CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
My phone vibrated. It was a call from someone. Wala na sana akong balak sagutin iyon, pero tuloy - tuloy ang pagtunog niyon. I was irritated. Hindi ko magawang bumalik sa pagtulog hangga’t tumutunog iyon. Damn! I stretched my arm to reach it on the side table. Ang sakit ng buong katawan ko at halos hindi ako makagalaw. Medyo mataas pa iyong temperature ko, mukhang lalagnatin ako. Inumaga na ako ng uwi unit. Halos mag-uumaga na rin ng tigilan niya ako. Fuck that Centauri! He fucked me really hard. Pinagpatong - patong ko ang pillow at doon ako sumandal. I can barely move.
I was surprised to see my Dad’s name on the screen. Ilang segundo akong nakipagtitigan sa phone ko bago ko naisipang sagutin ang tawag ni Dad. I was hoping he hadn’t call me for a bad news.
“Hey, Dad. What made you call this early?” I looked at the clock. Alas sais pa lang ng umaga, naghikab ako. I was about to
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT “Why is he here?” mariin kong tanong. Nanatili ang mata ko kay Rainbow at sa kasama niyang matangkad na lalaki. She was eyeing me, and I’m sure she could sense the tension. “Reign,” Dad called me. Hindi ko siya nilingon. “I just told you why he’s here. We should thank him for saving our business.” I shook my head. “I saved the company. Not that guy.” malamig kong wika. “Do you know what I did… I…. to save your company?” I struggled for words. Hindi naman nangyayari iyon sa akin. I am not planning on telling him, pero napupuno na ako sa nangyayari. Why is this man here and he’s claiming he saved my father’s business, when it should be me! Wala akong planong sabihin iyon o ipamukha sa kung sino. Naguguluhan akong tiningnan ni Richard Sy. “Anong ibig mong sabihin? I acknowledged what you did, Reign. Rainbow told me, and I’m sorry if it
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE I looked at him. “I thought I was over everything and I can set aside what happened in the past. But sure, it will be the last time that I’d be ranting about it. Siguro what I needed is closure. I mean, I can never move forward if I will still hold onto the past and I’m not closing that chapter of my life. Maybe it’s time and we need this talk to be over, Dad.” I shrugged. “Please, sit down. It’s gonna be exhausting and it might bore you.” Sumunod siya sa sinabi ko at naupo siya sa swivel chair. Ako naman ay naglakad papalapit sa kanya. Hindi ako naupo, tumapat lang ako table. Nakatingin lang siya sa akin. “Talk, Reign.” he demanded. “I will,” I trailed off. “Honestly, hindi ko alam saan ako magsisimula. Let’s start from the very start. When I was still young, may dinala kang bata rito. Her name is Rainbow and eventually, she became as my kaagaw for everyt
CHAPTER FORTY Kumawala ako sa pagkakahawak niya sa akin pero hindi niya ako hinayaan. Mas lalong dumiin ang pagkakapit ni Manang sa braso ko. For sure, namumula na iyon. “This is a form of harassment, Manang! Pwede ko kayong kasuhan, nasasaktan ako!” “Masasaktan ka talaga kapag hindi ka umamin sa akin.” giit niya. “Ano bang gusto mong aminin ko?” inis kong tanong. Napipikon na ako at nawawalan ng pasensya. Tiningnan niya akong mabuti. “Pinilit ka ba ni Sky? Ni-rape ka ba niya, Reign? Sinamantala ba niya ang kahinaan mo?” Napanganga ako sa turan niya. My jaw dropped. How? How can she know? Hindi ba dapat tanong niya kung nakipa-sex ako sa gagong ex-boyfriend ko? Mas lalong gusto kong maiyak sa takot. Naguguluhan ako. Hindi niya dapat malaman.
