saige’s pov

i leaned against the doorway of tita’s living room, arms crossed, watching isola sit cross-legged on the sofa, eyes glued to her phone again.

i rolled my eyes for the third time that afternoon.

“levion na naman?” i muttered under my breath.

“uy, bagong post niya!” isola’s voice lit up the room, too bright, too warm. she turned her phone toward me, grinning. “kita mo ‘to? ang galing niya dito!”

i forced a smile. “wow… ang cool.”

but inside, i was screaming, cool? seriously? he’s a walking red flag.

isola didn’t notice — she never does. she was too busy laughing at levion’s stupid video. and yet, as her laughter filled the room, my chest tightened.

every time she smiled like that, i felt happy... and miserable at the same time.

because i loved her.

quietly. secretly. like a shadow that never leaves her side.

“saige, diba nakakatawa?” she said between laughs.

“yeah... nakakatawa nga,” i answered, forcing a laugh of my own.

but all i could think was, nakakainis lang, kasi levion ‘yan. red flag na red flag.

i couldn’t tell her how i felt. we’re cousins — and she’s straight.

she likes levion, not me. so i stayed quiet, pretending it didn’t hurt, choosing to protect her instead.

that night, while everyone else was asleep at tita’s house, i sat by the window, phone in hand, scrolling through levion’s account. i needed to know what kind of guy he really was.

“hindi ko siya pwedeng hayaang masaktan niyan,” i whispered to myself.

but then came the harder question — paano ko siya mapapangalagaan nang hindi nasasaktan ang sarili ko?

the night was quiet, but my heart wasn’t.

and deep down, i knew — loving isola from the shadows was going to be the hardest thing i’d ever do.

isola’s pov

i stayed on the sofa, phone in hand, scrolling through levion’s latest post for the third time that night. his stupid grin and exaggerated dance moves always made me laugh like, really laugh and i couldn’t stop myself.

“saige, diba nakakatawa?” i said, turning toward her, eyes bright.

she smiled, but something was… off. too small, too careful. “yeah… nakakatawa nga,” she said, laughing softly, but her eyes weren’t lighting up like they usually did.

i frowned, a little. saige always laughed with me. at levion’s dumb videos, at my jokes, at everything i showed her. tonight, her laughter felt… different. forced.

“saige?” i asked gently, leaning a little closer. she shifted, crossing her arms, like she was closing something off.

“hmm?” she answered casually, like she wasn’t hiding anything.

but i could feel it. the tension in her shoulders, the way she avoided looking at me. saige had been… quiet lately. more serious than usual. distant. and for some reason, it made my chest tighten.

i shook my head. maybe i was imagining things. saige was always careful, always watching out for me. that’s why i liked having her around. she made me feel safe, even if she didn’t notice it herself.

later, while everyone else was asleep, i watched her sit by the window, phone in hand, staring at the street outside. she looked… sad.

i wanted to ask her what was wrong, wanted to reach out and tell her it was okay. but i didn’t. i didn’t want to break the quiet comfort of us.

so i stayed under the blanket, phone set aside, whispering to the dark, “i hope she’s okay.”

because even if i didn’t know why she looked so upset, i knew one thing: saige mattered. more than i could ever say.