Makulimlim ang araw sa bayan ng Bamban, at sa pag-tangis ng ulap na nakapalibot sa bulubundukin ng Tarlac, ay siyang sabay sa pag-hikbi ng alkalde. Ilang araw na ang nakalipas matapos ang ikalawang pagdinig. Aaminin niya na hindi niya dapat sinabi na interesado siya sa isang partikular na senador.
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Alice rolled her eyes at the comments and continued to do her paperwork. She’s currently approving the projects to be conducted for the upcoming Pride Month. It was paused however, when she was called by her father, Jian Zhong Guo.
“Hello pa?” Alice said
“我教了你一辈子普通话，你却用傻瓜话接电话。你是个失败者。” (I've been teaching you mandarin all your life and yet you answer the phone with the fool's language. You're a failure.)
“我很抱歉” (I’m very sorry) Alice replied, tears threatening to fall from her father’s snide comments.
“你妈妈和我会逃离这个国家。Gatchalian 那个混蛋突然知道了你母亲温意的事。” (Your mother and I will escape the country. That bastard Gatchalian suddenly knew about your mother, Wen Yi.)
“什么？什么时候？” (What? When?)
“很快” (Soon) He said courtly. “现在就去解决你造成的烂摊子吧！你只是个失败者，你要做的就是保护生意！愚蠢的！” (Now go fix that shit mess you created! You're nothing but a failure, all you have to do is to protect the business! Stupid!)
Alice couldn’t help but sigh as she feebly replies “是的，爸爸。” (Yes, father.)
“Ayusin mo ‘tong ginawa mo Guo Huaping. Hindi nila tayo tutulungan.”
Her heart beats faster after her father mentioned them. She’ll be dead if these people get revealed.
“Opo. Lilinisin ko po ang pangalan ko at ang sa inyo.” Sabi naman niya bago ito binabaan ng kaniyang ama.
Gustong gusto niya na ang umiyak, pero hindi pa pwede.
May a-attendan pa kasi siya na graduation kasama ang "boyfriend" niya.
(A/N: I used Google Translate for the Chinese translations, I'm so sorry 😭)
𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟
Alice puts on a dress that perfectly compliments her. It was a simple black dress that can be tied up in the back. Her hair was in a simple half ponytail with wispy bangs to capture her face.
She sat near the mayor of Sual, Pangasinan, Dong Calugay who was going to attend his nephew’s graduation. Students filled the area of the graduation ceremony, as well as the proud parents who’s waiting for their children to be called.
Becoming a student of Tarlac State University was something she had always dreamed of. As her father denied her of proper education, she was isolated—learning from her mother since she was a toddler until high school. She was even taught by her father to speak in Mandarin and Hokkien.
Mayaman ang tatay niya, hindi iyon maipagkakaila. Nakatulong din sa kanila ang pagkakaroon ng koneksyon sa gobyerno, at ang kanilang “negosyo”. Ang mga bagay na kailangan at hinihiling ni Guo ay palaging naibibigay, ngunit sa kabila ng mga yaman na kaniyang pagmamay-ari, isa lang ang kaniyang hiling; magkaroon ng normal na buhay.
A life where she was free to run around her neighborhood as a child, to have her first social media account at 13 years old, to love someone, to have her own choice, to be someone who doesn’t have to lie in order to protect other’s lives.
“Okay ka lang?” Mayor Calugay asked her companion.
“Oo naman” Alice replied, snapping her out of her dream “Ikaw ba, okay ka lang?”
“Syempre naman. Ang saya ko ngayon sa totoo lang.”
“Kasi grumaduate na pamangkin mo?”
Calugay smiled, “Oo. Saka dahil katabi kita ngayon” A pause. And the both of them laughed, “Charot, ‘di tayo talo.”
Alice just laughed at her best friend’s comments. Not a moment later, the program finally started; and when it was time to introduce the guest speaker her eyes widened.
Ana Theresia Hontiveros.
“Ikaw na naman.” Alice said to her mind, annoyed to see the older woman. “Pero ang ganda niya. Kainis.”
Their eyes met, and she shivered at the way Risa stared at her. The older woman smirked as if a brilliant idea just crossed her mind.
“Meron na ba kayong mga Birth Certificate?” Risa mockingly asked, at nagsipag-tawanan naman ang mga estudyante. “O di niyo pa po alam, your honor?”
(A/N: Risa Hontiveros did attend a university as a guest speaker recently, but it was in the Lewis College in Sorsogon. But for the sake of the plot, let’s pretend it was on Tarlac State University)
𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟
Hours had passed and it was finally time to go home. In the parking lot, she met a familiar face. Risa Hontiveros thought of approaching her.
Isang aktibistang Filipino-Chinese ang pumuna sa senado, na tila ba ang pag gawang pagi-imbestiga sa alkalde ng Bamban, Tarlac ay isang “Zarzuela”. Pagdidiin niya na ang kanilang imbestigasyon ay isang atake sa mga Filipino-Chinese citizens; sinophobia.
Of course, Risa defended the senate stating that it was nothing close to sinophobia— as she herself has Chinese blood (her maternal great-grandmother was pure Chinese.)
Naisip niya na kung siguro ay kung kakausapin niya ang mayora, mapapabulaan ang mga paratang sa kaniya. At maiisabuhay na din ang plano nila ni Senadora Legarda…
Huwag na lang kaya?
“Mayor Alice, how nice seeing you again.”
Huwag na nga sabi.
“Mabuti naman po.Kamusta din po kayo your honor?”
Eh di wow.
“Doing good. Ay by the way, gusto mo mag-dinner with me?”
Ang kulit, sabi ngang huwag.
“Kasama po sino?”
Ha???
“Actually, tayong dalawa lang. Dapat talaga kasama ko si Atty. Robredo pero unavailable siya today. Sayang naman yung binook kong dinner kung walang kasama ‘di ba?”
Sorry Lens, nadamay ka pa.
“Ah, haha oo nga po…”
Jusko?
“Tara?”
Ayoko na. Sa'n kaya may San Mig Light ngayon?
“Sige po.”
Punyeta. Sambit ng senador sa sarili. Punyeta. The mayor said to herself.
