Chapter 27
I woke up with my head aching. The dull, throbbing pain reminded me of what happened yesterday. The event. The kiss.
Her lips—sweet, soft, and intoxicating, like ripe strawberries at the peak of summer. If I were given the chance to kiss her again, I wouldn’t even hesitate. Gosh, she makes it addictive.
But on the other hand, I know what I did was wrong. I remember the way she slapped me right after. But did I mind? No. I deserved it. Alam kong mali ako. I crossed a line. Pero paano ko ba napigilan ang sarili ko? Lalo na kapag ang labi niya mismo ang parang nang-aakit?
I groaned, rubbing my temples as I tried to shake the thoughts away. Today is Valentine’s Day, and our school has an event. Hindi ko alam kung ano eksaktong mangyayari, pero sigurado akong marami nanaman kaming gagawin. I checked my phone—5 AM. Maaga pa, pero masakit pa rin ulo ko. Pero kaya naman.
I stretched and sat up, letting out a deep sigh.
Speaking of Valentine’s, I wanted to do something for her. Yesterday was a mess, and I owed her an apology. Pero ano kayang magandang ibigay? Flowers? Too basic. Accessories? Hindi ko alam kung gusto niya ‘yon. And also, for sure marami na siya nun.
Then, an idea popped into my head.
What if I made her a cake?
I don’t know how to cook, much less bake, but I wanted to try. Sigurado ba ako sa desisyon ko? No. But hey, walang mawawala kung susubukan, right?
With renewed determination, I got up and washed my face before heading downstairs. The house was still quiet, the sun barely peeking through the windows. Pagdating ko sa kitchen, I immediately realized a problem—I had no idea where to start.
“Bakit ko nga ba naisip ‘to?” I muttered, scratching my head.
Then, naalala kong may YouTube naman pala. Technology exists for a reason.
I grabbed my phone, opened YouTube, and searched: *How to make a cake for Valentine's Day.*
Ang dami palang klase ng cake. But one immediately caught my attention—a heart-shaped cake. Cute. Simple. Perfect.
I propped my phone up on the counter and watched the tutorial carefully. “Mukhang madali lang ‘to,” I told myself.
I walked over to our pantry, which looked like a mini grocery store—fully stocked with every ingredient imaginable. Flour? Check. Eggs? Check. Milk? Check. Expensive vanilla extract that probably came from another country? Check.
The first step? Crack two eggs into a bowl.
"Kaya ko ‘to," I muttered confidently, grabbing an egg.
*Tok!*
Disaster.
I slammed the egg onto the counter too hard, and it exploded all over my hands.
“Oh my gosh! Ang lagkit!” I squealed, shaking my hands frantically. Egg whites splattered everywhere—on the counter, the cabinets, even sa apron na suot ko.
Attempt number two.
I tried to be more gentle this time. I tapped the egg lightly on the bowl’s edge…pero hindi siya nabasag. I tapped a little harder. Wala pa rin.
“Gosh, bakit ‘di nababasag ‘to? Ano ‘to, dragon egg?”
Out of frustration, I gripped the egg tighter—bad idea. It cracked in my palm, yolk dripping through my fingers like slime.
I groaned. “Okay, maybe eggs just hate me.”
After several messy attempts, I finally managed to get two whole eggs into the bowl. Progress.
Sunod, dry ingredients—flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda. Simple lang naman, diba?
I grabbed a large mixing bowl and carefully measured each ingredient. Flour—done. Cocoa powder—done. Sugar—done. I was being extra careful this time, making sure nothing spilled.
Then came the whisking part.
"Make sure to mix everything well until smooth!" the YouTuber said cheerfully.
"Smooth? Madali lang ‘yan," I whispered, brimming with confidence.
I grabbed the whisk and started stirring.
At first, everything seemed fine. The ingredients were blending together smoothly. Then I thought—what if I whisk faster? Mas magiging smooth agad, right?
So I did.
Big mistake.
*POOF!*
Flour flew everywhere, turning the air into a thick, dusty cloud. I coughed, waving my hands to clear my vision.
I looked down at myself. My apron, my hands, even my face—covered in white powder.
I turned to the shiny oven door, catching my reflection.
I looked like I had just walked out of a snowstorm.
"Ano ‘to? Baking or battlefield?"
I groaned, brushing flour off my hair before carefully mixing the batter again. This time, slower.
After what felt like forever, the batter was finally smooth.
