CHAPTER 1

She went by the name Natasha Policarpio—a name that her grandmother had given her. The old woman was the only person who had the right to do so as her mother, who had borne her, chose to abandon her shortly after giving birth. Meanwhile, her father, the son of her grandmother, died even before she was brought into this world. Since then, they heard not a single news about her mother as Natasha was left in the care of her grandmother.

Her grandmother was known to be a fortune teller in their province. Different girls would often come to visit the old woman, bearing the desire to enchant the people that they are besotted with because according to the information given by her grandmother's clients, those girls really did marry the men that they wanted to enchant with love potions. That was the only thing that allowed them to continue living as it became their only source of income. Sometimes Natasha would be left to ponder about quitting school and finding a job in Manila instead in order to help her grandmother. Her plan was to even bring her grandmother with her so that she could already find a job. Yet her grandmother was stubborn, and was adamant with her decision, scolding her whenever she brought up the topic. She believed it to be understandable as her father being the only child, her grandmother considered her as her own after she was given birth. Her grandmother wasn't that old. She was still in her mid-fifties, and was still undeniably healthy. She hadn't even seen white strands of hair in the old woman's head.

In the following year, she'd be a College student. Spending her College years in Manila was her dream, but she knew that her grandmother's savings wasn't enough for it. She even planned to be a student employee just to make it possible, but her grandmother insisted on her studying in their town. There was only a 20-minute trip between her house and the town. Whenever she went there, she would only ride her bike under the unforgiving rays of the sun, making her skin darker than it originally was.

Natasha was fond of reading books since then, and her favorite books to read were those pocketbooks that she'd rent in the town. She never showed those to her grandmother as the latter would surely get mad. That was why she often read whenever the lights had been turned off just so her grandmother would think that she was already fast asleep, even when she'd be reading under her blanket with a flashlight just to give a little light. It was no longer a surprise that her vision had started to blur, making a thick pair of glasses necessary.

She often tied her curly hair that naturally fell all the way down to her waist because her grandmother did not want her to cut it. She said that cutting her hair would only bring her misfortune. Moreover, the old woman was the one who picked the clothes that she wore, forcing her to come out every day with an outfit the same as hers—from old-fashioned blouses down to ankle-length skirts. She wasn't allowed to wear shorts and pants either.

Her clothing inside their house wasn't an exception; it was all the same. She would have a hard time riding her bike because of the clothes that she wore that was why she'd wear safety shorts under her skirts, and whenever she rode her bike, she would be prompted to lift her skirts and clasp them in between her thighs just so pedaling would be less of a hassle thing to do.

Natasha was the favorite person her classmates loved to bully, but she wasn't the type who would cry around the corner because of it. In fact, she bore no care about what they said. Even when she wasn't that beautiful, she was booming with confidence because that was how she was raised. Anyhow, whenever she thought of a guy that she'd like someday, she knew that her grandmother would be there to help her enchant the lucky guy. It was a piece of cake like that.

It was Saturday so there were no classes. Going to town and renting books had already become Natasha's routine. She was wearing a long, green dress, and she didn't bother tying her hair because she could no longer hold her excitement. She needed new books to read because she was already done reading the book that she borrowed from her classmate. She knew that her hair would resemble a poor bird's nest if she didn't make an effort to tie it, but she didn't care.

She was pedaling fast. The road that she was traveling on was a little narrow as it was almost surrounded by a plantation of corn. Sometimes there would even be cow feces on the way that she'd need to avoid, especially when those manures looked like naturally big chocolate cakes sprinkled with remarkably huge and colorful flies, instead of rainbow sparkles.

It wasn't the usual road people often used in everyday scenarios, except for people riding their bicycles or motorcycles used to bring passengers then and there. Natasha even thought that the road was hers to take. That's why riding her bicycle fast wasn't a product of any form of hesitation. It was a little challenging as the road wasn't made out of concrete, but it was fine nonetheless as the earth was dry. It'd be more challenging if it wasn't as the road would often be graced with mud whenever the rain came, and whenever that happened, she couldn't even travel to town even if she wanted to because the mud would only bury the wheels of her bicycle down.

