Kabanata 25
"YOU CANNOT proceed to this wedding, Keeno," may pinalidad ang tono ng amang sabi nito.
Humigpit ang hawak ni Keeno sa kamay ni Honey nang madama niya ang namumuong pangamba sa dalaga. No, he's done living in the shadows. He deserves to have his own voice and nobody, even his own Dad, can stop him anymore from being with her.
He took in some air. Nilabanan niya ang seryosong titig ng kanyang ama. It is the first time that he didn't feel scared of their father's anger and he somehow felt proud of himself.
"Mahal ko si Honey at hindi ako papayag na kayo pa ang pipigil sa akin—"
"Idiot!" Their father's voice thundered. Bumakat ang mga ugat nito sa leeg dala ng sobrang
Kabanata 26HONEY stared at Keeno's worried face with a heavy heart. Kahit nagkakagulo na ay naging pinal ang desisyon ng mga Punzalan na huwag silang palapitin sa bata. Ang tanging nagbabalita sa kanila ay ang doktor na pinakilala ng kaibigan ni Konnar. Without him, they'll be left clueless of what's going on with Krishnan."His blood pressure is stable now but we need a donor for his kidney. Lumabas sa test na may problema ang left kidney ng bata and unfortunately, the right one was damaged due to the accident. We cannot let his left kidney do all the work," the doctor said over the phone.Napabuntong hininga si Keeno. "Can I be his donor?""That's possible if you will match with the boy. We can arrange a test as early as tomorrow.
Kabanata 27MATIPID na ngumiti si Honey kay Rustom nang sa wakas ay natanaw na rin niya ito palabas ng kulungan. Inurong na ng kanyang ama ang kasong isinampa rito at ngayon ay siya mismo ang sumundo sa kaibigan."Rus!" she called but Rustom looked away as if ashamed of her. Hindi niya tuloy naiwasang magtaka. "Rus, anong problema?"He sighed. Mayamaya'y malungkot siya nitong tinignan saka siya hinapit para sa isang mahigpit na yakap.She hugged him back, confused of why he's acting such way. Ngunit nang magsimulang humagulgol si Rustom, nataranta siya bigla at kumalas sa yakap."Anong problema, Rus? Sabihin mo sa akin. What's going on?"
Kabanata 28PINANOOD ni Keeno na ilagay ng anak ang bulaklak sa puntod ng namayapa nitong ina. Nang matapos ay tumabi itong muli sa kanya saka siya tiningala at matipid na nginitian."Do you think she's proud of me, Dad?"Ngumiti si Keeno sa anak saka niya ito inakbayan. "Of course. Your mother loves you, Krishnan. We all do. Even your Papa Greg, your uncles, especially your grandpa Khalil."Krishnan's smirk reminded him of his younger self. "Pops is the coolest. We'll go camping next weekend. He said he'll spend all his money going on vacations with his grandkids."Napangisi na lamang din si Keeno. Ilang buwan na rin mula nang magretiro ang kanilang ama. When Klinn went back to handling the empire with Konnar, his father forced him to take half days at work. Siya ang pinaghahatid-sundo nito kay Krishnan tuwing abala ito. Siya rin ang uma-attend sa mga school activities at tuwing weekend, dinadala niya ang anak sa labas ng syudad upang kumuha ng mg
Kabanata 29INILAPAG ni Honey ang ginamit na pen sa mesa saka siya mapaklang ngumiti sa kanyang kinilalang ama. "It's done. All the inheritance I got, including Dustin's, it's all yours. Now I want the info about my real dad."Umigting ang panga ng kanyang ama saka ito nag-iwas ng tingin. Ang kanyang ina naman ay malamlam ang mga matang tumingin sa kanya saka ito humugot ng malalim na hininga."We have to tell her now."Her dad sighed and collected all the documents before storming out of the living room. Sa totoo lang ay masakit kay Honey na makitang iyong mana lang talaga ang habol nito kaya nang mawala na ito sa kanilang paningin, nilapitan siya ng ina upang yakapin.Uminit ang su
Kabanata 30NANANAGINIP yata si Keeno nang sa pagmulat ng kanyang mga mata ay nakahilig sa kanyang dibdib ang babaeng apat na taon niyang hinintay na umuwi sa kanya. He even blinked his eyes a couple times. Nang hindi ito naglaho sa kanyang tabi ay hinaplos niya ang buhok nito."Honey?" he called in a husky voice.Honey moved and groaned a little. Lumislis nang kaunti ang kumot na tumatakip sa katawan nila. Doon lamang napagtanto ni Keeno na pareho silang walang saplot.When Honey opened her sleepy eyes and saw him staring with shock on his face, gumuhit ang matipid ngunit kuntentong ngiti sa mga labi nito. She lifted her head and pecked a kiss on his lips as if telling him she's real.
EpilogueNAPANGISI na lamang si Honey habang pinagmamasdan ang malaking wardrobe ng gowns. No, it's not just a place for her party gowns and cotour dresses. It's where she keeps all the wedding gowns she used in every wedding she had with Keeno.As crazy at it may sound, but her husband swore to marry her every year, during their anniversary. At pinangako nito sa sariling hindi siya lasing na bibitawan ng mga pangakong panghabambuhay niyang dadalhin sa kanyang puso. Bumawi ito dahil hindi raw maalala ang una nilang kasal, ngunit hindi naman niya inakalang taon-taon nitong ire-renew ang vows sa kanya.Noong una akala niya ay hihinto na ito sa kanilang pangalawa o pangatlong anibersaryo ngunit nagkamali siya. It's already been sixteen years, yet here goes the new gown sitting on the end
Kabanata 1"DEATH is our way of fulfilling the process of salvation. In order for our souls to go back to the Almighty, one's soul must be separated from the mortal body."Umismid si Honey. She doesn't want to agree with the Pastor's teachings but she kept her mouth shut. She knew better than disrespecting the reason why she comes to the Sunday gatherings. Her target. Her next toy.Ngunit sa kanyang isip, naghuhumiyaw ang pagtanggi na tanggapin ang konsepto nito ng kamatayan.Death for her is a sweet surrender to escape the cruel world and its never ending suffering.Death...was her brother's only option on the table to free himself from the unbearable pain.If Dustin is burning in hell right now for taking his own life, she's rotting on Earth for her decision to still dance to the tune of heartaches and internal havoc.Hindi niya masabing mas matibay siya sa kakamb
Kabanata 2"SOMETIMES I get scared whenever you're quiet. Pakiramdam ko may assassination kang binabalak."Napaismid si Honey sa sinabi ng kanyang alalay. Naroon sila sa ikalawang-palapag ng sports bar. Yakap niya ang kanyang tako at nakatitig sa pool table. Her naturally curly brown hair is on a tight bun, giving everyone full access to see her slim, flawless neck and diamond shape jaw.Sa kanyang batok pababa ng spine ay may grupo ng nunal na madalas sabihing tila korteng Aries constellation kung pagdudugtungin. Well she likes it. She thinks she's got an Aries attitude anyway.Bold, fierce, driven...and easily bored with people who cannot keep up with her.To be honest, she's not entirely calculating her next shot. Open ang stripes at wala siyang problema sa posisyon ng white ball.She was actually, just like what Rustom said, may be plotting an assassination, if it's