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Lahat ng Kabanata ng What We Pretended To Be : Kabanata 21 - Kabanata 30

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Chapter 21

Maria:I’m standing in front of my wardrobe, holding up two dresses I don’t even like, when my door opens without a knock.I don’t turn immediately.“I said I’ll come down in a minute—”“You won’t,” my mother cuts in.That makes me look up.She’s not alone.Daniel’s mother stands beside her, calm and composed, like she’s inspecting something rather than interrupting. It’s subtle, but it shifts the room. It always does when she’s around.I straighten a little without meaning to.“What’s going on?” I ask.“You have a trip,” my mother says, like it’s obvious.I blink at her.“A what?”“A trip,” she repeats, already moving toward my wardrobe like she’s the one who owns it. “You should have been ready by now.”“For what?” I ask, slower this time.Daniel’s mother answers.“There’s a collaboration event. Expansion meetings. Press coverage.”That explains nothing.“And no one thought to tell me?”My mother pauses, then looks at me like I’ve missed something obvious.“Did Daniel not tell you?”

Chapter 22

Maria:I wake up to my phone vibrating like it’s been trying to get my attention for a while and I’ve just been ignoring it.For a second, I don’t move. Just lie there, staring at the ceiling, letting the unfamiliar quiet settle around me.Then it hits.Hotel. Trip. Storm.Daniel.I reach for my phone.Three missed calls. Two from my mother, one from a number I don’t feel like calling back. A few messages I don’t open yet.I check the time.Too late.“Great,” I mutter, pushing myself up.Everything after that is rushed. Not chaotic exactly, just… slightly off. Like I’m a step behind my own morning.I fix my hair halfway, give up, then try again. Change my top once. Almost change it again, then stop myself.It doesn’t matter that much.It shouldn’t.—When I open the door, I’m still adjusting the strap of my bag, not really paying attention.So I walk straight into someone.I stop short.“Oh—”Daniel steadies me before I fully lose balance. His hand lingers for a second, just enough to

Chapter 23

Maria:The house feels… arranged when I walk in.Not loud. Not tense. Just—set.Like something has already been decided and I’m the last person being let in on it.“Maria.”I barely get two steps into the living room before my mother calls me back.Of course.I turn slowly, already bracing myself.She’s seated. Composed. Waiting.And she’s not alone.Daniel’s parents are here.And Daniel—He’s already there, sitting like he belongs in the middle of all of this. Relaxed in that way he does, like nothing around him has the power to shake him unless he decides it does.I take the empty seat beside him.I don’t look at him yet.“What’s going on?” I ask.No one answers immediately.That’s never a good sign.My mother folds her hands together. Calm. Too calm.“There’s been a lot of attention recently.”I let out a small breath.“That’s not new.”“Not like this.”A file is pushed toward me.I don’t touch it at first.Then I do.Inside—photos.From the trip.From the campaign.From moments I

Chapter 24

Maria:I don’t move when the phone starts ringing.I just stare at it.Noah.It rings again.And again.I pick it up on the third.“Hi.”There’s a pause. Not long. Just enough to feel like he’s adjusting himself before speaking.“Hey.”His voice is calm. Careful in a way I don’t think I’ve heard before.“I didn’t want to keep texting,” he says.“Yeah… I figured.”I sit on the edge of my bed, elbows on my knees, staring at the floor like that might help me stay focused.Another pause.Then—“I saw the engagement thing,” he says.I let out a quiet breath.“I was going to ask if you did.”“I did,” he repeats. “I didn’t bring it up earlier.”“Why?”“Because I know that’s not you.”Something in me softens a little at that. Just a little.“It’s not,” I say. “It’s just them. You know how they are.”“I do.”“But they’re not denying it,” I add, because it feels worse if I don’t say it myself.There’s a small shift on the line. I don’t hear it, exactly. I feel it.“Yeah,” he says.I rush to fil

Chapter 25

Maria:Milo doesn’t trust me.He’s a tiny brown dog with too much energy packed into a small body, pacing in uneven circles on the examination table like he’s looking for an escape route that doesn’t exist.“It’s fine,” I tell him softly, resting my hands on the edge of the table instead of reaching for him. “We don’t have to be friends today.”He pauses. Watches me.Still suspicious.Fair.“I wouldn’t trust me either,” I add under my breath.The clinic smells faintly of antiseptic and dog shampoo, the hum of the overhead light steady and familiar. Outside, I can hear the receptionist laughing at something, the low murmur of a waiting client, the occasional bark cutting through everything.It’s… quiet in the way that matters.Contained.Nothing here demands more than I can give.Milo inches closer, sniffing cautiously.“See?” I murmur. “Not so bad.”I let him come to me. No rush. No pressure. Just time and patience and soft movements.Eventually, he settles enough for me to check his

