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Despite all my efforts — medication, therapy, and creating a safe space — she remains distant, a wall I can't seem to penetrate. Unresponsive to my attempts to connect, she finds solace only in her daily journaling.It feels like there is nothing I do can reach her. Though there are some circumstances that she makes me feel like there are some points that I can intervene, she ultimately retreats behind a wall of silence. Perhaps the answers I seek are lost within the emptiness of Volterra's halls, along with her.
— Dr. Sanneah G. Quirrero Casebook della Clinica Privata e dell'Asilo di Volterra, 19 Dicembre 2004*
1
𝚂𝚎𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛 𝟷𝟸, 𝟸00𝟸
FEAR IS the greatest liar. It is treacherously characterized by an unscrupulous control of mirages, inducing its victim to take a bite of the nightmare it made from dread and horror, sprinkling it with tidbits of sanity to balance its taste. It won't blink an eye as it offers deception, satiating itself from the burning pain it earns. It may provide options, but all are choices in attempt to lure its prey, to be driven into a corner—trapped and helpless.
Fears are dressed as the poignant taste of reality, but when stripped naked, they cower and sink back, drifting away just like a fleeting moment. And all that remains are the scars. The scars that she would lick every time as she endures the healing process.
"You should have rejected her invitation! At ngayon mo pa lang talaga sinabi kung hindi kita nahuling nagbibihis diyan?!"
It's been four days since Juliet received the invitation and she has been deliberating on what should be her course of action since then. Hindi na siya nahuli pa ng kakambal nang makabalik ito sa sasakyan dahil wala na ito sa tamang ulirat. Pagkatapak pa lang nila sa kanilang salas ay diretso bagsak na ang huli sa sahig na kailangan pa niyang gisingin ng ilang beses para sana alalayin patungo sa kwarto nito ngunit mas pinili nitong isiksik ang sarili sa sofa. Sa mga sumunod na araw naman ay naging abala na ang kapatid sa trabaho. Kung tutuusin, kakauwi pa nga lang nito pagkatapos nitong tumira na sa ospital upang mapunan ang mga naiwang trabaho nang ito ay magleave para masamahan siya.
Juliet did not even have the time to utter a reply when Julien lets out a scoff. "Wait, don't tell me, hindi pa nakapagsabi ang anak 'non na wala na kayo?"
She flinches, feeling the knots in her stomach twist in trepidation. She wants to defend herself, but she cannot deny the accusation as she thought the same possibility. "I don't know, Lien," she murmurs weakly as she fixes the strap of her sandals.
Are you ready to face them, Juliet? A soft, concerned voice whispers as her vision starts to blur. Do you want me to Front later? Another voice chimes in, her tone is enthusiastic yet careful — it was Catarin. Juliet pauses for a moment, biting her lips as she ponder.