I let out a breath. "Okay. Okay. I got this."
Carefully, I poured the batter into a heart-shaped cake pan and tapped it lightly on the counter to remove air bubbles.
Next step—baking.
I preheated the oven, double-checking the temperature to be safe. Determined not to mess this up.
Or so I thought.
A few minutes later—bakit parang may naaamoy akong sunog?
I turned around, scanning the kitchen. Wala namang sunog?
Then, I looked closer at the oven.
Sa pinakailalim, I saw something horrifying—a forgotten tray of cookies from last week. Cookies na ginawa nina Avery at Madelyn.
I yanked open the oven door, coughing as thick smoke poured out. The cookies had turned into charcoal.
"What the hell," I groaned, grabbing oven mitts and pulling the tray out.
I turned off the oven for a few minutes, waving away the smoke before putting the cake back inside.
After what felt like an eternity, the cake was finally done.
Success.
Or so I thought.
I let it cool while preparing the frosting. Since it was Valentine’s Day, I wanted a soft pink color for the icing.
I grabbed the red food coloring. A little goes a long way, right?
I squeezed a few drops into the whipped cream.
Gosh.
That was not a little.
The frosting turned into a deep, bloody red—parang crime scene sa horror movie.
"It's fine," I lied to myself as I spread the icing over the cake.
Except…it wasn’t fine.
The more I spread it, the worse it looked. The cake was crumbling. The frosting was uneven. The sides looked like they were melting off—parang natutunaw na clown.
I groaned, resisting the urge to throw the whole thing out the window.
I had already spent almost two hours in the kitchen, and I refused to let this end in failure.
Just when I was about to give up, our yaya walked in and saw my disaster of a cake. She chuckled and offered to help.
With her guidance, I finally managed to fix it. It took another hour, but it was worth it.
The final product? A heart-shaped pink cake with sprinkles and strawberry designs. And, in the middle, I added a tiny pink frog decoration.
Why? Because it was cute.
I was about to go upstairs and take a shower since I looked like a complete mess. It was already 8 AM, and I was running late. But just as I was about to head up, I bumped into my older sister. Her expression was unreadable—somewhere between shock and confusion.
"What happened?" she asked, eyes scanning me from head to toe.
"I tried baking," I replied, trying to sound nonchalant.
She raised an eyebrow, clearly doubtful. She then turned to our yaya, silently asking for confirmation.
"Did she really bake something?" she asked, as if it was the most unbelievable thing in the world.
Our yaya nodded immediately. "Opo, siya po ang nag-bake."
A triumphant smile spread across my face. "Marunong na ako," I said proudly, even though, in reality, our yaya did most of the work. But hey, effort is effort!
My sister took a sip of water before looking at me again, still skeptical. "For what? That's very unusual of you," she said, clearly not convinced.
I shrugged, trying to act casual. "For her, of course. It's Valentine’s."
She didn't say anything after that, just gave me a knowing look before turning away. Taking that as my cue to leave, I quickly excused myself and headed upstairs. I seriously needed a shower—after all that "baking," I was sweaty, covered in flour, and running late.
---
"Ayusin mo kasi maglagay! Napakabobo naman!" Kinsley yelled, frustration evident in her voice as she watched Cecilia struggle to arrange the decorations for our booth.
"Wow, maka-utos ka ha! Kung ang dali lang kaya nito, edi ikaw na!" Cecilia shot back, her irritation matching Kinsley’s. She looked like she was ready to throw the decorations straight at Kinsley’s face.
"Pwede bang ‘wag na kayong mag-away? Wala tayong matatapos dito kung puro kayo sigawan," Eliana scolded them, arms crossed. Her tone held no room for argument, and just like that, the two fell silent, though they continued to glare at each other.
It was already 9:30 AM, and the university grounds were packed with students setting up their booths for the event.
The air buzzed with excitement and chaos—people carrying decorations, adjusting banners, and making last-minute preparations.
I made my way through the crowd until I finally reached our booth, where my friends were clearly struggling.
I put my bag down and rolled up my sleeves. "What are we going to do?" I asked, ready to help.
"Hala, nandito ka na pala!" Kinsley exclaimed the moment she noticed me. Without warning, she threw her arms around me. "Miss you, bebe ko!" she added dramatically, squeezing me tight.
