DANTEHe had been really suspicious of Genesis the last few days. Not for something serious, no. It was about that lady, Sara. The kind of closeness they had after barely meeting each other seemed unnatural. Genesis always talked about Sara a lot now, they had even taken to texting each other.It bugged his mind so much that he thought it wise to discuss it with Luke. “It's a woman thing. They bond over the littlest things.” That was all Luke said.Dante nodded but he still was not convinced. He took his friend's words for it and chose not to think too much of it. That was until he overheard Genesis on the phone speaking with Sara.“Do you remember when that local boy band was trying so desperately to be the it boys on campus?” Genesis had asked.He frowned. If they really had just met, how did they share a memory that went all the way back to college?He chose to remain there and listen more but it was not long after that that Genesis had ended the call, saying that she needed to fo
GENESISIt was very obvious that Dante was beginning to suspect her relationship with Sara. The way he looked at her and asked those questions about their days in college proved that. She really wished she did not have to continue lying to him, but she still did not think it was the right time to tell him about her past.Alright, that was just an excuse. It was the perfect time to tell him. But she was scared as to how his reaction to it would be? Would he still see her for who she was or would his perception of her change? She really hoped it would be the former whenever she manages to build up the courage to tell him.“You look like you are about to pass out.” Sara's voice coming from her phone's speaker reminded her that they were on a video call.She sighed and adjusted her pillow. “I'm just thinking of ways to tell him.”“Tell him what?”“Everything!” She exhaled heavily. “I just don't know how to put it out to him.”“Simply meet him in private and spill it.” Sara shrugged like sh
GENESISShe insisted on doing the grocery shopping this week, it was an excuse for her to leave the house, an opportunity to clear her head.The past few days had been hectic for her as she had to put up a bright front before Dante and Elon despite her knowledge of the impending doom that was coming with her brother. She spent most of her time thinking and thinking but she still was not able to come up with any way to come out of the mess that she had found herself in. It looked like her only way out was to tell Dante about everything, but she still could not bring herself to do that yet.She was still lost in thought when her cast bumped into someone else's and she looked up with a start, with wide eyes and gaped lips.“Sorry! I'm so sorry!” She immediately started to apologize. “I'm sorry, I was not paying attention—”“Jenny?”She paused when the person called her by a name only people close to her called her with. And it was then that she started paying attention to how he looked.
DANTELuke always found it amusing when he talked about his problems and, sometimes, he felt like punching his best friend for that. Now, he was watching Luke struggle to stifle his laughter in the middle of him explaining how his father had just randomly called him.“I really don't see how anything I've said is funny.” Dante voiced out his thoughts. “Not even in the slightest.”“Man, forgive me for what I'm about to say.” Luke started. “But your father is a clown.”Any normal person would have been offended by that statement. But Dante was not, and he did not even find it weird. Instead, all he had to say was, “Do not call him my father.”“Alright.” Luke shrugged. “But the balls he has to call you after all these years, and even claim that it's not because he's going bankrupt? That's a stupid excuse and he knows it.”“Everything he said yesterday got me really upset.” Dante confessed. “Hearing his voice made me want to rip my hair out of my scalp.”“So what did you say to him?”“To n
GENESISShe arrived at the cafe ten minutes late. It was easy to sight him as he was sitting alone at the bottom left corner of the place, looking out through the floor to ceiling window. She walked briskly to the table and tapped on it twice to get his attention. His mood brightened as soon as he saw her, she knew that because his lips spread into a huge smile.“You're here.”“Yes, yes.” She nodded as she took her seat opposite him. “I'm so sorry I was late. I had to put some things at home in order before I left.”“Oh, no problem.” He shrugged. “I only arrived about five minutes ago.”There was silence between them for a few minutes, until Aaron broke it.“So, tell me about your current life.” He started. “How has life been since you left home?”“I won't lie, it was hard at first.” Genesis sighed. “But things are pretty smooth now. I’m a nurse like I've always wanted, I'm married and I have a stepson.”“Wow.” Aaron looked happy for her. “You really won the lottery in life.”“I real
GENESISDante’s best friend came in quite early that morning. As early as nine o'clock, he was already in their house. She was aware that he occasionally came by to help Dante with some work but never had he come in so early.That was not what even bothered her, it was the way he looked at her that morning that she did not like. They did not speak often; but whenever they crossed paths, he was usually warm and playful with her. Then why was today different? Why did he look at her like he suspected her of something? She felt weird under his scrutiny so she left that space and went to the kitchen. She also had bigger issues to worry about so she did not let it bother her. If he could not speak up about any problem he had with her, he might as well just keep it to himself.Since she was already in the kitchen, she thought it wise to just get on with making lunch and just store them in a pot that would keep the food warm. It took her close to two hours to cook everything she had planned
