Instant Connection

She doesn't deserve that

Jennie

Lisa's home is not that big. If I compare it, my bathroom is bigger than her home, but I can see how organized she is. The place looks so clean and homey.

"Unnie, I'm sorry I don't have a chair or sofa to offer you, but you can sit in my sofa bed. Wait. Let me fix it real quick." She humbly offers.

She gets something from the plastic container with clothes, I think, and get a white sheet.

She's now fixing the bed or the sofa or whatever. Ah, I see. She used the sheet to cover the sofa bed.

"Unnie here, I'll just fix my things as quickly as I can so you won't be late in meeting your boyfriend." I sit on the sofa bed, and I'm glad that it's comfortable enough. It means she's comfortable when sleeping.

I don't know why I suddenly care for that. I shook my head a little to erase that from my head.

"How long have you been staying here?" I asked. She changed her position now, facing me while she fixed her clothes.

There she is again. That God damn pout.

"Uhm, more than 4 years. Since I left the orphan. This is the place they get for me, and they handled 1st six months' rent to give me ample time to pay for the 7th month." She smiles that and focuses on her clothes again.

I wasn't able to react. This is such a revelation for me because she doesn't look like an orphan. She got nice dresses, well mannered lady even though we always tease or mock each other.

"It's nice that the orphanage got you this place. You've been living alone since then?" I asked again. I have this feeling that I wanted to know her more, her background. I am her wife. I think I needed to know that, at least. Yup, right just for my safety, nothing else. Not that I care for her, I care for myself. That's it.

"Yes! My life routine is going to school, straight to my workplace, and going home. I wanted to have some pets, but their too pricey. I sometimes look outside to see some cats in the streets, but I found nothing." She giggled after that. I felt my heart thump after I heard her giggle.

I cleared my throat to ask more. "Ehem, where is your school and your workplace?"

"My school is at DLSU, Unnie. I'm a scholar there." She boastly say, I smirked. "Then I have a smart little wife." I said, smiling at her.

"Ahuh, you're lucky." She jokingly answered. She then continued. "My workplace is the meeting place last week, where we first met."

Oh! So she works there. Is see. I'm still wondering why she agreed to marry me. I don't feel that she's after the money. She's a scholar and she's working. My thoughts are interrupted when she spoke, ''I'm almost done here, Unnie. I'll just get my 3 pairs of footwear, and then we're ready to go."

"Take your time, Lisa." I said she turned to me and smiled. After a couple of minutes. We heard a knock.

(Lisa, I heard that you're moving out today! Why? You paid your last month, how about the 2 last weeks? I told you, just give me a kiss and I won't ask any rent from you. Open this door.)

What the hell! I thought my neck would be broken the way I turned my head to Lisa. She's avoiding my gaze. "Lisa, what the hell was that about?" The man is still knocking, eventually leaving.

"He always likes that, Unnie. I never open my door whenever he's there. He wants to do something to me." She mumbled, and if I'm not mistaken, I could hear. Her voice cracked a little.

"Why are you still staying here?" I scolded her unintentionally. She looked at me. I could see her eyes were red. "Unnie, I've been looking for a place since he's started being like that to me. But, but I can't find a place it's either there's no vacant or the rent is too high for me."

I heavily sigh. "How long has he been doing these remarks?" She fidgety answered, "ahm, 2 weeks, I think. Unnie, don't worry. I doubled my lock, that's why he never succeeded." She smiled after.

"Is this the reason why you agreed to marry me?" I asked without thinking that I may hurt her feelings.

She looked at me sadly. "Is that what you think? Because no Unnie, it's never my intention to use anyone else about my problem. I'm a... I'm the payment of my parents' debt."

A what now! Hell no! I thought? Did I misinterpret my dad? I cleared my throat and told her, "No, I didn't mean it like that, Lisa. Wrong choice of word. I'm sorry."

She answered me. "That's okay."

But I can still feel that she is still sad. I'm stupid. You can't control your mouth, Ruby Jane. I looked at her, and she's not bubbly as she was earlier. "I'm ready with my things. Let's go?" She said.

"Alright." I'm bout to get one of the bags to help her, but she refused and motioned me to walk.

I looked at her again, and she's only looking on the floor.

I sigh and walk towards the door.