Chapter 6: Firsts with You
It was my first time in Tagaytay, and everything felt new.
The cool breeze brushed against my skin. The hills stretched endlessly into the horizon. Clouds hung low over the mountains like soft cotton drifting across the sky. Everything felt bigger. Brighter. More alive.
And I wanted her to see it too.
I picked up my phone and called her on video.
For the first time, I didn’t care about my classmates watching me. I didn’t care who noticed. I wanted her there. I wanted her to laugh at the same things I found funny, to gasp at the view, and to feel the thrill of something new alongside me.
“Look at this view,” I said, tilting my phone so she could see the rolling hills and the soft orange glow of the sunset.
She smiled through the screen, her eyes lighting up inside that small rectangle of video.
I laughed. “You see that cloud? It looks like a giant marshmallow.”
She giggled. “It does! I wish I was there with you.”
Her words made my chest tighten, not painfully, but warmly. Like happiness I hadn’t known before.
I realized then that these small experiences—the wind in my hair, the sunset over Tagaytay, the simple joy of being somewhere new—had suddenly become more special because I could share them with her.
I never used to care about sharing moments like this. I never used to bring anyone along for my firsts.
But with her… it was different.
Everything felt better. Fuller. Brighter.
Just because she was there even if it was only through a screen.
Months later, during the Christmas season, I was back at our university for the annual Christmas tree lighting.
The campus square glowed with golden lights. The tall tree shimmered, its branches twinkling like a thousand tiny stars. Music filled the air, blending with laughter and the hum of excited students gathering together.
And again, I couldn’t imagine experiencing it without her.
I called her immediately.
“Look at this; you have to see it! ”
I showed her the tree from every angle, turning slowly so she could take in the lights, the decorations, the crowd, and the magic of it all.
“I see it,” she whispered, her eyes wide with wonder.
I moved through the crowd carefully, holding my phone up so she wouldn’t miss anything. Even from miles away, I could feel her smiling. I could almost feel her presence beside me.
“Feels like we’re here together,” I said softly.
“Yeah… it does,” she replied, a small smile spreading across her face.
For the first time, I realized that the magic of the moment wasn’t just in the lights or the music or the decorations.
It was in us.
In sharing it.
In knowing she was seeing what I was seeing. Laughing when I laughed. Feeling the same warmth in her chest that I felt in mine.
For a moment, distance didn’t matter.
It was like she was standing right there beside me holding my hand, leaning close to whisper a joke.
I had never been the type to create memories like this. I had never thought about including someone else in my first experiences.
But with her with us, I wanted to.
I wanted her there for every sunset.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0PxqyKVsnA
Every laugh.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjwSJA6sJn3
Every sparkling light.
Even from miles away.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNifqcfeT99
Even through a screen.
Life felt brighter.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2GnIKXhMwz
Fuller.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpe7E0mKYCL
Alive.
Because she was there.
Because she was mine.
And somehow, that made ordinary moments extraordinary.
For the first time, I didn’t just want to experience life.
I wanted to experience it with someone.
And that someone was her.
Even the quiet moments, the small pauses in our calls, felt meaningful. Even when nothing was happening, when we were just staring at each other’s faces through a screen, it felt like we were building something real. Something lasting.
I didn’t know how long this happiness would last.
I didn’t know what challenges we would face.
But I knew one thing.
I wanted her with me for every single first, every memory, every moment worth holding onto.
And for the first time in my life, I truly believed that maybe, just maybe, love could bridge any distance.
Any gap.
Any screen between two hearts.
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and then Add to home screen.