CHAPTER 02

           Rome slowly opened her eyes as she awoke to the gentle breeze blowing on her face. Upon waking up, the white ceiling was the first thing she saw. The wooden ceiling fan was rotating and blowing the wind at her.

            Where am I? she asked herself as she looked around. The place was familiar. Had she been here before?

            Wait… Am I still in the clinic?

            “Thank God, you’re awake!”

            She turned to the other side of the bed upon hearing the familiar voice. Jiggy— her best friend, was in the room with her. Beside Jiggy was Doctor Hernandez. 

           She got up quickly only to wince when she felt pain in her head. But instead of going back to lying on the small bed, she forced herself to sit straight and face her friend.

            “I’m… sorry. What happened?”

      

            "You lost consciousness after leaving the clinic," the doctor replied. “Your blood pressure is normal, but I think exhaustion was the reason why you lost consciousness. You need to stay in bed for a day or two to regain energy and relax your mind. ”

       

             She nodded and stared at Jiggy whose forehead furrowed in confusion. Her eyes were full of questions, too.

            She sighed in surrender. “I'll explain later. For now, please help me up; I really want to go home."

            Jiggy remained quiet as she supported her.

            “I gave you medicine to help you feel better. Your dizziness will disappear eventually," said the doctor.

            She nodded again and thanked her before wrapping one arm around Jiggy's. 

            Outside the clinic was Jiggy's SUV parked at the parking space, waiting for them. Jiggy pulled out the key and opened the front seat door for her. And when she was settled in, Jiggy circled and climbed up the driver’s seat.

           They were already both inside the car when Jiggy said, "Fasten your seatbelt."

            She did what she was instructed to do and waited for her to maneuver the vehicle and drive it on the highway.

            Jiggy was quiet for a long time, and she was just there clutching her seatbelt as she waited for her friend to start asking questions. 

      

            By the look on Jiggy’s face, she could tell that the doctor had already told her about the pregnancy. But Jigs wasn’t saying anything. Was she mad? 

            She cleared her throat and turned to her friend. "If you have questions, go ahead."

             But Jiggy remained silent and focused her attention on the road.

            Jiggy had been her best friend since the beginning of high school. They took different courses in college but they remained close because they would meet after classes and go home together. They were inseparable. She was always welcomed at Jiggy's home, but it wasn't the same for her. She never had a chance to invite Jiggy to their house because she knew her parents wouldn't like it. 

            Because Jiggy was actually… a lesbian. And her family was against it, most especially her aunties.

           Jiggy's real name was Jenny Grace and she was already open about her sexuality even before they became friends. She had beautiful and smooth skin, and her hair was naturally light brown; all thanks to her father's foreign blood. 

           If Jiggy was straight, men would go after her like bees to a flower. But Jiggy chose a different path. She cut her hair short and dyed it moss green. She had tattoos on her body, too, which made her look even cooler. She never wore dresses or girlie clothes— she was always happy with jeans, and a corporate coat.

            And they became friends because she used to be like Jiggy. Yes— used to. But that was a long time ago.

            More than seven years ago… back when she was just fourteen… she fell in love with a woman. How she wished she was born a boy back then. She was confused about her sexuality and had a hard time identifying what she felt. Later on, Jiggy helped her understand what she was going through, and that’s when she realized that she was in love with a woman two years older than her.

            But that feeling didn’t last long. Her crush graduated from high school and flew to Singapore where her father worked as a Chef at a famous hotel. The presence of that girl disappeared from their school, and so did her feelings.

           She thought she really had a heart of a man, but she realized that she just had an intense girl crush so he became like Jiggy for a while. And when the woman she had a crush on disappeared, she returned to her old self. She started wearing her old 'lady' clothes again and started acting and speaking like a woman. She even had a boyfriend when she was in college, and there she proved that she was indeed born with a woman’s heart.

           But even after she came back to her old, girly self, she and Jiggy remained close friends. 

           Jiggy now worked as a Senior Marketing Manager in a huge outsourcing company in Ortigas, whilst she became a teacher like the rest of her family.

            And that was the worst part. 

           As a teacher, she was supposed to be a role model and guide younger generations to be responsible with their actions, and teach them to protect their dignity and morale. But what did she do? What happened to her? She allowed herself to engage in unprotected sex and found herself pregnant out of wedlock. 

            She would surely be a laughing stock of the town…

             “Who’s the father of that child, Rosenda Marie?”

             She slowly turned to Jiggy who finally decided to speak. But her friend’s voice was so serious she couldn’t ease her mind. Jiggy had never used that tone before— nor called her by her complete name. 

           “I didn’t know why you asked me to drive you to that OB-Gyne clinic; I thought you just needed to have a simple examination. I didn’t expect it to be a baby.”

           She let out a sigh before turning her attention back in front. 

           It was Saturday and they both had no work. She called and persuaded Jigs to drive her to a clinic in Ayala. Jiggy was confused when they stopped at an OB-Gyne clinic, but she did not ask any questions. She went inside the clinic while Jigs waited in the car; they were planning to have lunch after her check-up. 

          

            She sniffed and wiped away her tears. “I— I can’t tell, Jigs.”

          

            “What do you mean you can’t tell? This is gonna be a huge scandal for your family when your tummy starts to pop up without you presenting the father. So tell me, Renz. Who is the guy?”

           “I told you already, I can’t tell—”

           “Rosenda Marie, I am trying to help you!” 

           She crossed her arms across her chest to control her emotions. 

           “Let’s just… leave the guy out of this…”