It's a pretty long story but it's a nice one.. [I guess!] Please.! Read it.! .START. Sheila was a very energetic girl. She would pop out of nowhere and start talking randomly. She was kind of irritating but whenever she started talking, people who were worrying about their grades and family, would feel better when she was around. “She sure has lots of energy,” said Vincent. Vincent was Sheila’s friend. But.. “..and is very annoying!” He usually said awful things at her back. He was the guy who always wanted to excel in everything. He wanted everyone to notice him. Sheila just became his friend because of that time she asked about a question in Math. Vincent, who was not that sociable, still helped her out. Then after that day, Sheila was always with him. “How could you say those things? You are friends right?” said Mark. Mark was Vincent’s friend who became his friend because of “noone really knows the reason.” “She’s the only one who thinks we are friends,” replied Vincent. He looked at his watch. “I have to go. Class is starting already.” - “Hello Vincent! Could I bother you for a minute?” asked Sheila after the class ended. “Yes you could,” Vincent replied with annoyed tone. He had already guessed it. Sheila would always nag him for tutorials in Math and Science. “So what is it now?” He would ask as if he didn’t want to teach her which was obviously true. “I don’t understand the teacher’s discussion awhile ago. Can you teach me how to solve this problem?” Sheila would make a pitiful face with teary eyes. Vincent couldn’t reject her. If he did, she would cry so loud that everyone would think he did something awful to her. - “I lost my paper again,” Vincent was mumbling when Mark showed up suddenly. “There’s a new student! And everyone says that she is a real beauty,” said Mark. Indeed there was a new student. Her name was Bianca. She was somewhat clumsy but she was loved by everyone because she was charming and cute. “I’m telling you man! I’m going to make her like me!” Mark was boasting. But he had the right. Most of the girls had a crush on him. It’s undeniable since he was friendly, responsible and nice. Vincent was just silent. - “You fell for her, didn’t you?” Sheila asked Vincent as he was tutoring her in Math. “What the heck are you talking about?” Vincent said trying to make himself innocent about what Sheila’s talking about. “You like the new student, right?!” Sheila was teasing Vincent. “If you won’t shut up, I would stop teaching you!” Vincent warned her. He was actually denying it. He had a crush on Bianca. Almost all the guys liked her. Sheila paused and said.. “You should not surrender! I won’t too!” “You won’t?” Vincent asked. Then something was on his mind. Of course! Sheila could have a crush on Mark. She was trying to make him steal Bianca so Sheila would be with Mark. “So she actually admits that Bianca is far better than her and she wants me to do something so that Mark would like her instead,” Vincent thought and made a sly smile. “Hmm.. A love letter! You could make a love letter for Bianca!” Sheila suggested. Vincent didn’t like the thought of “doing-a-favor” for Sheila but she was right. Vincent liked Bianca and he, at least, had to tell her. But with a love letter? - “I can’t believe it! Why am I doing this?!” Vincent thought as he pondered for something to write. “Sheila is the one at fault with this! I should not do this! It’s like I’m betraying a friend!” Vincent was feeling guilty. It was normal. He and a close friend liked the same girl. His friend told him about what he feels for her. Vincent, on the other hand, remained silent but the truth, he felt the same. “But if ever I could make Bianca like me, Sheila would be happy. She would get close with Mark. Such a sneaky fox! Hmmm.. I lost my assignment in Physics? Oh well, I just have to make another one.” In the end, he hadn’t done the letter. - “So how is it going?” Sheila asked. “Huh? What are you talking about?” Vincent bounced off the question with another question. “The letter!” Sheila said it a little louder. “Could you please be a little quiet! I haven’t done it and I don’t think I could do it!” Vincent said. Sheila went quiet and turned her back. “Was she angry?” Vincent thought. “Oi! What’s up Vince?” Mark interrupted Vincent’s thoughts. “I got to talk with Bianca again and she smiled,” boasted Mark. “And here I have another problem. MY friend has fallen for the same girl I like.” Vincent was whispering to himself. “Eh? What did you say?” Mark asked. “Nothing! Nothing!” - “Sorry!” Bianca was walking through the corridor when she accidentally bumped unto Vincent. “Uhmm.. It’s fine! Are you alright?” Vincent nervously asked. He was so obvious. “I’m okay. Thanks. You’re Vincent, right? This is our first time talking,” Bianca put a smile that made Vincent blush. She reached for his hand to shake hands. - “So how did it go?” Sheila was still making Vincent tutor her despite the fact that she ignored her the whole session in class. “Wow! This girl is something! After she ignored me, she still has the guts to make me tutor her,” Vincent thought as he was scribbling the formulas. He glanced at her and he could see that there was something wrong with her. This wasn’t the Sheila he had known. “A love letter,” Sheila whispered. “Huh?” Vincent asked as he stopped writing. “Nothing,” Sheila stood and took Vincent’s papers. “I’ll need these for the exams next week. Can I have them?” “Yes you can,” Vincent gave her the papers and she went home. He could feel that there was something wrong. - “Maybe it’s because she badly wants me to write a love letter