Hearts Unmasked And Unbound

Chapter 35

When It Stopped

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I don't get it.

How can a parent treat their child like this— parang hindi sila 'yung nagbigay ng buhay, ng chance para makita ang kulay ng mundo?

How can they bear to see their own child crying, knowing that it's their own doings?

I bite my lip, trying so hard not to let the tears fall. Pero hindi ko na kaya. The weight of it all... it just feels like it's too much.

I've spent so many years trying to heal from it—trying to bury the pain until it doesn't hurt so much. Pero every time I think I'm finally moving forward, I get dragged back into it—parang may parte pa ng ako na nakatali doon sa mga kalokohang iyon.

And maybe it is. Maybe it always will be.

I sit in silence, my thoughts are heavy, para akong tinatamaan ng ilang toneladang bato.

My phone buzzes again in my pocket. I don't even bother checking it.

Not yet.

I don't need another reminder that the world is still moving, while I'm stuck in this damn loop.

I stare at the floor, trying to push away the gnawing feeling in my chest. But then it buzzes again. Harder this time.

I exhale sharply, frustrated. But this time, it doesn't stop. It's like the phone knows I'm avoiding it.

With a sigh, I finally pull it out of my pocket, the screen lighting up with an unfamiliar name. My hesrt sinks. Hindi ko rin alam why. It just did.

I swipe the screen anyway.

"Hello?" I answered right away, my voice tight, irritated.

"Soul..."

It's Leo.

His voice... it's not the usual calm, confident tone. This time, there's something different. Something off.

It... it scares me.

Maybe he's just worried about where the hell I've been.

Maybe that's all this is. I hope it's just that.

Sana yun nalang yung rason.

But then, his voice cracks. "Si Kyan..."

That name. It's like a jolt of electricity straight to my chest.

Kyan. My mind races. Shit.

"I'll send you the location."

I found myself sitting in the back of the taxi, my hands clenched so tightly that my knuckles were white.

The city lights blurred past me, but I barely noticed, my mind racing with a thousand thoughts. What the hell happened to Kyan?

Why didn't Leo tell me more? Was he hurt? Was he—fuck, I couldn't even go there.

The air inside the taxi felt suffocating, the silence deafening. I kept checking my phone, but there were no new messages, no answers to the questions that were eating me alive.

Every minute that passed felt like an eternity.

The taxi finally stopped with a screech of brakes. My heart lurched. Why here?

I blinked at the sign. The word "HOSPITAL" loomed in front of me like a nightmare coming to life. My stomach twisted, a cold sweat breaking out across my skin.

I didn't even wait for the driver to finish parking. I threw the door open and rushed out, my legs almost giving way beneath me.

"What the hell? Kyan..."