Flowing Through Pages

Chapter 1

Chapter 1.

Cute

"Why don't you show Yael around, Kalliope?" si Grandpa.

I paused. Katatapos lang namin kumain at ngayon ay gusto niya na ako paalisin sa hapag. I don't want to complain, so I nodded and drank my water while looking at Yael, who seemed to be waiting for me to move.

I stood up. "If you may excuse us."

"Go on, enjoy!" si Mrs. Clark na nakangiti sa amin.

She seems to be enjoying this the most.

Nahagip ng mata ko ang dalawa kong pinsang nakatingin sa akin ng may halong pagaalala. Tipid ko lang silang nginitian.

Geez, they worry too much.

Yael followed me until we arrived at the garden. Naglalakad lang kami at walang nag sasalita. I have no idea what to say since I've never talked to a guy who's not part of the family.

I'm not talkative either.

I noticed his footsteps abruptly stop, prompting me to turn toward him. He was staring at the stars with his hands on his pockets.

I stared at him, waiting for him to say anything. Halos naririnig ko na ang mga kuliglig at hampas ng hangin dahil sa sobrang tahimik.

Is he going to say something or not?

Naghintay ako ng ilang minuto ngunit hindi siya nag salita. Nagkibit balikat ako.

Hm, I guess not—

"Why?" he uttered, his voice breaking the silence.

My eyes widened. Nagulat ako sa bigla niyang pagsalita. Why did he speak so suddenly?!

Nakatingin pa rin siya sa kalangitan. Mukhang inaantay ang aking sagot. I cleared my throat and breathed deeply. Umaktong parang hindi nagulat.

"Why?" kunot noong tanong ko.

This time, he lowered his gaze to meet my eyes. A wind began to blow, making his hair flow with it.

"Why did you agree to this?"

Napakurap-kurap ako. So that's all he's going to ask? I thought it was something serious. Huminga ako ng malalim at sandaling nag-isip. Kinokolekta ang tamang sagot.

"It was our fate," ang tanging nasagot ko.

His brows knitted. "What do you mean?"

I smiled faintly. "It's our tradition, you see, to have arranged marriages. I can't disobey it. . . though someone did," binulong ko ang huli kong sinabi.

I began walking, and it seemed he started following as I heard his footsteps behind me. Nang mahanap ko ang bench ay umupo ako roon. Tumabi siya sa akin ngunit may kaunting espasyo sa aming pagitan.

"What about you?"

He looks taken aback by my sudden question. Sandali siyang nag isip bago sumagot. "To obtain my family's business."

I just nodded.

Family business, huh? He must be a workaholic to agree to this.

We fell into silence, gazing at the moon shining brightly above us. The only sounds were the gentle rustle of the wind and the distant chirping of crickets. Nagulat ako ng may bigla siyang pinatong sa balikat ko. I looked at it with confusion.

Oh, it's his coat. It's windy, so he might think I'm cold.

I took a quick glance at him. "Thanks."

"Hm," maikling sagot niya.