CHAPTER 4: THE PRICE OF SURVIVAL

⚠️ Content Warning ⚠️

This story contains sensitive and potentially triggering themes, including emotional distress, substance use, sexual content, and abuse. It may depict situations involving trauma, unhealthy relationships, and intense emotional experiences.

Some scenes may be difficult to read for individuals who have experienced similar situations.Please proceed with caution and prioritize your well-being. Take breaks if needed.

Reader discretion is strongly advised.

Sophia’s POV

I woke up to the vibration of my android phone.

4:00 AM. The clock shows.

My body ached from exhaustion—I had barely slept three hours after getting home late from the contest last night. Still, I forced myself to sit up. There was no time to rest.

I had an order to fulfill.

Quietly, I stepped out of the room, washed my face, and prepared a cup of coffee. The bitter warmth barely helped, but it kept me moving. Soon, I began preparing the lumpiang Shanghai for the orphanage.

The filling was already prepped—galunggong we had cooked the day before, carefully deboned by my siblings. I seasoned it, mixed everything thoroughly, and took the lumpia wrappers from the fridge.

Then I started wrapping spring rolls which the church ordered last week.

“Good morning,” I greeted cheerfully as Arnie entered the small kitchen.

“Good morning,” he replied with a yawn.

I stood up and handed him coffee. “Here.”

“You should’ve woken me up, friend.”

“I just woke up too.”

He glanced at my work and raised an eyebrow. “Just woke up? That looks like a hundred pieces already.”

I smiled. “You were sleeping so peacefully.”

He chuckled. “Alright, Zsa-Zsa Padilla. I’ll cook breakfast for the kids.”

I smiled on his gay witty remarks.

While I wrapped, he cooked hotdogs and eggs. My siblings were delighted—acting as if we were suddenly rich just because of a simple meal.

After breakfast, they helped me finish wrapping, and soon we packed everything into containers.

“Don’t forget the pickled papaya,” Arnie reminded me.

“Thanks. Take care of them for me.”

Outside, Jerome was waiting.

He immediately took the heavy bags from me. “Let me help, Piyang.”

We exchanged a few words before heading out. The ride was long—tricycle, then jeepney—until we reached the orphanage.

The day passed in a blur of cooking, frying, serving, and smiling.

By the time I finished everything, it was already evening.

₱5,300.

That’s how much I earned.

I kept it safely in my wallet and handed ₱1,500 to Arnie for household expenses. Even though he resisted, I insisted.

We needed to survive.

Days passed.

Life became quieter after we moved in with Arnie and Emma. For a moment, I thought things were getting better.

Until everything started falling apart again.

Essang’s stomach pain worsened. Becca’s fever kept coming back.

Hospital visits drained everything I had saved.

Gallstones.

Dengue.

Two diagnoses.

Two lives hanging in the balance.

And not enough money.

The hospital smelled like fear.

I sat there, staring at my siblings—weak, pale, and fighting for their lives.

“We need blood,” the doctor had said. “Immediately.”

But there was none available.

And time was running out.

“Emma…” My voice trembled. “Take me with you.”

Her eyes widened in shock. “What are you saying?!”

“There’s no other way.”

“NO. Sophia, please.”

“I’ll only do it once,” I whispered.

Her expression broke.

“That’s what I said too… once,” she murmured, tears forming in her eyes.

But we both knew.

There was no other option.

That night, I stepped into a world I never thought I would enter.

"Promise me, Sophia. This will be your first and last. I don't want you to end up like...me.." her words echoes in my head.

A high-class bar.

A hidden reality behind polished walls.

Emma introduced me.

“Virgin,” she said.

The woman—Madame—looked at me like I was merchandise.

“You’re lucky,” she said. “Someone’s willing to pay a lot for you.”

Lucky.

The word felt like a joke.

They dressed me in something barely covering my body.

I didn’t recognize myself anymore.

Emma held my hand before I entered the room.

“Do you want me to stay outside?” she asked softly.

I shook my head.

“I can do this.”

I had to.

For them.

The room was dim.

Cold.

Heavy.

“Lock the door.”

His voice was deep—sharp enough to make me flinch.

I obeyed.

Every step felt like walking into darkness I couldn’t escape.

“What’s your name?” he asked.

“S-Sabrina,” I stuttered.

A fake name.

A fake identity.

A shield.

He laughed dryly. “It suits you.”

My chest tightened.

Everything that followed felt like losing pieces of myself—one by one.

"So… why don’t you take off that tempting fucking piece of clothing and lay down on the bed?"

I slowly walked toward the bed and removed my thin robe. I stood in front of the bed while he was behind me. I shut my eyes tightly every time I heard the man’s footsteps. I flinched when a kiss landed on my shoulder.

