s okay. Take care.**

Because it was okay.

I wanted her to succeed.

Even if it meant less time with me.

—

But sometimes…

I missed the old version of us.

The version where she was always beside me.

The version where I knew everything about her day without asking.

The version where distance was just walking a few streets away.

Not hours.

Not different campuses.

Not different lives.

—

Training ended late that night.

My body was tired.

My mind was tired.

I dropped my bag on the floor and sat on my bed.

The room was quiet.

Too quiet.

Then my phone vibrated.

I didn’t even have to look.

I already knew.

**Kat calling.**

I smiled.

I hated how automatic it was.

How one name could change my mood.

I answered.

“Hello?”

“Pat?”

Her voice.

That was enough.

“Hi.”

“Pagod ka?”

I laughed softly.

“Kat.”

“What?”

“Kaka-answer ko pa lang, pagod agad tanong mo?”

I heard her laugh.

“Edi wow. Concerned lang naman ako.”

I smiled.

“Pwede.”

“See?”

She sounded proud.

“Admit mo concerned ako.”

“Oo na.”

I leaned back.

“Ikaw?”

“Hm?”

“Pagod ka rin.”

Silence.

Then a small sigh.

“Medyo.”

I immediately sat up.

“Medyo?”

She laughed.

“Ano ba, Pat. Hindi naman ako mamamatay.”

“Kat.”

“What?”

“You know what I mean.”

Another laugh.

And there it was.

The sound I missed.

—

“Ang dami lang talaga.”

She admitted.

“Duty kanina. Tapos may kailangan pa ipasa.”

I smiled sadly.

“Third year ka na kasi.”

“Don’t remind me.”

“Ikaw kaya.”

“Alam ko.”

A pause.

Then she said:

“Ang bilis no?”

I looked around my apartment.

“What?”

“Everything.”

Her voice became softer.

“Dati naglalakad lang tayo pauwi.”

I smiled.

“Habang nag-aaway kung sino mas mabilis maglakad.”

She laughed.

“Ikaw kasi.”

“Ikaw yung mabagal.”

“Excuse me?”

I laughed.

“Naalala mo?”

“Oo naman.”

Of course she did.

Kat remembered everything.

—

“Ngayon…”

She continued.

“Magkaibang university na tayo.”

I became quiet.

Because that part was true.

“Oo.”

A few seconds passed.

Then she whispered:

“Miss na kita.”

My heart tightened.

Because no matter how many times she said it…

It never became normal.

I looked down.

At my hands.

At the distance between us.

“Miss mo lang ako?”

I joked.

Because that was easier.

She laughed.

“Grabe ka.”

“Question lang.”

“Patricia Dela Cruz.”

I smiled.

There it was.

Only Kat used my full name like that.

“What?”

“Ang kapal ng mukha mo.”

“Eh nagtatanong lang.”

“Oo, miss kita.”

She said it simply.

Like it was obvious.

Like it was nothing.

But to me…

It was everything.

—

I smiled.

“Okay.”

“Okay lang?”

“What do you want me to say?”

“I don’t know.”

She laughed.

“Sabihin mo din.”

I became quiet.

Because she knew.

She always knew.

I could tell her anything.

Almost anything.

Except the thing that mattered most.

“Miss na rin kita.”

I finally said.

Softly.

Honestly.

And I heard her go quiet.

—

The silence wasn’t uncomfortable.

It was the same silence we had as kids.

The kind where we didn’t need to fill every second.

The kind where being together was enough.

—

“Pat?”

“Hm?”

“May bago ka bang friends diyan?”

I smiled.

“Meron.”

“Talaga?”

“Oo.”

“Close?”

I noticed the question.

The small hesitation.

“Yeah.”

“Oh.”

One word.

But I heard it.

That tiny change.

“Girl?”

I laughed.

“Kat.”

“What?”

“Why?”

“Curious lang.”

I shook my head.

“You sound suspicious.”

“I’m not.”

“You are.”

She laughed.

“Fine.”

I smiled.

Then I said:

“May guy friend ako.”

Silence.

Interesting.

I waited.

“Ah.”

I smiled.

Because now I heard it.

The same thing she probably heard from me.

—

“Ikaw?”

I asked.

“May friends ka ba diyan?”

“Meron.”

“Guy?”

She became quiet.

I laughed.

“Kat.”

“What?”

“Why?”

“Curious lang.”

I laughed.

“You sound suspicious.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

She smiled.

I could hear it.

—

“Mayroon.”

She finally answered.

My smile faded slightly.

“Ah.”

Now it was my turn.

Silence.

Then she laughed.

“Pat.”

“Hm?”

“Ang obvious mo.”

I immediately denied.

“Hindi.”

“Oo.”

“Kat.”

“What?”

“Shut up.”

She laughed harder.

And I couldn’t help but smile too.

—

Maybe this was the problem.

Maybe we were too comfortable.

Too familiar.

We could hear jealousy.

We could hear fear.

We could hear the things we refused to say.

—

“Pat?”

“Hm?”

Her voice became softer.

“Promise.”

I smiled.

“What?”

“Na kahit busy tayo…”

A pause.

“Don’t forget me.”

My chest tightened.

Because she didn’t know.

She never had to ask.

“Kat.”

“Hm?”

“Never.”

Silence.

Then:

“Promise?”

I closed my eyes.

Remembering two kids on a dusty road.

Two pinky fingers connected.

A promise that started everything.

“Promise.”

—

After the call ended…

I didn’t put my phone down immediately.

I stared at her name.

Katherine Reyes.

The person who had been there before anyone.

The person who knew me before I became an athlete.

Before Raven.

Before everything.

—

And maybe that was why I was scared.

Because while life kept moving…

While Mat became closer.

While new people entered our lives.

There was still one truth I couldn’t escape.

No matter how far I went.

No matter how many people I met.

No matter how much my life changed.

A part of me was still the same little girl walking home with Kat.

Still holding the same promise.

Still waiting for the same person.