At The Sunrise

Chapter 19

"Hi, Ma. I missed you so much."agad na bati ni Yve sa ina pagka bukas ng pintoan ng kanilang bahay.

"And I miss you more, darling." agad naman siyang niyakap nito.

"Si Papa?" tanong niya nang mapansing wala ito.

"He's gonna be late. Sasabay nalang siya kay balae papunta dito."sagot niya tukoy ang magulang ni Zach.

"Good, while we are waiting. I'd like to show you around sa bahay."

"Good idea. Nasaan si Zach?"

"Nasa kusina, Ma. Naghahanda ng pagkain."

"Hanggang ngayon ba, hindi pa rin kayo kumukuha ng katulong dito sa bahay? You're gonna be busy Yve and you won't have time cleaning the entire house."

"Hindi na muna, Ma. We have been able to manage so far."

"But until when, Yve? I'll be looking for a housemaid for you. And don't argue with me. Instead of maintaining the house, you can do other things like going on with dates with Zach and start to work on our granddaughter."

"Ma! Tumigil ka nga. Baka marinig ka ni Zach."

"What? Don't tell me nagkakahiyaan pa rin kayo. Seriously Yve, flirt around with your husband. That's the secret to long lasting marriage."

Hindi na siya kumibo habang inalalayan ang ina paakyat ng second floor ng bahay. Inilibot niya ito sa mga kwarto at ibang bahagi ng bahay para ipakita ang mga paintings na nabili nila sa Maldives. And she wants to know her idea about what else she can do to design their home. She kept her entertained until her dad and Zach's parents arrived. Which is enough time para matapos ni Zach ang niluluto.

They obviously both missed their parents dahil panay ang kani-kanilang kwentuhan dito habang kumakain. She notice slight changes with his mom's features. Mukhang pumapayat ang mama ni Zach. And they just saw each other about 2weeks ago. She wonder what's wrong.

Their dads has been busy with all legal contracts para ma hand over na kay Zach by the time transition to the new brand and merge is complete. At pagkatapos ng launch, mamasyal naman sa Maldives ang parents niya. While Zach's parents will fly to New York to visit their relatives.

"You definitely planned na pahirapan kami ni Yve after the merge while you are all going to a vacation. This is unfair!" kunwaring komento ni Zach.

"Hijo, we had our time over sa business. Oras na para kayo naman ang ma stress sa lahat ng bagay."sagot ng Papa ni Zach.

"You're gonna be doing great, Zach. Your parents trained you well. And help Yve with everything she has to know, ok?" sagot ng Papa niya.

"I sure will, Pa. She has a great teacher." pabidang sagot ni Zach.

"So, before the launch and going to vacation, may update na ba sa magiging apo namin?" tanong ng mama ni Zach.

"We discussed together and I think we need to take a little bit slow. We're gonna be busy in the next few months and we don't want our focus divided at this time." casual na sagot ni Zach.

"Siyanga naman. Masyado yatang napaaga ang plano natin, balae. Dapat pala yung merge ginawa natin few years after ng kasal. For sure, by that time, may apo na na tayo."

Napaubo si Yve bahagya sa sagot ng Mama niya. Hindi niya alam kung anong isasagot dito.

"Well, everything is in place. And we are young, I guess that can wait. We have to prioritize our business and both our growth." sagot ni Zach.

"A point made, Zach but I hope you always find time for each other. Spend dates and moments at this early period of your marriage."sagot ng Mama ni Zach.

"We do, Ma. In fact bukas, we will be out of town and spend our night in a beach."sagot niya.

"That's a great idea. You do that while you can and during your free time. It's a healthy habit."

"Of course."

"Siyanga pala, kailan ko lang nalaman na business partner nyo pala si Bryan." komento ng Papa niya.

"Bryan? Rodriguez?" tanong ng mama niya habang nakatingin sa kanya.

She took a deep breath. Her mom is not going to like this idea.

"Yeah. Do you know him?" nagtatakang tanong ni Zach.

"Siya lang naman ang nag-iisang ex ni Yve. Why didn't you tell me?" diretsang sagot ng mama niya.

"It was just for a business deal, Ma. Nothing more and nothing less."sagot niya.

Zach was silent looking at her intently. She can't read his emotion. He gave her a blank look.

"You make sure of that, Yve. I'll never forget what he did to you."

"Well, I have nothing against him. He was just a boy at that time and probably was confused. But he looks like a better man now. I've seen his profile and he seems to be successful at this field, too. He can be a great business partner."sagot ng Papa niya.

"Hindi naman siguro siya magiging sagabal sa negosyo at marriage nila diba?" curious na tanong ng Papa ni Zach.

"No, he won't be. We're friends now and business partners, that's it."agad niyang sagot.

"Good. Now, that's clear."sagot ng Mama niya.

Hindi na kumibo si Zach hanggang sa matapos ang ilan pang kwentuhan nila. Panaka-naka itong sumagot pero halatang wala na ito sa mood. She should have told him. It must have been a surprise to him. Kakausapin niya na lang ito pag-uwi nga parents nila.

After dinner, inilibot niya naman ang mama ni Zach sa buong bahay habang naglalaro ng billiards ang mga kalalakihan. Ang mama niya ang taga-score kaya pansamantala muna nila itong iniwan.

"And this is the upstairs guestroom. Dito ko na rin nilagay ang magandang image ni Mary Magdalene na nabili ko sa Maldives. It looks great here facing sunrise every morning."aniya habang inililibot ang Mama ni Zach.

"You sure have a good taste with internal decorations, Yve. Maybe you can visit our home and see what needs to be done better."malamyang sagot nito.

She closed the door behind her and locked it.

"Sure, Ma. Maybe sometime after the launch."

"Good. There is something I wanna tell you, Yve. I hope hindi tayo maririnig from here."

"Hindi, Ma. Don't worry. What is it?" kabadong tanong ni Yve.

"I'm planning to file an annulment after the merge, Yve."

Nagulat siya. Hindi niya alam kung anong isasagot pero mas mabuti nang tanongin niya ito.

"Why?"

"Zach's father has been cheating on me. Hindi ko alam kung gaano na katagal but I found pictures of him with a younger woman in his closet. And I think matagal na iyon cause he looks few years younger in that photo."

"But you have been married for a very long time, Ma. Maybe he has reasons. Maybe it was not an affair, why don't talk to him first and hear him out before doing anything."

"I'm only going to hear it during our settlement. I already have my lawyer set-up everything. And please, do not tell Zach yet. Ayoko munang ma distract siya sa ngayon. I'll talk to him after ng launch."

"Of course, Ma. I am not good at these things but I think mas mabuting pag-usapan niyo muna ito ni Papa. Don't make rush decisions, Ma."

"I've thought of this a hundred times, Yve. And I think this is best."

"This must be painful for you, Ma but I'm here if you wanna talk about it somewhere else."

"I know, Yve. Wala akong ibang mapagsabihan sa ngayon but let's keep it between us for now. I still have few arrangements to do."