SLOANNaging abala ang lahat kinahapunan dahil sa kasal namin bukas ni Dominic sa pangalawang pagkakataon. Almost everyone was helping with the food preparations and setting up the venue, which will be held at the beach.We are currently at Aling Julma’s house to sew the white dress that I will wear tomorrow and to fix the fresh white flower that they are arranging to become a flower crown.Dominic is outside, helping with cooking the food along with the other men. They said we will be sleeping here on the island so that we won’t get tired going back and forth from Isla Cala Azulada to here.“Naku, excited na talaga ‘ko sa kasal ninyo bukas, Ma’am Sloan,” nakangiting sabi ni Aling Julma habang naggugunting ng putting tela. Siya raw ang kilalang mananahi sa Isla San El Paso.“Halos lahat naman yata ay excited sa magaganap bukas, mare. Ang huling malaking selebrasyon pa yata rito sa isla natin ay noon pang grumaduate si Puni ng Cum Laude sa kolehiyo sa Maynila,” sabi naman ni Aling Hele
SLOANI’ve experienced a beach wedding before with Frederick, and I didn’t feel anything that day but sadness and disappointment. But today, as I walked on the white sand, wearing only my flip-flops, a simple white dress, and a fresh crown flower, it felt like I was walking on clouds.Ang buhangin na nilalakaran ko ay may nagkalat na petals ng mga iba’t ibang bulaklak at sa dulo nito ay naroon ang arkong altar kung saan naghihintay si Dominic at si Mayor na siyang magkakasal sa amin sa pangalawang pagkakataon. Nakatayo lang ang mga residente ng Isla San El Paso habang nakangiting nakatingin sa amin. Lahat sila ay nakasuot ng puting damit. Mapababae man o lalaki.I gulped when Dominic and I locked eyes. He was looking at me intently, like I was the only one he was seeing, and not minding the people around us. Ang gwapo niya sa suot niyang puting button down long sleeve at saka itim na slacks. Nakasuot lang rin siya ng flip-flop kagaya ko.Ang itsura niya ngayon ay malayong-malayo sa it
SLOANKinabukasan ay umalis na nga kami ng Cebu kagaya ng sabi ni Dominic. Leaving San El Paso was not easy for us, especially because I could really feel the sadness of the people there when we told them that we had to leave.Naiintindihan naman daw nila na aalis talaga kami, hindi lang talaga raw nila inaasahan na mapapaaga. Nangako naman kami na babalik kapag nagkaroon kami ng libreng oras. We are currently inside Dominic’s Mercedes-Benz A-Class car, heading to his penthouse. Gumamit kami ng private plane na pag-aari ni Dominic kaya mabilis kaming nakarating dito sa Manila.“Ano’ng oras tayong pupunta sa Pangasinan?” basag ko sa nakakabinging katahimikan na kanina pa bumabalot sa loob ng sasakyan.He glanced at his wrist watch and said, “Two hours from now. Magpapahinga muna tayo at mag-iimpake ng mga gamit na dadalhin natin doon.”Sumulyap rin ako sa suot kong rose gold na wrist watch. It’s already ten in the morning, so we’ll leave around one in the afternoon.“How long will we
SLOANI gulped hard while looking at her dangerous eyes that were darting into me. Kung nakakamatay lamang ang tingin, malamang kanina pa ‘ko nakabulagta sa sahig at hindi na humihinga dahil sa paraan ng pagtingin niya sa akin.“Ang kapal naman talaga ng muka mong maglakad-lakad ng malaya pagkatapos ng pagpapabayang ginawa mo sa anak ko, ano?” galit niyang turan.I quickly averted my gaze and stood up. My knees and hands were trembling because of nervousness. I could feel my forehead sweating because I could sense the sharpness of Tita Fina’s gaze.“I-I’m sorry po. A-Aalis na lang po ak—”“At sino ang nagsabi sa ‘yo na pwede kang umalis habang kinakausap pa kita? Bakit? Natatakot ka bang marinig ang mga sasabihin ko kasi totoo?” she cut off.Nag-angat ako ng tingin ngunit mabilis ding umiwas. Kaparehas niya ng mata si Frederick. Naalala ko kung paano sa ‘kin tumingin noon ang anak niya kapag galit siya sa trabaho at sa akin ibubuntong ang init ng ulo niya.I closed my eyes tightly to
