Chapter 29:

"The hell? First time ko makita si Prius na ganon ah," Macy said, her voice low while she rubbed her arms like she had goosebumps.

Nanatili akong nakatingin sa isang glass door kung saan siya lumabas kung saan pagkaliko ay may men's room. I didn’t move. I just sat there, lips slightly open, still processing what just happened.

Huminga ako nang malalim bago dinilaan nang mabilis ang pang itaas na labi. Yus excused himself to go to the men's room after eating to wash his hands. I recalled what had just happened since it went pretty fast for me.

I agreed with her. That was also the first time I saw him being this harsh with his words. Hindi naman siya ganito na akala mo ay bubugahan niya ng apoy ang dalawang babae kanina. He was always laid back and careful with his words in times of serious situations.

She nudged me using her right elbow before saying to finish my food since it hadn't been touched after all that heated argument.

Hanggang sa nakabalik na si Yus at parehas na rin kaming tapos kumain kaya pagkabalik niya ay kami naman ang nagpaalam na pupunta sa ladies' room.

We just washed our hands properly and fixed our hair a bit before going upstairs. Nilingon ko si Yus at nakatalikod na siya papunta sa silid niya na hindi man lang nagsasalita.

Macy was also looking at him, and when our eyes met, she just shrugged her shoulders.

"Hayaan na muna. He should cool his head," she said.

I nodded without saying anything.

—

Kakauwi ko lang at nakatingin ako sa phone na nakapatong sa center table. I took a sip of tea, then set the cup down again. Pinag iisipan kong mabuti kung kakausapin ko ba si Yus tungkol sa nangyari.

I wanted to know what made him react like that. There should be a reason behind it.

Hahawakan ko na sana ang phone pero pinigilan ko ang sarili bago umayos nang pagkakadekwatro. A part of me wanted to message him, but another part was worried he might think I was meddling—and it might just make things worse.

But I’m his family, right? I should know what’s going on. He knows what’s happening in my life, so why shouldn’t I know about his?

I let out a long groan before taking the teacup again—now drinking all the tea before putting it down again. Sa huli ay iniwan ko nalang ang phone sa lamesa bago tumayo at nilapitan ang study table.

Instead of overthinking everything, I figured I’d be better off organizing my digital notes. Finals were coming up. At mamaya na rin ang dating ni Mommy kaya kailangan kong mag asikaso nang maaga.

While I was sorting and rewording my notes, I used the wireless phone to ask one of the helpers to let me know when Mommy arrived.

After almost an hour of fixing and rewriting, I was finally done. Iisang subject palang 'yon pero ganoon agad ang tinagal. My agenda for this whole week will be organizing and rephrasing my notes.

Bukas ko sisimulan ang ibang subject dahil medyo nangalay na ang braso at batok ko. When I looked outside, the large glass of a French window of my room, the sun was already setting.

The clouds were shades of purple, and pink, like cotton candy, as the sun dipped lower.

I let out a yawn and covered my mouth. My eyes felt dry and tired, so I blinked a few times, packed up my things, and plugged in my laptop to charge. Then I flopped face-down onto my bed.

The bed felt extra soft, almost like it was pulling me into sleep. I gave in and took a quick nap. After half an hour, I woke up feeling refreshed.

Niyakap ko ang isang malamig na unan bago inayos ang pagkakatalukbong ng kumot sa katawan ko. I already took a quick shower earlier, and I wasn’t feeling hungry yet, so I could honestly just sleep through the rest of the day. But since Mommy could arrive any moment now, I mentally set a ten-minute countdown.

Hindi ko alam kung ilang minuto na ang nakalipas nang magising ako pero umalis na agad ako ng kama. I unplugged my laptop charge and flipped the strands of hair resting on my chest over my shoulder.

I wasn’t sure if someone had already knocked on my door to tell me that Mommy had arrived since I hadn’t heard anything. Or maybe I was just too sleepy to notice?

Kakalabas ko lang ng bathroom nang mapatingin ako sa pinto dahil sa pagkatok kasabay na pagsabi ng nandito na raw si Mommy. I called out in response, then quickly started packing my things into my bag.

Pagkababa ko ay saktong kakapasok lang din ni Mommy. She opened her arms, waiting for a hug, so I walked up to her right away and wrapped my arms around her.

"I missed you so much, hija" she said, pulling me into a tight hug.

I chuckled. "Me too, Mommy"

Her familiar warmth and that comforting almond milk scent filled my nose before we let go of the hug. Nagsabi agad siya sa kasambahay na nakatingin lang saamin para marinig kung ano mang utos ang iuutos sa kaniya.

"May dinner na ba na naka ready?" Mommy asked to her.

Agad tumango ang kasambahay. "Yes po, Ma'am. Kani kanina lang po,"

Nagkatinginan kami ng isang kasambahay na bitbit ang ilang gamit ni Mommy at parehas lang kaming nagngitian.

Nagpaalam muna na magpapalit si Mommy ng damit bago kami kumain ng sabay habang ako naman ay lumabas ng bahay. That was when I heard a voice from next door—coming from Yus’s place.

"Where's Prius?" a familiar baritone voice asked.

My eyes widened a bit. It was Uncle Jeofferey.

"Ay, sir...hindi pa po umuuwi. Nasa girlfriend po ata," said the familiar voice of one of the helpers.

Hindi ko na kailangang tuluyang lumabas dahil rinig na rinig ang boses nila dahil sa sobrang tahimik ng paligid. Tipong pati pag ihip ng hangin ay maririnig na.

Imbes na bumalik sa loob ay tinignan ko ang fountain na nandito sa frontyard ng ilang segundo. It was made of four layers of white marble. Each layer looked like an open seashell, but more symmetrical and curved inward.

