17/05/2025
SHORT STORY ENTRY #3
Title: Dear Journal
Written by: Puff-free club
——
Every time I see him, my heart forgets how to behave.
He’s quiet, lowkey funny, and he smile like I will melt. I like that feeling. I like him.
Pero syempre, hindi ko masabi. So I write.
Dear Journal,
Today, he was wearing that blue hoodie again, 'yung favorite ko sa lahat ng suot niya. Ang babaw no? Pero ewan, it makes him look softer.
He laughed at something his friend said. Medyo maingay, medyo nakakainis kasi nag-aaral ako… pero ang cute. I wanted to join their convo. I wanted to say hi. I wanted to matter.
Pero nope. Tulad ng dati, tahimik lang ako sa gilid. Observing and sinusulat ko nalang.
I wish he’d notice me. Kahit isa lang.
Days passed like that. Me, writing. Him, smiling at his friends never at me.
Until one day, habang papauwi na ako, he passed by me sa hallway. For the first time, he looked me straight in the eyes.
Then he smiled. Small, quiet. But real.
And I smiled back. Gulat na gulat. Kinilig.
Pagkauwi ko, I grabbed my journal agad.
Dear Journal,
He smiled. At me. At me. And for one second, I thought... baka pwede pala.
Pero hanggang dito pa rin muna. Hanggang sulat lang.
Maybe one day… I’ll be brave enough to tell him. But not today.
Fast forward.
It was just another Thursday. Normal. Until it wasn't.
Nagmadali akong lumabas ng classroom. Naiwan ko ata ‘yung journal ko sa ilalim ng desk. My heart was racing habang pabalik ako, please wag sana may nakakita. Please lang.
But when I got there… it was gone.
Wala. As in, wala talaga.
Kinabahan ako.
Lahat ng hindi ko masabi, nandoon. Every I like you, every stolen glance, every small moment with him that probably meant nothing to him, but everything to me.
The next morning, tahimik ako. Hindi makakain. Hindi makatingin kahit kanino. Baka nabasa na ng kung sino. Baka pinagtatawanan na ako.
Then he walked in.
Blue hoodie. Same smile.
But this time, he was holding something.
My journal.
Tumigil ang mundo ko. Shet.
He walked straight to me.
“I think this is yours,” he said, gently placing it on my desk. “Sorry, I opened it. Akala ko notebook ng kaklase ko. But then I saw… my name.”
I wanted to melt. Disappear. Evaporate into the atmosphere.
“I read a few pages,” he added softly. “Just a few.”
My voice was barely a whisper. “I’m sorry.”
He smiled pero not teasing or mocking. Just… soft.
“You don’t have to be,” he said. “Somehow, it felt… nice. Knowing someone sees me the way you do.”
My breath caught. I couldn’t believe it.
“Maybe,” he said, scratching the back of his neck, “instead of writing the next page alone… we could write it together?”
Dear Journal,
Thank you kasi nawala kita. Thank you talaga!!!
——
The Puff-Free Club
