Beauty with the Beast (Cast a Spell Series #1)

XXII

Her

Nagising ako dahil sa malakas na tawanan sa kung saan. I slowly opened my eyes and saw the sun on the sky, it must've been morning. Tiningnan ko ang upuan kung saan ko huling nakitang natulog si Adam pero wala nang tao roon.

Tawanan ang nagpabaling sa akin sa balkonahe.

I slowly stood and went close to the balcony. Sarado pa ito at ayaw kong makita nila ako kaya kaunti kong binuksan ang kurtinang nakasara para masilip kung bakit sila nagtatawanan sa baba.

I saw Adam chasing Cara. She was giggling as Adam chased her with a host. Basa ang damit ni Adam, siguro'y si Cara ang nauna at gumanti lamang ang lalake. Malakas ang halakhak ni Lumiere habang nakangiti naman si Mrs. Potty. Derobe was cheering for Cara while Cog was smiling at them. They looked happy . . . unlike with me. Where silence was like a peace when Adam and I are in one place because war seemed to be our used to be communication.

Ang saya nila.

Lalo na kapag wala ako.

Bakit ba nandito pa ako? I was just a temporary replacement, right?

Sinarado ko ang kurtina dahil hindi ko gusto ang nakikita ko. I decided to take a bath to wash out all my thoughts and emotion until I heard a knock.

"Arabelle? Gising ka na? Mag-umagahan na kayo." It was Lumiere again.

Hindi ko na siya sinagot, wearing the same usual yellow dress, with just an addition of scarf that covered my neck and a jacket, I opened the door for him.

Just like the usual, hinatid niya ako sa hapagkainan. Malayo pa lang, rinig ko na ang tawanan nila. It was Adam's laugh that made me sigh. I opened the door and when I entered, his laugh dissipated.

What's with the silence? Sige! Tumawa ka! Ano bang kinakatakot mo?

Umayos siya ng upo nang magtama ang tingin namin. Cara was sitting beside him and there's a soup in front of him. A soup. I prefer fried foods. Not soup.

Oh . . . Cara likes soup.

May pagkain nang nakahanda sa katapat na kabisera. Maybe 6 seats apart from me, kung saan lagi akong kumakain dahil magkagalit kami. Now, I hate the distance. The two seemed intimately close together. And I hate it.

Tahimik akong umupo at ibinaba na ang tingin sa sabaw. I inwardly sigh as I force myself to eat even with no appetite.

"Hi, Arabelle! Kumusta tulog mo?" It was Cara who initiated the conversation.

"She slept well. Anyways, how was the soup?" It was Adam, before I could even respond— no, I don't even have a plan to respond.

"It's good! Masarap! Ikaw nagluto?"

And their conversation went on. Like I'm a ghost.

Tahimik akong tumayo nang matapos sa kinakain. Dahil madaldal silang dalawa, hindi pa sila tapos kumain. Cara looked at my plate and up to me.

"Tapos ka na?" She asked politely.

Tanging tango ang sagot ko bago ko sila nilagpasan para makalabas na. Tangina ni Adam, hindi ko siya maintindihan.

Lumiere guided me and told me that we'll go to the beach earlier. Aniya, si Cara raw ang may pakana and she's planning on camping there. Kaya dapat daw maghanda ako ng masusuot dahil walang tao ang maiiwan dito sa bahay. I sighed at that and decided to prepare another  jacket, and a yellow dress. Thankfully, Adam brought me bunch of yellow dresses so I still have plenty. Lumiere even asked me if I have plans on swimming but I refuse because if I swim, the scar on my neck would be visible.