Love Next Door

1 - Moving In and On

MIKA

I woke up to the sound of a vehicle and my landlady's commands and so I decided to check what's going on outside.

"O, good morning, hija! Pasensya ka na ah, nagising ka ba namin?", she asked.

"It's alright, Tita Mia. Ano pong meron? May titira na po ba sa Unit 2?", I asked after seeing the big boxes all over our the place.

"Yes dear, you're going to have a neighbor. Isn't that amazing?", she responded with much enthusiasm.

Well, as long as that person won't be a nuisance.

"Uhm Tita, confirm ko lang po, mag-isa rin lang siya?"

"Yes. According to him, he needed quite a large space kaya nag-go siya for this."

I nodded my head in agreement. Malaki naman talaga itong townhouse especially for a single person. Pinili ko lang ito dahil malapit sa school ko. And yeah, with the help of Tita Mia, my mom's friend.

It's been three years since I decided to move out to live independently. But the memories seemed just like yesterday.

--- Flashback ---

"You're better off without him.", Mama said while rubbing my back as I kept on crying.

My boyfriend for almost a year broke up with me a week before graduation. We were nowhere from falling apart. At least that's what I thought. Pero asan ako ngayon?

Eto, wasak. Ni hindi ko man lang magawang matuwa na gagraduate na ako.

Ipinaglaban ko siya sa mga magulang ko, sa mga kaibigan ko, tapos ano? Sasabihin niya lang na pagod na siya? Ganun na lang ba yon? Kapag napagod ka, bibitaw ka na lang bigla?

Ang sakit.

And honestly, my parents aren't helping. Alam ko namang pinilit lang nilang pakisamahan siya.

"Mika. You're graduating in a week. Pinagbigyan ka na namin sa gusto mo. Even with your relationship.", my father began.

"Pa, not now.", pigil sa kanya ni Mama.

He shook his head.

"Now's the best time. Kung nandito siguro Kuya mo, we'll let you do whatever. But he's not. And Nathan is only three. That's why we need you to know the in and out of our business.", Papa said firmly.

I'm blessed to be given everything I've ever wanted because of my parents' hard work in the real estate industry. But it was never easy living up to their expectations. All my life, I strived to be the best daughter even as I tried to chase my childhood dream.

I wanted to be a doctor. I took up Psychology in college and pumayag naman ang mga magulang ko since Kuya was still with us during that time. Things changed a year after when he moved out of the house. Ipinasa sa akin lahat ng expectations sa kanya. And I had to take extra business classes after school since I didn't want to shift.

"Pa, paano kung... Paano po kung hindi ko kayanin?", I asked nervously.

"The only person hindering you is yourself, Mika. And do you think pababayaan ka naming mag-isa?"

--- End of Flashback ---

The solution they thought of sounded really absurd to me. Taking over the business, kakayanin ko pang lunukin.