Fresh leaf

Her older brother Carlo still doesn't wake up, he's worried that he might lose it forever. When she gets out of jail, she will take him to the best doctor in another country. Surely her older brother would get some money from their dead father. In truth, she forgot to tell her lawyer that they had something her older brother would inherit from the father. She immediately asked the police who are now assigned to guard the station so that if possible she can call his lawyer. She was immediately rejected because it was too late for the call. She had no choice but to wait for the morning to come. 

Ephraim immediately called his lawyer friend, he had to take action for the siblings. They haven't seen each other for a long time. They are only a year apart so they are very close to each other according to their neighbors. His mind was interrupted by an answering voice from the other line. “Hello? Who is this?" 

"Claire Esperon."

 “Oh Claire, did you get called? Is there a problem there? I'm going there too… I'm just having breakfast. can you wait for me? ”  He momentarily forgot that he was the one who called first.

“Just a moment, attorney, I would just like to ask you what my older brother and I will inherit from my father. I will need money. ” 

"Where are we-" The lawyer asked in astonishment. He could not predict the maiden's intention. Suddenly the lawyer's phone line was cut. He was just fixed it last week and it started to happen again. He just sighed at the interrupted conversation between them. He immediately went to his room to get dressed. He had to go to the girl at the precinct immediately and need to know what is the money they are looking for. He called the doctor to ask if the girl had mentioned anything about her inheritance. But he called it several times but still did not answer. He decided to go to the girl so that he could talk to her face to face. "Are you going to your client?" Someone talked to behind him. The lawyer looked at a black car parked outside the gate of his rented house. It was probably Clark because he often rode in his old car. But the parked car was so new so he hesitated for awhile to get out. By the time he decides to face the person in question. A loud bang rang out in the lawyer's area. Meanwhile, the young lawyer's neighbors who had just had breakfast were woken up by the gunfire and thought it was only from the children's fireworks knowing that December was approaching again.

 “Oh, the young people really are now… they did nothing but light fireworks and make noise. In the morning, maybe the- “ Ka Bestre stopped speaking when he heard someone shouting.

 “Selena, is anyone calling me? Take a look outside and maybe that's what I'm waiting for your sister Susan to send to LBC. ” The thirty -three -year -old spinster immediately complied. He opened the large window of the house to see if anyone was at their gate.

 "Dad, don't wait." 

“Oh, why? Have you ever seen a ghost child? It's too early for that, isn't it? ” The old man really likes to believe the ghosts and aswangs.

“That's Ka Lupe. Isn't that the owner of the rented house that Ephraim is your godson too ?, ”Selena asked her father who was already having breakfast at that time.

 "Say it! Kuh! You should not make it like a suspense movie! That will give me a heart attack. Than I'll just have to haunt you in your dreams.” The old man was angry because that was not what he was waiting for, he was very impatient. 

“Ephraim is crying out for help! We shot your favorite godson! Don't come for you might feel worse again, you just got out of the hospital. You cannot risk this for the third time. ” Selena immediately stopped her father from coming out of it. She already knows her father especially when it comes to his offspring. He's almost childish and is considered normal here. When she saw a neighbor coming from the rented house, Selena immediately asked. “Henry! What happened to Ephraim?! ” The man in question immediately turned to the big window of the Go's and saw Selena with her hair still blown out, who just probably woken up. “I don't know… as long as I've seen a lot of blood of Ephraim. Right it doesn't seem like he would be able to make it to the hospital. The motive was clearly not theft for nothing was lost- “ The man was speechless when he heard the loud sound of an ambulance from a nearby hospital.

 “Wew! Wew! wew! "

 "Hey Henry come on!"

 “I am leaving first and my wife is taking asthma medicine. She might even be included in the ambulance when if I won't buy it yet. I am really sorry Selena. ” Henry ran to the pharmacy. Selena was left looking out the window.