Natasha's gaze was focused towards the massive dung right in front of her, waiting in a still manner. Of course, she didn't want her wheels to roll over it so she was so focused at the sight of it that she didn't even notice a car racing towards her. It was already too late when she shifted her gaze towards the car as panic immediately overwhelmed her entire system, sending her swaying, and certainly not in a graceful manner. Her eyes widened when she fell off her bicycle and destiny had it, she fell exactly right on the thing that she was trying to avoid—into the massive cow dung. She didn't even get the chance to avoid it because of panic so she just found half of her face unluckily embracing the manure.

Her world seemed to freeze, especially when she could smell the arrogant scent of the manure against her face. It was certainly not a pleasant smell. In her state of shock and disbelief, she felt someone grabbing her lightly to help her stand.

"Hey, are you okay?" asked the old man, probably the one who was driving the car.

She would have responded in a displeasing manner not until her eyes landed on the guy that was standing beside the old man. He looked like they were about the same age. His keen and striking eyes were looking right at her, and even when he showed no smile, there was a sense of heaven in his angelic countenance.

"Here, Miss. I believe you need this," the guy said, handing her a white handkerchief that he took out of his pocket.

Oh my God! Did she die because of the nasty smell of the manure? Was she finally seeing an angel right in front of her?

She couldn't help but stare at him, mouth open. She heard a noisy sound of a fly flying around her face.

"Gotcha!" a guy who had just arrived in the scene playfully remarked.

Happiness was plastered across his face when he successfully hit a big fly that had almost gotten inside her mouth. She immediately closed it in the fear that she'd get to taste the nasty taste of flies.

She also couldn't help herself but stare in an amazed manner at the other guy. Did she become cross-eyed? In a sudden, there were already two handsome and identical guys that were standing in front of her whose foreheads were both creased as they looked at her.

She tilted her head.

"Hey, Miss. I think you should wipe your face first instead of moving your head everywhere because the dirt is going all over..." said the guy who just arrived.

He was even circling his fingers as he pointed at her face, making Natasha touch her face, and how sticky the manure was!

Ewww! Her face must've been so disgusting! She knew that her cheeks were already as red as a tomato, but she also knew that they wouldn't even notice how red her face turned because of the manure that was apparently all around her countenance.

"Oops!" he remarked once again upon seeing that even her hands had cow dirt.

"Here, use this," the first guy offered his handkerchief once again.

She didn't bother saying something as she took the handkerchief from his hand before wiping her face.

That was when she noticed that the two guys were wearing different shirts, and they also had different hairstyles. The first guy wore a striped polo shirt paired with black slacks, and he had a clean-cut while the other one who slapped the fly looked more rugged than the former. He was wearing a black shirt and a pair of ripped jeans.

"I'm terribly sorry, Dear. You were moving so fast, and you might've not heard it when I honked," apologized the old driver.

"I-It's fine. It's my fault," she said for the first time after giving herself time to grasp her situation.

"Did you just hit the fly from the poop using my book?" asked the first guy with a creased forehead to the other upon noticing that he was holding what seemed to be his book.

The other guy had a smile plastered right across his face as he stared at the book that he was holding.

" Bro, consider it my instinct. I thought she'd accidentally swallow the fly," he replied while looking at her, still smiling.

Her brows raised because of annoyance. The two were twins, but it was an undeniable fact that their personalities were the total opposite of the identicality of their countenance.

"Here, here's your book." He handed the book back to his brother.

He could only stare at the little traces of cow manure stuck on the cover of the book. His face flushed with disgust before throwing it on the corner.

"I'll just buy another one," he said before wiping his hands against his slacks even when they weren't even dirty in the first place.

"Alberto, why did we stop?" There was an old woman who peeked through the windows of the car.

"Your grandma is awake. Come and let's head back inside," the driver said to the twins.

"Dear, may I know the direction of your house so that we could escort you back home?" The driver shifted his attention towards her.

