She's the Real Challenge

61: No Deal

It was a rainy night in Tokyo and Ken was alone in her apartment, quietly sipping tea. Hinihintay niya ang pagdating ni Ryuji at ng abogado nito para papirmahin siya ng prenup.

There was a persistent uncomfortable sinking feeling in her stomach from the anxiety of her impending marriage that would take place in about sixteen hours. Buong araw niyang pinipilit ang sarili na tama ang gagawin niyang pagpapakasal. It's the only thing I can do to be a decent daughter and sister, she thought.

Pero hindi lang ang pagiging mabuting kapatid o anak ang dahilan niya sa pagpayag sa pagpapakasal. Buong araw niyang paulit-ulit na tinitingnan ang mensahe ng kanyang ama na naging dahilan ng biglaang pag-alis niya ng Singapore.

It was a photo of her and Sage, exiting The Orchid while holding each others' hands. Hindi man malaki, kitang kita sa litrato ang mga ngiting nagawa nilang itago mula sa isa't isa noong araw na iyon.

Attached to the photo was a string of Japanese characters. The text didn't need to be in red, bold or all caps for Ken to know how angry her father was. The message wasn't even aggressive. In fact, simple lang ang sinasabi doon, huwag nang makipagkita kay Sage at agad na bumalik sa Tokyo.

There was no explicit threat but Ken knew better than to ignore it. Alam niyang mas nakakatakot ang ama niya kapag mas kalmado ito. The cunning head of the Kazehaya clan always had a plan and twenty more back-up plans to get his way. And Sage was too precious to her. Hindi niya hahayaang madamay ito sa kung ano mang binabalak ng kanyang ama.

So instead, she had decided to eliminate all the risk for Sage by obediently going along with what her parents want.

The feeling of dread intensified when she heard the doorbell ring. She decided to be stubborn for the last time before fully submitting to what others want. Hindi niya pagbubuksan ng pinto ang fiancé. Kung gusto talaga nilang pirmahan ni Ken ang prenup, isang oras niya silang paghihintayin sa labas.

She didn't want to marry Ryuji but she didn't dislike him at all. Tulad niya, hindi rin choice ng fiancé niya na makasal kay Ken pero hindi rin naman ito tumutol sa plano ng mga magulang nila. He was also actually a good person, as far as she could tell. Though he was a man of few words, he always treats her with respect. Ken even felt bad for the guy. After all, he was about to marry someone who could never love him.

The doorbell kept ringing. The intervals between the dinging kept getting shorter the more she ignored it. This lasted for a few minutes until the person on the other side of the door just pressed down on the doorbell, producing a continuous sound. Ubos na ang pasensya ng bisita ni Ken.

She sighed and got up to open the door. Resisting the inevitable was pointless. Masisira lang 'yong doorbell niya.

Her deadpan expression quickly changed into astonishment when she saw who was abusing her doorbell. His head was bowed but Sage's left hand kept running through his damp disheveled hair while his right hand's index finger was still pressing the doorbell button.

Ngayon niya lang nakitang na ganoon ka-haggard si Sage. Magulo ang kuwelyo nito at maluwag ang kurbata. May dalawang bukas na butones, tapos gusot at hindi naka-tuck in ang puting long sleeves na suot nito. Maporma si Sage kaya siguradong may blazer o suit jacket na kasama ang OOTD nito pala walang suot na gano'n ang lakaking nasa harap niya ngayon.

"Sage? How..." Ken was at a loss for words.

Sage slowly raised his head and looked straight into her eyes. "Aren't you going to invite me in?" he asked in a calm manner. Walang nakitang emosyon si Ken sa mukha ng lalaki pero kinakabahan siya. Is he angry? Maybe I shouldn't have sent him that.