While Rendo was reminiscing these events with somehow mixed emotions, he unknowingly walks in the vicinity of the Town Center, which is quite near to his college building. As he seemed to walk aimlessly in the area while not going inside the Town Center itself, someone shouted to him.

"Hey! Hora! Wasurenaide ne!"

It took him a full minute before it sank in. He thought to himself, "Who's shouting lyrics of that old song?" He is, of course, referring to Sweet Soul Revue by Pizzicato Five.

He looked around. Then, the voice was heard again.

"Hey! Ren! Yoohoo!"

He thought, "Huh? That's a name I rarely use. Who could've...?"

Lo and behold, there stood the very person he has been avoiding to meet for today.

He exclaimed, "It's you!"

"What's with that shriek? It's like you saw a ghost or something," she said as she approached Rendo.

"W-why are you here?!"

"Here you go again. I mean, we did agree to meet today, right?"

"Oh? See, it's not as if I'm trying to ditch you..."

She held his wrist and pulled him as they walked inside. He was struggling, uttering words and phrases like "Hey!", "Let me go!", "Help! S-O-S!", "Killer beeees!", "I'm being abducted!", "We have nothing to lose but our chains!" and "May fire come down from heaven to consume thee!"

The last one is a derivation of Elijah's words in 2 Kings 1:10.

She turned to him giggling, and said, "Ren, stop. You're back to yourself again, I suppose."

"Wait, how do you know that name?!"

She kept silent until they reached a fast food restaurant, which is fairly spacious because only a few people are dining there. She moves one chair and motions him to sit.

"Let's have a little chat, shall we?"

"Oh, um, alright, I guess?"

He sits down, and then she takes the seat opposite him.

Then, awkward silence. The few minutes that they avoided looking at each other and remained quiet felt like a few hundred years. To break what seemed to be a great barrier, she spoke first.

"So, you're not planning to come?"

She looked at him intently, slightly leaning towards him with her arms resting on the table. This made Rendo nervous as they happen to have eye contact for the first time during that encounter.

"H-hey! You're thinking of something naughty, aren't you?!", she wailed as she pointed at him with one finger.

Surprised of her suddenly loud voice, he waved his hands in front of him. He exclaimed, "N-no! Of course, not! W-what do you think of me anywho?"

She folded back her finger, but maintained her position a while ago.

"I was asking, because you seemed unwilling to meet me."

He looked away, as if gazing at something far away, even if there is nothing much to see outside but the sprawling tiangges (small markets) within the Town Center.

Then, he answered softly, "You see... You probably won't understand..."

She smiled before saying, "Try me."

He looked back at her again, but still avoiding eye contact.

"Maybe you should answer some questions for me first..."

"I'm the one who asked first, Ren."

"I know, but..."

She sighed, and then said, "Oh, Rendo. Always the suspicious person. Alright, do tell."

"Err, how do I say this?"

"How?"

"It's just that... See, it looks like you know quite a lot about me..."

"Ah, yes. Straight and true, as you have always been."

"That's what I mean. Who are you, really? What is behind Miss Verona Dimasalang?"

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

"Oh," she managed to speak before giggling.

"What?"

"It's like, the fifth time you referred to me by name!", she answered gaily.

"Wait, you actually count that?"

He began counting in his mind as he dug through his memory in a frenzied pace.

"Why, of course! But that's only because you do it so rarely..."

Rendo raised three fingers in front of him and said, "That's only three times!"

Can you count how many times Rendo called Verona by name? Can you also identify which chapters did each scene happen? Three seconds to go! Three. Two. One. Zero! Final answer?

...

Oh, alright. I need more time thinking.

"Trust me, it's five," she calmly said as she put her hand up, with all fingers raised.

"How come?"

Just then, a waitress arrived and asked, "Any order, ma'am, sir?"

They both looked at her.

Rendo thought to himself, "So that's why she raised her hand. What skill."

Verona thought to herself, "Really, I didn't intend to... Isn't the guy supposed to order anyway?"

"Uh, ma'am? Sir?"

She spoke once more when it seemed like a barrier of awkwardness is about to unfold. Fortunately for the waitress, they snapped back before the barrier was set up.

"Right," Rendo said as he pointed in the menu, "I'd like to order this. How about you?"

Verona responded as she looked at the menu, "Oh, me? What's that you ordered?"

"This one?", he said as he pointed in the menu again.

"Hmm. Maybe I'd get this, and then an extra vegetable soup," she said while smiling to the waitress.

The waitress smiled back at them, though rather mischievously, before saying the restaurant's catchphrase and left with their order. Then, silence again.

Rendo tried to break the silence, "W-where were we again?"

She looked at him, and for the second time this meeting, their eyes met. When he noticed this, he quickly moved his eyes, without moving his head much.

