I hope you wait for her in the hallway
That when the bell rang,
She'd walk out that room to see your face
Glowing under the generic, white fluorescent light
Ready to greet her a smile
Even though your eyes are tired from the last class
I hope she takes you out during your break
Walking around the campus,
Sitting on stairs, near pavements,
Eating delicious food on sticks,
That amidst the students on their busy routines,
She makes you feel waking up this morning was worth it
I hope you send her home to be safe
Especially when the sun had already set
Even if you're schedule is only half for the day
Even if you have to wake up at 5AM tomorrow
Just so you can ride that jeep, that train, that bus
And feel her head rest on your shoulders
I hope she makes you feel happy on a school night
That you feel at ease even if you have to finish a paper
That she never fails to cheer you up for an exam
And whenever you need someone to drive by with you,
She won't hesitate to come and stop typing for a while
Despite both of you have to be in class by 7 next morning
I hope you treat her a ride out of chivalry
Even if it was just six coins
Or one, because there wasn't enough in her purse
Or even if she's got enough but you do it anyway
Because the horns of the busy streets sounded like music
When she's sitting in front of you, or best, beside you
I hope the classes you've been with her were amazing
That when you look at that number on the door
You smile, even if that subject is something you despise
I hope your professors look at you with gratitude
And feel thankful because you have her to give that to you
When you were ready to give up, when you were so close to flunking
I hope the tables, the chairs, the floors, the walls
Reminds her how bittersweet college is
And how it must've felt quite boring without you
How the running before the bell rings
Is nothing compared to running into you
Or helping her get her books off the ground when it fell
I hope the floors and the grass you both walk on,
The library you both used to cram and laze around
Will overwhelm the deadlines you need to reach,
The lengthy commute you had to endure
And tells you a lesson about a thing or two
Not formed from equations and long written essays
I hope you both don't forget education is important
As important as living your lives,
As important as keeping that life alive
And I hope when you both get that diploma
You'll look back at each other and thank each other
That even if it didn't turned out like what those books say,
The halls could almost, at some point, feel like home
This poem is based on the everyday busy and nostalgic city of Manila.