The Moon Knows How to Play

Chapter 12

Chapter 12

The phone was warm against my ear, but it wasn't the heat of the device that unsettled me. It was her voice.

"Are you sure about what you're going to do?" Elunar's tone trembled like a harp string plucked too tight.

Her question echoed in my skull long after the line went quiet. Three days had passed since the wedding-that-wasn't-three days since Eclips stood in a white gown, beaming, and I tore the entire illusion apart with a few words. Three days since the crowd gasped, the bishop faltered, and the town erupted into whispers.

Now, even the air in our small province felt different. Every step I took, every corner I turned, I felt their eyes. Some looked at me with pity. Some with disgust. Some with morbid curiosity. Thunder, the notorious womanizer, had outdone himself—breaking a bride at the altar.

But none of them knew the truth. None of them knew what Eclips had done.

I closed my eyes. I remembered the day before, Mama's voice shrieking, hands flapping like wings about to take off.

"Bullshit, all saints of horrors and saints—what a shameless bitch that Eclips is! Do you want us to file a lawsuit? She drugged you, right? That could be rape! Oh fucking crispy pata, my son was raped!"

She clung to Papa as though he were the only anchor keeping her from tearing through the ceiling. Papa, calm as stone, just looked at me with a steady, heavy gaze.

"Just tell us, Thunder," he said. "We'll hire the best lawyer in the country if that's what you want."

My throat tightened. I'd rehearsed the answer, but it still came out heavy, reluctant. "There's no need. What's done is done. I've forgiven her. She's learned her lesson."

Mama gasped as though I'd slapped her. "Leche! So you'll just let her get away after raping you?" Her eyes bulged, and her voice dropped theatrically. "Macaroni que horror! Speaking of macaroni, I bought fruit cocktail, pasta, condensed milk, and Nestlé cream!"

I pinched my nose. "Ma, please calm down. Just let me decide."

Papa leaned forward, silent but listening.

"Fine," Mama pouted like a child denied candy. "Talk some sense to your pornstar son, Hernandes."

Papa finally nodded. "If that's your decision, hijo, we'll respect it. But if you change your mind, tell us. We'll be here."

The memory blurred as Elunar's voice called me back into the present. "Hello?"

I pressed the phone tighter against my ear, exhaling. "Yes. I'm sure."

There was a pause. Then her voice softened, colored with a smile I couldn't see but could hear. "Okay."

Relief washed through me.

"See you tonight, okay?" I whispered.

"I love you, Thunder..."

The words melted something inside me. Without thinking, I grinned. "I love you too, baby."

"After dinner," she added, hesitation threading her voice, "I have something to tell you."

My brows furrowed. "What is it?"

She only laughed, soft, almost nervous. "Secret for now."

I let her go after that. Hung up. Stared at the phone for too long before finally moving.

The day dragged until dusk. By the time I saddled Kidlat and ran him through the cornfields, the sun was already kissing the horizon. Sweat stung my back. Dust clung to my skin. But it wasn't the harvest I was thinking of—it was the dinner, the truth Elunar wanted to confess, and the storm Eclips would no doubt bring into the room.