Revanche

Chapter 1: Riadne Laurel

Chapter 1: Riadne Laurel

(Riadne Laurel)

          The flight from France to the Philippines actually took many hours but since umalis ako doon nang late afternoon, halos hapon na rin ako dumating. Napakaraming tao ang nagkalat sa airport at sumalubong sakin, mga taga-suporta ko na ilang taon din naghintay sa pagbabalik ko dito.  

         "Waaaah! Miss Riadne, we love youuuuu!"

          I removed my sunglasses and waved at them.

           The crowd went wilder, screaming my name. Pati ang security team nahirapan na kontrolin sila lalo na’t maging ang mga reporters ay narito at nagkakagulo. As expected.

          It’s been five years after all, almost six. Would you believe if I tell you that I was just a simple, unassuming girl last time I was here? Some cheap, helpless girl who couldn’t do a thing. But that girl is gone, dead, replaced by a new one. A much better woman. Fiercer. 

          Vengeful.

        I smirked to myself and continued walking.

          Tama nga si tita Mia, ang manager ko. Maingay na maingay ngayon ang pangalan ko dito dahil na rin sa three consecutive hollywood movies ko. Maging ang media ay nagkakandarapa para lang makalapit sakin.

        And I wouldn’t want it otherwise. It’s the plan. The more na nakikilala ako, the more chances na mapapansin nya ko.Mapapadali ang mga plano 'ko.

        Mas naging prominent ang ngiti ko. Obviously, I enjoy the attention. This is only the start.

        “Ang ganda mo talaga Miss Riadne!” sigaw ng isang fan.

        “Grabe, I love you po, idol!”

        “Di ako makapaniwala na andito kana talaga!”

        “Go Filipina Pride! Ganda talaga!”

        I stopped and waved at all of them. 

          “Iha, bilisan mo at malalate ka na sa photoshoot mo,” ani tita Mia na naglalakad sa tabi ko. Sya ang nakadiskubre sakin sa France at nagpasok sakin sa mundo ng modelling, na di kalaunan ay naging daan para makilala ako bilang isang aktres. Thanks to her mas naging madali ang mga plano ko, but she doesn’t know anything. Si Ava lang at ang isa ko pang kaibigan dito. Si Yuri.

          Speaking of Yuri...

          “Tita, after the photo shoot, may dadaanan ako. Let’s just meet at the hotel,” sagot ko, habang patuloy na kumakaway sa mga fans.

          Napalingon nang mabilis sakin si tita. “San ang lakad mo? Wala ka pang limang minutong nandito. Riadne ha! Baka umiiral na naman yang kapilyahan mo!”

          I almost grinned at her silent warning. Ever the worry wart. And I can’t blame her. After all, I’m famous for my mischief.

            “Relax. I’m just meeting an old friend. Maybe."

          “What to do with you?” She sighed. 

          She knew me well enough to know na hinding hindi ako magpapatalo kaya kahit pilit, she had no choice but to give in. This is actually the reason why I love her, among many other things. She doesn’t pry or hold me back. She actually leaves me to my own devices, kahit na kilala ako sa pagiging pilya.