DANTEDante found Luke in his office after leaving Genesis in the kitchen. His best friend watched him silently as he took his seat. On a normal day, he would have been surprised because Luke's mouth was never shut. But now, that silence was very much needed, given the situation at hand.They sat like that in silence until Luke finally broke it.“I'm sorry I persuaded you to let yourself free with her.” Luke started. “I didn't know she would—”“Don't.” Dante raised a hand. “Don't say that. She's not cheating… I trust her. She only has some things that she's not ready to tell me yet.”Luke scoffed. “You actually believe she's not cheating?” He shook his head. “The way that man held her hand—”“Luke, please.” Dante sighed. “I believe her. And considering the circumstances in which we got married, it's not far-fetched that there are some things she's not yet comfortable to talk about. I'm willing to wait until she wants to speak up.”“Tell me, does she know everything she's supposed to k
DANTEThat morning, he woke up with a terrible headache. If it was because he was constantly thinking of Genesis or because he was not getting enough sleep, he did not know. Deep down, he knew what the cause of his pain was. The reason for his lack of sleep was Genesis. For days, she had been on his mind more than usual. He was scared of what the things she was keeping from him could be, but he was also concerned for her. She walked around the house like a shadow of herself and she only smiled when she was around Elon.Sometimes, when they spoke, she would also try to smile, but it never reached her eyes. He was sure that she only did that to ease his nerves, but what she did not know was that it was not working. So to distract himself from the disturbing thoughts of his wife that was acting strange, he would either bury himself in work or take a long cold shower.And he was just stepping out of the shower when his phone began to ring. He groaned in frustration as he grabbed his whit
GENESIS[Two years later]It was a lovely time of the year to be on the beach. While Dante and Scar Face were at the shore with Elon, she was sitting on the sand with Sara. “So when are you going to tell him?” Sara asked, squinting at her. Genesis smiled as she responded. “Tonight. I can't wait to see his reaction.”“I'm sure he'll be so happy.”“Yes, yes.” Genesis nodded. “He's wanted this since we got married.”“We've all wanted this.” Sara laughed. “I've even been picking names out.”“Oh please.” Genesis chuckled. “Knowing you, you've picked out the most outrageous ones.”“Whatever.” Sara rolled her eyes. “I'll wait until we find out the gender to tell you my top choices.”Just then, Elon began to run to her, screaming, “Mommy, look!”He had found a cute seashell and he was running to show it to her. Since he started walking again about a year ago, he barely sat down. He was either running all around, making her chase him, or he was kicking things he was not supposed to be kickin
DANTEWords could not describe what he felt when it was her face that he saw as he opened his eyes in the morning. Flashbacks of the previous night flooded his memory and he could not help but smile to himself.Careful not to wake her up, he slowly got out of bed and made his way to the kitchen. And it was not long before he realized that he did not know too many recipes offhand. So he brought out his phone and watched some short YouTube videos on easy breakfast recipes. He later settled for eggs, bacon, and toast that morning, making it to the best of his abilities. And together with a glass of orange juice and a napkin, he assembled everything in a wooden tray and took them up to his room. She was already up when he walked in with the tray of food. He placed it carefully on the bed and went to join her on his balcony. She was wearing the shirt that he had abandoned on the floor from yesterday, with his boxers too.He held her waist from behind and he heard her giggle. “Good morni
GENESIS Dante had not left her side since he laid eyes on her that morning. He followed her everywhere: to the kitchen, the garden and even inside her room. Now, they were both on her bed, both cuddled in each other's arms. Her head was on his chest and she could hear his heartbeat, she enjoyed listening to it. Smiling to herself, she snuggled deeper in his arms, inhaling his scent that she could not get enough of. At that moment, she wished that they would remain like that forever. Just the two of them.“Jenny?” He called out.“Huh?”“Move in with me.”She laughed and raised her head to look at him. “I already live with you, don't I?”“I mean move in with me, to my room.” She clarified. “I want you there with me. It's bigger and more comfortable. And you can make any adjustments you want, decorate it as you like.”“Are you sure you want that?” She asked him, a little bit unsure. She was aware that he was all about having his own space, so him wanting her to stay in his room was dif
