Cost of Taste (Published)| ✓

Kabanata 34

Kabanata 34

"Gusto mo ako?" I raise an eyebrow, obviously confused. "Is that what you meant?"

"No, kadiri naman." he groaned, plastering an annoyed face. "The truth is, Adren already knows everything."

There was a long dramatic pause. I was trying to process his words. Alam ni Adren ang lahat? Ang lahat ng ano?

"Anong alam niya?"

"That you left him because you wanted to save him from getting his reputation tainted," sagot niya. "He knew it even before, kaya niya binawi 'yung shares na ibibigay niya dapat kay Solstice."

I looked at Adren who only had his gaze on me. Tila ba napapaso rin siya tuwing nagtatama ang mga mata namin. Maybe because we knew we burn for each other, there was still a little spark that could cause flames between the both of us.

"Although, my first plan was supposed to separate the both of you for the meantime since we were waging wars even if we were already holding a white flag," Etienne snarled, furrowing his brows in the process.

That's true, bata pa kami noon. At sa mata ng lahat, we weren't capable of doing wise decisions because of our age. Wala pa nga talaga kaming binatbat noon. Pero iba na ang usapan ngayon.

"Hindi ko inakalang makikipagusap si Tatiana sa mga magulang ni Adren." Etienne dropped the bomb. "She convinced them that she can be a tool for them in order to control him. She was just too obsessed."

"I had to act that you didn't matter to me anymore, Arrisea. She knows my every move and once she finds out that we're still contacting with each other..." Adren muttered, making him lose his composure. "She can do things beyond what we can imagine, Arri."

My eyes closed in frustration, nanginginig ako sa galit sa kanya.

"Did you know she was even willing to help bail Karl before? Para lang madiin ka sa korte? She's even fine with the idea of faking her disability so she can destroy you." Etienne continued.

It all makes sense. Kaya naman pala parang wala lang ang nangyari sa kanya noon. She's even a model now and everyone sees it as a miracle. Sobrang bango nga talaga ng kanyang pangalan.

"We were supposed to just make a show for Tatiana to stop blackmailing you..." mahinang sabi ni Adren.

"But she was everywhere, Arrisea. No'ng una, hindi ko siniseryoso ang mga sinasabi niya at ginagawa niya..." Adren muttered, wolfishly.

"Pero, she was just too obsessed with the idea of ruining you. When we were in senior highschool, balak sana namin na ilayo ka kay Tatiana dahil malaki ang alas niya..."

"Anong alas?"

"Your family..." Etienne sighed. "She was willing to drag your family, Arrisea. She thinks once you're one with dirt, she's going to replace you."

I balled my fists. Like mother, like daughter. We were the original family, pero nabulag si Papa sa pera. He didn't marry my mother because they lack of money, but he married someone else for the same reason too. No'ng una ay hindi pa ito alam ni Mama, pero nang malaman niya ito ay agad siyang humiwalay kay Papa.

He was a foreigner who learned our native language for my mother, pero nagawa niya pa rin itong iwan para sa salapi.

It just shows that money can indeed manipulate someone to think that it can be love.

Pero hindi ko maintindihan si Tatiana. Kung meron man dapat na nagtatanim ng sama ng loob sa aming dalawa, it should be me. Her mother made me suffer when I was with them, sa puntong hindi ko nga siya nakilala dahil pilit kong kinakalimutan ang mga nangyari noon. It was my coping mechanism, to forget cruel things that happened before. To let it go. To not be bothered with it anymore.