I was inspired to write this as I was sitting all by myself at The Bean Connect, a local cafe here in Dumguete city.

I met this guy during a tutoring session when I was still in high school. We both came from different schools so basically he's not a schoolmate of mine.  There's this place for students who can get tutors in different subjects so I was there, studying Algebra and he was studying Mandarin Chinese. We're not really close and I only see him as an "acquaintance". He started to put on this "persona" and tried to act cool in front of me. Like a braggart. And then suddenly he just messaged me asking to be his girlfriend. I told him "no" because I wasn't ready to be in a relationship and also I didn't see him in a romantic way. But he keeps on persisting to the point it really irritated me. I then realized that he just wanted to use me and to boast to his friends in school that he finally has a girlfriend. I told him that he was ludicrous and also to find someone else to be his girlfriend. I never talked to him again.

There’s this boy I used to like back then in the 6th grade. We were more of enemies but later have grown to be friends. He left the country when I was in the 8th grade and at that time, I already had feelings for him. I thought it was just a one-sided crush but a few years later, I heard from a friend that he also liked me back then; our feelings were mutual. And somehow hearing that got me thinking like, “what if he just stayed here? what would have happened between us?”. So I was inspired to write this poem. Hopefully someday our paths will cross in the future.

This was inspired when I was all alone in a local coffee shop and the barista was so kind to talk to me. He was friendly and, my gosh, so charming. *swoons*

I dedicate this poem to my late grandfather. Wo ai ni Angkong <3