Strings of Fate

“You never really know the weight of a glance… until he looks back.”

The sky was beginning to dim as Atasha and Eli stepped out of Jollibee, still laughing over some dumb joke about the oversized pineapple juice cup Atasha spilled earlier. The sidewalk glowed gold from the last light of the sun, bouncing softly off the pavement as the two girls started walking toward the terminal.

“5:18 na,” Atasha said, checking her phone. “Sakto pa rin tayo. Pa-chill lang ‘yung lakad para hindi halatang may kinikilig.”

Eli rolled her eyes. “Ako? Wala akong kinikilig, ‘no.”

“Talaga? Eh ba’t ka nanginginig?”

“Giniginaw ako, Atasha.”

She tugged her cardigan closer. But deep inside, she knew damn well it wasn’t the wind making her heart tremble like that.

They were almost halfway across the block when Eli—by instinct, by accident, or by some unseen string—looked back.

And there he was.

Rhyler Jace Davids.

Fresh out the door, walking behind them at a relaxed pace, seemingly alone—until he noticed her gaze.

And in that precise moment, the world slowed.

Because Rhyler—quiet, unreadable, mysterious Rhyler—smiled.

Not the half-hearted kind. Not a smug smirk. A soft, unforced, slightly lopsided smile that reached his eyes in a way that shouldn’t have been legal for a Tuesday afternoon.

Then, as if that wasn’t enough—

He winked.

WINKED.

And continued walking as if he hadn’t just disrupted the electrical system of Eli’s brain.

“Did you—” Atasha paused, turning around too.

“Saw it,” she whispered.

“I think I forgot how to walk,” Eli muttered, still staring at nothing.

“I think I forgot how to breathe.”

Eli forced her gaze forward again, face on fire, walking faster. “Hindi na ‘to healthy. Atasha, I need a medical team.”

Atasha snorted. “Girl, you need an emotional support group. Kasi that man? He just winked at you like you’ve known each other in a past life tapos nagkita ulit kayo ngayon.”

“Stop. Stop. Stop romanticizing it.”

“But it’s already romantic.”

“I’m literally malfunctioning.”

“At least you look cute doing it.”

By the time they reached the trike terminal, Eli was still disoriented. Her brain had replayed the wink at least 56 times. In slow motion. With background music. Probably with subtitles too.

They hopped into a trike headed toward Sanja Mayor, their school bags pressed between them and the warm wind pushing strands of their hair into disarray.

Atasha nudged her. “Honest question: Do you think he knows na kilala mo na siya?”

Eli stared blankly. “I don’t know. But I know I know him. And I know you know him. And now, I feel like he knows something—but he doesn’t know I know he knows.”

“That’s too many knows.”

“I know.”

They both burst out laughing, earning a confused glance from the trike driver.

They passed by the bakery near the crossing. The smell of freshly baked monay filled the air.

“Gusto mo?” Atasha asked.

“Gusto ko ng sagot kung bakit siya ngumiti at nag-wink,” Eli replied dramatically.

“At gusto ko ng monay. So let’s get both.”

FLASHBACK: That Moment Rhyler's Talking About (Backtrack ng konti)
While Eli was busy having internal chaos, he was walking steadily a few steps behind. Not in a stalker way. Just… fate’s choreography.

He remembered her.

Of course he did.

It wasn’t the first time he saw her.

Weeks ago, when he was still figuring out the school’s layout, he passed by STEM 4’s room during a fire drill. Students were all over the corridor, some screaming about the heat, others laughing.

But she stood out.

Eli was sitting on the corridor floor, braiding her friend’s hair, completely unbothered by the chaos.

Rhyler paused mid-step, unseen, unseen by her, just watching for a few seconds.

That was the first time he noticed the calm in her chaos.

Back to the Present
The trike slowed to a stop near their subdivision. Eli and Atasha hopped out, thanking the driver, the street now dimly lit by post lamps.

Eli stopped walking and let out a long sigh.

“Okay. I’ve decided.”

“Na anong?”

“If he winks at me one more time, I’m filing a report.”

Atasha giggled. “Or a marriage application.”

“ATASHA!”

“May penalty ang denial, bes.”

They both laughed, their steps lighter despite the long day.

As they entered the gate of their subdivision, Eli glanced at the sky.

Stars were barely visible yet.

But one thing was clear—

That wink?

It wasn’t just for fun.

And if Rhyler thought he could walk away like that without consequences…

He had another thing coming.