Chapter 3: Caught in Betrayal

“What the fuck are you doing?” I blurted out.

I gasped when I saw them, and tears blurred my vision. Hindi ko mapigilan ang mga luhang sunod-sunod na lumalabas sa aking mga mata.

“Athira—” I heard Edward say when he saw me standing at the door, witnessing his little show with that woman.

What a brilliant sight!

Dali-dali silang nagbihis, na para bang hindi ko sila nahuling magkakasama sa ganoong sitwasyon.

“Who is that girl, Mr. Hemnes? Your girlfriend?” I heard the woman ask in a lascivious tone. Parang laro lang sa kanya ang pagsira ng isang relasyon.

Well, what would I expect from someone whose special talent was homewrecking? The audacity of these thick-skinned people!

“Please stop, Ms. Valderan! Stop provoking her!” Edward pleaded.

“Kailangan ba kitang pasalamatan niyan, Edward, ha?” I snapped before turning to the woman. “At ikaw naman, babae ka! Ilan pa bang mukha ang ikakakapal mo?!”

“Calm down, girl. We did it for business, that's all. Besides, there's nothing to hide anymore. You can deal with that woman, Mr. Hemnes, and the business you have together,” she said confidently before walking past me.

Mas matapang pa sa akin dahil nagawa pa talaga niya akong banggain.

I let out an incredulous breath at what she had just done.

Nang makaalis na ang higad, malaya na kaming makapag-usap ni Edward nang kaming dalawa na lang. Sa totoo lang ayaw ko na sana siyang harapin pero gusto ko pa ring marinig ang walang kwentang paliwanag niya.

“Love, I'm sorry,” Edward pleaded, taking a hesitant step toward me.

I immediately stepped back, unable to bear the thought of him touching me after what I had just witnessed.

“Gaano na katagal?” tanong ko, forcing myself to meet his eyes.

Hindi siya sumagot. He merely looked at me, his lips parting as though he wanted to say something but couldn't find the right words.

“Gaano na katagal mo akong niloloko?” I repeated, my voice growing sharper.

“Athira, we're not together, okay? It's a business arrangement. That's all,” he explained, running a hand through his hair.

I stared at him in disbelief. For a moment, I couldn't believe he had the audacity to say that to my face.

“Wow, business?” I scoffed bitterly. “Akala ko massage ka lang. May promo ka pala ng extra sex?”

“Athira, please. Let me explain.” He raised his hands, trying to calm me down.

“She helped me build this clinic in exchange for pleasuring her. That's what she promised,” he admitted, his eyes darting away from mine.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Kaya pala napakabilis para sa kanya na makapagpatayo ng sarili niyang clinic. Wala naman siyang yaman na mamanahin kina Tito at Tita. Yes, they were professionals, too, but that didn't mean they could afford to fund a huge clinic for him.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, trying to make sense of everything.

“At pumayag ka naman sa gusto niya?” I asked, my voice trembling despite my attempt to remain composed.

“I'm desperate, Athira.” He let out a frustrated sigh. “I really wanted to build something of my own, and she gave me the chance. At pumayag din ako sa gusto niya.”

I let out a humorless laugh and shook my head.

“In exchange for this?” I asked incredulously, gesturing between us. “At itinago mo pa sa akin? Don't tell me it's been five years na ginagawa mo 'to behind my back, simula noong ipinatayo mo ang clinic mo!”

Edward fell silent, and his inability to deny it was answer enough.

Parang may malamig na tubig na ibinuhos sa buong katawan ko.

Five years.

It's been five freaking years, and I was completely clueless.

Bullshit. Ang tanga ko.

Napahawak ako sa aking dibdib, feeling as though something inside me had just shattered beyond repair.

“Five years,” I repeated in a barely audible voice.

Hindi ko alam kung bakit kailangan ko pang ulitin. Marahil ay umaasa akong kapag narinig ko ang mga salitang iyon mula sa sarili kong bibig, may magbabago.

Ngunit hindi.

I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment, desperately trying to hold back the tears threatening to fall.

“Bakit?” I finally asked, opening my eyes to look at him again.

Sa pagkakataong iyon, hindi na ako nagawang tingnan ng boyfriend ko sa mga mata. He lowered his head, his fingers nervously fidgeting at his sides.

“Hindi ko alam kung paano sasabihin sa iyo,” he murmured.

Napangiti ako nang mapait, unable to believe that those were the words he had chosen to explain five years of betrayal.

“Pero alam mo kung paano mo siya hahalikan?” I shot back, my voice laced with bitterness.

“Athira!” he exclaimed, finally looking at me.

“Alam mo kung paano mo siya dalhin dito?” I continued, taking a step toward him. “Alam mo kung paano mo siya hubaran? Pero hindi mo alam kung paano sasabihin sa akin na niloloko mo na pala ako?”

My voice cracked on the last few words, and I pressed my lips together to keep myself from breaking down completely.

Wala siyang naisagot.

He simply stood there, staring at me with an expression I could no longer bring myself to understand.

And somehow, that hurt more than any excuse he could have given me.

I wanted him to deny it. I wanted him to tell me that it was a mistake, that it would never happen again, that the man I had loved for a decade was still somewhere inside the person standing before me.

But deep down, I knew that even if he said all those things, I would never unsee what I had witnessed.

I could never erase the image of him with another woman, nor could I pretend that the last five years had meant the same thing to both of us.

At sa unang pagkakataon, hindi ko na hinintay ang susunod niyang sasabihin.

I turned away from him, wiping the tears from my cheeks as I took a shaky breath.

For ten years, I had loved this man with everything I had.

But standing there, looking at the person he had become, I realized that love alone could no longer make me stay.