Ngayon pa lang po, gusto ko nang magpasalamat sa inyong lahat na sumubaybay sa kuwento nina Gael at Charlie. Bukas po, I will post the last 2 chapters of this book. Hope to see you until the end :)
“Are you ready?” tanong ng Mommy ni Charlie sa kanya. She filled her lungs with air and gave her mother a slow nod. “Yes,” she replied smiling. Gumanti ng ngiti ang Mommy niya, nangingilid ang luha. Masuyo pa nitong inabot anag kanyang pisngi. “I wish you all the happiness in the world, sweetheart.” “Thanks, Mom,” sabi niya bago niyakap ang ina. They stayed like that for a while bago sila nakarinig ng katok sa pinto. “Hey, the music’s starting and all the guests are waiting. Don’t tell me may balak ka pang itakbo ‘yang anak mo, Sam,” said her father’s familiar voice outside the door. Natatawa nilang binitiwan ng Mommy niya ang isa’t-isa. Sandaling nitong pinunasan ng panyo ang gilid ng mga mata nito bago siya muling nginitian. “Let’s go. Your Dad cannot wait to give you away… officially,” pabirong sabi ng Mommy niya bago inabot sa kanya ang kanyang bouquet. When her mother opened the door to her room, she was met by her father’s loving gaze. “Finally,” anito, nakangiti. He gave
“Again? Pero puno pa ang fridge niyan, love. Nakita ko kagabi nang bumaba ako sa kitchen,” reklamo ni Gael kay Charlie nang muli siyang maglagay ng dragon fruit sa cart. They were out grocery shopping in a local grocery store in Cancun. They have been staying there for a week now in celebration of their second wedding anniversary. It was a trip she didn’t really want to take at first because she easily gets tired lately. But when Gael told her that she will call the shots every time, she was in in no time. She rolled her eyes and faced him. “Can’t you get it? I’m not buying them for me to eat. I’m buying it because they looked cute,” pagrarason niya, muling naglagay ng dalawang piraso pa ng nasabing prutas sa cart. Gael huffed. “Should I buy you a dragon fruit farm?” “Of course not!” sabi niya, muling naglakad sa aisle ng prutas na kinaroroonan nila. “What about a grocery store then? You want me to purchase this grocery store for you?” Namawaywang na siya at hinarap ang asawa.
"Charlie, hindi pa ba tayo uuwi?" nag-aalalang tanong ni Jasmine kay Charlie.Awtomatikong nabitin sa ere ang sana'y pag-inom niya ng tequila na nasa shot glass na hawak niya. She smiled at her bestfriend who has this familiar worried look on her face. "With that look on your face, we'll be here in an hour more or two," pabirong sagot niya bago tuluyang ininom ang alak.Not a second more, the bitter taste of the drink burned her throat but it was not enough to keep the worries of the day away.Sumimangot si Jasmine. "Ang paalam natin kay Daddy madi-dinner lang tayo, hindi tayo maglalasing," reklamo pa nito bago ininom ang laman na alak ng sarili nitong shotglass.Lihim siyang napangiti. Jasmine has always been reserved even when they were in high school. Madalas kasi itong ma-bully dahil common knowledge na inampon lamang ito ng mayamang pamilyang kinalakihan nito—ang mga Benitez. But she's glad that Jasmine is slowly gaining her confidence to move within their circle. She's even down
Nagmamadaling lumapit si Gael sa kani Jasmine at Charlie at marahan silang iginiya palabas ng club. Pagdating sa entrance, nakita niyang pumarada ang pamilyar na big bike ni Gray Samaniego, Jasmine's family friend, sa harap ng club. She hasn't seen Gray in a long-time. Three years to be exact. Gray took off his helmet, got off his bike and walked over at them in few long strides. "Thanks for the heads up," anito kay Gael bago bumaling kay Jasmine. "C'mon, Jasmine. I'll take you home," pormal na pahayag nito bago iniabot ang hawak nitong helmet sa kaibigan niya. She felt Jasmine's hand tightened on hers. Kung bakit, hindi niya alam. It took a few more seconds before Jasmine let her hand go and hesitantly took the helmet from Gray. "M-mauna na 'ko, Charlie. I-I'll text you when I'm home," anito bago tuluyang naglakad patungo sa big bike ni Gray. She would've wanted to send Jasmine off but Gael quickly took her hand and led her back to her car. On the way, nakasalubong nila si Theo