GENESISMr. Del Monte and his wife left that morning. Dante had asked for some time alone with them in his office while she went about her morning routine. She was surprised when three of them came downstairs all smiles and having a friendly conversation.It was refreshing to see them get along like that, she was even happier to see that the couple had earned Dante's forgiveness. All they wanted was to be a part of their grandson's life and she was glad that Dante had given them that opportunity.They said their goodbyes and she got busy with making breakfast. Although, she was not really comfortable when Dante informed her that he had invited Luke over for breakfast. It was obvious that he no longer liked her and was convinced that she was adulterous.And it was like her thought of him caused him to materialize in their house, because he walked through the kitchen's door not too long after his thought crossed her mind. She ignored him to the best of her abilities as he just stood the
DANTEHis heart had been heavy since he woke up. Last night was hellish and as soon as he had gotten Elon to fall asleep, his own body had shut down too.Elon was still in deep sleep beside him. And it was understandable, given the shock that the kid had gone through yesterday. Throughout the whole thing, Elon had been quiet. It was only when Genesis walked out with her brother that the boy burst out crying, that was when Dante was reminded that his son was still in the room, and he witnessed everything first hand.He pushed the duvet off him and left the kid's room for his own. What he really needed at that moment was a cold shower to soothe his headache. Last night, his heart broke into a million pieces; now, he just felt numb and empty. Like when he had freshly lost Evelyn. Genesis had somehow ignited something in him again, but with her own hands, she ended up putting out that fire that was burning for her inside him. He thought of her and wished he had never let himself be vulne
GENESISHer heart was beating so fast that she thought it was going to jump out of her chest. She was standing still, staring at her brother with gaped lips and wide eyes. She had just met him in the estate that evening and he made it seem like he was stalling his wicked plans for her. She blamed herself, she should have known better than to believe any of those deceitful words that came out of his mouth.“Oh, Sister.” He shook his head as he took two steps forward. “You look mortified, why? Am I no longer allowed to check up on my dear sister?”She still could not bring herself to speak as it was hard for her to believe her eyes. This was the end for her, she felt it.“After conniving with Gloria, you have the guts to show up in my house?” She heard Dante speak. Rodriguez did not even look at him, his eyes were still on her. “So you have not told him who I am?” He laughed. “He still believes that I am Lorenzo?”“Genesis, what is he talking about?” Dante sounded confused and desperat
GENESISGenesis watched the terror in her best friend's eyes grow with each sentence that she spoke. Sara seemed to be even more scared than Genesis whose brother was out to get her.“Look, it's calm.” Genesis tried to assure Sara. “He'll not be able to do anything to me.”That was a blatant lie but Genesis was willing to say anything to calm her friend down.“No, it's not calm. Nothing is calm, Jenny.” Sara shook her head. “Don't you think now's the right time for your so-called help to intervene?”“We don't want to make any sudden moves.” Genesis was still lying. “You saw how everything went down the last time we tried that with my brother.”“Look, I still think we should get Dante and Matthew involved.” Sara suggested. “This situation does not seem to be improving at all. You need people that can take the due steps, Jenny.”“No, no.” Genesis refused. “I've got everything in control.”“But—”“I said everything's under control, Sara.” Genesis sighed. “You don't have to worry.”“Fine…
GENESISIt was a calm evening and she was out on a stroll. Her head had been a lot more peaceful since she decided that she would just let life take its course. Whatever happened, she was going to accept it as her fate.But it did not take too long before her legs got tired and she walked to the nearest roadside bench and sat down. She was still within their estate so there was nobody outside at the time. Usually, most people were already inside their homes at this time.It was windy and she was getting a little bit cold, she regretted her decision to leave her jacket at home. And as she sat there, watching loose pigeons fly and walk around, she wondered what her life would have been like as one of them. Actually, she wished she was one of them. She could not believe that she was at a point where she wished she was born as a freaking pigeon. But who could blame her? All she would have had to worry about was eating and reproducing, not about being kidnapped and forced to be a criminal
GENESISAaron had texted her not too long after breakfast. We wanted them to meet at that cafe again, but she insisted that they meet at a park not too far away from there as the cafe was where Luke had sighted her with Aaron at first. She did not want to take any chances of it happening again in order not to fuel Luke's suspicions.Aaron did not have a problem with meeting at the park so they agreed to meet there by four in the evening, that have her time to make lunch and dinner before it was time to meet him. All the way there, she was hoping with everything in her that he would have good news for her, that he would tell her that there was a way to get rid of her brother forever. At this point, she no longer minded if the plan involved ending her brother's life. He had put her through so much that she did not just care anymore.She parked and called him to find out where exactly in the park he was. Luckily for her, he was by the playing ground that was not too far from the entranc