The Accused (A Series #1)

Chapter Fifty-Two

The moment their eyes met, all she wanted was to run to her. Gusto niyang yakapin ito at magsumbong. All those years they were apart made her longed for her even more. Walang galit, pero masakit.

Her mother was so brave to let her go, and at that time, she knew she did it for herself. It was a selfish act and it hurt her so much, pero hindi niya nakalimutan ang mga oras na nakasama niya ito, ang pagmamahal na natanggap niya sa kabila ng reyalidad na hindi siya nanggaling dito. She loved looking back at those times. She wanted those happy moments to stick with her as a remembrance of their beatific bond.

It must have hurt her mother so much knowing that Dad had a child with someone who wasn't her. She might have struggled a lot when she could not give Dad one. And her mom might have died with him when he passed away.

Kaya naiintindihan niya ang naging desisyon ng ina noon. She had to go away that time. She had to shed tears to know how it was to live alone, to find the same courage, and see the good in fighting. Maybe she depended too much on the people around her that when they left, she was lost.

Looking at her now, she knew that her mother fought a good fight. Whether it's for herself or any other reason, she was just glad that she was here now, alive and looking so well like she won.

Halata parin ang gulat sa mga mata nito. Her mother stood frozen in front of her as if she had seen a ghost. And maybe she was really a ghost, a ghost from her mother's past. But she did not mean to scare her. though. She just wanted to just breathe again and perhaps be selfish again to ask for her time.

To prove that she meant well, she smiled. Sa lahat ng sakit na nag-uunahang magpakilala ulit sa kanyang sistema, she smiled. She wanted to do more than the lip movement pero kinakain siya ng takot. She was still her mother, and even if she looked successful battling her pain, she still wasn't sure of that.

Paano kung galit pa rin ito sa kanya? High chance. And that made her want to cry. Apart from wanting to hug her, to ask her how she had been all this time, she wanted to cry. She wanted to be her daughter again.

"Mom," she repeated. It had been a long time since that word rolled on her tongue, and it almost sounded foreign on her ears.

The moment it escaped her mouth, she saw the sudden changes in her emotions, from being surprised to looking as if she was wounded.

"You're... you're here."

Her tears were with her heart, she was crying now as she nodded her head frantically. Yes, Mom, I'm here.

She knew what she needed to do kaya iyon ang ginawa niya. She immediately knelt to the ground, on his father's grave, right in front of her mother.

"I'm so sorry, Mom. Patawarain niyo po ako. Please, forgive me..."

Time seemed to move slow when you are hurting. Lumipas ang ilang minuto, nanatili siyang nakaluhod at paulit-ulit na humingi ng tawad. Naiintindihan niya kung aalis ang mommy niya, o kung siya ang paaalisin nito. Tahimik lang itong nakatayo sa harap niya, ni hindi niya kayang salubungin ang mga mata nito. Natatakot siya. Alam niya gaano kalaki ang kasalanan niya sa ina, it costed his father's life. She just wished she would say something.

"Patawarin niyo po ako..."

The more she repeated the phrase, the more she could hear heart getting broken. Her mother's silence seemed like a knife cutting it into pieces.

"Mommy... I-I'm sorry. I wished I just listened to you. I wished I was a good daughter... maybe it won't hurt this much."

Hindi maubos ubos ang luha niya. Pagod na siyang pahirin ang mga ito kaya hinayaan nalang niyang mas mugmakhang mahina. What was she trying to prove, anyway? She was weak, alam naman niya iyan, inaamin niya.