"No worries. I live not far from here. I can manage. Besides, I'm more concerned that the smell would linger inside your car if I ever go with you," she declined before looking back at the guy that she first saw a while ago.

Natasha was well aware that her eyes were twinkling at the sight of the guy. The dirt stuck on the lenses of her glasses wasn't a hindrance for her to see how effortlessly handsome he looked.

'Lord, I think I'm in love!' she shouted in her mind while she looked up at the sky, smiling ear by ear.

The guy turned his back against her, but his twin remained to stare at her in a confused manner.

"Out of everyone who got to kiss some shit, you are the only one that seems to be very happy," he commented while shaking his head before he turned his back and started walking back to the car.

'Tse! Such a meddler!' she thought to herself, annoyed at the guy. She didn't bother moving not until she could no longer see the car. When it seemed to disappear in her line of sight, her gaze dropped at the sight of the book lying on the nearby ground.

Oh my! They seemed to be compatible as it looked like her crush and she shared the same interest. Yes, she was already crushing over one of the twins.

She picked up the book before quickly wiping off a little bit of dung stuck on the cover page using the hem of her clothes before turning the pages of the book. She saw a name written on the first page of the book.

CLYDE JOHNSON DEL ESPANIA.

She couldn't help but smile. What a perfect name for someone as handsome as him. It was as if the name was perfectly made for him. She closed the book and took her time to kiss it before she realized something. She could taste a hint of bitterness at the tip of her tongue. She even licked her lips to make sense of the taste. It was bitter, nothing like she'd ever tasted before. That was when she realized the state of the book just a few minutes before. She hadn't even wiped all of the dirt off her face, and there were still traces of it left on her lips!

Awwwrkkk! She felt her stomach churn in disgust. She immediately grabbed the hem of her clothes and wiped her whole face. She couldn't almost contain her disgust when the overwhelming smell of it wafted towards her poor face.

She quickly held the bicycle back to its position, still holding the book and the handkerchief that was already filled with the nasty things that kissed the other side of her face. She couldn't just throw the handkerchief away even when it already looked disgusting. She could just wash and keep it alongside the book that belonged to her dear crush.

She was left to gather herself once again, leaving herself with no choice but to go back home. She couldn't even go to the town even if she wanted to—not with her pitiful look and disgusting smell!

The moment she realized that the car was going in the direction of her house, she was already on her way home. She knew that there was a big possibility that they were going there as the only house that was built in the direction they were setting off was only her grandmother's house.

What did they want from her grandmother?

She pedaled faster, only stopping when she saw the same car that she encountered a while ago parked in front of their house.

She was even more astonished the moment she saw the twins outside their house, sitting near their staircase.

'Oh my God! You didn't inform me ahead of time that I'd get to meet my destiny this sudden!' She put both of her palms against one another before lifting her head to look up at the sky, praying. Her smile was wide across her face.

"Now, I'm intrigued. Does your cow shit here make you high? You seem to can't stop smiling like a mad man," the voice that commented about her behavior was loud.

Her smile quickly disappeared upon hearing the remarks before shifting her gaze at the guy in front of her. He saw her in the same state of glee once again, and she hadn't even gotten closer to them yet!

"If you are so intrigued, why don't you try slamming your face against one?" she replied with a hint of annoyance and mockery in her voice as she wasn't able to control her exasperation.

The guy only burst out laughing in a way that was meant to annoy her even further.

Damn! Now, she was even mad.

"Stop it, Kyle!" rebuked the other twin whose gaze was fixed at the book that he was holding.

All of a sudden, the annoyance that flashed all across her face disappeared as her eyes looked at the guy who was walking closer to their direction in a visibly adored way.

"Whoa! You have once again captured the heart of a lady, a provincial girl! Your charm surely doesn't disappoint, Dude." She heard the other guy comment once more.

She couldn't help but clench her hand that was holding the handkerchief she used to wipe the cow manure.

'Damn, if only this handkerchief wasn't the handkerchief of my love, I would've surely put this inside your mouth!' she said to herself annoyingly while glaring at the guy who still hadn't stopped smiling.