Not This Time, Love Pt 30

I went back to the boarding house with my shoulders dropping and my face heavy with sadness. I couldn’t believe Priscy could pay back all the love, attention, and time I’d invested in her with just one word — “brother.” From that point, I made up my mind never to chase her again. Never again.

I sat on my bed quietly, brooding over my broken heart. Tears started flowing. I threw myself face down into my pillow. Fighting back the tears was a herculean task. As I sobbed, someone tapped my shoulder.

I turned. It was one of my roommates.

“Somebody is calling you down there,” he said.

“Down where?” I asked.

He didn’t reply, just ran off to the dining hall because it was dining time.

I got up and started unbuttoning my shirt. In the process, I felt something in my pocket. I dipped my hand in and pulled out a neatly folded sheet of paper. Priscy’s letter to her secret senior lover.

I wanted to throw it away, but curiosity pinned me. I unfolded it and began to read:

 “Hi, sweet love,

I’m sorry for putting you through all this. I didn’t know how else I could have done it. Maybe I’m not romantic, but when I see a boy in love, I don’t need a magician to tell me. Anytime I see you, I see love in your eyes. Anytime I hear your voice, I hear love.

My heart’s a stereo. It beats for you, so listen close. Hear my thoughts in every note…”

I stopped reading because Jake had entered the room.

“KD, right after dining, we’re going to the prayer ground to pray. Don’t absent yourself, please.” His voice was serious.

Could this still be about that revelation? I was beginning to get worried.

He left, and I continued reading the letter:

 “I know you love me, and I also love you, but I’m waiting for you to tell me first. This time, don’t hide behind a sheet of paper. Don’t hide behind religious abracadabra. Come forward and tell me you love me. Take my hand, kneel down before me, propose to me. Let’s seal our relationship with a kiss. Just one kiss, love. Be a man and not a boy.

Your love is burning inside me like fire; only you can quench it. I need you. I want you. I love.

I’ll end here and wait for you to make the move.

Sincerely yours,

Priscy.”

I read the letter over and over again. She hadn’t written any name in it. Had she left it out on purpose, or by mistake?

I remembered what my roommate had said about someone calling me. I jumped out of bed, folded the letter, and slipped it into my pocket. I searched the campus everywhere but couldn’t find anyone.

“Ah, was this guy just making fun of me or was he serious?” I muttered to myself.

Since I was late for dining, I decided to go straight to the prayer ground and wait for Jake. When I got there, I saw no one but one girl.

Guess who? Priscy.

She was still on campus. Could she be the one who was calling me? I decided to ask her about it, and also who the recipient of the letter was.

“Oh finally, my angel is here. I’ve waited for you so long. I thought you would never come,” she said and hugged me.

I was shocked. Not too long ago, I was her “brother.” Now, her angel.

I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her tighter. “So, Priscy, you want to date me too in addition to your senior?” I asked, my hands still around her waist.

“Senior? Oh KD, that letter is for you. Did you see any names in it? KD, I saw the way you looked at me the first time we met. I saw how your whole body froze anytime I spoke to you. KD, I know you love me, but until you open your mouth and tell me, I won’t know it.”

I released my grip, went down on one knee, and gently said, “Will you be my lover, Priscy?”

“Yes, yes, yes, and yes,” she said, laughing.

I didn’t care how “holy” the ground was. I didn’t care that we were on campus. I stood up and asked her to kiss me.

She smiled shyly. “Oh KD, I wish I could, but Jake is approaching. For the kiss… not this time, Love.”