You Again, Professor [GL• #2]

CHAPTER 37.2

Isabelle Lavina Valencia Lopez POV
[Her back story]

I fought hard for the case of whoever was responsible for what happened to North. Wala akong sinayang na oras, because all I wanted was to bring justice for her, kahit saan pa man kami abutin ay ipaglalaban ko siya. And during those days, I carried the pain and longing for her wherever I went.  Bawat sulok ng lugar na dinaanan ko ay nakikita ko siya.

I miss her so much to the point na nagha-hallucinate na ako, iniisip ko ay buhay pa rin siya at nakikita ko pa rin siya sa bawat umaga at gabi bago ako matulog

I really did lose myself the moment she died; half of me died with her. Hindi ko na alam kung anong purpose ko sa mundo? I have everything but her, siya lang ang bumubuo sa akin.

There was never a day that when I woke up without looking for her, hinihiling ko na sa bawat umaga na 'yon, mahahawakan ko siya, mahahalikan, at nararamdaman ang presensya niya, but that's too impossible to happen.

As the days passed, I missed her even more. I couldn't focus on work, so I decided to take a break from everything. I felt like I wasn’t doing anything right, and my family was really worried about me.  Tanggap lang ako ng tanggap ng trabaho, pero hindi ko 'yon magawang tapusin. She's always been on my mind, at kung minsan ay bigla na lang akong iiyak sa harap ng blueprint kaya I always ended up ruining my work.

Every single day, I always visited the cemetery, and sometimes, I even fell asleep in her grave. I was drowning in depression, and I didn’t know what to do. I felt like I was losing my mind, my own self, that's why I continued seeing my psychiatrist, hoping to find a way to cope with everything. 

My older brother, Isaac, helped me with North’s case. We couldn’t go to that senator for help because we believed he was involved. Instead, we had him investigated. After gathering all the evidence we needed, we finally filed the case against him. We were determined to win, so I searched for the best lawyer in the Philippines. But unfortunately, Attorney Ignacio Khailson Sanchez was on their side.

We have been attending the hearings for months, but even though we have the strongest evidence to prove that the senator is guilty, it feels like something—or someone—which I highly doubt was North's own father. He was stopping the people we thought were on our side. He was like the  force working against us, making it harder to get the justice we are fighting for. To make things even worse, Attorney Sanchez is an excellent lawyer. He knows exactly how to twist things in their favor, making our battle even more difficult.

Pakiramdam ko dinudurog ang puso ko sa bawat pasok ko sa courtroom. It feels like everything I’m fighting for—everything I’m doing for North—means nothing. Na para bang ang lahat ng efforts ko, all the pain I’ve endured, and all the justice I’m trying to seek are just being ignored, like they don’t even matter. Mas masakit pa sa akin ay parang walang pag-asa na manalo kami.

The senator pleaded not guilty. 

Parang nadurog ng sampung libong beses ang puso ko. As soon as the verdict was announced, the senator’s supporters inside the courtroom started cheering. Ang iba pa nga sa kanila ay pumalakpak, while the others smiled and shook hands as if they had already won. I could hear their whispers of relief and victory, and it made me sick. 

"Congratulations, senator!"

"Inosente ka talaga, senator!"

"You did great, Attorney Ignacio!"

Hinding hindi ko rin makakalimutan kung paano ngumiti sa akin ang senator na 'yun pati ang attorney niyang binayaran ang katotohanan. How could he defend the own criminal?