immediately. She sure is impatient,” Vincent was answering his assignment in English. The encouter with Bianca flashed in his mind and he felt guilty. He felt as if he was betraying his friend just because he talked to her. And then there was also Sheila who was acting weird. He had to do someting, he thought. “Or maybe..” Vincent was getting a better idea. He was going to confess for Sheila! - “Mar-” Vincent was about to call his friend when he was interupted by a classmate. He was told that Bianca wanted to talk to him. Of course, he was shocked. “I.. I’m..” Bianca was hesistating to say something, Vincent noticed. “What could be that she wants to tell me?” Then something was on his mind.. “She maybe wants me to help her out with Mark. They are somewhat close anyway. It’s not imposs-” “I’m in love with you!” Bianca shouted. Vincent was speechless.. “Or maybe not.” Vincent whispered. - “Did you know..?” “Really..? “I never knew it would turn out like this..” “Are they a match..?” People were all talking about Bianca’s confession. She was sure popular. If she wasn’t, people wouldn’t talk so much about what happened. “I’ve heard that she confessed to you. What’d you say?” Mark was talking to Vincent coldly with a pale face. “I.. I haven’t,” Vincent didn’t know what to say. He was surprised himself. The door suddenly opened. “Bad news! Sheila..” A student rushed in and said that he heard the teachers talking about Sheila’s transfer. “She is transferring?” Vincent met his another surprise. - It was their daily routine. Sheila would pull Vincent’s shirt and ask random questions. He would unwillingly answer them and teach her things. It was completely different that day. Vincent was alone in the classroom. He imagined her nagging about the confession. He imagined her babbling about what would happen between him and Bianca. He imagined those yet he did not imagine that this would happen. “Shouldn’t I be happy? The girl I like likes me back and that annoying Sheila would be gone,” Vincent was talking to himself. He made a smile and then it slowly faded. “Who am I fooling?” He punched his desk and left. - The class was in rampage. The class clown was going to leave tomorrow. Sheila was sure annoying but this attitude had made the students feel better everyday. Vincent tapped a book on Sheila’s head. “So you’re leaving, huh?” Vincent asked. “So you’re dating, huh? I’ve heard that she confessed to you. What a luck!” She said that jokingly. Although she was leaving her friends, she still smiled as if she was just going to leave for a few days. “I’m not dating her yet. Anyway, who’s going to be your tutor there?” Vincent was trying to change the topic. He had thought that Sheila was hurrying him to write a letter so that she could be with Mark before she leaves school. He felt guilt of not doing it sooner but he would also felt guilt for betraying his friend. “I’ll find another one and I’ll make sure that my new tutor would be a little nicer than you,” Sheila laughed. Then she paused. “You won’t need my help now, do you? She has liked you ever since. It must be nice to have the one you like to like you back,” Sheila was about to cry then she turned her face. Vincent thought he heard his heart broke. He could have done something for Sheila and Mark to be together. It would be, at least, the best gift he could give before she left. - “..It must be nice to have the one you like to like you back..” Sheila’s words had been bothering Vincent all night. “If I like Bianca, I should have answered her now. Maybe it’s because of Mark but..” Vincent thought about Sheila. “Who is it that I really like?” - “Idiot!” Mark slightly punched Vincent of his shoulder. “Can’t you see that Bianca is hurt? How long do you plan to keep her waiting? If you won’t answer her, I’ll snatch her away,” Mark asked his friend in a serious tone. “But.. You..” Vincent couldn’t look at his friend. He felt like his friend would hate him for the rest of the school year. Mark smiled and put his arm around Vincent. “Don’t worry about me. Just to see the one I like happy is enough for me,” is what he said. “That’s right. I can’t let Bianca wait for long. God has given me the chance to have the girl I like,” Vincent was whispering to himself. “And Sheila is leaving today, right?” Mark asked. Despite the fact that they rarely speak, Mark was kind of a “friend” to Sheila since Vincent was also her friend. “Yes, Sheila! Dude! I have something to tell you. Sheila, you see,” Vincent was about to tell Mark that Sheila liked him when Bianca came in. “You better tell her,” Mark left. Vincent answered Bianca and she let out tears of happiness. That day was a mixed emotion for Vincent. Sheila, who didn’t come to school that day, was leaving and Bianca, whom he liked, became her girlfriend. - Months passed. - “Exams are sure hard! Hey what did you answer in question number 4?” Mark was asking Vincent who was already packing his things. “I’m not quite sure,” Although Vincent was good in academic, there would always be times that he would have second thoughts about his answer. “Nevermind that! The teacher has told us to clean our lockers. It’s vacation time. Yipee!” Mark left his chair and went to his locker. Vincent did the same thing. He last opened his locker the time when Sheila was still there. He didn’t need to open his locker since he didn’t need the books. But since he had to teach Sheila, he had to take them out. He smiled and remembered. He knew the combination to Sheila’s locker. He could clearly see her doing the combination. He opened her locker and papers fell out. Vincent took a look at them