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Eighteen

Francine's POV

It's been a week since nilibing ang parents namin. Seeing their photos in our house breaks my heart, at the same time, may saya kase I still get to see them, kahit sa mga photos na lang. Yung bigat ng loob at sakit ng pagkawala nila si something na alam kong matagal mawawala, baka nga hindi na mawala.

I stared at the ceiling. Halos bihira lang ako lumabas ng room, wala akong balita kung ano na ba ang nangyayari sa labas ng kwarto ko. The last news I heard is that Ate Liza made a progress a few days ago.

I grabbed my phone on my bed side to check it. There's a few text messages from Kyle, I opened them to see that it's a daily reminder from him, kung gano nya ako kamahal, the assurance na andyan lang ang mga Ayala para saming magkakapatid.

Nagkaroon ako ng composure to get out of bed. Napatingin ako sa vanity table ko, there I am, a mess. Lumaki ang eyebags ko, they are darker, I am paler. My hair is a mess.

I decided na lumabas sa room ko, not sure why. I headed out, and closed the door. Then, napalingon ako sa room nila Mommy at Daddy, I noticed na medyo naka-awang ang pinto. Nagtaka ako, may tao ba don?

Sumilip muna ako sa awang ng pinto. There I saw Andrea, curled up in the middle of our parent's bed. May yakap syang framed photo, then nalaman ko na yun ang small version ng wedding photo nila Mom, and Dad na nakalagay sa side table nila. They have this big wedding photo na naka-display sa may living room area namin.

Pumasok ako at umupo sa tabi ni Andrea. Then, naramdaman ko nanaman ang mga luha running down on my face. Humiga ako sa tabi ni Andrea, my eyes on the ceiling. I took a deep breath before closing my eyes.

FLASHBACK (still Francine's POV)

January 2019

"Happy birthday, Chinny!" Sabay sabay na bati ng parents at mga kapatid ko.

"Happy birthday, our princess." Yakap saken nila Mommy, and Daddy.

"Thank you po." I smiled at them.

"Pinaluto namin lahat ng favorites mo." Sabi naman ni Daddy.

Birthday ko ngayon, and we decided na sa bahay na lang mag-celebrate, na kami kami lang. My parents wanted to do a party, pero sabi ko sakanila na mas prefer ko na ganito lang. Umuwi from the US si Ate Kath, tapos sila Mommy at Daddy naman ay nag-postpone muna ng meeting sa Spain just to attend my birthday.

They always say na kami ang priority nila, and they never fail na ipakita and iparamdam yun kahit pa na busy sila sa business.

"Oh, anak, here's our gift." Sabay abot ni Mommy ng regalo saken.

I smiled at them as I get the gift mula kay Mommy.

"Go ahead, Chinny." Sabi ni Daddy. "Open it."

Ramdam kong excited sila to see my reaction sa gift nila. I unwrapped the gift, to my surprise, they are paints. Tumingin ako ulit sa parents ko, I gave them a big smile.

"Thank you po!" I hugged them.

"We know that you love painting, anak." Mom tells me. "Your Dad and I just want to show our support for it." She smiled.

"Alam naman namin na you're good at what you do." Dad smiled.

Later on, we started eating. Ang saya ng bahay namin, full of stories and laughter. Sana ganito kami palagi. Yun ang wish ko for my birthday, happiness for us family.

February 2019

Ngayon ang painting contest sa Maxwell Prime, and isa ako sa mga contestants. Andito pa ako sa labas ng auditorium waiting for Mom, and Dad. Nasa loob naman na si Andrea to reserve seats for them.