Mr. Congressman

1

Chesca's POV (10 years ago)

"Hello, London!" I shouted when I landed at Heathrow Airport, finally, after 18 years of my existence, nakatakas din ako sa paghihigpit ni daddy. I was just 10 when my father sent us to the US to continue our studies to protect our privacy, para pa din akong sinasakal, there were eyes everywhere. Now that I am 18, the only gift I wanted was freedom, being the youngest and only girl, binigay sakin iyon ni daddy.

London ang napili ko, malayo sa Pilipinas, malayo sa America, malayo sa mga mata at tenga ni daddy, malayo sa gulo at malayo sa mga kapatid ko. For the first time in my life, ako lang mag-isa sa isang bansang walang nakikilala sakin. I'm just the normal Franchesca Ilocos Velasco. 

I rode a taxi to my apartment, si mama ang pumili sa apartment ko kaya hindi na ako magtataka kung luxorius at extravagant ito. I am currently taking BSc Politics, Philosophy and Economics sa University of London, my father wants me to follow in his footsteps, ang pumasok sa politika. If only I had a choice, I would take Biology and be a doctor, yan kasi ang pangarap ng lolo ko para sa akin before he passed away. My siblings took business, sila na ang nagmamahala sa kompanya ng pamilya ni mama. My mother, Olive Velasco, is a well-known businesswoman while my father, the great Lucio Conjuanco, is a well-known politician in Ilocos. 

It was a forbidden love story, my mother fell in love with my father when they met in Cebu for vacation. Ayaw ni grandpa, ang tatay ni mama, sa mga Conjuanco dahil sa maduming pangalan neto sa politika. Hindi tinanggap ni grandpa ang relasyon nilang dalawa and my parents decided to run away, tumakas sila papuntang Amerika at dun nanirahan. My siblings and I were born there, umuwi kami noong 3 years old ako dahil kailangan ng tumakbo ni daddy for mayor sa Ilocos Sur. Hindi kami close sa tatay ni mama but when he died when I was 6, nag-iisang anak niya lang si mama kaya napunta kay mama ang lahat ng mana. 

I arrived at my apartment, so dito ako for the next 4 years. I opened it pero bago ako pumasok ng tuluyan ay may isang lalaking huminto sa tabi ko, I could see him from my peripheral view. Bago lang ata rin dito, di niya alam pano buksan ang pinto. "Do you need any help?" I offered, a great way to start my London journey is to make some friends. "Hi, yes, please. I don't know how to open this door or maybe they gave me the wrong room key." He said and handed me his key card, swiped it and the light turned to green, pahiwatig na pwede ka ng pumasok. "Thank you, Ferdinand Alexander Marcos, Sandro by the way" he said and handed me his hands for me to shake. I smiled at him and received his hand "Franchesca Ilocos Velasco, Chesca nalang". He smiled at me, let go of my hand and we said our goodbyes.