Chapter Eight : Tan's Cold Heart

"C-can you drive me home, Tan?" Elaine managed to say those words to him while trying her best to stand still.

She felt a tear fall down her cheeks, Tan was looking at her but he didn't even flinch. Tan would rather think that those tears weren't real. That those were tears out of too much intoxication or maybe because she was throwing up earlier. Elaine blinked, trying to suppress the threatening tears forming in her eyes.

Despite the heavy feeling she carried in her chest, Elaine still wanted to thank Tan for thinking that she wasn't weak. He fell in love with her then because she was tough and resilient. He didn't have to know what her weakness was no matter what.

"Will you?" she added.

She slightly reached her car key to him. If Tan would just look at it, he would probably know by now that her hand was trembling badly. But Tan was looking at her straight in the eyes. He put his hands in his pockets. Emotionless, he scanned her from head to foot, then he focused on her pale face. He chuckled. He spun around and started to walk away from her.

Elaine smiled unknowingly. A gloomy sigh escaped from her mouth. Her eyes followed him as he headed back to the bar. He didn't throw any more glances as he did so.

After a while, Elaine yanked the car door open and settled in the driver's seat. She flipped through the dashboard, reaching for her PET bottles that contained her medications. Once she had found it, she slid it into her bag. She leaned her head onto the steering wheel, trying to calm herself down.

The more the time passed by, the more she regretted everything. Three years ago, she made her decision fully despite the warnings she received from people who cared so much about her. She ignored Drew and Macon's words. She disobeyed what Mr. Chito had told her regardless of the agreement he discerned: that they will forget each other once she doesn't want to be stopped. Now, she was finally getting a taste of her own medicine.

She lifted her head when her phone rang. She reached for her phone and Atty. Ramas' name flashed on her screen. She hit the answer button.

"Have you talked to Tan?"

Elaine glanced at the bar. He was no longer there.

"Not yet,"

"He wants to rush things,"

"Can't three days get any faster, Attorney?"

"That's what I'm telling him. But he was rushing the wedding.  Anyway, I've had everything settled a few weeks ago. Documents are ready to go,"

Excitement rushed through Elaine's veins. Finally, she's starting again with Tan. She was more than willing if he wanted to tie the knot as soon as possible. She felt like they have already wasted a lot of time. She badly needed to make it up for him.

After speaking with Attorney Ramas, she called Drew this time. She wanted to rush the little adjustments she was asking for the wedding dress she bought the last few days. She no longer bothered herself to have a customized wedding dress. Elaine had already expected that everything was going to be in a hurry since Tan's birthday is near-at-hand.

A GROAN of protest escaped from Elaine's mouth. Irritated, she squinted her eyes open as a streak of buzz coming from her door interfered with her sleep. She pulled her blanket, still half asleep. The blanket felt warm under her skin. She bent her back on top of her bed for a while. The buzz still continued. It seemed like the person didn't want to stop doing that. She dragged herself out of bed and glanced at the alarm clock on the side table. The clock just hit 4 o'clock in the morning. She hadn't slept that long.

She would really pull Drew's hair out of her scalp once she'd open the door. It seemed like her friend didn't sleep anymore after work and decided to bug the hell out of her. They were supposed to meet at seven in the morning but it seemed like she was more excited than her.

"One sec!" her voice cracked as she yelled towards the door. As if she can be heard outside.

With a bolster pillow in her arms, Elaine dragged herself towards the door. She no longer bothered to check the doorbell camera and yanked the door open. But instead of revealing Drew's face, Tan's formal get-up appeared in front of her. She blinked. Their eyes met.

Elaine straightened up. "W-what are you doing here?"

She was taken aback when Tan stepped into her unit. His eyes scanned the room. Her senses crawled back to her when Tan turned to gaze at her. Her eyes widened, dropping the bolster pillow she was holding. Her place was such a mess. Like the aftermath of World War II.

Empty bottles of beer were scattered around. There were empty cans of beer gathered at the center table, too. Her carpeted floor was stained with sauce and whatnot. Her blazer hung free on the sofa. A running shoe was left by the TV rack. Everything was just all over the place. She was about to move to pick up all the mess but Tan stopped her.

"Leave it," he said.

Elaine was stunned.

"Leave it. I'll do it..."

Tan used to say those words every time he'd appeared in her house with a messy scene after work. He won't let her do household chores. Even when he's tired from a shift,  he'd present himself to clean her the mess. While she...

Elaine swallowed hard. Tan was staring blankly at her. Then, a smirk painted on his lips. He seemed to know what was running through her mind. The buzzer knocked her up back to her senses. Was it Drew this time?

Although hesitant to leave him in the living room, Elaine went back to the door to open it. She was surprised to see Attorney Ramas and an aged woman with a leather suitcase in hand.

"Good morning, Elaine," greeted Attorney Ramas.

"G-good morning, Attorney..."

Elaine swung the door open and despite her being confused about what was happening, she ushered her unexpected visitors in. They settled in and Elaine pushed the door close.

She watched carefully as Tan greeted them with a handshake. She glanced at Attorney Ramas. Her eyes filled with questions but he only prompted her to go right next to Tan as if he didn't have more time to explain everything to her.

Hesitant, Elaine stood beside Tan and faced the visitors just like he did.

"C-coffee?" she offered even though she didn't have coffee to give them. Aside from bottled water, canned beer, and leftover food last night, she'd run out of stocks in her fridge.

She was silently uttering 'Thank God' when they refused.

Elaine stared at the aged woman with curiosity. She was wearing outdated thick glasses. The old woman manifested an intimidating aura. She looked like she had studied law for decades. She swallowed nervously.

Law.

"Who—?"

"Oh," Attorney Ramas exclaimed, he slightly shook his head as he forgot to introduce the old lady. He turned to her and said, "This is Judge Costanilla, Elaine. Judge, this is Elaine..." he briefly introduced.

Elaine extended her hand for a handshake. She stretched out an awkward smile.

A judge.

What does a judge have to do with her place at this hour?

"Let's have a seat, shall we?" Judge Costanilla suggested.

Tan followed as told so. Elaine occupied the seat beside him, still a bit conscious. She took a glance at him. Since he was sitting next to her, she could only see half of his face.

The judge cleared her throat, placing down a folder on the table. Even her movement seemed meticulous.

"I brought the marriage contract. All you need to do is to sign if we could not force you to the ceremony,"

Elaine's forehead creased. Her face looked disoriented. "Marriage contract?"

The judge paused from opening the case. She adjusted her rimmed glasses to have a clear glimpse of her.

"It seems like you're still half asleep, darling. Wake up already. Congratulations in advance. After a few minutes, you'll be Mrs. De Marco again," she told her. Though she looked too formal, her smile was friendly.