and noticed that they were familar. They were his lost papers before! All this time Sheila was stealing his papers. But why? Mark saw the mess and took a paper. “Why are these in here? Have you been making her locker a garbage can?” asked Mark. “Huh? I didn’t put them here! I’m asking also why they are here!” Vincent defended himself. Mark helped Vincent pick the papers. He stopped when a piece of paper caught his attention. It wrote.. “He is a very careless guy. He places his papers anywhere and he doesn’t have any clue I steal them. I know they are just formulas and non-sense words. But reading them makes me feel like I’m reading a love letter written by him. If only I could steal that love letter which he would give to Bianca.” Mark took another paper similar to the other one. “He didn’t write a letter. Am I supposed to be happy or not? Does it means he doesn’t like her enough? How I wish he could write a letter and give it to me instead…” “What is it?” Vincent became curious. He snatched the paper away and read it. There was a shock in his eyes. “..but..” the message in the paper continued, “Bianca likes him. I can’t just tear them apart. I’ll just have to make them be together. After all, I’m going to leave soon. Just to see the one I like happy for the last time makes me happy, too. I’m going to help Bianca realize about her feelings towards Vincent and make her tell them to him. They both feel the same for each other. If only she knew that Vincent likes her too, she would confess to him. I’m going to make her do what I wanted to do before. And then, they would be happy.” Bianca came in the scene and asked what was the mess about. “Did.. Did Sheila tell you to say how you feel about me? Did she tell you that I like you before you confessed to me?” Vincent asked Bianca questions she didn’t expect. “Y-Yes.. But how did you kn-” Before Bianca could finish her line, Vincent ran out of the room. He was heading to the pricipal’s office. “Sir!” The principal was startled with Vincent’s unexpected visit to his office. “What is it, young fellow? Why are you in a rush?” the principal asked. “Sh-Sheila Cortez.. Where.. Where did she transfer?” Vincent was still panting as he asked the question. There was a moment of silence then the principal broke it. “That poor girl. She wasn’t really transferring. She has to give up school for a medication. She has this cancer in blood,” Vincent, with eyes wide open, couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “She..” the principal continued, ” was one of the students I find amusing. She wanted to go to school so badly. Her mother didn’t know why she has to go. Her mother said that she was obviously a smart girl. She read a lot and could speak very well before she transferred in this school. But she couldn’t stop her daughter. Everytime she arrived from school, she would smile and happily tell her parents about her day. She was such a nice girl and yet..” Everything became clear to Vincent. “What..” Vincent said it with a broken voice. “What is the hospital’s name?” - He ran as fast as he could. “She’s there..” He thought as he was approaching. He opened the door and saw a weak Sheila with a pale face. Although she had oxygen on, she was obviously having a hard time breathing. “Who are you?” A lady with a long black hair and a face somewhat similar to Sheila asked Vincent. “I’m a.. friend from school,” Vincent replied. “How did you know she was here? I never remember Sheila telling this to anyone especially that she herself asked to keep it a secret,” Sheila’s mother was confused. She hid everything to keep everyone from worrying. She, despite her disease, tried her best to make everyone smile. Vincent remembered the countless times he said cruel things about her annoying existence and yet.. “Is there any way for her to recover?” Vincent asked, hoping that the answer would be a yes. He would do anything to save Sheila’s life. The lady shook her head and started to cry. Vincent looked at Sheila. Then.. “Do you have paper and pen?” - He wanted to do something for her. That something should be a special thing for her, he thought. Sheila opened her eyes and was startled to see Vincent sitting beside her. With her pale lips and soft voice, she asked.. “Why.. are you.. here?” Vincent ignored her question and handed her something. It was a letter. Sheila looked at it and covered her mouth. It was not just a letter; it was a love letter! Vincent opened it and started reading it. “Dear annoying person, You’re a very energetic girl yet look at your condition now. You always smile and yet you’ve been suffering from such pain. You even pretended that you’re dumb even though you’re smarter than me. But all of these, if you didn’t do these, I wouldn’t realize how I feel. I might have showed you that I’m annoyed when you’re there but I’m actually lonely when you’re not around which makes your presence better than your absence. You might have thought that I like someone else just because I said so but the real person I like was actually the girl who’s been with me all this time. I’m not smart enough, you see, to realize this kind of feeling so easily. But I’ll just have to write it here. How I love you and how I want to be with you. From your secret admirer.” “But it’s.. not a secret anymore,” Sheila giggled. “Yeah-Yeah!” Vincent turned his face because of shame. “Thanks.. for doing this. I’m.. very happy!” She smiled. But that was the best smile he had ever seen from her. After a few days, Sheila passed away. Vincent held a paper filled with love. The love letter for someone he unconciously fell for. - END.