"I'll tell you what you want to know," she said confidently, "but you can't handle the truth!"

He pointed to her with his arms stretched and exclaimed, "Shinjitsu wa itsumo hitotsu!"

It is Japanese for the phrase: there is only one truth.

One of her eyes twitched, then asked, "Shinjitsu what??"

"Nothing," he said, laughing a bit, "You're saying? It's not that you're a long lost sister or something, is it?"

"Oh no, not that!"

"Then what?"

"Do you really not remember? The moment your eyes met mine? The time your hand touched mine?"

"H-hey! You're kidding! I didn't...!"

"Chill, man. That's just an expression."

"Oh, expression. Right..."

"So, as I was saying," she continued speaking as she drew something out of her bag and placed it on the table, "Does this ring a bell?"

"What's that?"

The waitress interrupted, "Your orders, ma'am, sir."

She placed the meals on the table, while Verona moved the thing a little bit away from the center so it would not be mixed with their orders. Meanwhile, Rendo paid for the meals with their combined money. Apparently, he is not quite the gentleman who would pay for the entire bill. Of course, he is also not the gentleman who can afford to. As soon as the waitress left, the conversation continued.

"So... yeah! What's that?"

"Look. At. It."

He slightly tilted his head as he examined what she holds in her hand.

"You want me to eat some more? Didn't we just order food?"

She just sighed and stored the thing back to her bag. Then, they begin eating.

"So, he doesn't really remember? What now?", she thought to herself.

It is actually a small pack of biscuits.

"Of course! I do remember that! It's that newfangled biscuits made to taste like chips! What is she trying to tell me, though?", he thought to himself.

Silence reigns once more as they ate. For some reason, the atmosphere between them became tense. Mere minutes again felt like years. Soon, the meal is finished.

"Um..."

They speak simultaneously, which caused them to feel a bit awkward for a moment.

"Oh, yes, you go first," he said.

"Oh, no, do tell. What were you saying?", she asked.

"You see, to be honest, I do remember something from what you just showed me..."

"To be honest? So, you weren't honest all along?"

She smiled, then they laughed.

"Anyway... I do remember something... Um, you mind me talking?"

"Oh! Please continue," she said while trying to keep her cheer to herself.

Rendo narrated that one time, when he was still a child, he did receive a pack of biscuits similar to what she has brought. It was the first time he ever saw that kind of biscuit, and he eats them to this day because they are indeed delicious. At least for him.

"And... Do you remember who gave you those biscuit chips?"

He stopped from speaking and stared for a moment. Meanwhile, she snapped her fingers to call his attention.

"Hey! Hey!"

"Ha? W-what?"

"Tell me, do you remember?"

"You see... S-she's... I suppose... a friend?"

"Friend?"

"Yes, right... but we haven't met for a long long time."

"How long, if I may ask?"

"Years. Must have been more than a decade, I guess?"

"That's really a long time."

"Yeah. But you see..."

"Hmm?"

"I don't want to say this, really... You know, you're a girl, too..."

"Are you blushing?", she asked as she tried to contain her laughter.

"No! That's just the effect of spicy foods."

"Fine then."

"I mean, it's not that we had much to reckon with. I've been with ladies for far longer periods. But, you see... I'd been..."

She gulped, although he did not seem to notice it.

"Like chasing a shadow. You know it's there, you can't catch it. You simply aren't fast enough. I know she's out there... And I've been wanting to meet her again... But we're separated. Poof! I mean, how big is Metro Manila? How big is the Philippines, for us not to be together again as friends? The time and space between us is simply incomprehensible! Of course, if God is not for us, then it's settled..."

"I... I understand," she said as she pulled out the snack again and put it in his hands.

"Ha? What...?"

He looked at her, only to find out that she was looking at him as well.

"Chasing shadows, you say? If she's like a shadow... Say, a shadow of your past...? Then, even if you can't reach her by your sheer power, she must still be with you always. Are you trying to tell me that this girl hasn't departed your heart? Besides, what else is there to say in case you meet her? What else is there to do? If you compare her with a shadow, does that mean she's part of a darker past?"

"A dark past? Oh, come on. Do I look like kagemusha to you?"

"I'm just saying what I observed from your story."

He smiled, "Enough about shadows! Now, you know. Let's hear your story to share."

"Wait! You still have to finish yours!"

The meeting goes on. Why does Verona want to see Rendo in the first place? I mean, just say it already. Who is the woman Rendo has met more than a decade ago? What is the brand of the biscuits she brought, so I can go to the store and buy some, too? How do these all fit in this narrative? And more importantly, when will we even see some real running?! Oh, alright. Whatever it is, Run to the Sky continues in the following chapter. Read on, okay?