There were neatly trimmed plants all around it, adding to that polished look.

Bumalik na ako sa loob ng maburyo at hinintay sa hapag si Mommy. Dinner was already served. I waited for maybe another full minute before she finally entered the dining hall. While we ate, we talked about her trip,

She said there wasn’t really much to say about it—it was the usual event stuff with socializing and shopping. Mamaya niya nga raw ibibigay ang mga pinamili niya saakin pagkatapos kumain.

Halos pumalakpak ako sa tuwa kaya ganado akong kumain ng dinner at hindi na makapaghintay malaman kung ano ang pinamili niya.

–

Ngayon ay inaayos ko na ang mga regalo na natanggap ko. They were all random but so perfectly “me” — bath and body essentials with my usual scent, snacks I loved as a kid, and a pair of black kitten heels with white crystal bows. I had been eyeing those online for a while, but they weren’t available here.

I never had the time to book a flight to buy them myself, so I was beyond happy that she got them for me instead.

But what made me the happiest were the earrings—an oval cut burma ruby and diamond earrings shaped like a little sun. The diamonds formed the rays, and the ruby sat right in the center like the sun itself.

She told me the earrings were a gift from someone she used to know—a person from her past. Ngayon nalang ulit sila nagkita at nagkausap kaya binigyan siya ng regalo.

She said they’d suit me better anyway, so she gave them to me. Marami na raw siyang alahas at wala na raw siyang balak dagdagan pa ang mga ito.

Now, I was back in bed, getting ready to sleep again. I reached out to grab my phone from the bedside table. Reported na kaya ang video?

Dumiretso agad ako sa f*******: at sinearch ang bidyo. I scrolled through the related posts, but the original uncensored video was gone. Buti naman ay deleted na.

I even checked Ivy’s social media accounts. Tanging private Twitter account niya lang ang nakita ko kaya ibig sabihin ay naka deactivate na ang iba niyang accounts.

I really hoped she was okay, mentally and emotionally, after everything that happened.

—

Vacant na namin at ganon pa rin ang mga naririnig ko. May narinig pa akong mga reklamo sa mga hindi nakapanood dahil hindi man lang nila alam kung anong meron.

Curiosity spreads like wildfire when it comes to stuff like this.

I let out a gasp when something caught my eye. Papasok na sana kami sa cafeteria pero napahinto ako at napatingin sa nakapaskil sa glass door.

"No sluts allowed. P.s. Ivy Marasigan is not allowed to enter," Macy read out loud.

Yus chuckled sarcastically. "Talagang bold letters pa ah,"

"What the heck? Sobra naman 'to!" I said with my brows furrowed.

I looked around at the people inside the cafeteria. They were all laughing, chatting, just living their lives—like nothing was wrong. Like Ivy’s feelings didn’t matter at all.

Tinanggal ko ang papel at agad naghanap ng trash bin para itapon ito. May napatingin pa saakin na dalawang babae na papasok sa cafeteria pero nag iwas tingin din agad sila.

–

Days passed, and people were still talking about Ivy’s scandal. She was still trending on our freedom wall group and other social media platforms.

Hanggang sa nabalita na at nasabi ng unibersidad na makakatanggap sila ng 'proper treatment for their grievous misconduct'

Ginawan din ang mukha niya ng meme pictures at videos. Some even used that screenshot of her lewd expression as their profile pic, which honestly pissed me off. It was so disrespectful.

At hindi pa rin tumitigil ang pag slut shame sa kaniya. They were doing it online and in real life.

Isang araw pa nga ay nagtama ang tingin namin sa gymnasium dahil may event ang isang department. She looked at me with sad pleading eyes—asking for my help. I wanted to. I really did. But all I could do was give her a small, apologetic smile.

I had already defended her once. Sinabi ko na inosente siya sa lahat pero wala lahat ng 'yon dahil saakin mismo ay nagsinungaling siya. It felt like I was protecting someone pretending to be a victim—like a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Nagmukha pa nga akong kasabwat. Sabi ay baka alam ko na gawain talaga ni Ivy 'yon at ayoko lang mapahiya siya kaya nagsinungaling daw ako sa kanila.

Eventually, Ivy disappeared. According to Zel, she dropped out before the university could expel her. Nagkausap kami saglit nang minsan na magkasalubong sa pasilyo.

And when I asked where Ivy was, she just shrugged. She didn’t know either. Maybe Ivy had cut her off too.

"You should really cut them off already," I heard from Yus.

Napatingin agad ako sa kaniya at nagtama ang mata namin. Galing pa ang tingin niya sa ginagawa ng katabi niya.

My lips parted slightly in surprise. Cut off who?

"Who are you referring to?" I asked.

He rolled his eyes. "Sila Macy,"

Nagsalubong agad ang kilay ko. "What?! Bakit naman?"

I glanced over at Rhiannon and caught her staring at us. Bahagyang nag angat ang kaliwa niyang kilay bago nagbalik sa ginagawang pagsusulat sa hawak na clipboard.

Nandito kami ngayon sa patio nila Yus at nagpaplano para supresahin ng simpleng birthday celebration si Auntie Dani. Her birthday would be tomorrow and it will be held here in their backyard.

Yus was about to answer me when Rhiannon asked about the flowers we’d be placing on the long table.

Tahimik ko silang pinanood. Yus looked at the clipboard again before finally deciding what flowers we would be displaying. And they were pink peonies.

Rhiannon nodded as her right hand moved to write the chosen flowers until Yus turned to me again.

He scoffed. "Aren't they draining you?"

Ilang segundo akong nanahimik bago nagkibit balikat. Aaminin ko na medyo magulo nga ang relasyon namin ngayong mga nagdaang linggo pero dahil lang naman 'yon kila Gracia at Gaia.