CHAPTER 002 - Mad and Betrayed

Rome slowly opened her eyes as the soft breeze brushed against her face.

The first thing she saw upon waking was the white ceiling and a fan spinning, blowing air directly at her.

Where am I? she asked herself, glancing around the room.

It felt familiar. Had she been here before?

Wait... Am I still in the clinic?

“Thank God, you’re awake!”

She turned at the sound of the voice and saw Jiggy—her best friend—with wide, worried eyes. Behind her stood Doctor Olivera, arms crossed, also looking at her.

Rome sat up quickly, only to wince as she felt a wave of dizziness. But instead of lying back down on the small bed inside the clinic, she forced herself to face them.

“I’m... sorry. H—Have I been here long?”

“You fainted when you stepped out of the clinic earlier,” the doctor replied. “Your blood pressure is normal, but I think it’s from exhaustion. You need to stay in bed for a day or two to regain your energy and relax your mind.”

She nodded and looked at Jiggy, whose face had darkened. Her eyes were full of questions, so Rome sighed.

“We’ll talk later. For now, help me stand—I feel weak, and I want to go home to rest.”

Jiggy silently stood and helped her up.

“I injected you with something to help you feel better. The dizziness should go away soon,” said the doctor.

Rome nodded again and thanked her before wrapping one arm around her friend’s for support.

Outside, she saw Jiggy’s SUV parked in the clinic’s lot. Jiggy let go of her briefly to get the keys and open the front passenger door. She helped her inside, buckled her seatbelt, closed the door, and got into the driver’s seat.

Jiggy didn’t say a word as she started the car and drove off.

Rome released a deep sigh. “If you have questions, go ahead.”

But her friend remained silent, eyes fixed on the road.

Rome quietly studied her.

Jiggy had been her friend since they were thirteen. They were classmates from their first year in high school through college. They took different courses, but they stayed close, often going home together after classes and attending school events and parties.

And Jiggy was actually... a lesbian. Her real name was Jenny Grace, and she had been that way even before they became friends.

Had she chosen to present herself as traditionally feminine, men would surely have chased after her, given her smooth skin and natural beauty. But she chose a different path.

Jigs cut her hair like a soldier’s and dyed it rose gold. She had tattoos on her body, too, adding to her cool appearance. She wore decent men’s clothes—jeans, a white top under a blazer, and shiny leather shoes.

Jigs actually reminded her of the Hollywood actress Ruby Rose. That’s exactly how she carried herself.

They became friends because she used to be like Jiggy. Yes—used to.

More than seven years ago, when she was just fourteen, she fell in love with a woman. Back then, she thought she had been born in the wrong body—that she should have been a man.

She even questioned her own identity. Her mind became a mess, all because of the love she felt for another girl.

But it didn’t last long. When her crush graduated from high school, the girl moved to Singapore with her parents. Her father had been assigned as a chef in a well-known hotel there. And after she left, Rome suddenly changed. She didn’t plan on returning to being a girl—it just happened after the girl left.

She started wearing her old feminine clothes again and began acting and speaking like a woman. By the time she finished high school, she never fell for another girl again.

She had a boyfriend in college, and that confirmed for her that she really was still a woman.

Even after she went back to presenting as female, her friendship with Jiggy never ended.

They remained close through the years... until now, when they each had their own lives.

Jiggy was now a Senior Marketing Manager at a large firm in Ortigas, while she had become a teacher, like the rest of her family.

Yes. And that was the worst part.

She was supposed to be teaching young people about proper conduct and values—but with what had just happened to her?

She’d be a laughing stock.

“Who’s the father of the baby you’re carrying, Rosenda Marie?”

She was pulled out of her deep thoughts by Jiggy’s serious voice. Her best friend had never used that tone with her before—or called her by her full name. It made her nervous.

“I don’t know why you asked me to come with you to the OB-GYN clinic earlier. I thought it was just for a regular check-up. I didn’t expect it to be... a baby.”

That’s when she finally let out the sobs she had been holding back.

It was a Saturday, and both she and Jigs had no work. She had called her up and asked to go with her to a clinic in Ayala.

Jiggy must’ve wondered why they stopped at an OB-GYN clinic, but she didn’t ask. She simply said she’d wait in the car and even suggested they grab lunch afterward.

But... things didn’t go as planned.

Rome sniffled and wiped her tears. “I— I can’t tell.”

“What do you mean you can’t tell?” Jiggy’s voice now held irritation. She glanced at her quickly before focusing back on the road. “Your family will be in a scandal if you end up visibly pregnant without a man stepping forward to marry you. And I didn’t even know you had a boyfriend—”

“I don’t have a boyfriend.”

“Then what? You bent over and the wind just blew a baby into your womb?” her friend said sarcastically, making Rome frown. “I don’t get why you kept your relationship a secret from me. And now this? I thought we were friends?”

She sniffled and turned away. She couldn’t tell Jiggy. She just couldn’t. She didn’t know how her friend would react once she learned who the father was.

“Is it because he’s married? Are you a mistress?”

Her eyes widened in shock at the question, and she gasped. “Of course not!”

“Then who, Rosenda Marie?” Jiggy snapped, her fair-skinned face flushed red from anger. Rome knew Jiggy was just worried about her—that’s why she was reacting this way. And she couldn’t blame her.

Jiggy knew what could happen to her if everyone found out.

But how could she tell her that the father of the baby was the last man she would ever imagine herself with?

How could she explain that what happened between them was a one-night mistake?

She had been very drunk. She thought it was her ex-boyfriend—so she let it happen.

Not until the morning after did she realize she had slept with the devil.

She had slept with the man she had cursed all her life.

The man who had been the source of her humiliation in her younger years.

The man she blamed for all her misfortunes.

Yes. The father of her child was someone she used to know—and hate.

As a child, she had wished he would die, get struck by lightning, or burn in hell. That was how deep her hatred went.

And that hatred hadn’t changed, even after they met again... on that night... when the baby was conceived.

She hated him before, and she would hate him forever.

“I want to help you, Rome, but I don’t know how when you keep secrets like this,” Jiggy finally said softly. The redness in her cheeks had faded now.

Rome closed her eyes tightly and leaned back against the seat.

She took a deep breath before she finally spoke.

“Cayson Montemayor. He’s the father of my baby.”