Chained to the Past (Imperfect Girls Series #2)

Chapter 40 (Part 1 of 2)

Chapter 40: The Rise

His Past

I KEPT quiet as I stared at the heartbreaking scene in front of me. My mother, sitting beside a hospital bed, crying her whole heart out while looking at the man lying on the bed. I swallowed the big lump inside my throat as I quietly walked in.

The moment she heard my footsteps, she quickly turned her eyes on me and immediately wiped her tears away.

I looked at her with emotionless eyes. "Where am I going to place this?" I softly asked and lifted my right hand up carrying a basket full of flowers.

"Pakilagay nalang sa tabi, Hugh," she answered.

I quickly nodded and placed it on the table near them. Bumagsak ang aking tingin sa lalaking nakahiga sa kama. He was so pale and frail.

"I-Is he going to be okay?" mahina kong tanong.

I saw how my mother turned her head at me once again. Her eyes were full of pain and suffering.

"I don't really know, son. He still hasn't woken up from his coma," sagot ng aking nanay.

I nodded and looked down at her. I can feel my chest tightening just by looking at them.

My father and I weren't the closest ones. He's much closer to Hana and Harper, my two little twin sisters.

We were once a happy family. Not until we knew about him cheating. Apparently, he wasn't married to my mother. He already had multiple women that he was considering as his other wife.

My little sisters didn't really know about it. As their older brother, I witnessed everything from the very beginning.

Despite him cheating on our mother, he did support us financially. I'm guessing that's what he also does to his other families.

He's still my father, so it's just natural for me to feel broken because of his current state. Especially seeing my mother suffering because of it.

My mother loved him. So much. But, she still did what she needed to do. She never hesitated to break up with him when she knew about his affairs. Since they were really not married, even from the beginning of my mother's pregnancy, we all took her surname instead of our father's.

It was a smart move from her. Our father really didn't care. The only thing important to him was that we grew up knowing that he's our father.

"Hugh, c-can you please make a promise to me?" my mother's voice broke upon saying those words. "Please, aalagaan mo ang mga kapatid mo kapag nawala na ang tatay nila, ha? Be there for them, comfort them. They're still young..." nagmamakaawa nitong dagdag.

When our father died, we were the family that was with him. We were the ones who was in his burial.

I can feel my heart aching as I look at my sisters crying. Their eyebrows were furrowed while their whole face was covered with tears.

I swallowed the hard lump inside my throat and firmly held onto their hands. I kept on talking to them, assuring them that everything will be okay.

I was there to support and comfort them. My mother, my two sisters, and my grandparents. But no one was there for me.

I may have not been that close to my father, but I was still human. He was still my father. I was still a son, who lost a father.

My eyes were tightly closed while sitting down inside my dark room. Today's the day my father will be buried. I took in a deep breath as I felt my heart tightening even more.