“I think love is a hard word to define. You can love a lot of things about a person but still not love the whole person.”
-Colleen Hoover, Confess
"So that was your sister." Panimula ni Blaise dahil parang wala talagang plano si Cord na pag-usapan ang nangyari kanina. They were even quiet nung nasa sasakyan sila kanina. Nasa isang cafe sila ngayon at kumakain ng breakfast. Palinga linga rin siya sa paligid, sinisiguradong hindi siya natunton ng mga humahabol sa kanya. Thank God at hindi masyadong matao ang cafe.
She saw him took a sip of his coffee and eyed her. Ibinaba niya ang tingin dahil hindi niya parin kayang makipagtitigan ng matagal sa mga asul nitong mga mata at nagkunwaring busy siya sa pagkain ng kanyang almusal.
"Yes. Magkapatid kami sa ama." Narinig niyang sabi ni Cord makalipas ang isang nakakabinging katahimikan. Naghintay pa siya nang ilang minuto but he didn't elaborate it further. Mukhang ayaw talaga nitong pag-usapan ang buhay nito. Guess they both had secrets they didn't want to tell. But then she wanted to have a little information about him.
She took her OJ and absent mindedly played it's straw with her fingers. She was silently fidgeting on her seat. Call it an instict pero parang meron talagang nagmamasid sa kanya. She must be paranoid or something. Ipinilig niya ang kanyang ulo to dismiss the bad thoughts on her head.
"I heard her called you Kyland." wala sa sariling sabi niya.
"That's my second name. But I prefer to be called by my first name but then Callie is too stubborn. She wanted to be different from others so she calls me Kyland." There was a hint of smile playing on his lips while mentioning Callie's name. Mahal talaga nito ang kapatid na babae kahit may pagka bitch ito. Callie is so lucky to have a brother like Cord.
"I see. So, what do you do?" she asked with quite interest to keep the conversation going.
"I'm an engineer. How about you? " Balik tanong nito.
"I don't work." she shrugged apathetically. Nakita niyang tumaas ang isang kilay nito, waiting for her to elaborate further. " All my life I was homeschooled. M-y fa-father.." she paused for a moment because she was really having difficulty by just mentioning her father. She saw him nod, motioning her to continue. She cleared her throat and continued speaking. "my father doesn't think going to college is a good idea. Nagaaksaya lang daw ako ng oras, pera at panahon."
Nakita niya ang mga tanong sa mga mata nito but she didn't continue any farther. She wasn't ready yet and she doesn't think she will be ready to spill some of her utmost secrets. "I guess he's right. He was always been right." Wala sa sarili niyang sabi habang nakatingin sa pintuan ng cafe. Hindi niya kayang tumingin sa mga mata nito at makitang kinakaawaan siya nito. She's too tired of that.
Cord didn't say anything.
"Uhh. CR lang ako." Sabi niya matapos ang ilang sandali. Tinanguan lang siya ni Cord. Agad siyang tumayo at nagpaalam dito. Wala sa sariling tinahak niya ang daan papuntang CR.
Ilang minuto siyang nakipagtitigan sa kanyang repleksyon sa salamin. Napatingin siya sa kanyang buhok. She really hates her hair. She wanted it to be long just like her mother pero palagi itong pinapagupitan ng kanyang ama pag napapansin nitong humahaba na. She doesn't understands why. She remembered crying the first time they cut her hair. She begged her father not to cut her hair but he always says "it's for your own good" like a mantra. She was 15 when he told them to dye her hair to black. She cried again because she loved her hair so much. It always reminds her of her mother's hair but then they dyed it to black . And there comes his father's mantra "it's for your own good". She never understands him.
"Daddy, please. I don't want them to cut my hair."
"But it's for your own good Blaise. It's for your own good." her father repeatedly said.
"I wanted it to be like mommy's hair. I don't want them to cut my hair." She sniffed. She really hates the idea of cutting her hair. It's like something was taken away from her.
"It is just a hair sweetie." She heard her father said.
"But it is my mommy's hair." She sniffed again.
"You will never become like your mother Blaise. You will never be." Then he stormed out the room leaving his eight year old daughter behind.
Nabalik siya sarealidad ng maramdaman niyang tumutulo na pala ang kanyang mga luha. Mabuti nalang at walang ibang tao sa restroom. Hindi niya lubusang maintindihan ang kanyang ama. At hindi niya rin maintindihan kung bakit nagawa nito ang mga "bagay" na iyon sa kanya. He turned her into something she is not. She doesn't even know herself anymore. And she hated him for that. She doesn't want to hate him but she just can't help it.
