THE next day I stopped by at Zach's classroom to visit him, I felt so close to him since he finally noticed me; he greeted me when we met a while ago and sparingly smiled at me.

I stopped entering their classroom when I heard my name in the conversation inside, I peek from outside the door and to listen.

"Have you fallen in love with Merry, Zach?" asked by a male classmate of Zach.

Zach did not answer immediately. "I-I don't like her!" I heard him say.

I felt a strong pinch in my heart because of Zach's answer. Does it also mean that the efforts I made to get into his heart was useless? How about the progress in our relationship? Was i just an illusion?

"Why don't you just reject her?" a classmate added.

"I always do."

"She's beautiful and dedicated to what she does, why don't you like her?"

I did not listen to what he said next because I had already run away from there. I even stumbled and got injured but the wound inside my heart was more painful than the wound on my knee and elbow. I could heal the physical wound but I could not heal the wound that came emotionally.

I did everything, didn't I? But still nothing. It hurts. I want to cry my heart out. But at least I've tried, didn't I? And I can say I have no regrets in the end.

Not everyone who goes to the fight wins. But at least I can't be called a coward because I've been able to deal with something I've never done in my whole life.

Maybe I just made a mistake in hearing the bell I heard when I first saw him. Maybe it was the bell from the elementary school near our school not the bell of love. False alarm!

Everything is sinking on me. He had rejected me a few times but I was the only one who was struggling and scratching. My heart was taken by him and it was broken also by him and yet, I'm still in love with him.

Maybe my heart wants to take a day off because of exhaustion. A year off or can it be forever off? I don't know. But it's so hard to forget someone who gave me so much to remember. I was able to do the impossible.

But I still believe in True Love because true LOVE is like: it hurts but you still love.

"Hello mom?" I couldn't help but cry especially Mommy suddenly called from the States and I missed her.

They have been wanting to see me for a long time and they wanted me to continue studying there but i want to finish my degree here in the Philippines.

"Merry, are you crying?" she sounded so worried.

Have you ever heard a sad "Merry" ? That's me! "I wanna see you mom and dad, I've missed you so much."

"We missed you too, hija!"