I didn't know how long i'd been annoying Ari.
Time had lost all meaning.
"Please," I begged for the twelfth time, lying belly-down on my couch like a princess exiled from her own fairytale. "All you have to do is stand there and pretend to be obsessed with me. Which—honestly? Not that hard."
Ari was on FaceTime, barefaced and in a headwrap, looking like he had no plans of stepping outside today, let alone participating in a social experiment powered by my heartbreak and caffeine.
"Elara," he sighed, "I am gay. Like, aggressively."
"I know that," I whispered dramatically. "But Cairo doesn't. He's mysterious. He could believe anything."
Ari raised one brow. "So you want me to… fake-date you. In your hallway. In heels."
"Not real heels!" I sat up quickly. "Just like, pretend you like me. Put your arm around me. Laugh. Maybe brush my hair behind my ear. You know. Things boys do when they're enchanted."
"You need therapy."
"I need revenge."
He paused. "What did he do now?"
"He brought a girl into his apartment, Ari. A girl. With a vanilla perfume and a laugh. I heard it. It echoed."
Ari rolled his eyes but i could tell.
He was softening.
"Elara—"
"She called him Cai," I hissed.
He sat up straighter. "Cai?"
I nodded like i'd just been betrayed by the prince in a Disney sequel. "Cai. Who even shortens Cairo? That's not a nickname. That's an incantation."
Ari covered his mouth, laughing. "Okay, okay. I'll come over. But you owe me cake. Like the expensive kind."
"Deal."
Ten minutes later, Ari was at my door looking like a K-drama second lead.
White button-down.
Gold-rimmed glasses. Subtle cologne that screamed, "I brunch in Copenhagen."
I practically dragged him into my unit.
"Okay. Here's the plan," I whispered, as if we were about to pull off an international heist. "We wait. The moment Cairo steps out of his unit—we walk. Slowly. Like we're in love. Maybe pretend i tripped and you caught me. Let the light hit my cheekbones. You know the vibe."
Ari stared at me. "You're insane."
"I'm theatre," I corrected, tossing my hair. "Now shh."
We positioned ourselves by the peephole like two nosy grandmothers and finally, finally—after what felt like three commercial breaks and a life crisis, I saw movement.
Cairo.
In black joggers, white shirt, and a face that had no right being that stoic on a weekday.
He stepped out of his unit and walked straight to the elevator, headphones in.
No girl in sight today. Good.
I turned to Ari with a glint in my eye.
"Showtime."
We opened the door and stepped out as if we were in a scene from a BL drama with a ₱5 million production budget.
I looped my arm through his. Ari, to his credit, leaned in close and whispered, "You're ridiculous."
"I'm iconic," I whispered back.
We walked slowly, like two people deeply invested in each other's existence.
I giggled.
Ari said something about croissants.
I slapped his arm like it was the funniest thing i'd ever heard in my life.
We turned, casually, toward my door again—just as Cairo passed us on the way back from the elevator.
I swear to you, he slowed down.
Like, microsecond slow.
But i felt it. A shift in the air.
A glitch in his Matrix.
Ari squeezed my hand. "He's looking."
"Of course he is," I whispered, barely moving my lips.
Once inside, we closed the door, quietly.
Not all the way.
I pressed my ear to the wood like a woman possessed.
And yes.
Footsteps. Slow. Lingering.
Then silence.
I turned to Ari, absolutely breathless. "He's outside."
"Elara, he probably just forgot something."
"No. He's listening."
"Elara—"
"I told you he likes me."
Ari rolled his eyes so hard they almost turned into planets. "Or he's literally just passing by his own hallway."
"I can feel it," I whispered, smiling like a lunatic in love. "He's jealous."
Ari crossed his arms. "You know, for someone who claims not to care, you're one dramatic encounter away from starting your own teleserye."
I leaned in close, voice low. "If this is a teleserye, I am the main character."
"Obviously."
We both giggled—loudly.
Too loudly.
It was intentional, of course.
Elara Celestine Zulueta does not half-bake her performances.
I couldn't help it.
I cracked the door open just a little.
Just enough to catch a glimpse of the hallway without looking like i was about to invite the whole barangay in for merienda.
He was there.
Standing just outside my door.
Not even pretending to do anything productive.
