Night had passed and there were no signs of Taddeio. I went to school without having much sleep as I was concerned about his whereabouts. Several hours had flown by and still, he did not contact me. I know that I should not be worried, but I can't stop myself from feeling this way. Sighs. This is why I'm anxious about having someone that I'm comfortable with, because I know that in the future, this will happen. And I'm not wrong about that. It happened. I have doubts not only about Taddeio, but also about myself. You only knew him for less than a month, Merchaiass, and you put your trust in him. This is not you. Perhaps my soul has been switched. Huh. Now you know how to joke this time. I am now sitting under the tree at the back of my department building. I have classes today, but I'm not looking forward to them. I am fed up with everything that has happened in my life now. Do I deserve to undergo this kind of suffering? Is this my punishment all along? To be forgotten and easily dece
After I left the house, I was silently wandering in the streets and yearning for Taddeio to show up—saying that he was fine and there was no need to make a fuss about it. I look like a person who has lost a family member as my shoulders are sagging and my head is not facing forward and I just let it linger below. I have no idea what to do to stop thinking that he's not well and he's stuck somewhere completely off the radar. I can feel the waft of the wind that appears to have hands and arms—embracing my whole body and warming it. I looked at the front and someone caught my attention. The guy was wearing all-black clothing and paired it with a black cap. He looks like a typical snatcher or kidnapper. He couldn't stay at his place and wandered around the side of the street. Does this guy have a bigger problem than mine? My heart began to race when he started walking in my direction. I didn't want to assume that he was looking at me, but he stared as if he knew everything about my life. I
I was brought to consciousness when I felt a decisive splash of water thrown right in my face. I could feel my body responding to it and I was still catching my breath. One by one, all of my senses got back, but I can barely see things and my hearing isn't good either—probably because the water got in. Because of the combined force of these intense events, I can feel my lips quiver. No, my entire body. I slowly tilted my head to see who did it. I cannot see his face as he's hiding behind a mask, but I can see his lips turning into a grin when he sees how mad I am. I can tell by its physique that it is a man. He moved his feet and started walking towards me. When he's satisfied with the distance between us, he stops and pulls my hair back, which leaves me to look up. Even though it hurts, I can't feel it anymore. My body went into the highest stage of numbness earlier, and I did not know what to do to feel the pain. He pulled it back harder to the extent that I could hear the cracks in
"It's because of you! Your existence!" He shouted while he pointed his finger at me. I can tell by his actions that he hated my presence, but I don't know why. I don't know him nor have I had any interaction with him aside from the bus earlier. I'm not sure if it is him, but he's the one that brought me here to this stinky, dark place. I hate this. "Why? You didn't even know me, nor did I know you. We are strangers and I can't remember that I happened to meet you before. And how did you know my name? What is the basis of your anger and rage towards me? Huh?" I was catching my breath when I blurted it out. "You're naive, Merchaiass. A fool and a weakling. You're just a lost rat in a tiger's den. Poor thing." He was swinging the katana when he said this. "And to answer your question, I know you but you don't know me. For the record, I'm just a spec that has been ordered to end your not-oh-so-precious life. Any last words, Merchaiass?" I can't find myself being surprised by the bom
I just keep on nuzzling Taddeio’s neck. I don’t know, but I got addicted to it. There’s something about his smell that attracts me, and at the same time, it’s comforting. We’re sitting on the couch and his arm is all over my shoulder, gently tapping it as I continue to sniff him. He’s humming too, but I do not seem to catch what the song is by just listening to the tune. I literally have no idea when we arrived at the studio because I’m stuck on what happened. I got abducted and nearly faced my death. I’m not in the right state of mind to notice where we are going and the time. I wanted to ask him how he knew where I was exactly. I am nervous about asking him about things because I know that I’m scared to hear every word that will come out of his mouth. It scares me to think that it will be happening again soon.“Taddeio,” I call him.He answered me with a hum and looked straight into my eyes.These eyes... they seem to be longing for something I can't place. It’s powerful and beautif
"Hello?"I was taken aback when I heard it again. That icy voice sends shivers down my spine every single time my ears catch the sound. It is my father."Hello?" He said it twice. I still vividly remember that before, when I was in middle school, it stopped at one, and he would end the call and never answer it again."P-pa…" A long silence is witnessed after that. No one dared to speak, and it’s starting to get awkward and threatening. One thing that my papa did when he was mad was to remain silent and never utter a word. I’m certain that he’s still mad at me.I cleared my throat first and then started talking again."Pa, how are you?""Why did you call?" I thought he wasn’t going to answer me. I feel somehow relieved that he’s still talking to me.It took minutes before I answered him."I have something to ask, Pa.""Ask about what? I thought you’d be independent as you have the balls to run away from this house without consulting me first." "Pa..." It's almost a whisper, and I bet
