Chapter 40
Chapter Forty
Cam
Nikki
cam!!! you made it thru the week—congrats!
Cam
thx! last few hrs of this
Nikki
manila isn’t so bad, is it?
Eric
Congrats, Cam! BTW, they cancelled my flight because of the weather. I’m trying to get on the first flight out tomorrow.
Nikki
what??? are you ok?
Eric
Yes, all good. I’ll keep you posted.
On the final day of boot camp, there were no more lessons and practical activities.
Instead, we were subjected to speeches, awards, and the absolute worst—group sharing.
I tuned it all out with happy thoughts. Fortunately, I didn’t have to think hard to find some because the last few hours with Alonzo were fresh in my mind.
Plus, I had a new note from him burning through my pocket.
I’d found it folded on top of my bag earlier as I started packing. Again, it was a sheet torn from his notebook. The words he’d scribbled were already seared into my brain.
Maya—
Is it too stalkerish to say that I love watching you sleep? Because I do. It might be the most peaceful thing to watch, next to you surfing. I wanted to take a video of you but I know that’s crossing the line. Without your consent, at least.
If I asked, would you say yes?
Also, congrats—you killed it this week! See you this afternoon ;)
x Alonzo
I didn’t think I truly understood the meaning of kilig until Alonzo, but now I would forever equate the feeling of butterflies in your stomach, adrenaline rushing through your veins, and full-on giddy happiness with him.
It might have happened sometime between the mais con yelo and our date. Maybe it was him spending the night on a plastic chair or him fixing me an extra cheesy sandwich or him staying even when I’d given him plenty of reasons to go.
Or maybe it was just him, plain and simple.
“What about you, Cam?”
My head snapped up.
The guy onstage looked at me expectantly. As if he’d read the cluelessness in my face, he asked, “What was your favorite part about the week?”
Alonzo .
Luckily, my friends’ training kicked in. “I enjoyed learning from the facilitators and my teammates and improving my skills.”
He nodded but seemed unconvinced.
“And the food,” I blurted out, because the food had been more than decent. Better yet, it had been free.
People tittered around me, but I didn’t care because the guy finally gave me a real smile.
When the ceremonies were officially over, Caloy said from beside me, “We made it.”
“Yep.” Now it was just a matter of waiting for the results. They’d told us to expect feedback in one to two weeks, which simultaneously felt like too long and too short a wait.
“You want to celebrate with us?” he asked, the smirk on his face telling me he wasn’t expecting me to say yes.
“I’m peopled out,” I answered. But because he’d been the nicest in our team, I added, “Thanks for the invite.”
“If you change your mind, we’ll be at Gilly’s. If not, see you at the next in-person.”
His confidence reminded me of Alonzo telling me that first day, You’re going to kill it . I couldn’t believe that had just been four days ago. It felt like I’d lived four weeks in that span of time, and still that wasn’t enough.
Maybe monthly visits to the city wouldn’t be that bad.
But before I got swept away by the possibilities, I had to have an actual offer first.
Alonzo
Since I’d gone straight to school from Maya’s place, I took a jeep home to get the car.
I’d already arranged for someone to cover my shift so I could pick Maya up.
It meant working extra hours next week, but I couldn’t let her leave the city without seeing her once more—and more importantly, trying to convince her to take a chance on us.
When I wasn’t in the middle of lectures, I thought of the arguments I could make in my favor.
Focusing on that allowed me to block out the questions and jokes my classmates aimed at me regarding that stupid social media thread.
Every time they teased me about it or showed me a stolen photo posted online, I reminded myself of how Maya had come to help me.
If anything good had come out of that situation, it was to show me that she cared.
I’d asked Mama yesterday about borrowing the car, and she told me Mang Lito could bring her and Papa to work and have the car back by lunch. But when I got home, the car was gone.
I called Mama first, though I knew she’d likely be too busy at the hospital to mind her phone. When it rang five times without her answering, I tried calling Papa next.
I expected him to be preoccupied at work too, but to my surprise, he picked up.
“Hello.”
“Hi, Papa,” I said as I paced across the living room. “Did you bring the car?”
“Yes.”
I stopped walking. “I thought Mang Lito was bringing you to work? I asked Mama about borrowing the car, and she said?—”
“I know what she said, but I wanted to drive today. Don’t you have a shift this afternoon? You don’t need a car for that.”
My face went hot. I’d thought it had been a misunderstanding. But no—Papa had known about my agreement with Mama. He’d simply disregarded it. “I need it to bring my friend to the bus station.”
“Does that mean you’re not going to work?”
Not a sorry or any pretense of concern.
My hand tightened around my phone. “I had a change in schedule.”
“Well, next time, you should communicate that to me directly.”
“Right,” I muttered. “I’ll find another way. Bye.”
I hung up before I lost it and said something like thanks for nothing . Tossing my phone onto the sofa, I slumped on the cushion next to it. “ Fuck .”
My chest heaved with anger at my dad over his power play. After last night’s commotion at work and Maya’s looming departure, this was the final straw. I took a couple of deep breaths to clear my head.
It was alright. I could book a car to Maya’s building and arrange for the driver to make multiple stops. I’d have to pay extra, especially given the Friday traffic, but I’d do whatever it took.
I sat up as an idea came to me.
Tala.