The Divorce

Chapter 100: Iron Tree Blooming

Matagal na nakatulala lang si Samantha kung saan siya napasalampak kanina. Ilang oras na ang lumipas pero hanggang sa mga sandaling iyon ay hindi niya pa rin malaman kung paano niya tatanggapin ang lahat.

Her brain was a blank space—no thoughts, no plans, just hollow stillness that stretched as far as she could imagine. The words she’d overheard from Arem’s lawyer kept echoing in her mind. So they’re just pawns in the game. In their game, disposable if they get in their way.

Samantha felt that her future loomed so bleak she could barely bring herself to face it, let alone reach for it. For months, she’d clung to the hope that things would get better once she’d found her way back to her biological twin sister, that she’d finally have roots to hold onto. But now, with the knowledge that someone might be out to end her life...their life, every step forward felt impossible. Even the sun streaming through her the east seemed dim, as if the world itself was holding its breath for what would come next.

And the thought that Arem might have been with her for his own reasons cut deeper than any threat. She cherished every moment they had shared. The way he was so snobbed before how warm he is now, and how, how he would feel bad if she tired herself for a while, the warmth of his hand in hers every time he holds it. She had let herself believe he saw her—not as a pawn, not a piece in someone else’s game, but just her, being Samantha. The woman who loved to cook, who loved his family wholeheartedly, who loved simple things.

But now every tender gesture felt tainted, every sweet word a possible lie.

If Arem's lawyer subordinate spoke of people as if they were nothing more than dust under their feet, what about Arem himself? Did he see her the same way? Had he been playing a part this whole time, watching her open her heart to him while keeping his own locked away? The thought made Samantha's chest ache so fiercely she had to press her palm against it, as if she could hold the broken pieces of her heart together with sheer will alone.

Since when did they start targeting her and her real family, by blood?

Ni hindi niya nga kilala ang mga ito. Tanging si Samuella lang ang sigurado siya na kapamilya niya talaga.

Samantha pulled her knees to her chest, fingers digging into her skin until she felt the sting of pressure. She fought to steady her breathing, to pull herself together the way she’d always done when things got hard, but the pieces of her resolve kept slipping away like water through her fingers. Tears traced warm paths down her cheeks, and she didn’t bother to wipe them away. When it comes to crying, even though she wanted to control herself, she couldn't do it properly and now it was like the floodgates had opened.

Her tears just wouldn't stop pouring down.

What kind of life was this? She’d dreamed of love that was real and true, started dreaming of building a home filled with warmth and laughter. Instead, she found herself caught in a web of secrets she couldn’t begin to untangle, wondering if the man she’d given her heart to was even capable of caring for anyone but himself.

Sa pangalawang pagkakataon, nagkamali na naman ba siya ng pinagkatiwalaan?

How many more lies would she have to unravel before she found the truth? And if she did find it—if Arem really had been using her all along—could she ever trust anyone again? Hindi na alam pa ni Samantha.

She just want to live a simple, happy life.

★★★★★

Arem paced around the cramped room, trying to shake off the unease that had settled in his chest. The fever that had burned through him just days ago was gone, but the cold knot in his gut felt far worse. Samantha had been gone since dawn, and with every passing minute, the silence of their cramped space pressed down on him like a tomb. His skin prickled with sweat despite the chill seeping through the mold-stained walls; he swore he could feel sickness creeping back into his bones, fed by a tide of anxiety so thick he could barely breathe.