"Tangina, Kins! ‘Yung upuan, ‘wag mong bitawan!" Cecilia shouted in panic. Kinsley, who had completely forgotten that she was holding onto one of the chairs, immediately grabbed it again before it could topple over.
I chuckled at their antics before turning to Eliana, who looked slightly exasperated but was clearly used to dealing with them. "Anong gagawin?" I asked, glancing at the half-finished setup.
She sighed and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "We’ve decided to have a wedding booth since ‘yun naman ‘yung napagkasunduan ng lahat," she explained, motioning to the decorations they had been trying (and somewhat failing) to put up.
I took a step back and observed the setup so far. The idea was cute—white curtains, fairy lights, and a small arch decorated with faux flowers. But there was still so much work to be done.
As I looked around, I noticed that almost every booth had its own unique theme—there was a horror house, a café-style setup, and other creative ideas. But our booth? A wedding booth? Well, that’s interesting.
"A wedding booth? How exactly are we setting this up?" I asked while fixing my hair, which the wind had messed up.
"We need a bride. And it's you." Eliana said, looking at me with a straight face.
I blinked at her, processing her words. What the—me? The bride? Is she crazy?
"Are you crazy? Ayoko nga," I immediately refused, shaking my head. No way was I doing that.
"Please? Kailangan talaga natin 'yan," Kinsley chimed in, pouting as she grabbed my arm.
"You're famous here in the university, kaya for sure maraming magpapapicture rito. It'll be good for the booth! Please?" She even clasped her hands together like she was begging for her life.
I sighed, crossing my arms. "No. I don’t want to. Kayo na lang," I insisted, but their faces looked so desperate, as if I was their last hope.
"Please? Kahit ngayon lang!" Cecilia pleaded from where she was standing on top of a bench, probably fixing something on the booth.
"I didn’t even prepare a gown for this," I reasoned, trying to find another way out.
"Don’t worry, meron kaming dala!" Kinsley grinned, eyes shining with excitement. "Is that a yes?!"
I sighed heavily, realizing I had no escape. Gosh, I hate this. But at the same time, I can’t really say no to them when they look like that.
"Fine," I muttered, nodding.
"OMG! Ganyan dapat!" Kinsley squealed, jumping up and down before throwing herself at me for a hug.
I rolled my eyes but couldn't help smiling a little. "When will the event start?" I asked, deciding to just go along with it.
"Mamaya pa after lunch. Preparation pa lang ngayon," Eliana answered beside me. Well, that was good—at least I had some time to mentally prepare myself for this unexpected role.
"Naiinis ako!" Cecilia suddenly huffed, making all of us turn to her.
She was staring at a bunch of flowers in her hands with a deep frown. "Ang pangit ng bulaklak na ‘to! Orange tsaka purple? Bakit ganun? Bibili na lang ako, ang pangit talaga!"
Kinsley, who had probably picked those flowers, immediately got defensive. "Ay, sorry ha?! Kasalanan ko bang ‘yan na lang ‘yung available na kulay?!" she shot back.
I sighed, knowing another argument was about to start. Before they could go at it again, I decided to step in. "I’ll just buy new ones. What kind of flowers do you need?" I asked, already grabbing my bag.
"Any type of flowers, basta pink, white, or red ‘yung color," Cecilia answered, looking relieved that someone was finally taking care of it.
I nodded. Cecilia was really good at designing, and she was a perfectionist when it came to details like this. If the wrong flower colors were going to ruin the whole aesthetic, then fine, I'd go buy new ones.
"Alright, I’ll be back," I said, waving at them before heading out to find a flower shop.
On my way, I passed by a cozy café-themed booth with fairy lights and wooden accents, giving off a warm and aesthetic vibe. A few steps away, there was a horror booth with "ghosts" peeking from behind the curtains—though it was funny because some of them were clearly struggling not to laugh.
After a few minutes, I reached a small flower stall near the university entrance. The scent of fresh blooms filled the air as I approached.
"Aba, hija! Ang ganda mo today, ah. What do you need?" the kind elderly vendor, greeted me with a warm smile.
"Hi. I need flowers na pink, white, or red. May available po ba kayo?" I asked, scanning the display.
"Perfect timing! Kaka-deliver lang ng fresh roses at carnations kaninang umaga. May baby’s breath din kung gusto mong dagdagan ng konting accent," she suggested, pointing at the beautifully arranged flowers in plastic buckets.
