Chapter 3

Dahan- dahan kung pinikit ang mga mata ko refusing to see what I've seen inside, sinubukan kung tumayo, my hands on my belly, my feet buckled my mom strikes really hurt me to the core as I gather my stuff ready to leave I saw Carlo standing behind me holding and umbrella his face twisted he carried me into his arms and throw my stuff away

"You don't need it, I'll buy you new one" he said, turning away, my parents didn't even notice that I have been taken away not with traffickers but to my dear husband.

He brought me into his home, a huge expensive villa, sobrang yaman talaga nila, even the sofa is a gold pale, massive hallways, expensive chandeliers and a dozen of maids lining up, this is like a royalty my parents is rich it's true but not this kind of rich, it's amazing, and really tempted, tumitig ako kay Carlo as he dry my hair into the towel, I smiled "Carlo, is my great choice, here I'm safe and protected" aniya ko sa aking isipan.

Then came the moment they descended the grand staircase and grabe, Carlo’s mother looked every inch a queen straight out of a royal portrait.

Her clothes reeked of old money: fine silks, subtle jewels, and a quiet elegance that screamed wealth without even trying. But it was her aura that struck me most commanding, regal, heavy with authority the kind of presence that automatically made you shrink back, as if just standing near her was enough to feel small and insignificant.

It was the exact kind of grace and power I could never hope to possess.

They moved to sit on the plush velvet sofa, and I scrambled to stand up straight, bowing my head low.

Of course I would stand.

Someone like me didn’t deserve to sit beside people like them.

“Mom, Dad,” Carlo said gently, his voice soft but proud as he reached for my hand.

“This is my wife, Eylul.”

I dipped my head even lower, my fingers twisting nervously at the hem of my simple dress, and spoke in the softest, most respectful tone I could muster.

“Hello, Tita… Tito. I’m Eylul Bernasor—Carlo’s wife.”

Oh God. The silence that followed felt heavier than any blow I’d ever received.

His father stared at me, his dark eyes unreadable, and my heart plummeted straight to my stomach. Here we go again, I thought. Just like my own father. Just like Janelle. That cold, sharp gaze made it feel like he wanted to grab me by the collar and throw me right out the front door.

Is this what marrying Carlo means? Another hell?

His mother’s eyes raked over me next scanning from the top of my head down to my scuffed shoes, and then back up again.

Her expression didn’t change, but to my wounded, scarred heart, it looked like pure disdain.

Of course they wouldn’t like me. To them, I probably looked like nothing more than dirt dragged in from the street. I was the footstool, and they were the throne untouchable, perfect, lightyears above me.

I fixed my gaze firmly on the floor, refusing to meet their eyes any longer. I didn’t want to be an eyesore in their perfect home.

“Sit down.”

The voice was elegant, calm, and held the weight of authority but I didn’t dare move. I assumed she was talking to Carlo, telling him to take his place beside them, far away from me.

“Daughter-in-law. I said sit. This is your home now too.”

It was his father who spoke this time firm, but not unkind. My head snapped up so fast I almost got dizzy, my eyes blown wide in utter shock. Did I hear that right? Did he just call me… daughter-in-law?

Tentatively, like I was scared the floor would crumble beneath me, I took a few slow, shaky steps and lowered myself onto the very edge of the sofa staying in the corner, exactly where someone like me belonged.

And then, the cold, stern expressions on their faces melted away into bright, warm smiles the moment they turned their attention back to their son.

“Finally,” his mother said, reaching out to squeeze Carlo’s hand gently, her eyes glistening with joy.

“We’ve waited so long for this day. You’re married at last.”

“Now that you are,” his father added with a hearty laugh, leaning forward in excitement

“what do you two plan to do next? When will you give us our first grandchild, hmm?”

I felt a small, tentative smile tug at my lips, and for the first time in years, something warm and soft unfurled deep inside my chest.

They didn’t look at me like I was trash. They didn’t treat me like I was invisible or a burden. So this is the family Carlo comes from, I realized with a jolt of emotion.

This is why his kindness is so pure, so unmatched. This is why he could save a stranger, why he could give someone like me a chance he was raised by people who truly had good hearts. They deserve every bit of the good fortune they have.

As if sensing my sudden vulnerability, Carlo shifted closer until our thighs touched, and laced his warm, strong fingers through mine. He turned back to his parents, his voice steady and full of a pride that made my breath catch.

“Mom, Dad whatever my wife wishes for, that is exactly what we will do. Her happiness and her choices come first, always. I respect her more than anything.”

I swallowed hard, my throat tight with tears I refused to let fall. “Tita… Tito ”

“Call us Mom and Dad, sweetheart.” His father cut me off before I could finish, and his mother nodded eagerly beside him, her smile softening even more.

“From now on, that is who we are to you.”

Mom and Dad. Two simple words that felt like magic.

Words I’d spent my whole life begging to hear, words that had always been thrown back in my face like insults. But this time… they felt like home.

“Mom… Dad,” I whispered, my hands trembling uncontrollably as I found the courage to speak what had been weighing heavy on my heart.

“I… I just want us to live simply. To have our own little life, away from all the grand parties and high society expectations. If it’s possible… I want us to build our own business, start from scratch, just the two of us.”

I bit my lip, panic rising fast. Oh no. They’ll hate this. I’m dragging their precious son down to my level.

They’ll think I’m greedy, that I want to leech off their name. I opened my mouth to apologize, to take it all back, but Carlo spoke first, loud and clear.

“If that is what my wife wants, then that is exactly what we will do. We’ll live simply no extravagance, no pressure, just us.”

His father raised an eyebrow for only a second, then chuckled and shook his head.

“But we have so many companies already, Carlo. Why build something new when you can manage ours?”

“Because I want to build something that is ours,” Carlo answered gently but firmly.

“But don’t worry, Dad. If I ever need guidance or help, I promise I’ll come straight to you.”

Before I could even process what was happening, his mother nodded in complete approval, her eyes shining with understanding.

“She is right, you know,” she said, looking right at me with so much kindness it made my chest ache.

“If you start from nothing and build something together, your relationship grows on a foundation that is solid, steady, and unbreakable. There is no stronger bond than that.”

I stared at them, stunned, my vision blurring with tears I could no longer hold back.

That was all I wanted, really. To live quietly, to earn my own place, to make sure the cruel, judgmental world of high society could never call me a leech, never accuse me of climbing the social ladder by clinging to Carlo’s arm. I knew exactly how their minds worked they would whisper behind my back, call me a gold digger, a burden, a nobody who got lucky. But if we built our life ourselves, that armor would protect us.

For the first time in my entire life, I sat in a room full of people who didn’t see me as useless, or replaceable, or trash.

I sat here, holding the hand of the man who saved me, surrounded by parents who welcomed me like their own flesh and blood… and I dared to believe that maybe, just maybe, I had finally found my place in the world.

But as Carlo squeezed my hand again, whispering soft reassurances that only I could hear, a cold, quiet voice in the back of my mind whispered

Happiness this perfect… is never meant to last forever, is it?

And somewhere far away, the secret I didn’t even know existed was already waiting to tear this beautiful new world apart.