“Sab…” I squeezed my eyes shut as his kisses trailed up to my neck. I clenched my fists when his warm breath brushed against my ear. “I gave you everything, yet you fucked some other men?”

I opened my eyes at what he said. Did this man think I was the Sabrina he knew? I was about to turn and speak, but his hands gripped both my arms tightly, stopping me.

“W-wait—”

“Don’t fucking talk. I don’t wanna hear it.” He roughly grabbed my chest, kneading it harshly. “You’re my fucking sex slave tonight, Sab. Nothing more.”

Tears fell as he did that to me. He quickly removed what little clothing I had left and indulged himself with my chest. His movements were rough. I turned my head away, not wanting to see his face. I remained standing, enduring his lewd actions.

When he was done with my chest, he grabbed my womanhood roughly. I bit my lip from the pain his fingers caused.

“Why? Are you fucking cumming in my hands? Didn’t you enjoy what other men did to you, huh?”

Tears streamed down uncontrollably. I tried to stay strong, but his words hurt even more.

Be strong. This is for your sibling, Sophia!!

He held my shoulders and forced me to kneel.

“Now fucking eat me, Sab.”

He opened his pants and exposed himself. My hands trembled as I held it. I had never experienced anything like this before. I had never even kissed anyone.

“You playin’ virgin, Sab? Do it now,” he said coldly.

I shut my eyes tightly and took him into my mouth. I copied what I once saw in an anime Arnie and Emma were watching. It was difficult because he was big, which made me even more nervous.

“You’re fucking good, my Sab. You’re the only one who can do this to me.”

I did my best despite the pain inside me from his words. He kept moaning, a sign I was doing it right. He continued calling me “my Sab,” which made my heart ache slightly. He was imagining another woman, not me—and that was better.

He grabbed my hair harshly and pulled my face away. I felt something warm spill across my cheek. It was his essence.

“We’re not making love tonight, Sab. I will fuck you so hard no other man can do…”

He pushed me onto the bed and climbed on top of me. Tears slowly streamed down my face again. All I did is closed my eyes. It's like my salvation.

“Please…” I said, but I couldn’t finish. I wanted to ask him to be gentle—it was my first time. But he kissed me hard immediately, roughly massaging my full breasts again.

I continued to cry softly. I bit my lower lip when he forced himself inside me. It felt like I was being split in two because of how rough he was.

I couldn’t stop crying. I felt like the dirtiest woman alive.

“Fuck!! You’re so tight, baby!” he groaned as he thrust. It felt like my body was tearing apart from the pain. I turned my face away when he tried to kiss me.

“Why? Am I not a good kisser, Sab?” I wanted to leave that room because he was becoming more violent—like a monster.

He suddenly pulled away, and I thought he pitied me—but no. He became even more sadistic. He lifted me and forced me to kneel facing away from him. He grabbed both my hands and tied them with something. My face fell onto the pillow as he forced himself into me again.

“Fuck you, Sab, for hurting me,” he said between thrusts and spanking my backside.

Every movement was rough. He grabbed my chin and pulled it until my back pressed against his chest.

“Why are you crying, Sab?” He laughed again. “Why did you fuck someone in our fucking house? Huh, Sab? You’re a cheater. A fucking whore.”

My crying grew louder because I couldn’t hold it in anymore. I was in so much pain. But I had to endure it—for my sibling’s life.

Once again, he struck my hips hard before I felt something warm. He shoved me roughly and stood up. I remained kneeling while he smoked.

A few seconds passed before I tried to move, but I couldn’t stand because my thighs hurt so much, and my hands were still tied behind me.

“We’re not done yet, Sab.” He approached me again.

“B-but—”

“I told you! Don’t fucking talk back to me!!!”

He kissed me again. It felt like my lips were already bleeding from how rough he was. He released my face and turned away. After a moment, he threw something at me—papers. Some even hit my face.

“All you need is money to shut up…” He lifted me and positioned me in the bathroom lit with red light. We stood back to back. He turned on the shower.

“And fuck.” He took me again in the bathroom. The water stung my womanhood, but he didn’t care whether I cried or hurt. All he wanted was to defile me… again and again.

Until my body eventually went numb from the pain…

I tried to stay strong.

I tried to endure.

I told myself over and over—

This is for your siblings.

This is for their lives.

But no amount of reasoning could numb the pain.

Or the humiliation.

Or the way his words cut deeper than anything else.

By the end, I wasn’t even sure if I was still myself.

I knelt there, trembling, broken, empty.

Money scattered around me.

Payment.

For what I had just sacrificed.

And as I stood under the cold water, letting it wash over my shaking body, only one thought echoed in my mind—

Please… let this be enough.

Please let them live.

To be continued....