Chapter 26

Daniel: I don’t sit still long enough for anything to settle. That’s the problem. If I stop moving, I start thinking. And if I start thinking, I end up back there—voices layered over each other, decisions being made like I’m not in the room, like I’m part of something already agreed on. And then Maria. Looking at me like I’d made it worse. I exhale sharply and push away from the desk. “I didn’t handle that well.” Saying it out loud doesn’t help. It just sits there in the air, sounding unfamiliar. Like something I don’t usually say. Because I don’t. I don’t do apologies. I don’t circle back and explain myself. If something goes wrong, I move on. That’s how I’ve always handled things. This… whatever this is… feels unnecessary. And yet. I pick up my phone. Open our chat. Close it again. There’s nothing I can type that won’t feel… off. Too formal. Too deliberate. Like I’m drafting an email instead of talking to her. I try calling. It rings. Stops. I

Chapter 27

Maria: Birthdays used to mean something. Not in a big, dramatic way. Just… something soft. Anticipated. Like a quiet promise that the day would be a little lighter than usual. Now it just feels like a date I’m aware of. Something other people remember for me. I’m still at the clinic when Lily texts. We’re going out tonight. Don’t argue. I glance at it between appointments, thumb hovering over the screen. I’m working. Her reply comes instantly. Then finish working. I shake my head, slipping the phone back into my pocket before the next dog starts whining on the table in front of me. “Relax,” I murmur, running my hand gently along its back. “I’ve got you.” Animals are easier. They don’t expect explanations. They don’t read into things. They don’t ask questions you’re not ready to answer. They just… trust you. — By the time I get home, I’m tired in a quiet, settled way. The kind that makes you want to sit still and not be needed for a while. My phone buzzes before I can

Chapter 28

Maria:The message sits there longer than it should.I read it once, then again, like maybe I missed something the first time. A detail. A correction. Anything that would make it make sense.It doesn’t.I’m already moving before I decide to. Phone still in my hand, I head downstairs, past the quiet hallway, past the staff who look like they already know something I don’t.“Is there something outside?” I ask.“Yes, miss.”No hesitation.That makes it worse.The compound is wide. Open in that deliberate, expensive way where nothing feels crowded and everything has space to exist properly. It takes a few seconds to cross it, but right now it feels longer. I can hear something before I see it. A soft shift of movement, controlled, steady.Then I see it.I stop.A white stallion stands just beyond the paved stretch, near the section my father uses for things that don’t belong inside the house. It is not tucked away or hidden. It stands like it was placed there on purpose, like it knows it

Chapter 29

Maria: Lily is still talking when the car slows to a stop. She has been talking since we left my room. About my dress, about my hair, about how if anyone cries tonight it should be me and not my mother because apparently that would be “on brand.” I let her fill the space because it keeps me from thinking too much. The venue comes into view and something in me settles before I even step out. It is exactly how I wanted it. Soft lighting. Controlled entry. No flashing cameras, no cluster of unfamiliar faces pretending to belong. Just quiet order and the kind of security that does not need to announce itself. I pause for half a second after I step out of the car, just to take it in. “I like this,” Lily says beside me, glancing around. “This is very you.” “It’s how I asked for it,” I reply. “And your mother agreed?” “Not exactly.” She laughs under her breath. “Of course not.” I smooth my dress down and walk in. Inside feels warm immediately. Not crowded. Just full enough to fe

Chapter 30

Maria: “He didn’t even text.” Saying it out loud makes it feel heavier than it did in my head. It sits between us, solid, like something we can both see now. Lily doesn’t react immediately. She just looks at me, really looks this time, like she is trying to understand what I’m not saying along with what I am. “Wait,” she says finally. “What do you mean he didn’t text?” I shrug, like it’s not as strange as it sounds. “I mean exactly that. No call, no message. Nothing.” Her brows pull together slightly. “Did something happen?” she asks. “No.” “Nothing at all?” I shake my head. “Nothing.” That’s the part that bothers me. There’s nothing to point to. No argument, no misunderstanding, no moment where things went wrong. Just silence. Lily shifts on the bed, turning toward me fully now. The playful energy she had earlier is gone. This version of her is quieter, more observant. “Because this doesn’t feel random,” she says. “I thought he was just trying to adjust. Your family, eve

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