Chapter 1
"Good morning dad!" bati ko kay Dad nang maabutan ko syang nag b-breakfast.
"Morning kiddo." ibinaba niya ang newspaper na binabasa at bumaling sa akin.
I kissed his cheek then sat opposite to him. I looked at my Dad who still looks handsome and powerful in his mid 40's. I smiled. Maraming kakilala ng pamilya namin ang nagsasabing I look like my Dad. Sa kanya ko daw namana ang kulay ng mga mata ko. My Dad's eyes are lush green.
"Sabayan mo na akong kumain Hija." I was snapped out of my temporary trance when I heard my fathers' voice again.
"Si Daddy."
"So how's my little Señorita?" he teased nang magsimula na kaming kumain.
"Daddy naman eh. College na ako. I'm not a kid anymore." reklamo ko.
He chuckled, "You are still my little princess." sabi niya tapos umiling-iling.
Ngumuso ako "By the way Dad, May field trip nga po pala kami this weekend."
"'San naman kayo pupunta?" he asked.
"Quixote Mountains po, Dad. We'll visit their famous true-love's falls." I grinned at the thought.
"Ok. Isama mo nalang ang Yaya Sonia mo."
My grin fell and I frowned, "Dad!" I exclaimed.
"Hija, Es por su propia seguridad." he said referring to my safety. I rolled my eyes inwardly. Here we go again.
"Por favor Dad! No soy un niño! Puedo manejar yo!" reklamo ko.
I'm not a child! I don't need a chaperone! For goodness sake, ang laki ko na para magdala ng chaperone!
I just turned 18 last month, July 29. That means I'm of right age! I can even get married if I wanted to but of course, that's basically another story.
"You kiddo is so persistent" sabi ni Dad na napapailing.
"Papa, por favor... me permite ser independiente. Yo no soy un niño ya." I said.
"But kid-"
"I'm with my friends Dad. Don't worry."
Dad sighed in a defeated manner, "Fine. But promise me you'll behave. Entiendes?"
"Si Papa! Muchas gracias!" nakangiting sabi ko. Tumayo ako at niyakap sya.
"En cualquier momento niño" sabi niya then patted my head. "I gotta go. Ma le-late na ako for my meeting with a very important client."
"Ok Dad. Take care."
"Si señorita." He said tapos ay hinalikan ako sa forehead at iniwan na.
My Dad is great. I can say that. Despite of his busy schedule, he finds time to bond with me. I'm his only child and he cares for me too much. Kami nalang kasi dalawa since my Mom died while laboring me. Hindi nakayanan ng katawan ni Mom ang panganganak at inatake siya ng sakit nya sa puso nung time ng labor.
As I grow, my father did his best to raise me kahit nahihirapan pa rin siya dahil sa pagkamatay ni Mom. He never failed to do his responsibilities to me as a father and a mother as well. Wala din akong nabalitaang nagkaroon siya ng ibang babae maliban kay Mommy. He must have loved his wife too much.
And that made me love and be proud of my Dad even more.
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I, together with my friends, Elyn, Princess and Mary Grace were busy taking pictures. We were allowed by our instructors to roam around the place instead of taking a nap from the very tiring and long trip. As usual, kaming apat ang magkakasama.
