Chapter 1: The Search For The Husband

“Why are you doing this to me, Dad?” puno ng hinanakit na tanong ni Tala sa kanyang ama na noon ay kausap niya sa kanyang cellphone.

Kasasabi lang nito sa kanya na kailangan niyang maghanda para sa meeting niya with her potential husband next week.

Nasabihan na siya nito noon pang isang linggo tungkol sa plano nitong ipakasal siya sa anak ng mga kakilala nito. But still, hearing her father tell that to her again was only fueling the anger she had been trying to unfeel for the past days.

“And why do you keep doing what you are doing, Tala? ‘Di ba nag-usap na tayo bago kita iniwan d’yan sa Paris? You promised that I will never hear another news of you going way overboard again. But here we are all over again, after you got drunk, you almost got arrested for DUI.” His father scoffed. “Not only that, you assaulted a police officer and called him fckin names! What were you thinking? Are you even thinking or have tried thinking straight?”

Hindi siya umimik kahit na gusto niya sanang ipagtanggol ang sarili. Wala rin naman kasing silbi na sabihin niyang she accidentally cut her hand while she’s at home in her apartment and drinking that’s why she wanted to rush herself to the hospital. And sadly, she was arrested by a perverted police officer who groped her behind several times!

Her mother raised her to be combative should the need to protect herself arises. And so, she punched and kicked the bastard and called him all the dirty names one could think of. Luckily, she didn’t get arrested when she called Gabrielle Dubois or Elle, her friend and the favorite niece of the city's mayor. She filed a counter-charge against the police officer who harassed her and she’s more than ready to face the bastard in wherever court he can damn chooses.

Tapos ngayon, siya pa rin ang iipitin ng Daddy niya gayong agrabiyado rin siya? Well, what does she expect? In the eyes of Joshua Sandejas, her father and the CEO of Star Airlines, ang lahat ng bagay, kahit hindi niiya kasalanan, kasalanan pa rin niya. Ever since she turned 15, ganoon na ang buhay niya—laging sinisita at pinapagalitan for being ‘different’. Hindi naman na siya dapat magtaka. Alam na alam niya ang dahilan kung bakit siya lang sa mga kapatid niya iba ang pakikitungo ng Daddy niya. And though she had long accepted the truth about herself, masakit pa rin na parang sa mga magulang niya, lalo na sa Daddy niya, wala na siyang ginawang tama. Na kapag napapasubo siya sa mga hindi sinasadyang eskandalo, siya palagi ang mga kasalanan.

Well what do you expect, you’re just…

“Tala, are you still listening, young lady?” pukaw ng Daddy niya sa kanya, iritable pa rin ang tinig.

She huffed and rolled her eyes. Her inner bitch, starting to kick in. “I am, Dad,” mapakla niyang sagot.

“Then what did I just tell you?”

She cursed herself silently. How could she know what her father just told her when her mind was wandering someplace else!

Her father huffed. “You will meet Quinton Reyes next week. Me and your mom have already arranged everything. You will have a formal dinner at—“

“What?!” mabilis niyang putol sa Daddy niya. “Why him?!” she yelled in frustration.

“Why not him? Nasa Italy lang siya managing Diamant Empire. He can fly to you even now should he likes.”

She scoffed, her chest was pounding erratically from too much pent-up anger. “That guy is two years younger than I am, Dad. Do you want me to babysit that snobbish prick all my life?” gigil niyang sabi.

She knew Quinton Ryker Reyes all her life. His father was a former colleague of her mom at Samaniego Security Agency, a company which provides elite bodyguards all over the world. Not only that, her Grandma Liza would always bring her and her cousins Charlie and Amara at Treasures, a high-end jewelry shop owned by Quentin’s family. Her Grandma would let them select pieces of jewelry every year as their gifts for Christmas. And every time they’d go there, Quint, as people calls him, would never fail to show his air of arrogance towards his employees. God! The man even has an employee who shines his shoes every now and then! Who does that? Only a freak! And now her father would want him to marry a goddamn freak!

Hell no!

“Why do think so highly of yourself, Tala? With the endless mistakes and scandals you have practically put yourself into since your’re in senior high up to now, do you think you still have the right to choose a man who will marry you?”

She bit her lower lip, the insult squeezing her chest once more. Bigla siyang nanliit sa sarili niya sa sinabi ng ama. Her father really loves to humiliate and demean her with every opportunity he gets.

Again, wala nang bago roon. She’s the lamest child among the bunch of his overachiever kids. She’s the wrong in everything he does right. The mistake he must get rid of. Now she understands why he’s doing that to her. He was done. Her family was done with her.

Her lower lips quivered and her eyes stung as the familiar pain rose again from her chest.

“Tala, are you still there?”

“Y-yes, D-Dad,” she answered in a shaky voice.

She heard her father took in a sharp breath. “Tala I…” He huffed. “Just be ready meeting Quiton next week. Trust me, this is for the best.”

Hindi na siya sumagot at tuluyan nang pinutol ang tawag. Marahas siyang nagpunas ng luha pagkatapos at gigil na isinuksok ang cellphone sa bag niya.

She looked at the club in front of her. Magkikita sila ni Elle ngayon doon upang i-celebrate ang pagkakapasok nilang dalawa bilang apprentice sa isang sikat na fashion brand. Today had been so great and then her father just had to rain on her parade with his plan of marrying her to some rich freak!

Muling bumangon ang inis sa dibdib niya. Kaya nga siya nag-solong manirahan sa Paris matapos niyang grumaduate sa fashion school sa Manila para hindi na siya nito mapagkikita at mapakialaman sa mga gusto niya sa buhay. But there seems no place on earth where the billions of Joshua Sandejas can’t reach. Her father is still making her life miserable even now that he’s thousands of miles away from her!

No. She will not let him dictate her life as he pleases. Nagawa niya na noong baliin ang gusto nito sa buhay niya matapos niyang mag-shift nang palihim sa fashion design program sa university na pinasukan niya after he insisted the first two business course she took and didn’t finish. Kung nagawa niya noon na magdesisyon para sa sarili niya, gagawin niya ulit ‘yon ngayon. Mas lalo na ngayon na kalayaan na niya ang nakataya.

She will show him how she runs her life in her own way. And no, she won’t have the friggin’ date with that freak Quinton!