Claire could no longer wait for her lawyer to arrive. Her older brother will finally be recover. And someone will also prove that she did not kill their mother and stab her. With a little patience, she will have a fresh start. “Garcia! You have a call! ” The newly assigned policeman shouted again at their precinct. She almost tripped as she reached the telephone.

 “Hello? Who's this?"

 “Claire! This is Tessa… don’t be surprised by what I will tell you huh? ” “Tessa… tell me. You make me nervous ”

"Bad news or good news first?" 

"Of course good news!"

 "I will get married!" 

“Wow, that is great then! Who might be that lucky guy? Or what is the bad news? ” The girl is happy with what happened to her friend.

 “I will marry your ex! I hope you don't get mad at me. ” Tessa is really kind. Even though she still loves him, as long as he's Claire's ex, she avoided for a long getting close to him.

 “Which ex? I can't even remember the others, can I? ” Claire even got to joke, even though she knew what it meant. After all, she only had one boyfriend. “Why? Did you have a boyfriend besides James? ” She heard this name again after a year. It won't last long either. He wanted Tessa, not him. Claire just put the phone down from her ear. Just now she was tired of listening to what his friend was saying. She did not know why. She just said goodbye to the police guard. Claire was no longer aware of the passage of time. It was afternoon and it was past six o'clock in the afternoon but there was still no call from her lawyer that she has been waiting the whole day. She still could not see him even his shadow. What she feared was that he might have run away from her. No one is really trustworthy nowadays. Even if you consider them as your friends and family, you will still be fooled again and again. This was the only thing the girl thought as she rubbed the cold iron of the cell. Simultaneously with the dripping of her tears was the swelling of her stomach. Everything will never be the same again. She was already asleep on the patchwork cardboard in the cell. Others have inhabited perhaps by bedbugs in its old age and filth. She just shook it so that the insects that lived in it would disappear forever.

There will be another hearing in a few weeks. That's where the sentence will be handed down to her. And she believes her lawyer can win the case, which she hopes would only show up that morning. She needs to rest her mind especially since she is the only one who can help himself. She knew that if she was not going to be resilient to the problems she faced, she would definitely give in every problem that she face anytime. It was just as she expected, just as she opened his eyes. She had already heard the call of her name. She was sure it was her lawyer. But when she saw her visitor, she noticed that it was not really her lawyer, but looked like it. 

"You're probably wondering why I'm here and not your lawyer." The man's eyes were sore and tear-stricken. He was still wearing a black t-shirt that caused an unwanted thoughts in her mind. The man's face was clear even though there were traces of sadness in it. The girl just sat down, her mind filled with questions at the visible signs of something she didn't want to happen and acknowledge especially at this crucial time.

 “Claire, our youngest Ephraim always mentions you to us, I am Atty. Simone Marquez. I am the brother of your lawyer. He can't help you anymore, I'm sorry but he just died yesterday after being shot by his colleague on the UP student council while he was still in college. ” The girl was speechless. She did not know how she should react to the bad news brought by his brother. What about his brother? She knew there were many questions that the deceased lawyer's brother would never be able to answer. 

“Don't worry, I'll help you get out of here. I know my brother would love to help you. I will just come back here after he is buried. ” Israel immediately said goodbye.

“I sympathize with you attorney. I hope whoever did this to him will be held accountable. ” Still, she can't believe the news delivered to her. Fortunately, his brother is also a lawyer and willing to help. The day of judgment has come. She was sentenced to two years in prison, so even though she was not released immediately, she accepted her fate and will try not to get into trouble in the near future. While she was in jail, she heard about her friend's wedding through a letter from her former high school classmate and it was Lynette. Her lawyer has also taken care of what he and her brother inherited from their father. And when she received it in the middle of her imprisonment, she immediately asked the lawyer for her brother to be treated by a specialist in Australia. Since then, she has not received any news from a lawyer or anyone connection to her brother's recovery. The day passed quickly and she was also in prison for two years. She is also used to the routine here inside the prison. There are lesbians who still want to be exploit her but she was saved by her two girlfriends who are also lovers. They are both female but as strong as a man when throwing their punches. So from that moment she clung to them like a lizard, homosexuals kept her alive in jail for two years. Sometimes she gets scared every time she goes to sleep at night. This is because the prison gang wars is rampant here especially when their enemy is asleep. Some even smuggle knives or other sharp objects thru their relatives or minions outside. With so many prisoners in prison, reprimands were given little attention. “Oh, is that so? Are you leaving us? ” One of Claire's friends was Tara who was imprisoned for murder. He was scared at first but later he came to think of it. 

