The Weight of Love

     It had been a few days since the misunderstanding - and Amiel felt like her heart had done a full rollercoaster.

From cloud nine to crash landing, then back to something new. Not just love.
But something deeper - choice.

She could've walked away from it all.
But she didn't.
She stayed.
She wanted to stay.

So when Mark texted her after class on a lazy Wednesday-

Mark: "G ka ba sa quick lakad? I know a spot."
Amiel didn't even hesitate.

They met by the corner sari-sari store, a lowkey place no one from school really passed by.

Amiel wore her favorite oversized hoodie and bike shorts, hair tied in a ponytail, trying to look chill kahit kabado.

Mark showed up in a plain white tee and joggers, holding two bottled sodas and a small paper bag.

"Para sa 'yo," he said, handing her the soda. "Tsaka may konting chips rin. Pang chill lang."

"Uy, complete setup ha," Amiel grinned. "Ano 'to, date?"

"Secret," Mark winked. "Basta sundan mo lang ako."

They walked together past quiet streets, their sneakers crunching gravel.

Eventually, they reached a small basketball court behind a barangay hall - old but clean. The sky was golden-orange, the way it always is before sunset.

Mark hopped up to sit on the low bleachers and patted the spot beside him.

"Dito muna tayo," he said. "Wala masyadong tao."

Amiel sat beside him, sipping from her soda, feeling the calm settle around them.

"Hindi ka ba napapagod?" Mark asked quietly.

Amiel looked at him. "Sa ano?"

"Sa atin."

Amiel blinked, unsure. "Bakit mo tinanong?"

Mark shrugged. "Kasi alam ko na sometimes, you think about things like age... rules... 'yung 'di pa dapat' stuff."

She didn't say anything at first. Just stared at the sunset turning peach and soft.

Then quietly, she answered.

"Yeah," she whispered. "Iniisip ko minsan... baka mali 'to."

Mark's shoulders stiffened a little, but he didn't interrupt.

"Kasi," Amiel continued, "I'm just thirteen. You're in high school. Tapos... sometimes I feel like ang dami ko pang 'di alam. Like I'm still catching up."

Mark looked at her. "And you think I don't notice that?"

She bit her lip.

"But I don't care," he added softly. "I mean- I do. I care about you. About protecting you. About not hurting you."

He leaned forward, elbows on his knees.

"Pero Amiel, I never felt like I had to wait for you to grow up just to like you. Kasi I already like who you are - now. Not who you'll be someday."

Amiel stared at him, her heart thudding, eyes watering.

"But... what if one day you grow out of this? Out of me?" she asked.

Mark chuckled gently. "Ikaw nga tong takot mawala ako, pero ikaw rin 'tong feeling mo iiwan ka agad?"

That made Amiel laugh through her tears.

"Ang kulit mo," she said, nudging his arm.

Mark turned to her, eyes warm, voice low.

"Amiel... I want to be with you. Hindi dahil perfect na lahat. Pero dahil worth it kang piliin - kahit minsan, mahirap."