I gasped when I saw a bag of blood inside of the Styrofoam. I’m feeling nauseous and I don’t think I can accept the upcoming surprises that it can provide. It smells awful that it is circulating all around the room. With the small amount of courage left, I picked up a small note behind the packet. It had been smudged with blood. My left hand made a move, and it directly covered my mouth when I read the note. It’s not that much, but when you’ve been kidnapped once and someone tried to deplete your existence. You will understand me. What did I do to deserve this? Having someone threatening your life makes you think twice about whether to believe it or disregard the idea that someone has given you a death threat.“You will not last. You will not escape this hell. And if you will, I will exert my abilities to find you, even in the deepest part of the underground. Hide Merchaiass. As you will always do.” It was written in blood. I tried to scrutinize the sides and back of the note, but th
Three days have passed, but I still don’t know where Jacques is. He’s too hard to find and even though I contacted his sister who I found on Facegram, she doesn’t have any idea about the whereabouts of Jacques. I am in my room, facing my laptop while having dinner. I bought my dinner, which is a bowl with rice and side dishes, at the convenience store near the studio. On my third bite, something chimes. It’s a notification from my Facegram, a friend request to be precise. I didn't know the guy as well as his name, so I disregarded it and continued eating when my Facegram inbox flooded with messages. Who the hell is this guy? I opened the messages, and I was startled when he introduced himself as Jacques. Even though I don’t remember his face, I took the risk and talked to him.Jacques Joliggo:*Cai! I haven’t heard from you for the last two years.What happened?I heard you got into an accident.And you were in a state of coma after that.Do you remember me?I heard from my sister tha
Knowing all of this was holding my consciousness from waking up. Even though I already knew the issue about my father's buying Mama from the group, I still wasn't expecting that Papa would say that. He's not the type that will admit everything that he's done in the past. He's more than that.Right now, we're here sitting around the table while Mama is preparing everything. She hasn't changed that much; she's still the woman that I left months ago. I smiled at the thought that Papa wouldn't hurt Mama again because he promised me earlier."Is there something wrong, baby?" A hand was placed above mine when my gaze focused on my mother, who was taking care of Papa's food."Nothing... I'm happy, Tads. That everything is in its proper place. I know that... Nevermind, my heart is full of joy now, and I don't want that to change." I smiled after saying it. I don't want to start a conversation about what happened before we went here. My conscience won't be happy if I ruin the mood right now.
After a lot of debating between me and Taddeio, we came to the decision to go to my hometown and talk to my parents. I need to do it for me to live without doubt, fear, and misery."Are you okay?" I looked at the man in front of the steering wheel. He's one of those who stayed in my darkest times. I held his hand above mine and smiled before answering, "I'm okay because you're here with me. Thank you.""What's with you today? Where's my baby? Is this really you, Cai?" I rolled my eyes at him and threw his hand back to him. I know I'm starting to become softer, but I don't think it's a bad idea, right? I mean, we're boyfriends now, and we should do what boyfriends do."Forget about it. Jerk," I said, lowering my voice when saying he's a jerk. There's something in me that doesn't want to call him like that. I mean, I'm quite shy by just thinking that he's my boyfriend and I'm new to this thing."I'm also happy, baby," was blurted out by Taddeio.I didn't mind him and watched the trees
"I clothed you when your father threw you out! You can't do this to me!" I was still in my seat, tied. While Taddeio was threatening Mr. Manore, he's not holding anything now. Maybe he threw it somewhere. "You didn't. I worked hard, Pops. You only helped, and you're not an exemption to the rule. You made it with me, and yet you, yourself, did it. Now, deal with the consequences." The old man was shocked to death when Taddeio aimed to hit him with a hammer. I didn't know where he'd got that, but it stopped in mid air as if Taddeio was controlling his hand not to hit Mr. Manore."I know that you couldn't do it, young man. Our lives have been interconnected ever since you got close to me. I tried to stop them, but they wouldn't listen to me. Believe me, Taddeio, it wasn't my intention to go against your back," Mr. Manore pleaded, his hands clasped and attempting to kneel on one leg. I saw how Taddeio started to bring down the hammer while the landlord was assisting him. "Right, you d
