LOGINSILENT AND ARMS CROSSED, Tori just fixed her gaze outside where she could see rows of mango trees neatly planted across Taj’s vast land. They were currently driving toward the far end of the plantation where the man’s private farm resort was located. Greenwoods Cabin.Tori didn’t want to argue with Taj anymore, so she just went along. She had no strength left. For the first time since their separation and since she flew out of the country five years ago, Tori felt tired.She felt like she was drained because of Wanji’s sudden death. She felt like she was crippled. It felt like she was a bird with one broken wing, and she didn’t know how to fly again. She felt tired and completely empty.Aside from her child, Hajie, and Wanji, she had no one left, and then the man was suddenly gone. What was she supposed to do now?Maybe she was selfish for still thinking about herself at a time like this. But she couldn’t help it. She was used to having Wanji by her side, so his sudden absence f
IT WAS SATURDAY AFTERNOON and the whole place around Tori was dead silent.Hajie wasn’t there because Taj’s mom and sisters took her child to Hong Kong.It was past 9PM but Tori was still curled up on her bed. She wasn’t sleepy even though she hadn’t had proper sleep in days. She just didn’t feel like moving. She wasn’t answering Ember’s calls either.Tori played with the bedspread with her fingers while staring blankly at the cream-colored wall of her room. So many thoughts were running through her mind.She thought that if she hadn’t gone to Guimaras for vacation five years ago, she wouldn’t have met Taj.If she hadn’t let herself fall for her ex-husband, she wouldn’t have been hurt so badly that it almost ruined her life.If she hadn’t married Taj, maybe everything wouldn’t have been so hard for her.If her Mom and Sid hadn’t interfered, maybe she and Taj wouldn’t have separated.If Taj hadn’t cheated on her, maybe they wouldn’t have ended up getting divorced. She wished they wer
CONSUNJI REAL ESTATE AND CONSTRUCTION COMPANY ORTIGAS CENTER, MANILA“GOOD MORNING, MISS KARA,” Taj’s secretary greeted Kara, who she ran into coming out of her cubicle.Kara just nodded in reply before continuing to walk toward Taj’s office door.“Ah, Miss Kara,” the secretary called, like she remembered something.Kara stopped and turned around, frowning. “Yes?” she asked, one eyebrow raised.The secretary smiled awkwardly before speaking. “Sir Sebastian is with someone. He left instructions not to be disturbed. Please wait for him in the lounge,” the woman said politely, bowing slightly.Kara’s frown deepened. “Business?” she asked the secretary.The secretary paused for a moment. Hesitation was clear on her face, but when she saw Kara’s brows furrow, she immediately answered.“Ah, I don’t know who it is, because the appointment was direct with Sir, but I overheard it’s about the case of the attempted hit-and-run on Sir’s child.”Kara froze and stared at the secretary without thi
TAJ'S FACE was hard, and his jaw was clenched as he glanced at Tori, who sat quietly on the passenger seat. They were currently at St. Joseph Memorial Plaza because today was Wanji’s burial.Taj’s grip on his car’s steering wheel tightened too, especially when he noticed tears were slowly rolling from both corners of Tori’s eyes. He knew that even if she didn’t tell him, he could feel the heavy emotion she was trying to keep inside. He could see in her eyes earlier how much her heart was hurting, and the pain she was carrying because of Wanji’s loss. It hurt him too, because he knew his ex-wife wasn’t his anymore.He hoped she still loved him, but seeing her now made him snap back to reality.Yes, it was over for the two of them. He was the one who ended it. Still, he couldn’t help but feel hurt for Tori. It was painful to know she loved someone else, but it was even more painful to see her hurting because of Wanji's death.“Are you sure you don’t want us to go closer?” Taj as
[MEANWHILE, for our showbiz news, here’s Laila Delgado, live from New York. Laila?]Lorie and Oxygen looked at each other. They were currently in the lobby of San Lorenzo Medical Center, waiting for clearance for Wanji’s remains, which were in the morgue.Even Taj, who’d been standing for a while, turned his attention to the big TV mounted on the wall. The others in the lobby at that moment also looked at the TV.[Good morning to our fellow Filipinos back in the Philippines. If you can see my background, I’m here at Grey Pebbles Plaza, where the famous Infinite Star, Tori Herrera, held her concert. It was her last set, and everyone was excited because her fans were expecting that 'Move' would be the last song she’d sing.]Taj’s fists clenched as he kept his eyes on the big TV screen. He was worried about his ex-wife.[But contrary to what her fans expected, an emotional Tori Herrera came back on stage after about fifteen minutes. And according to the information we gathe
JUST AS TORI was walking up to the stage, she was greeted by nonstop screaming from her fans who couldn’t get enough of her. They were expecting that the popstar’s last song would be 'Move', one of the songs that brought Tori to fame. It was also one of the songs the Infinite Star performed at her kick-off concert at Polaris Stadium. It was, after all, everyone’s favorite.“Something is off,” a fan immediately noticed when she saw Tori’s strange behavior. She even nudged the person beside her to get their attention.“And she’s not gonna sing 'Move',” another one said, eyes on the guitar the Infinite Star was holding.The Tori standing in front of them now was different from the Tori who performed earlier. It was like she suddenly became a different person. Maybe because they could see the popstar didn’t look good.“Why do I feel like the whole place suddenly got gloomy?” another one commented, hugging herself.Earlier, when Tori was walking up to the stage, everyone was lively and e







