Day One
Mom and Dad must have gotten so fed up with me sulking at home for the next two weeks because they signed me up for charity work.
"You're such a lazy adult these days. Do something productive," sabi ni Mom at inabutan ako ng mga papel.
Well, in my defense, I haven't been entirely useless. I finished two oil on canvas paintings. I met up with Mr. Canaro and Mrs. Tan for my presentation of artworks and I even cleaned our pool area! Hindi lang nila alam 'yon kasi wala naman sila.
"Mom, can I ask you something?"
"What?"
"Bakit invited si Austin noong kasal ni Kuya Theo?"
Nawala na iyon sa isip ko pero naalala ko ngayon nang mabasa ang pang
AssumeThe worst part about being in the same event and place as your ex is the unavoidable probability of having awkward moments. Ilang beses ko nang nakita na nakatitig sa akin si Austin. It's not making my work any easier! I couldn't focus properly... Sabayan pa ng pasimpleng panunukso nina Agatha tuwing nakikita nila na titig na titig sa akin si Austin.Wala ba siyang ibang gagawin? I thought he's a busy person now. Well, he's a busy person way before. Iniisip ko lang na baka mas lalong busy na siya ngayon.I remembered again what he said in the car. Pinipilit ko na ang sarili ko na 'wag nang isipin pero ayaw talaga mawala sa utak ko.Austin wants me back? Was he serious? And did he think he'll be able to prove himself to me again just by shamelessly staring at me?
AssumeDumiretso ako sa isang bakanteng classroom. Malayo 'to mula sa pinanggalingan ko. Nang umupo ako ay agad bumuhos ang mga luha ko. Parang tanga lang. Halos dalawang taon na ang nakalipas pero hanggang ngayon naiiyak pa rin ako... Walang pagbabago.I wiped my tears away. I'm not even sure why I'm crying now... Dahil ba hanggang ngayon nasasaktan pa rin ako? But I already moved on...I spent an hour in that vacant room. My eyes are red from crying. Ayokong magpakita sa kanila na ganito ang itsura ko... Pero wala akong choice.Bumalik ako sa mga bata. Nakayuko lang ako nang nilagpasan ko sina Inigo at Agatha."Ate Georgina!" sabay-sabay na tawag sa akin ng mga bata.Pumila sila sa hara
Drunk CallI finally decided to have my own place. Gusto ko sana na ako na ang magbayad para roon kasi may savings naman ako but my parents insisted to pay. They won't let me go if it's not them who's gonna pay for the condo unit. Medyo bothered pa ako roon ng ilang araw. I really want to be independent... Siyempre kasabay na rin doon na ako na ang magbabayad sa mga gastusin ko. But my parents were persistent. Pumayag lang sila na ako na ang bahala sa groceries ko.I am not yet at my best when it comes to cooking but I'd like to try. Wala nang Noah or Yuri na dadalhan ako ng pagkain kapag 'di ako nagluluto. Wala nang Manang Lila na maghahanda ng pagkain ko kapag nasa bahay ako. I'm on my own now. For real.I went to the nearest grocery store. Bibili ako ng mga ingredients para sa mga pagkain na kaya kong lutuin. I'll also g
Drunk CallNanlamig ako. This is Austin. I know his voice."Can you let me talk? Kahit 'wag ka nang magsalita. Just don't drop the call," he said.I don't know why but my gut is telling me that he's drunk. It's Rafael's birthday, after all. Uveros always drink when they celebrate birthdays."Where did you get my number?" I asked. From Agatha? Inigo? Kuya Van? Or from my parents?"Got it from Inigo's phone. I'm sorry..."Huminga ako ng malalim. Patience, Gia. Patience."Drop the call now. You're drunk," sabi ko."No. I promise I'll keep it short," Austin said.
TypeI couldn't move with what Skylar said. What did she mean by before it's too late? Should I be worried about something?Napailing na lang ako. I didn't want to complicate things and come up with answers to my questions so I just did the sanest thing I could think of. I put everything she said at the back of my mind and just focused on our LU trip.I was successful at that part... Nang mag-Sabado ay nakahanda na lahat ng dadalhin ko. Clothes, essentials, camera and other things. Susunduin ako nina Inigo at Agatha kaya maaga akong nag-ayos. I didn't want them to wait for me to get ready."Basement na kami," Agatha said when I picked up her call.