"Are you okay?" I asked Polius when he hadn't moved from his place for quite some time now. Maybe what Celine had said had made a big impact on him. I thought they were okay and saw happiness in his eyes when my half-sister, Celine, confirmed their relationship. "I don't know," he answered and shook his head. "Are you okay with this? All of what's happening now. Are you really a part of the group? Or are you just doing this because of her?" My hand formed a fist and tried to have the rope loosen."Don't ask me like that, Merchaiass. I am doing this because I want to." He's swayed. I'm certain that he is. He doesn't want to do this and was forced to due to my sister's request."Okay, if you say so. But remember this, Polius, regrets come after what you thought would be the best. If your mind tells you that it's wrong, then it is. Our mind serves as the protector and the doer, while the heart is only for pumping, producing, and delivering blood. Nothing more." I remained silent after
My shoulders, which had been deprived by force, went numb when I took all the words that came from my sister's mouth right through my soul. I didn't even realize that I was already tearing up when Celine hadn't wiped my tears. I looked at her and she was doing it too. It's hurting me... It's like a spear that went straight to my heart. The sensation wasn't new, but it was heightened and I couldn't contain it. I need to let it out, scream, and divert my attention for me to be okay. Right now, I am not thinking straight and I could hurt someone that'll block my way. My momma was my life. I remembered everything about my accident, and she's the one I contacted and told everything about it. We were talking like prisoners, as my father wouldn't stay put if he discovered that mom and I still had communication. When I called him that night to ask about my accident, I assumed we were already fine, but we weren't.never be. My mother told me that she was physically abused by my father every ti
The wind is hustling, yet the sun can burn your skin. The mild sound of the waves hitting each other relaxes my brain. The ocean is clear, as is the sky. The clouds were smiling and making sure that the weather would be fine. The sand touching my legs gives me comfort that I never knew would be there. It's been what? Six years? Yes, it's been six years since what happened to me, to Dos, and Taddeio. He helped to move on from things that happened in the past. It's not easy, but Taddeio didn't give up. He made sure that I was alright all the time. He put me first before himself. When we first came here, I was distant—to everyone. I don't know, maybe I needed to take a break from them. Or from myself. Celine and Polius were here for the first two months, and they went back when Polius had to report to his station. And to answer the question, yes, Polius came back as a police officer after taking a year's break because of my sister. For the past years, I hadn't had a normal conversation w
"Stop what you are doing now, Triplets." The coldness in the voice of Taddeio can make a person gasp for air. "And why would we, Taddeio? Please give us a reason." Josef said, while his hands that were keeping my fingers up seemed to be restless. He was afraid and tried to cover it up with his normal voice. He's not stuttering, but his body reacted otherwise. He's afraid of Taddeio."Because I said so." Taddeio answered shortly. He looked at me with his sympathetic eyes and asked if I was okay. I gently nodded and smiled at him. He averted his gaze and stopped at Josef. The whole room was silent and no one dared to speak. It was broken when Hector stepped in and said something to Taddeio."You're afraid... that we'll do something to your lover.""I wasn't, Hector. Because I know he's not a softy just like you've known him. My baby has been a fighter since he was born." I don't know why my eyes are starting to be teary, but I stopped them from falling."Oh, is he? Are you?" Hector sa
We were here for how much longer we'd known. There's no sort of time indicator located in this room, and we don't have any phones to check, nor can we check it. We were tied and we looked like sinners that were awaiting their punishments. We spent minutes, maybe hours, trying to get the rope out of our bodies, but it was tied impermeable. We lose hope after doing our all just to break free. My eyes had incidentally gone to Dos, the real Dos or Paula, who was sitting next to me. She seemed to be having deep thoughts. Our eyes met when she turned to me. The difference was that her face had lit up. "Dos..." I called her. "Hmm?" She hummed and smiled at me. How can she smile at a time like this?"Is... is Violet your real mother? And Sarah is your real grandmother?" I don't know if I asked something right, but I want a clarification even though I've already heard it when they had their confrontation."Sadly, yes, Merch. I thought she was a hostage of Raphael, and I confirmed it to him.
I thought everything would be fine when Dos and I successfully went out of the room, but what was awaiting us was worse than I expected. Life is truly a series of unexpected events; everything has a reason, and you can't stop it from happening. What is meant to happen will happen, and everything that you'll do to not let it occur will be merely a tiny waste when destiny is involved. Playing our lives is what makes her happy. Seeing our pain intrigues her desire to continue doing what she's currently doing. She loves to torture us with her different schemes. She lets us be happy for a moment, then it will all vanish and be replaced by sadness. I don't want it to happen anymore. I am tired and wrongly used by destiny's power to overrule our lives. We are the creators of our destiny and are not controlled by it. Unless you change and nurture your beliefs, change won't come and your life will forever be ruined. We are stuck on the first floor, and even though we are on our fifth attempt