"Kuha po ako ng mix ng tatlong kulay, tapos dagdagan niyo na rin ng baby’s breath para mas maganda." sagot ko sa kanya.
"Good choice! Saglit lang at aayusin ko."
While she wrapped the bouquet, I noticed a few students glancing in my direction. Napabuntong-hininga ako. I was used to the attention, but sometimes it felt overwhelming when people kept staring.
A few minutes later, she handed me the bouquet wrapped in simple brown paper.
After paying, I quickly made my way back to the booth.
Pagdating ko, chaos agad ang bumungad sa akin—Cecilia looked stressed as she adjusted the backdrop, while Kinsley was moving around with a glue gun, looking like she was ready to fight someone with it. Meanwhile, Eliana stood in the middle, managing everything like a true leader.
"Finally! Mas maganda na rin 'yung bulaklak keysa sa color orange at purple na bulaklak kanina." sabi ni Cecilia nang makita ako na papalapit sakanila.
"Hoy! Not my fault! ‘Yan na lang ‘yung natira!" Kinsley argued, holding up her glue gun like she was about to use it as a weapon.
I looked at my phone and saw that it was already 11 PM. I decided na pumunta kay Ms. Sanchez to give her the cake I baked. Before leaving, I told my friend that I was just going to the CR, even though that wasn’t really my plan.
As I made my way to the building where she was, a lot of students stopped me, handing me chocolates and flowers. But I didn’t accept any of them. I wasn’t interested in the first place. My mind was elsewhere—focused only on her.
After a few minutes, I finally arrived in front of the faculty room. My heart started pounding in my chest. I don’t even know why I feel this way. Kinakabahan ba ako? Natatakot? I don’t know. Bahala na. I took a deep breath before pushing the door open.
The moment I stepped inside, my eyes immediately found her. She was sitting at her desk, focused on whatever she was working on. She glanced at me for a second but quickly looked away, as if I wasn’t even there. She was alone, just like I had hoped.
I slowly walked toward her, but she didn’t acknowledge my presence. Hindi niya ako tiningnan o pinansin man lang. It stung a little, but I deserved that.
"I'm sorry," I said as soon as I was close enough. My voice was quiet, hesitant.
She didn’t respond. Didn’t even glance at me.
"I know I was wrong last night, and I deserve that slap. Alam kong mali ako doon. I should have controlled myself, but I didn't. I couldn't." my voice wavered slightly, but I continued. "I know sorry isn’t enough, but gosh, how could I not kiss you when your lips were right there, tempting me?"
Still nothing. She acted as if she were alone in the room, as if my presence was nothing but a mere inconvenience.
"Sorry… I won’t do it again without your permission. It was my fault, and I truly regret it. I’m not expecting you to forgive me, but please, just know that I really mean it. I’m sorry."
I waited. Hoped. Pero wala.
I swallowed the lump in my throat before forcing a small smile.
"Btw, I baked this cake for you." I lifted the small box in my hands.
"I know I’m not good at cooking, but I tried. Para sa’yo." I let out a nervous chuckle.
"It took me almost three hours, gosh. But it was worth it if it means you’d accept it."
She didn’t even look at it.
"At least look at it," I said, trying to lighten the mood. "I really made an effort for this, you know?"
No response.
"Look, it’s cute." I placed the box on her table, sliding it closer to her, hoping she’d at least acknowledge it.
But what happened next completely shattered me.
She pushed the cake off the table, sending it straight into the trash can.
My heart dropped.
"Get out, Gomez," she said, finally looking at me—but her eyes were cold. Unforgiving. "I don’t care about whatever you made or did. Get out of my face."
And just like that, she turned back to her work as if I never existed.
I couldn’t move. I stood there, frozen, staring at the cake that I had spent hours making—now lying at the bottom of a trash bin like it was worthless.
Like I was worthless.
I swallowed hard, forcing myself to turn around. Without another word, I walked away.
My chest felt tight. My throat burned. I could feel the sting of tears threatening to fall.
I don’t cry. I never do.
But goddamn…
I can’t hold it back right now.
It hurts.
It hurts so fucking bad.
I put in so much effort. I spent three hours making that cake even though I didn’t know how to cook. I tried—just for her.
But all of that was for nothing.
I understand that I made mistakes. I understand that she’s mad. But did she really have to throw it away like that? She could’ve just rejected it without being so cruel.
But no.
She threw it away.
Like it meant nothing.
Like I meant nothing.
And that… hurts more than anything.