TypeMinutes passed and it's not just Ali and Agatha who's asking me to sing. Pati sina Kuya Rex ay pinipilit na rin ako na pumunta sa stage. Even the vocalist who just finished her song asked for me!God, this is so embarrassing.Na-prepressure na akong tumayo kasi hinihintay na ako ng vocalist at guitarist sa stage."I'll sing too if you sing," Iain suddenly said. Parang iyon na ang last straw nila na mapilit ako na kumanta sa harap.Ang kulit nila... Panay pa rin ang iling at tanggi ko pero bigla akong hinila ni Inigo patayo at tinulak papunta sa stage. Ang sama ng ugali!"Woohoo! Go, Gia!" he cheered and showed me a thumbs up. Sumabay din sa pag-cheer sina Raf.
TalkIt was awkward.Or rather, I was awkward.Austin didn't join us for dinner. Nang iwan ko siya sa dalampasigan ay hindi siya sumunod. I thought I could escape with the talk that he was referring to... Well, for tonight at least. Pero mali ako...Inigo and the guys decided to have a drink - which was seconded by Agatha and Ali. Me? I'm against it. Hindi ko nakalilimutan na balak akong lasingin ni Agatha. I wanted to just sulk in the villa. Or maybe just sleep the night off. Pero ang kulit nina Ali. In the end, napilit nila ako na sumama.Hindi ko alam kung may silbi ba ako rito. Tahimik lang ako habang nag-uusap sila. I need to const
TalkNatahimik siya nang sabihin ko iyon. Well, it's true. Had I learned his explanation before, I'm certain I'd still be hurt deeply. Sigurado ako na aalis pa rin ako. But I couldn't deny that even if he hurt me so badly, my fond memories with him were still one of the best things that happened in my life."Yeah. I was such an ass for doing that. I felt like I was the shittiest person on earth for hurting you. I'm sorry...""Apology accepted."Natawa siya sa sinabi ko. I was taken aback hearing him laugh again."For real, though. I'm truly sorry. I know it's not enough but I'm very much willing to make up for everything. I can even be your slave if you want me to...""That's against the
— Georgina Meredith —So far, everything about our honeymoon is perfect. The destination, the landscape, the food, the beaches... Literally everything. It's a perfect package to celebrate Austin and I's union.Yesterday, we spent the day doing island tours. Ngayon naman ay katatapos lang sa massage at spa. I'd say it's one of the best I've ever had, very relaxing that I really fell asleep. Ayaw ni Austin kaya ako lang ang nag-enjoy doon. He just waited for me to finish."Aus, let's visit the night market later?" I asked when we got back to our villa. Beachfront iyon kaya maganda ang tanawin. Also located on the secluded part of the resort so there's privacy."You want to?""Kung gusto mo."
Austin Javier's life before he met Georgina Meredith"Javi!" Jaco called. I was dribbling the ball and I passed it to him. He immediately released it for a three-point shot. When it went in, he celebrated and looked in my direction. "Nice assist!" he shouted and I acknowledged him.I started running to the other side of the court and guarded the opponent."You're unbelievably serious today, bro. Practice game lang, e," my teammate from the opposite team said.It's true that it's just a practice game but that doesn't give me the pass to slack off. Papalapit na ang UASA kaya dapat pagbutihin ko pa lalo. My teammates don't think the same, though. Probably because this is the second game already and the first one was too tiring. Everybody was giving it their all. Kaya ngayon na pang
Georgina Meredith’s life before she met Austin Javier"Georgina!"Nilingon ko ang tumawag sa akin habang tinatahak ang hallway ng main building at nakita ko ang isang senior ko."Ano po 'yon?"Nakahabol siya sa akin at hinihingal na inabot ang hawak niya. Envelope iyon at mukhang may letter sa loob. Hindi pa man nabubuksan ay alam ko na kung ano 'yon. The design of the envelope already gave away the letter's intent. Love letter ito, alam ko."You dropped this from your book," he replied and glanced at the book I was holding. Kumunot ang noo ko dahil paano naman napunta 'yon sa libro ko? Kahit nagtataka ay tinanggap ko iyon."Thanks... Sorry, you had to run after me for this."
