What Lies Between Us (13 Shadow Series: Marcellus Giovanni Kim)

PROLOGUE

"Wala ka bang ambag sa buhay ko at bwesiten lang ako?" tinapon ko ang unan kay Adius. Humagalpak lang ito kaya may nairit ako lalo.

"Lumabas ka nga ng dressing room ko!" sigaw ko sa kaniya.

"Nako, Shobe! Bawasan mo nga ang pagsusungit mo. Nirereto ka lang naman ah!" sabi niya na natatawa.

"Adi—" tumayo na siya hangga't hindi ko pa sinasabi ang buong pangalan niya.

"Okay. I'll leave." tumakbo na ito palabas ng dressing room bago ko pa mabato ang gamit ko sa kaniya.

I stopped frowning when mommy suddenly entered my room. Nakaayos ito at magandang tignan ang suot niya. My personal assistant sat properly as she saw who just came in.

"Mommy" I uttered as she kisses me
on my cheeks. Tinignan niya ang mukha ko, checking if my make up is okay.

"You look good today." she saiid coldly. "I like your make up, who did that?" she. ask, now sitting on the couch.

"Gelee did, my." tanging sagot ko.

"Oh. Your outfit then? How is it? Did you eat today? You know you shouldn't before shoot, para hindi ka bloated, hija." aniya.

Yumuko. I just ate though, dinalhan kasi ako ni Adius ng dalawanng slice ng pizza. I just shook my head to lie at her.

Scarlet Lim. One of the best model in the country, is my one and only mother. Being her daughter... it was more of a pressure. Grabe ang expectations. People think that I must be lucky that she is my mother.

But honestly, it's a curse. Bata pa lang ako ay masa industriya na ako ng pagmomodelo. She wanted me to become like her, so she shaped me up at an early age.

I couldn't blame her. She has a legacy to keep up. And being her descendant. People in this industry expects me to be the next Scarlet Lim.

I had to be perfect always, ofcourae. I am her daughter. I need to be in shape, be in my best skin, and best in everything. Always, always. Of course it's Scarlet Lim,  she wants it perfect.

Nagsimula ang photoshoot at sinalang na ako. It was a summer shoot for a brand. Sa isang resort kami ng La Union, si Adius naman ang kasama ko rito.

Talagang nag pump up pa talaga siya dahil fit ngayon ang katawan niya. I wore a yellow one piece, and he wore a blue shorts. Naka wetlook kaming dalawa at sobrang dikit na dikit sa isa't isa. Mabuti na lang talaga kami at hindi nah iilangan.

"Stop drinking water. You look bloated." sabi ni mommy habang nasa gilid kami para sa water break. Adius was stunned, but being my close friend and comfortable with mommy, he spoke up.

"It's okay tita, they can edit it naman po" he said.

Mabuti na lang at tinawag na ulit kami kaya hindi na nakapagsalita ulit si mama. The shoot lasted for 3 hours, si mommy naman ay nauna na dahil tumatawag na si daddy sa kaniya.

Adius left right after we finished the shoot. May ibang trabaho pa kasi. Ako naman ay bumalik ng hotel para magpahinga, may event pa kask mamaya.

I went back to my hotel to take a nap, ginising lang ako ng P.A ko ng makarating ang wardrobe at make up artist ko.

Naligo na lang ako para fresh bago nila ako ayosan. The theme is in the beach, bale beach night party siya. Pero dahil nanay ko si Scarlet Lim pinadala niya itong team na mag aayos sa akin.

I wore an top that only hugs my chest and paired it with a skirt, may slit pa iyon sa gilid at parang nakatali lang ang style. They fixed my short hair and my bangs. Just enough for my outfit.

"I'll wear flats." sabi ko ng makitang halos ang option ay mga heels. They all nodded and took out of some of their flats. Nang makitang may maayos na flats doon ay yon ang kinuha ko.

They did my make up clean, mas lamang nga lang sa highlighters ngayon para glowing pa din ako. Dala-dala ang Hermes bag ko ay umalis na kami sa hotel ko para tunguhin ang venue.

The venue looks good, pagkarating ko ay mayroon ka agad sumalubong na media sa akin. A big event indeed, tanaw ko ang mga apoy na nag sasayaw sa gitna nga tabing dagat. People were enjoying it!

Nakita ko si Adius, all dressed up. Naging mabilis ang galaw ng coordinator dahil andon na kaming dalawa.

Binigyan nila kami ng mic, kinuha pa ni Hoshi and cellphone niya para mag picture kaming dalawa. I put my arms at my waist and Adius put his arms on my head.

Nang tinawag na kami sa maliit na stage ay naghiyawan ang iilaang bisita. I even saw some of my colleagues there. Kumaway lang ako at si Adius naman ay ang ingay-ingay na agad.

We had a talk on the product itself, nagkaroon din ng kaunting question and answers. We also talked about how we were able to present the product. Wala akong tanong na hindi sinagot.

"Enjoy the party, Adi, Shobe!" Nala, the owner greeted us when we left the stage. Ngumisi ako at yinakap siya.

"Thank you, Nala! For trusting us!" sabi ko.

"Ano ka ba!? You're a great model! Kayong dalawa ni Adius, meron pa nga sana akong isasama sa inyo. But unfortunately, he has a lot on his shoulder!" sabi ni Nala.

"Si Migo ba? Kami lang kasi ang bigatin tatlo ngayon." tumawa si Adius, inirapan ko siya dahil alam kong nag bibiro lang siya.

Migo Kim. He's an international model now. Pero dito pa din siya nag simula, I've heard a lot of good things about him. But I still never met him.

Nala left eventually, ako at si Adi lang ang nasa table namin. May oumupunta ring ibang model, designers or producers para kamustahin kami.

"Look who's behind you" bulong ni Adius sa akin, kaya naman napalingon din ako.

"Andre." I muttered. What the hell is he doing here?

"Your mom told me you're here. Kaya dumiretso ako dito. Good thing, Nala is a friend of mine kaya nakapasok ako agad. Can I sit with you two?" he looked at Adius to get his answer.

"Of course! Excuse me, I have to go to the restroom." tumayo siya at umalis. Tatawagin ko pa sana kaso ang bilis ng lakad niya.

Andre sat beside me. Looking at me intently, nailang tuloy ako. I sip on my wine and took my phone.

"Aren't you really going to speak to me?" tanong niya bigla.

"I'm sorry." binaba ko ang cellphone ko. "But you know my take on you, Andre." I smiled at him, still looking polite.

"It can change, Shob. I can change your feelings towards me. Just let me try." he started to plead now. Napaawang ang labi ko kaya kinuha ko ang cellphone ko.

"I'm sorry. I have someone right now." tumayo ako at umalis na. Tinahak ko ang daan palabas. People were staring at us dahil tinatawag niya ang pangalan ko ng malakas.

"Shiloah! Wait!" habol niya. Binilisan ko ang pag lakad ko, looking at my phone to call my driver pero hindi ko mahanap.

Pero dahil sa pagmamadaki ko ay nabangga ako sa lalaki. My mouth dropped when I saw a guy so handsome, he was in his neat look. Matangos ang ilong at namumula ang kaniyang mga labi. And he smell goods too!

"Shobe!" rinig ko ang tawag ni mommy sa akin. I shut my eyes off and approact the guy's face to kiss him. And then I felt the media clicking their camera at us!

What the hell did I do now?

(PS. Adius was supposed to be portrayed by Hoshi.)