✓ | REBIRTH OF THE REBEL [Book One]

CHAPTER 19

[ CHAPTER 19 ]

LATISHA VALENTINE

We were left dumbfounded in front of the main entrance after witnessing the Duke's unexplained tantrum. Sa sobra kong pagkalito sa kinikilos niya ay hindi ko maigalaw ang mga paa ko para sundan sana ito. Erwan and Sir Hasan didn't leave and we didn't move our gaze towards the entrance where we saw Roshan left.

"Ang drama niya no?" Narinig ko ang pangungutya ni Erwan sa amo niya at nang gawaran ko siya ng tingin ay nag-peace sign lamang ito. "Ipatingin kaya natin ang Duke sa isang doktor na dalubhasa sa paggamot sa isip—— aray!"

Sir Hasan punched the back of Erwan's head. I want to congratulate him for doing that because I was actually aiming to hit Erwan too. "You should not speak ill about the Duke behind his back because karma will seek you eventually," Sir Hasan said.

Napakamot na lamang si Erwan sa kanyang batok habang napangiwi. "Hindi mo rin naman naiintindihan ang Duke nitong mga nagdaan na linggo, Hasan. Naalala mo na pumunta kayo sa Jade Falls ng walang dahilan, tapos pagkarating niyo do'n, nakatunganga lang siya sa tubig."

Pumantig naman ang tainga ko sa sinabi niya. Sir Hasan was about to reprimand Erwan about his loose mouth when I raised my hand to stop him. Tinutok ko ang aking atensyon kay Sir Hasan. "Kailan kayo pumunta sa Jade Falls?" nagtatakang tanong ko rito.

"It was the night when the Duke and the Knights arrived from the south, your grace," agad na sagot niya sa akin.

"Pagkatapos mo siyang asikasuhin, umalis sila." Napako naman ang aking tingin kay Erwan ng magsalita siya. "Hindi ako sumama dahil walang maiiwan dito, pero balita ko wala naman daw siyang ginawa roon at nagpalamok lamang sa harap ng talon."

Bahagyang napakunot lamang ang aking noo sa naririnig ko. I know Roshan likes going out at night because the whole place will be dark and silent. It's his favorite time of the day, and he came back before sunrise to be cold and unapproachable. But, this is the first time I heard that he didn't do anything and just stared into the water for that long.

Kumabog ng malakas ang dibdib ko. I excused myself from them and they just let me leave. Sinundan ko ang daan na nilandas ni Roshan at nagbabakasakali na maabutan ko pa siya bago niya maisipan na naman na umalis. He is a complex entity with a very good imperious facade. Mahirap talagang intindihin ang lalaki ito dahil paiba-iba ang daloy ng utak niya.

I pulled the lever and pushed the door of his office. Napahinga ako ng maluwag nang makita ko siyang nakaupo sa harap ng mesa. I marched my way towards his direction and stopped only when the edge of the table hit my clothes.

"Can you explain why I can't sell my own paintings?" agad na tanong ko sa kanya. He was looking through a document and my lips parted when I noticed it was the divorce papers. Binigay ko sa kanya 'yan noong nakaraang linggo dahil sa galit ko.

I tucked my lips inside my mouth because I signed those papers myself. If he will sign that, then we can deliver it to the Capital and let the Royal Hall investigate the matters before they will inform the Emperor. It usually takes months to be able to process the divorce because the Royal Hall has a lot of attendings to do from every territory.

"Kung iniisip mo na ginagawa ko ito para sa pag-alis ko dahil wala naman akong madadalang pera kapag naghiwalay tayo, mali ang iniisip mo," seryosong sabi ko sa kanya kahit nararamdaman ko na ang panlalambot ng tuhod ko. "My paintings will only rot in the gallery room as time goes by. Also, it accumulates too much space. Gusto ko sanang gawing extended closet ni Annika ang kwartong 'yon dahil malapit ito sa silid niya."

My palms crumpled into a fist when he didn't speak any words and just looked at the papers. Because of this, I feel guilty for every action I have made since then. Bakit kasi ang hilig niyang tumahimik at ang hilig kong mag-overthink? Kung magsasalita sana siya, mapapanatag ang kalooban ko.