— Georgina Meredith —Austin and I are sorting out all the gifts we've received. Sa dami ay hindi na namin alam kung saan ilalagay ang iba. All of it are delivered in our condo. Ang isang guest room ay halos mapuno na dahil doon namin dinala ang malalaking regalo."Not to sound too ungrateful but wow, there's no end to this," I said when I finished unwrapping another gift.Nakaupo ako sa carpet ng living room. I can already feel my leg cramping up so I decided to stand up and stretch. Hindi pa man nakakapag-unat ay marahan na akong hinila ni Austin para maupo sa hita niya. His arms immediately wrapped around me."You can rest. We're not in a rush, are we?" he whispered before gently kissing my cheek. Dahil nakasandal ako sa kanya ay madali
— Georgina Meredith —"What a wonderful wedding! Congratulations to the both of you.""This wedding will definitely steal the spotlight for next month's issue!""Hay. I do love weddings. Sana si Rex na ang susunod!"Kaliwa't-kanan ang mga bati na natatanggap namin ni Austin mula sa mga bisita. It feels heartwarming and at the same time overwhelming. Who knew this many people care about us? I personally didn't so I treasured each and every wish they had for us."Are you tired? We can rest for a bit and eat while we're at it," Austin said."I can manage. Mamaya na lang. We need to greet the other guests pa."Mat
― Georgina Meredith ― "I can't believe my only daughter is getting married," Mom said after one heavy sigh.I can't help but chuckle. "Mom, need I remind you again that I'm already married? It will be a second wedding."Ilang beses ko nang nabanggit na nagpakasal na kami ni Austin sa Vegas pero parang hindi tumatatak sa kanya 'yon. It's just funny to me because I know exactly why she's being like that.When my family learned about my first wedding, they were all disapproving. Not in a negative way, though. Iyon bang parang nagtatampo sila na hindi ko pinaalam sa kanila agad. They knew about it months after."'Tsaka ang bilis n'yo lang naman pumayag nang magtanong sainyo si Austin, e," dagdag ko.
Austin Javier Uvero"Austin!" Gia said and ran to me. Always the ball of sunshine."Hey... I missed you real bad," I said and hugged her tight."I missed you, too. Who's that?" she whispered, pertaining to Pablo. The asshole extended his hand to Gia."Pablo Vergeire. Javi's teammate," pakilala niya."Georgina Sy. Nice to meet you," Gia said and shook Pablo's hand."Okay, that's enough," I said and broke the hand shake. Ayaw bumitaw ni Pablo, e.I noticed he's keen on making fun of me. He even laughed before he took Gia's things."Your apartment, right?" pagkukum
Austin Javier Uvero"Heard Gia's back?" Iain asked when he dropped by my unit."Yeah. Three weeks ago pa.""Haven't seen her yet. Nakausap mo na ba?"I nodded."And then? Spare me some details, man!""We talked. She still won't hear me out. She thinks there's nothing to talk about 'cause we broke up a long time ago.""You gotta understand her. Nasaktan, e. But that's one setback. Work harder," he said and tapped me on my back.I did. That's my plan all along. I tried so hard to win her back. Even if it made me look desperate, I worked hard. I even took a step back to
Austin Javier Uvero"Fucking asshole. What are you doing here?" Giovanni asked when I showed up at their house. The guard won't let me in so he had to go out to see me. Alam kong galit siya sa akin kaya hindi na ako nagulat sa mapait niyang bungad.I'm a mess. Hindi pa nga naghihilom ang mga pasa ko galing sa suntok ng kapatid at mga pinsan ko pero nandito agad ako naghahanap ng panibago. With the way Giovanni is looking at me right now, I know his fist won't hesitate to land on my face."Van, tell me where Gia is. Please..." I begged."Leave. Before I punch your fucking face.""I won't leave until I know where she is. Just, please, tell me."I was at my low