Walang ganang hinahalo-halo ni Charlie ang soup na nakasilbi sa kanyang harapan. She and Theo were at Rancho Italiano having dinner. Sila lang dalawa dahil hindi pinayagan si Jasmine ng Daddy nito na lumabas. Honestly, she doesn't know what happened to Jasmine after their failed night out three days ago. Pero mukhang nalaman ng Daddy nito na nagpunta sila sa club at muntik nang mapahamak. Hindi niya kasi ito masyadong nakakausap these past few days dahil may pinapagawa raw ang Daddy nito. But she had a feeling na mukhang napagalitan ang kaibigan dahil sa kanya. Her friend's adoptive father is a retired general. It's a given na istrikto ito sa anumang bagay. She chewed the insides of her cheeks, guilt slowly filling her heart. Mukhang nalagay pa niya sa alanganin si Jasmine dahil lang sa gusto niyang magrebelde dahil sa pagbabalik ni Gael sa buhay niya. Gael. Lihim siyang sumulyap sa labas ng restaurant. She saw Gael standing beside her car talking to her other bodyguards. Maya-ma
"Getting a solid connection with the Mondragons will give SSL an opportunity to finally work with the European market. We've been working on that for ages, Sam. But every effort doesn't seem to prosper. Maybe Charlie's marriage with Theo will do that. We need to enter the European market. In that way, SSL will be more stable when Charlie takes over.""I know that but... it's marriage, Aaron. I feel like we're selling our child over some business connection.""Please dont put it that way. I feel awful when you say that word sell. Hindi naman natin ibebenta si Charlie. We are just giving her and Theo a slight push. Besides, mukhang gusto naman ng mga bata ang isa't-isa. They even went out with just the two of them tonight for the first time. If that isn't a sign that they like each other then I don't know what is.""What if Charlie will not agree with the plan?""Oh, she will. She's a good girl. Trust me, she will."Charlie balled her fist as she recalled the conversation she overheard
Marahang ibinaba ni Gael ang bottled water sa bedside table ng kanyang kama. It's 2 o'clock in the morning. He should be sleeping dahil maaga pa ang trabaho niya bukas. But sleep is elusive when his whole being is full of unrest.Bakit hindi? Nasa harapan niya mismo si Charlie, sleeping peacefully like a beautiful angel she is on his own bed.A soft smile formed on his mouth.Gising na gising siya subalit pakiramdam niya nananaginip pa rin siya. Bakit hindi? Bukod sa galit ito sa kanya dahil sa ginawa niya rito noong debut party nito, maraming mga mata ang nakabantay rito. Kaya nga siya nagtataka kung bakit ito nakatakas ngayong gabi... at nagpakalasing pa nang mag-isa.He huffed and slowly shook his head. Matapos niyon, marahan siyang umupo sa gilid ng kama at pinagmasdan ang anghel na natutulog sa kanyang higaan.Was it when she gave him her cute heart-shaped pancakes? Or when she gave him her handmade birthday card for him when she was 6? Or was it every succeeding heartwarming ges
Naalimpungatan si Charlie dahil sa mabangong aroma ng kape na na amoy niya. How many gallons of coffee have they made in the kitchen that she can smell its heavenly aroma up into her bedroom?She shifted a little on her bed and hugged the pillow she was holding, keeping her eyes closed. She had a good sleep and a nice dream. Napaniginipan niya na kasama raw niyang natulog kagabi si Gael. Sinabi pa nito sa kanya na mahal siya nito-- bagay na kahit ngayon na gising na gising na siya, hindi pa rin niya makalimutan. Honestly, she doesn't want to wake up today just yet. She wanted to sleep some more in the hopes that maybe she'd dream of Gael again. Because in the dream world, Gael is close and he loves her. An illusion she cannot bring into the real world-- her real world. She sighed and slowly opened her eyes. Halos madilim pa, she new the sun has not risen yet. Unang bumungad sa kanya ang kulay brown na sofa na sa pagkakatanda niya ay wala naman sa kuwarto niya. She also has become a