CAPTIVATED

Chapter 17

"Anak, paki check ng maigi yung-" agad na naglaho ang boses ko nang masilayan si Janine sa aking harapan.

What the fuck?

Agad akong nag iwas ng tingin at hinigpitan ko ang kapit sa tuwalya.

Steam still clinging to my skin, water dripping from the ends of my hair. My towel clung to me like a lifeline, and I held it tighter the moment I saw her.

She didn’t say a word. Didn’t move. Just stood there, looking at me with that same unreadable expression I used to know by heart.

"Anak, check your things for the last time before we leave, okay?" Humalik ako sa sintido ni Reese nang makita ko siya na kumakain ng sandwich.

Umakyat ako at nagpanggap na parang walang nakitang Janine sa kitchen kanina.

I froze. My breath caught somewhere between my chest and throat, heart pounding so loud I was sure she could hear it. I wasn’t ready. Not for this. Not for her.

I clutched the towel tighter, not just for modesty, but for protection. Because seeing her again like this, in the same space, breathing the same air, it was like being pulled into something I wasn’t sure I had fully escaped.

And yet, she looked at me like nothing had changed. And that, somehow, was the part that shook me the most.

I shrugged my shoulders and reminded myself about my schedule today. Ihahatid si Reese sa Morayta, kakain ng breakfast at deretso na sa Laguna. O baka doon na mag almusal.

I wore my office attire. Black miniskirt with a slit on the side plus my white tank top. Hindi ko na muna isinuot ang plantsadong black blazer na nakasampay sa loob ng closet dito sa guest room na kalaunan, ako na talaga ang nag may-ari.

Iniutos ko kay Ate Judith ang damit pang itaas na dalhin sa sasakyan bago pumunta sa kwarto ni Reese at kumuha ng dalawang bimpo doon.

"Just incase you forgot, kailangan mo ang mga 'to." kinurot ko pa ang pisngi ni Reese.

She's staring at me with a proud smile.

"I love you, mama." she sweetly said before hugging me.

Sanay na sanay na ako sa ganitong pakikitungo ni Reese sa akin. Noong bumalik sa loob si Ate Judith, muli kong pinaalala kung paano dapat niya alagaan si Reese.

"Please Ate, masyadong curious 'to sa mga nakikita niya kaya kapag may pagkakataong hindi mo siya pwedeng samahan, pakitignan nang maigi."

May idudugtong pa sana ako pero agad akong tumigil nang mapansin ang paninitig ni Janine sakin. She's staring at me with curious eyes.

Pinagtaasan ko siya ng kilay kaya agad siyang nag iwas ng tingin sa akin.

There was something different in the way she moved. Every word she spoke, every small shift of her body felt careful, measured, like she was trying to keep control of something just beneath the surface.

Pinatunog niya ang sasakyan niya kaya tinitigan ko siya. I thought we'll be using my car?

And she couldn’t look at me. Not really. Her eyes would flicker in my direction, hover for a second too long on my shoulder, my mouth, anywhere but my eyes.

"Ihahatid na lang kita sa office mo. We'll go to the university first." she opened the front seat for me.

Kailan pa siya natutong bumasa ng laman ng isip?

Si Ate Judith naman sa kay Reese sa likod.

"My," nakita kong tumingin si Janine through the rear view mirror when Reese called her.