Hudunnit Series

Chapter 12

chapter twelve

HE HAD ONE RULE ABOUT DATING. AT THE FIRST SIGN OF TROUBLE, LEAVE. Easier said than done and it took self-discipline to a whole new level so he lived by it. No ifs and buts.

His dating history was a disaster. There was Christine, of course. Pero totoo kay Cade ang kasabihang, 'history repeats itself.' Pagkatapos kay Christine, hindi pa agad siya nadala. He kept falling for manipulative, selfish and sometimes even viscious women. Iyong mga narcissists.

After being gaslighted countless times, he had enough.

Learn to say no. Let her hate you. Payo iyon kay Cade ng psychiatrist ni Angela noon patungkol sa parenting. Isang bagay na mahirap rin gawin, lalo na ng magulang na kagaya niyang maraming guilt, kagaya ng, hindi niya nabigyan ng buong pamilya ang anak at hindi niya ito mabigyan ng sapat na oras at atensyon. Kaya dinadaan niya sa regalo at suhol ang anak. Kapag may hiningi, ibinibigay agad niya. Takot na takot siyang masumbatan at kamuhian ni Angela.

He was too lenient, too giving. BInabali niya ang sariling rules kapag nagliligalig na si Angela. Iyon daw ang dahilan ng attitude problem ng bata. Kung patuloy na babaliin ni Cade ang mga rules niya sa bahay, Angela would never learn to respect and obey authority.

So Cade tried to be firm. At some point he realized, he should apply the same advice to his personal life. Kahit anong sumbat pa ang ibato sa kanya ng babae, kapag alam niyang wala naman talaga siyang kasalanan, hindi na niya sinusuyo. Kapag naghamon ng breakup, hinahayaan niya. He refused to be blackmailed emotionally anymore.

Goodbye, Geraldine.

Mas nagtagumpay siyang pairalin ang prinsipyong iyon sa personal na buhay kaysa pagiging ama. With Angela, he was still trying and she was still misbehaving. Pero lately, laging maganda ang mood nI Angela. Imbes na morose o kaya ay cranky, lagi itong masigla, excited, bungisngis nang bungisngis.

Napraning pa si Cade. Hindi kaya adik na si Angela? May bagong boyfriend? Lahat nang negatibo, pumapasok na sa isip niya. His browser history read: SIGNS YOUR TEENAGER IS DOING DRUGS; EFFECTS OF CANNABIS; FORMS OF ECSTASY--images. And so on.

Nang iabot sa kanya ni Angela kani-kanina lang ang parental waiver, he realized his fears were unfounded. He was initially relieved. Alam na niya ang dahilan ng magandang mood ni Angela.

Hindi ito simpleng excited lang. His daughter was enthustiastic. Noon lang niya nakita ang ganoong klaseng enthusiasm kay Angela. The waiver said, he, parent/guardian was allowing-not allowing his daughter to participate in the annual creative writing conference.....

"I got the last slot allotted to Hillcrest." Buhay na buhay ang mga mata ni Angela sa tuwa. Gustong maiyak ni Cade. Dama niya many times over ang kaligayahan ng anak. "Each school kase is allowed at least three participants, so everyone who's interested was asked to submit a short story to the committee. Dad, I almost missed it. I had like , two days to write something and I couldn't think of anything and Miss G said, go write about a dog or something cos she's getting irritated, I was really crying cos I really want to join but I'm really terrified, Dad--"

"It's her idea?" Tanong ni Cade.

"Yeah. She asked me if I want to join, she explained the rules--"

Napalitan ng inis ang relief ni Cade. Hindi niya sinasagot ang mga tawag ni Geraldine noong Sabado ng gabi at Linggo. Hindi rin siya nagre-reply sa apology message nito. He simply didn't want anything more to do with her.