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE“I’m sorry, madame, the Greek god i is not here. He’s in the cruise ship right at this moment.” a female attendant told me and smiled kindly. Mas lalo akong nakaramdam ng inis. Inirapan ko ang babae.“Do you have any means to contact him? This is an urgent matter.” I demanded. As soon as I can, agad akong pumunta sa sea port kung saan din nakatayo ang building niya. Wala siya roon. He’s cruising in Asiaor wherever part of the world. Ang sarap ng buhay niya, while I was a mess for awhile. Bullshit. Sarap ihulog sa dagat.Ilang araw akong hindi pumasok ng boutique. I couldn’t seem to eat and sleep properly after what happened. I wasn’t mad at Dad anymore. Pagkatapos noong confrontation, natapos din ang galit ko. That’s what I needed since then, ang ilabas ko lahat. Pero nanliliit pa rin ako sa sarili ko. And Satan’s t
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO (SPG) I blew a loud breath and rolled my eyes. “Do I have yo explain it to you? Really?” Hindi nawala ang pagkakunot ng noo niya. “Fine. It’s what you did to me. That’s the example. You fucked me until dawn then, you ran away. You didn’t honor the request in return for that fuck.” Mas lalong nangunot ang noo niya. Bahagya siyang lumayo sa akin ng konti at humalukipkip. “What are you talking about? I invested in your Dad’s company and I bought half of the shares. I couldn’t buy it fully, a nuisance bought the other half for your sister.” saad niya. “I used a different name. Is there a problem? Do you want me to buy all the shares?” seryoso niyang tanong. “Just tell me, I’ll do it for you, babe.” It’s my time to get confused at what he said. “I thought… you didn’t.” I whispered. Napailing ako. Well, hindi ko iyon nilinaw. I just assumed he bought it all for Rainbow. Hindi ko tinanon
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE Tinampal ko nang mahina ang pisngi niya. Umirap ako sa ere. Pinilit kong bumangon sa pagkakahiga at pagdagan niya sa akin. I was just wearing his shirt. Wala akong kahit anong undergarments. Malamang tinanggal na niya kanina. Naupo ako sa gilid ng kama. “Hey, get up!” I hissed at him. Sioux lazily got up. Naupo siya sa tabi ko habang iyong kamay niya nage-explore na naman. I shook my head. Agad kong inalis iyong kamay niya sa boobs ko. “What do you want to do today? Want to go swimming, babe?” Bumaling siya ng tingin sa akin. “I don’t have a swimsuit,” I stated. Tumaas ang kilay niya. “We can go swimming with our birthsuit.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “Sioux!” “What? I can ask them to stay away from the ship, okay? If that’s what hindering you.” he said nonchalantly,
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR Most of us, we chase for a fairytale. We need saving from a prince charming when we are drowning of our own misery. Kagaya ng mga nabasa natin sa libro at napanood sa movies. I stopped watching and reading such schemes. Then, we get burned and shattered by our own hopes and by unworthy people. Reality slaps hard. Fairytale does not exist. Pakiramdam ko noon may kulang sa akin. I know, I should not feel that way. Physically, I am a goddess. I am living a comfortable life. I have everything every person would want aside from one thing --- my father’s love. I always wanted to get his affection but I never succeeded. When I was a teen, I only loved one boy. His name is Stephen, but I always call him Sky. At kung gaano kalawak ang sky, gannon din ang pangarap ko para sa aming dalawa. Nahanap ko iyong pagmamahal na hindi ko magawang makita sa sarili kong ama. He became my world. I thou
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE Pumikit lang ako habang wala pa kami sa destination. I was trying to sleep but even in sleep, I can see his face. I’m trying to avoid everything that connects me to him. “Oh, shit. Hala!” Bigla akong napamulat. Itinigil ni Lolay ang sasakyan dahil mayroong nakaharang sa harapan namin. May van sa unahan namin to be exact. The window is clearly opened. The men have guns. Masama ang kutob ko sa kanila. They are summoned here to harm us. Lolay looked scared as much as I do. Walang dumadaang ibang sasakyan. It felt like they owned the whole highway. “Drive backwards,” utos ko kay Lolay. She did. Bago kami makalayo, they started shooting bullets at us. The glass broke and scattered the small pieces. I was almost hit by one bullet. I didn’t know how did I dodge that. I am thanking my reflexes. Oh my God. It’s real. It’