life really does play tricks on us

yeah, they really do.

Gel and Drew were friends since heaven-knows-when. Even if they went to different schools and had lives of their own, they never failed to keep in touch. More often than not the most sensible, honest, funny, and interesting conversations they’ve ever had were with each other. Gel was always open about her feelings and sentiments, and so was Drew. Distance was never their problem.

Then, the thing that endangers a perfectly good friendship the most happened.

Drew paid a visit. He needed to fix some stuff and thought he could probably spend some time with Gel since she was in the area and he had a couple of weeks to spare. They hung around a couple of times – joyrides to Enchanted Kingdom, arcade racing over at worlds of fun, bowling at galleria’s sky bowl, stargazing at Gel’s rooftop, burgers for dinner over at Burger King, coffee over at Figaro. They had tons of fun. People who saw them would think that their a couple. Well, they weren’t... until both of them had the guts to tell each other how they feel.

It was Friday. Both of them were walking along greenbelt with slurpees from seven eleven. Gel’s lemon green top and black denim jeans and Drew’s pink shirt and stone-washed jeans blended with Makati’s city lights. Their laughter blended with car noises along the busy streets of Ayala. And then it happened.

“I’ve been thinking…would you be alright with a long-distance relationship?”

A few moments of awkward silence…

“…let me think about it, okay?”

Though both of them liked each other, Gel had her doubts and fears about the whole thing. She would toss and turn in bed at night figuring things out. She was always the rational girl who would turn to life principles for hints on what to do. It was certainly better than to simply jump into a boat you more or less know is bound to sink. Call it a sign of maturity, but no one ever said maturity came with aspirin prescriptions.

They met up over at Powerbooks. Had their usual hi’s and hello’s, and went on to what they had to deal with. For a while it was clear that what they had wasn’t strong enough to sustain a long distance relationship, but the heart seems to get away with what it wants… a chance to be happy.

But like most good things, it doesn’t last that long.

Drew had a childhood sweetheart, and things were never clear between them. They bumped into each other one time at tower records. They caught upon old times over a couple of frappuccinos. Drew told Gel about his unexpected encounter. And because he’s the honest guy that he was, he even told her about their past, and how that encounter somehow dug up feelings that seemed lost. Saddened, she tells him to figure out what, or in this case, who he wants.

Days passed, Gel’s heart grew more worried. She knew that letting him figure things out was the right thing to do, but somehow she’s worried that things would take a very twisted turn.

Sometimes the right thing isn’t always the easy thing.

It was 2am, he called her. She was still awake. He asked if they could meet. She agreed. They both hung up, and continued to toss and turn thinking of what each one would say.

Mocha Blends. 3pm on a lazy Saturday afternoon. Both of them just sat there for hours, with alanis morisstte’s “that I would be good” playing in the background.

“so its over before it even began…?”

“sorry, I didn’t mean for this to happen…”

As silence was shattered, so did Gel’s heart. It was the longest thirty minutes of their lives.

An email came days after that incident.

Gel,
I guess an apology isn’t enough to make this all better. For what its worth, I didn’t mean for things to happen the way they did. I wish I could do something to make things turn out differently, but I think the best thing I can do for now is to leave. Much damage has been made… I don’t intend to inflict more on you. Thank you for understanding where I’m coming from, for knowing how hard it is to make a choice and do the right thing. I hope that sometime in the near future, we could still be what we were – friends…

note: the whole thing is fictional...