HSC: Chapter 9

   

     “Damn it! How many times do I have to tell you, Aaliyah, Don't ever touch my things! Can't you understand?” Eunice just closed her eyes as her husband shouted at her again.

    “Sorry, it was just messy, so I cleaned it up.” Travis raised his eyebrow and looked at his wife.

    “Even if it's messy or not, when I say don't touch it, don't touch it! Is that hard to understand, Aaliyah? You're not stupid, right? Damn it! Just get out of my room! You're irritating me! Get out while I'm still holding back my anger, or else I might do something to hurt you!” Eunice went out of the room crying. 

    Two months have passed, and this happens to them every day. During the first two weeks, Travis was still sweet because their parents were still around. However, when they left and needed to go back to America, her life became a living hell. Eunice had been enduring it for two months already. Despite how Travis was treating her, she still fulfilled her duties as his wife. Her best friend, Trish, was taken away by her parents to avoid disturbing the newlyweds. So she has no allies. 

     Travis became hot-headed every day, and for him, Eunice could do nothing right. His true colors were showing. 

     Since it was only the two of them in the mansion, Travis always talked about Mayell. He always looked at his phone and contacted the woman. He didn't care if Eunice was in front of him. Sometimes, when he was angry and noticed Eunice looking at him, he would shout at her. 

      Eunice was in so much pain. Sometimes, when she couldn't take the pain, she locked herself in the guest room and cried. She never thought that Travis was like this, and he still couldn't accept that Mayell had someone else. Even though the woman already had a boyfriend, he still contacted her. Sometimes he comes home drunk and mistakes his wife for Mayell. 

    Travis did not realize the difficulty and understanding that Eunice had for him. He did not see her effort. For him, he only married her for their company and for their parents' wishes.

    Eunice went to the guest room and locked herself in. She would only come out later, when her husband had left.

     While wiping her tears, she looked at her phone when it vibrated. Her eyes lit up when she saw who was calling. It was Trish!

    Eunice quickly answered the call.

    “T-Trish!” She couldn't help but cry again. She only tells her friend everything. Even though her friend is far away, she still tells her what's happening between her and Travis. Trish knows the truth, so Eunice can't keep it a secret from her.

   “Oh gosh! Are you crying again, Bes? What happened? What did my brother do to you again?” Her friend asked worriedly.

    “Your brother is mad at me again. He shouted at me just because I cleaned up his scattered clothes. He's so shallow, Bes! "He's really shallow!” Eunice was sobbing. She was really hurt, but what could she do? She entered this situation and agreed to their parents' wishes.

    “Ghad! What's happening to my brother? Is he going crazy? Why can't he treat you nicely? He wasn't like this before!” Trish said angrily. If she could fly from America to the Philippines just to reach her friend, she would have done it. She really feels sorry for what her brother is doing.

   “I don't know, Trish. I'm doing everything for him, and I'm enduring it because I love him. I understand everything, even his obsession with Mayell, even though it's really painful for me. I know he doesn't love me, but I hope he can at least treat me properly because I do everything I should as his wife, but he sometimes still treats me badly! I don't know where I stand.” 

     Trish doesn't know what to do. She wants to call her brother, but she's afraid that Eunice might get hurt and be accused.

     “Shh, don't cry.  I'm coming home. I'm coming home. I'll tell Mom that I need to go home. You need someone to be with you! I need to watch over you. I'm sorry if this is happening to you; my brother is a big jerk. He's with the right person, but he still chooses to cheat.” Eunice sobbed harder. Trish is the only one who's on her side.

     “I'll wait for you, Bes. I'll hang up now. Maybe your brother will knock suddenly.” 

   “Okay, bes, if only I could tell Mom about this, but I don't want it to get worse. bye, Bes! Don't cry, okay? I'm coming home. I love you, best friend!” Eunice forced a smile.

    “I love you too. I hang up now.” 

   “Okay, bye!” 

    Eunice sadly put down her phone and peeked out the window to check if her husband was still there. And there it came out of their house, got in his car, and drove away.

   She breathed a sigh of relief when he was gone. She was alone in the mansion again. They don't have a housekeeper because Travis moved them to another mansion.

     Eunice didn't know why Travis treated her that way. She hadn't done anything wrong, but he was always angry or irritated with her.

    She decided to clean the living room, cook, and go grocery shopping because they had no more supplies in the refrigerator.

 *******

     Eunice is walking towards the supermarket, busy rummaging through her bag. She is searching for the list she made earlier. As she is focused on her bag, she accidentally bumps into someone. 

      “Oh! Sorry! Sorry, sir!” she exclaims. The man was drinking a frappe, which spilled on his clothes.

     “It's okay, miss,” the man calmly responds while wiping his hand, which was also splattered with the drink. From the appearance of his clothes, it's clear they are expensive.

     “Oh no, your clothes are dirty! I'm so sorry. Let me replace them,” Eunice says apologetically. The man smiles at her.

    “It's okay. I have a t-shirt in my car that I can change into.” Despite feeling guilty and embarrassed, Eunice insists,

    “No, no. I'll buy you a new one. Where did you buy that t-shirt?” The man chuckles, “I bought it in Paris, miss. There's nothing like this in the Philippines. Don't worry, it's fine.” Eunice feels even more ashamed:

    It was bought in Paris. Why didn't I look where I was going? Now I've made a mess of his expensive clothes! Eunice said in her mind

    “But I can't bear the thought of not paying for or replacing it, especially since it looks expensive because you bought it in Paris and I just spilled frappe on it,” Eunice explains.

    “Hahaha, it's really okay, miss. Besides, it looks like you still need to do some groceries,” the man says while looking at the supermarket.  “Go ahead, it's fine. Don't worry,” he smiles.

     Not wanting to give up, Eunice suddenly thinks of a solution. She smiles widely at the man. “I have an idea! You said you have a shirt in your car, right? Why don't you change into that? I'll take your dirty clothes, wash it at home, and return it to you.” The man laughs and nods,

     “You really don't give up, miss. You're something else. Okay, let's go to the parking lot so I can give you my clothes.” Eunice smiles in triumph. She really feels embarrassed about what she did to the man, but he seems like a good person, and she feels comfortable around him.

*******