The Rebellious Stepdaughter of Timothy Grey

Five days. Limang araw na akong nagkukulong sa kwarto pagkatapos ilibing si Daddy. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to move on. He was my anchor, my shield, my protector. We were inseparable. Kaya hindi ko matanggap na bigla na lang siyang mawawala sa’min. I’m worried my mom would give up without him. Tiningnan ko ang huling pagkain na inihatid sa’kin ni Aling Mirna. Nilapitan ko ’yon at sinubukang kainin. Inilapit ko ang kutsara sa bibig ko habang patuloy na tumutulo ang luha ko—walang tigil at tuloy-tuloy sa pagdaloy. I want my dad back, please. Sa huli, nakaisang subo lang ako at piniling pumikit muli. I woke up hearing gossip outside my bedroom, kaya sa unang pagkakataon, lumabas ako. Dumiretso ako sa kwarto nila Daddy. Walang tao. I was about to go out when a framed photo of him caught my eye. Inabot ko ’yon at pinakatitigan. I miss you. Yumuko ako, saka mahigpit na niyakap ’yon. And then, the tears came again. Ilang minuto akong gano’n nang maulinigan ko an

Pagdating ko sa bahay, agad akong sinalubong ni Aling Mirna.“Ineng, pinapasabi ni Sir Timothy na dumiretso ka raw sa study pagdating mo,” abiso niya.“What am I, tau-tauhan niya? Let him wait. I need to rest.” Padabog akong dumiretso sa itaas.Pagdating sa kuwarto, binuksan ko ang laptop at nag-log in sa paborito kong online game. Ginugol ko ang buong maghapon sa paglalaro hanggang sa may kumatok sa pinto.“What?” sigaw ko.“It’s me, anak,” boses ni Mommy ’yon. Marahan niyang binuksan ang pinto. “What are you doing?” tanong niya habang bahagyang sumisilip sa ginagawa ko.Hindi ko siya pinansin at nagpatuloy lang sa paglalaro.“Anak, can we talk for a minute?” mahinahon ang boses ni Mommy, parang natatakot na baka mag-iba ulit ang game. Timothy has been waiting since morning.”I clenched my jaw. “Then tell him to keep waiting.”Narinig ko ang mahinang buntong-hininga ni Mommy. “He just wants to talk. Please, hija. You’ve been shutting everyone out.”“Because everyone keeps deciding th

The rest of the school year passed. It was slow, heavy, and quiet.Wala akong ginawang iba kundi i-survive ang buong school year. I’d show up, sit through class, turn in half-hearted projects, and pretend to listen whenever the teachers called my name.Sinubukan akong ibalik sa normal ni Rina through our old routine. Lunch breaks, gossip, weekend hangouts—but most days, I just wasn’t in the mood. Kahit nakangiti ako minsan, alam kong pilit 'yon.My grades? Barely passing.Attendance? Enough not to repeat the year.I wasn’t the same girl everyone used to envy. The old Elara Montesilva was gone. The spoiled, confident daughter of a tycoon was gone.What’s left was someone trying not to drown in the silence her father left behind.Minsan, pag dumadaan ako sa harap ng school gate at nakikita ko ’yung mga magulang na sinusundo ang mga anak nila ay napapahinto ako.Lagi kong iniisip na kung buhay pa si Daddy, baka isa siya ro’n. Yung tipong nakasandal lang sa kotse at may bitbit na iced cof

A week after my birthday, I was busy catching up on school. Binugbog ko ang sarili ko sa school activities. Katatapos lang ng hell week namin, tapos intrams season naman. “Elara!” sigaw ni Cristy nang makita akong kalalabas lang ng classroom. She was our team captain. “Hey!” balik ko. “Quick warm-up practice tayo later,” she said. “Kahit until six p.m.,” dagdag pa niya. “Sure,” I nodded. I searched for my phone and quickly texted Mang Isko about our practice. To: Mang Isko Wait for me until six p.m., Mang Isko. May practice lang for volleyball. I hit send and shoved it back into my bag before heading to the locker room. Pagdating ko sa gym ay halos puno na ang court. Maririnig ang mga tawanan, sigawan, at tunog ng bola sa sahig. It was the kind of chaos I actually missed. Yung tipong kahit sandali, nakakalimutan kong may problema ako sa bahay. “Ely! Warm up na!” sigaw ni Cristy sabay toss ng bola sa akin. “On it!” sigaw ko rin pabalik, sabay catch. We started

Nagising ako sa mahihinang bulong sa paligid ko. It was the voice of Rina—talking to someone. Dahan-dahan akong nagmulat, para lang magulat nang mukha nina Nico, Cristy, at Rina ang bumungad sa akin.“What the—”“Talaga, Ely? Magmumura ka agad?” sabi ni Rina, pilit na pinipigilan ang tawa.Bumangon ako at dahan-dahang lumingon sa paligid. I bet I was in a hospital.“Mr. Grey decided to immediately bring you here after you got hit by the ball,” paliwanag ni Nico.Hindi ako agad nakaimik.Narinig ko na lang na bumuntong-hininga si Cristy. “I’m sorry, baka masyado na tayong nasobrahan sa practice. That’s why you were out of focus.”Natigilan ako. “N-No, I was…” Ano nga bang ginawa ko bago ako nasapol ng bola?Nanlaki ang mata ko nang maalala ‘yon. “I-I was… yeah, maybe tired?” sabi ko na lang.Bago pa sila makasagot, bumukas ang pinto ng kwarto. Then he came in.At para bang kung sino si