Cairo was literally just existing, as if that alone was enough to justify breathing in my personal airspace.
I turned to Ari and whispered like i was passing state secrets, "See? He's eavesdropping. He wants to know what's happening inside my unit. He's suffering."
Ari peeked through the door crack, smirking. "He's just standing there, babe. Maybe he's texting someone. Maybe he's checking the ceiling. Maybe—"
"He's jealous," I said with full conviction. "He heard us giggle and his masculine pride shattered into powder."
Ari made a face. "So what now?"
"I open the door," I said like it was the most dangerous move of my life. "Just enough to confront him, but not too obvious that i planned it."
Ari blinked. "You mean exactly obvious that you planned it?"
I ignored him.
With the grace of a queen descending her marble staircase, I pulled the door open with a soft click.
Cairo was still there, staring at his phone, but he looked up, just a little too quickly, if you ask me.
"Hi," I said sweetly, the picture of innocence.
He didn't even flinch. "Hi."
"What are you doing here?" I asked, voice curious, wide-eyed. "Something wrong with your door?"
"No." He stared at me like I was the suspicious one. "Why?"
I tilted my head. "You were just… standing there. You need something?"
He shrugged. "Just passing by."
Liar.
Big, fat liar.
No one passes by in front of a neighbor's door for five minutes unless they're casing the place or waiting for the right moment to be nosy.
I resisted the urge to smile.
I leaned against the doorframe instead, dramatically casual, like a girl who wasn't trying to summon a reaction out of her hot, frustrating neighbor.
"You sure?" I asked. "You looked deep in thought. I thought maybe…"
I paused. "You wanted to come in."
Ari giggled from inside.
Cairo's gaze flicked past me. "Is someone with you?"
I raised one brow. "Does it matter?"
He didn't answer.
But i swear, there was something in the tightening of his jaw, the way his fingers curled slightly around his phone, that told me this was working.
So i added one final touch.
I turned slightly, just enough for Cairo to see Ari lounging casually on my couch, sipping a Diet Coke like he owned the place.
He waved.
Cairo nodded.
I bit my lip to hide the grin.
Checkmate.
"Well," I said, too cheerily, "if you don't need anything…"
He blinked. "Nope. Just—yeah. Passing by."
"Okay. Bye then."
And i closed the door.
The second the door clicked shut, I collapsed into Ari's arms like i'd just won an acting award in Cannes.
"We did it," I whispered, heart racing. "We manipulated reality."
Ari held me like i'd survived a war. "You're insane and terrifying, but effective."
"I know he's jealous," I whispered, eyes wild with victory. "I felt it."
"I saw it."
"And that thing he does with his mouth?" I mimicked Cairo's signature half-frown, half-smirk. "That's his tell. That's his jealous face. I've catalogued it."
Ari choked on his drink laughing. "You need a hobby."
"I have one," I said proudly. "It's called ruining Cairo emotionally until he admits he's in love with me."
Ari giggled. "You should print that on a T-shirt."
-
Later that night, I sat by my window with a cup of tea and a face mask on still high off the sweet, sweet power of manipulation.
That's when i heard it.
Footsteps.
I peeked through the blinds.
Cairo.
Carrying a takeout bag.
He stopped in front of my door again.
Paused.
And then, just as quickly walked away.
No knock. No message.
Just that same quiet, irritating silence that made me want to throw a throw pillow at his back and scream, "JUST SAY IT!"
Ari's voice echoed in my head: "You're insane. And terrifying. But effective."
I smirked.
Let him stew.
Let him wonder.
He wanted to play cold?
I could play colder.
-
The next morning, I strutted out of my unit like nothing happened.
Hair in a perfect bun.
Sunglasses on even though it was still kinda gloomy.
Oversized denim jacket.
Coffee in hand.
I timed it perfectly.
As i stepped into the hallway, Cairo's door opened.
We locked eyes.
I gave him a bright, nonchalant smile. "Good morning, neighbor."
He nodded. "Morning."
No sarcasm.
No awkwardness.
Just that same unreadable expression.
But i knew better.
Because as i turned the corner, I didn't miss the way he looked.
That glance.
That tiny, fleeting second where his eyes followed me just a little too long.
Mission: Jealousy?
Accomplished.