SLOANAfter I bought pasalubong for Yaya Basya and Ate Beeba here in Nepo Mall, I looked for a restaurant because I plan to bring lunch to Dominic at the factory.I don’t know the exact address of the VMC factory here, but there’s Google Maps naman and the company Dominic works for is well-known, so I know I won’t have a hard time finding it.Tumigil ang paa ko sa harap ng Yankee Bites isang American restaurant na nadito pa rin sa loob ng Nepo Mall.Kung tama ang pagkakaalala ko, half-American si Dominic kaya sigurado ako na miss niya nang kumain ng American cuisine.Pagpasok ko sa restaurant ay medyo maraming tao. Most of them are Americans who probably missed eating the American foods that they’re used to.I walked toward the counter. Dadamihan ko na lang siguro ang order ko para sabay na kaming mag-lunch ni Dominic.“Good noon! What do you want to have, Ma’am?” nakangiting tanong ng babae sa counter.I looked at the countertop menu and read the available dishes.“C-Can I have Jamba
SLOANI almost killed him… I almost killed my own husband. I didn’t know. I didn’t know that he was allergic to shrimp. If I just know… hindi ko na sana siya pinakain no’n.Tahimik lang ako habang nakaupo sa sofa at nakatingin kay Dominic na nakahiga sa hospital bed. He’s stable now and has been transferred to the VIP room. The doctor said it’s a good thing he was brought to the hospital quickly before the situation got worse.Davina, Attorney Delmundo’s twin sister, was sitting next to Dominic’s hospital bed, holding my husband’s hand as she watched him sleep.Hindi ko alam kung saan nanggagaling ang sakit na bumalot sa dibdib ko habang pinapanood siya. Ako dapat ang nandoon. Ako dapat ang may hawak ng kamay ni Dominic habang hinihintay siyang magising. Ako dapat ang una niyang makikita pagbukas ng mga mata niya pero pakiramdam ko ay wala akong karapatan pagkatapos ng nangyari.Ako ang nagdala sa kaniya sa ganitong sitwasyon. Gusto kong mainis kay Dominic dahil alam niya naman na all
SLOANDays had passed smoothly. A week after getting back from Pangasinan, we moved to the mansion Dominic bought in Forbes Park.Nauna na doon ang mga gamit namin at pinaayos niya na sa mga kasambahay ang mansion para raw wala na akong aalalahanin pa.“It’s not really necessary to have maids anymore, Dom. I can do household chores, can't you see?” I argued while he was driving.He sighed. “It’s a mansion, sweetie. It means it’s huge. You can't clean that mansion alone, okay? Besides, you're my wife, not my maid,” he said calmly.“Yeah, pero kaya ko naman kasi…” pagpipilit ko pa.“No.”“But—”“Sweetheart, no.”Ngumuso ako. Kanina ko pa siya kinukulit na huwag nang mag-maid dahil dagdag gastos lang iyon ngunit ayaw niya talagang pumayag. Yes, I know that he has tons of money, and the salary he'll give to the household staff is just a pittance to him, but still hindi ko mapigilang manghinayang.I took a deep breath. “Fine,” pagsuko ko.He smirked in victory. Ganiyan siya palagi kapag si
When I was young, my nanny used to ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, and I always told her that I wanted to get married in a church in front of God to the man I loved.As a kid, that might be the weirdest dream to hear instead of being a teacher, police officer, actor, or doctor. But not me. I had my sights set on the church’s aisle.“Bata ka pa kaya dapat hindi mo pa iniisip ang ganiyang bagay, Ma’am Sloan. Ayaw mo bang maging doctor o kaya negosyante kagaya ng Daddy mo?” Nanny Basya asked again.The seven-year-old me pouted. “No po. That’s really my dream, Yaya. I wanted to get married in the church because I wanted to promise Papa God that I could be a good wife to my future husband just like my mommy to my dad,” I said and smiled sweetly.Yaya Basya massaged her temple because of what I said. “Diyos ko kang bata ka.” I just chuckled and continued playing.I had a perfect and ideal family back then. Masaya at kumpleto. Masaya ako sa magulang ko kahit na wala akong kapatid.