“Don't worry, I will call and write to you. I will still visit you here, ”Claire promised the two. He is now twenty years old. 

“Don’t you dare to try and then you'll see! Don't come back here. It's not good for you to come back here. Erase the two years you spent here in your life. ”

“Garcia! Don't you have any plans to get out of jail? Your lawyer and brother are waiting for you for minutes already! ” Did the police here in the jail are trying make a prank on her? She just rolled her eyes and sighed while looking at her friends.

"All right, ma’am, I’m going out now, but I won’t believe you that my brother is there." The three policewomen who accompanied her out of the jail to the waiting area looked at her with a smile. And what she didn't expected at that time is what happened next, her older brother Carlo and her lawyer were really there. Claire was overflowing with joy when she saw that her older brother has finally recovered and was doing well. She hugged him tightly and at cried as she felt the happiness she was missing for years. She wanted her brother to be alive but the hope of it was beginning to fade for her. Gladly, she would be able to be with him again. 

"Shhhh… shh…Come on Claire, you're twenty years old but the way you cry, can still beat a two-year-old child." He combed her hair with his fingers and kissed her head. 

 “Ku-kuya, are you for real? I thought for a while that you would never come back, I thought that this day would be. Your trick is that you didn't even call me. ” Carlo’s clothes were soaked with her sweat and tears. She clung to him like a lizard as she kept weeping. 

 "Don't worry too much, from now on I will make sure that our lives will be fine. Do you trust me?" He assured her while patting her back.

 “Attorney. Thank you so much for all your help to our brothers and sisters. We are very grateful to you. ” Claire finally remembered someone else’s presence and realized he was the one who helped them on behalf of his sibling, Ephraim. If it wasn't for this lawyer, it's likely that her older brother is still lying down or worse something bad had happened to him already. She could not imagine witnessing it after her release or in any day.

 "Don't worry too much, all I did was for my brother and besides, I can see that you two both deserve to have the life that was taken away from you after the accident." Simone don’t usually help people that couldn’t pay for his service but he made an exception for Claire and if he has to do it again and again he knows that he is more than willing. She was deprived and was taken away from society in an unfair process but she was strong and resilient that made her even more unique. Women that he met before usually succumb in depression and were more likely to give up everything after they lose everything.

“Why are you following what he said that much? Am I that important to him for you to help me like this? Then I should thank him very much. ” Despite the help that she had received from him, she was even more reluctant to trust him as she can’t see through his actions. His facial expressions is a blank canvass. Maybe, what he needs to have in his life is to have a strong person around just to give a little kick in his life, a little spice to excite him. He seem like a person who can get anything he wants without even flicking his finger. He is effortlessly handsome and innately intelligent from inside to outside. Then, she realized that her thoughts are now getting out of hand. She looked at him waiting for his response to her question.

 “He just values ​​the friendship between you two. Of all the acquaintances of our father, whether in politics or in any field, no one treated him well because if they did not know that he was the son of a famous and good judge. He really feels that as a lawyer he is a failure, because he knows that he was immediately hired by a famous law firm not because of his capabilities but because of the surname Marquez that is already attached to him.” He explained.

They continued talking as they walked out of the prison. As their conversation is getting deeper she realized what kind of a brother is Simone to Ephraim. He is way much better than him but he lifts him up more than he can do to keep his brother from feeling left out and inferior. They hold on to each other’s weaknesses and strengths which makes it more unimaginable, but if it is really true their parents could be great ones.

They finished their conversation as they arrived at the parking lot.