I'm Yours to Keep

Chapter 25

"You were locked inside. How exactly did you end up in that truck?"

I sighed. My fears about that night were long gone but everytime I try to look back; all I feel is anger. Because no matter how much you try to be kind, there will be people who will hurt you, and worse, you will never know why.

"Kinulong ako do'n ng kalaro ko noon."

They all stiffened and that includes Xander. He's young, but I can see that he's a keen observer. Wala pa silang masabi kaya nagpatuloy ako sa pagsasalita. "Maybe it's just a prank, or he really wanted me gone, I'd never know."

"Have you not seen him again, Ate?"

Bumaling ako kay Hannah at tipid na ngumiti. "When my adopted parents took me back in the orphanage, he's gone."

"I'm sorry, Care." Carol looked at me, guilt evident in her eyes. Yeah, you should be.

"Nangyari na, wala na tayong magagawa..." Nagkibit-balikat ako at pare-pareho na naman silang natahimik.

Then Alexander cleared his throat. "Now that you're here, there's no way we will let you suffer again."

Pinilit kong ngumiti at iniba ang usapan. "What do you do for a living?"

"I own a BPO company, and I'm a shareholder in Del Cielo."

"What?"

He glanced at Carol and smiled. "When we knew that you're in Del Cielo, it was your mom's idea to talk to the school's president. We convinced him to open part-time jobs to help the struggling students in the campus, and that includes you."

Hindi ko alam kung anong dapat kong sabihin. Should I be thankful? That they made a few things easier for me? O magmumukha akong inggrata kung sabihin kong mas gusto ko sanang nagpakita sila kaysa nanood lang sa malayo.

Carol sighed. "I'm sorry if it took you so many years to have a complete family. We were just too scared to face you, but we are watching after you all this time."

I smirked. "Too scared? You want to talk about being scared? A childhood friend of mine locked me up in a truck, my adopted father beat the hell out of me and the only one I have is my brother that I needed to take care of. All of that happened to a girl who's not even a teenager yet, so can we stop talking about fears as if mine never mattered?"

They all fell silent kaya nilingon ko si Xander. He gave me a reassuring smile. "I won't talk about fears."

My jaw dropped when I saw how understanding he is. I smiled back at him and picked up my purse. Lumingon ako sa paligid at saka bumaling kay Carol. "You have a nice place. Thank you for inviting me over. I have to go home."

Tumayo na ako at ganoon din siya. She gently held my arm and smiled at me. "But this is your home, Care."

"Honey, let's give her some time," Alexander interrupted.

Nilingon ko silang lahat bago naglakad paalis. My ached in every minute that I was there. They were complete and they had each other through all these years, habang ako, naghirap nang mag-isa. Pagbukas ko sa garahe, nakaabang na ang driver na naghatid sa 'kin kanina. "Ihahatid na kita, Ma'am."

Nang makauwi ako sa apartment ko, natanaw ko agad ang bukas na ilaw mula sa bintana. I entered the code to unlock the door. Then there was Miguel, sitting comfortably on the couch while the TV's on at nag-aabang sa 'kin. "So?"

I shrugged. "Hindi ko kinaya."

"Why?"

I sat beside him and removed my pumps. "It's too sudden... Everything is too sudden."