Mabilis niyang pinahiran ang kanyang luha at saka naghilamos. She took a deep breath and composed herself for a little while. Nang masigurong presentable na siya ay saka siya nagpasyang lumabas nang CR.
Hindi niya napansin na may babae pala siyang nakasalubong and the woman too wasn't even looking at her direction kaya nagkabanggaan sila. Nahulog ang purse nito at natapon ang laman.
"Dammit! Hindi kasi tumitingin sa dinadaanan eh! Tatanga-tanga kasi." sigaw ng babae na nakaagaw ng atensyon sa lahat ng kumakain.
" I'm sorry." Hinging paumanhin ni Blaise saka tinulungan ang babae. The woman was saying something like "dumb" and "stupid" at hindi niya maiwasang masaktan. She really hates that words. Those words are a constant reminder of what she really is. Pinigilan niya ang sarili na huwag maiyak. Nang masiguradong naibalik na nito ang mga gamit nito ay saka siya nito hinarap. Nakita niya kung paano natigilan ang babae at nakita niya rin kung paano kumunot ang noo nito. Bigla naman siyang kinabahan. The woman looks familiar. Ibubuka na sana nito ang bibig nang may narinig silang nabasag. It was so loud that her eyes snapped in horror.
"Hey." tawag sa kanya nung babae. Blaise was staring at her in horror. "Hey! Are you deaf?" Pukaw ulit sa kanya nung babae. Agad siyang napaharap dito.
"I'm really really sorry." Sabi niya at saka dali daling umalis sa harapan nito. She was cursing and throwing her insults but she can't quite pick it out. Her brain was too fuzzy right now. Tinungo niya ang mesa nila ni Cord sa nanginginig na tuhod. Bigla siyang napaupo dahil feeling niya anytime soon ay babagsak siya.
"You okay?" Cord's brows furrowed in concern. She looked at him na parang hindi niya naiintindihan ang mga sinabi nito. She can't hear a thing. "No. No. No. No. Not now. Please. Not now." she took a deep breathe and mentally counted from one to ten. "Please. Please. Not now. Please" She chanted on her head. She closed her eyes, took a deep breathe and counted again. Naramdaman niyang may humawak sa kamay niya at narinig niyang may tumatawag sa kanya. Her eyes snapped open at bumungad sa kanya ang nag-aalalang mukha ni Cord. In an instant ay nasa tabi na niya si Cord. He felt his hands masaging the back of her palms. She didn't realized that her grip was too tight her knuckles turned white. Dahan dahan niyang ibinuka ang nakakuyom niyang palad.
"It's okay. You're okay. You're okay love." Kinabig siya nito and whispered soothingly. Naramdaman niya ring hinalikan nito ang ulo niya while whispering soft comforting words.
"Thank you." She whispered. For the second time he had saved her. She was closed to losing it but then he saved her.
"It's okay. Shh. It's okay." He whispered and brushed her hair softly. Nanatili sila sa ganoong ayos ng ilang minuto.
"They probably think I went nuts." sabi niya kay Cord. Napatingin din siya sa counter kung saan nililinis ng isang crew ang mga na nabasag na baso.
"Don't mind them. You okay?" Marahang inilayo ni Cord ang katawan nito kay Blaise para makita nito ang mukha ng dalaga. She just nodded.
"You ready to leave?" tanong ni Cord sa kanya. Hindi niya sinagot si Cord instead she looked over at her shoulder and saw the woman na nakabangga niya kanina. She can also feel that Cord was following her gaze. The woman was looking at her direction while speaking on the phone. Sandali ay bigla siyang nanlamig. She looked at Cord with frantic eyes.
"Umalis na tayo please." She pleaded softly. She saw how his face turned hard. He nodded in agreement and took her hand. Agad naman siyang tumayo at sumunod dito. She took a chance to peek over her shoulder and she saw the woman eyeing her intently. She was still speaking on the phone. Agad niyang hiniwalay ang tingin sa babae at saka nagmamadaling naglakad. Cord was still holding her hand na para bang anytime soon ay mawawala siya. She heaved a sigh in relief ng makalabas na sila ng cafe.
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Hello. Thank you so much for dropping by. Pasensya po sa typo. Wala po tong proofread. I do hope you'll like this story. Please do drop some comments below. Lemme know your thoughts. :))
BINABASA MO ANG
Scarred
Storie d'amore" The scar imprinted on your body doesn't mean you're weak. It somehow signifies your strength. You're a strong woman Blaise, so strong that I'm afraid that one day, you'll realized that you don't even need me anymore." -Cord Kyland Gentry Some cont...
