The Encounter...

October 7, 1998

I was invited by my friends to sit-in in their PE class so that we can go home together. And so I did. While their instructor was giving them some instructions, my friends introduced their class officers to me by using pointing fingers.

"That's our class president," Rose said. My brows arched. I was also the president of our PE class and our Nursing Class, so I was disgusted to see another class president who doesn't seem to care about the world. He was busy playing fools with his friends at the back row, creating so much noise. I asked what his name was and Liza said, "Mhark Paiton" (I thought it was spelled Mark Payton then). I found him irritating but I couldn't help but stare. Rose noticed me and she pointed to me his girlfriend.

"And that's his gf," as if to warn me.

"Poor girl," I said, "cause I think he belongs to Edel now!"

Edel is our friend who didn't have a boylet yet... Rose had Echo, Liza had Oms, I had Mark S. then... Though those boys are not yet our bfs, we already claimed them as ours... Hehehe! Later that afternoon, we met up with Edel. I excitedly told her that I found the perfect guy for her. She laughed hard when she learned the name... She knew him because they went to the same high school. Rose also went to the same school. Edel said no girl in her right mind would hook up with Mhark Paiton!

October 10, 1998

Edel and Rose had to attend their high school homecoming. So after class, Liza and I went with them. Since the homecoming was supposed to be lunchtime and we went there at 1pm, some of their former classmates had already gone home. It was quite boring cause I barely know anyone, except for Keff, who was earlier introduced to me by Rose. We just went around the school. And as we were approaching the drinking fountain, I saw a guy in the sink... I couldn't understand why all of a sudden, my world stopped... I could hear bells ringing inside my head and I could hear a music playing in my mind: "The closer I get to touching you... The closer I get to loving you..."

"You remembered that guy?" Rose brought me back to reality. "He's the one you matched to Edel."

"So what do you think?" I asked Edel.

"He's got the looks but not the background. Hehehe!" Edel said.

After a few minutes, we decided to call it a day. So, we mounted a jeepney going back to pueblo (the city proper). It was still waiting for some more passengers. So we were kidding around. Then, at the guard house near the gate, I saw Keff talking with some guys. I thought it was polite to wave bye-bye to him. So I did. Unfortunately, Keff didn't notice me. Instead, one of his friends did. We exchanged a dozen of bye-bye's until the jeepney finally left.

Rose noticed us. "I thought that guy was for Edel. Why were you flirting with him?"

"No, I wasn't!" So I explained the whole scenario but Rose wouldn't buy it.

Later, I learned from Mhark that after the jeepney left, he asked Keff who I was. He told Keff that he was smitten by my smile and that he wanted us to be introduced. So they used his motorcycle to run after us. Too bad, they thought we headed for the university campus...

October 12, 1998

We were having our final exams. Keff went to our classroom to borrow a pen. I let him borrow mine. He said Mhark was extending his regards to me. Rose was quick to ask, "Di ba may gf sya?" (He has a gf, right?)

Keff said they were already in the process of breaking up. I don't know why but I was glad to know that fact!

October 29, 1998

Enrollment time! My other Mark was helping me out with my enrollment process. But that day, I came to school really late so I wasn't able to meet him up at the gate. And since we didn't have cellphones yet during that time, my friends and I were having a hard time looking for him. Then, at the pathway, we met Mhark with his gf. I thought they already broke up!

Rose noticed my reaction. She was quick to be on my defense. She went to Mhark and asked him, "Did you see Mark S.? He's Louella's bf, you know..." Mhark just stared at her. He couldn't stare at me.

Later, he explained that he and his ex patched things up during that time.

I wasn't able to sleep that night. I don't know but I got so affected...