Chapter Two: The Man in the Elevator

Leigh halted in the middle of the living room. She was fidgeting back and forth. A tear of dissatisfaction on her face was evident.

Minah casually placed her backpack on the ragged couch before turning on her heels to face her.

“Are you mad or just very thankful?”

Leigh spun around, ready to confront her at last. Minah could not help but raise a brow when she her annoyed expression.

“Thankful?” Leigh responded in an incredulous tone. “Do you realize what you just did to Damon? You are way too old to—”

An exasperated sigh escaped from Minah's mouth. “Excuse me, Leigh. Eighteen is definitely not too old. Do you see any wrinkles on my skin? Does my hair look gray? Do I smell like land or earth?”

A thin and awkward smile formed on Leigh's dry lips. Could not she be any more cringe?

“You just smack a boy who was three years younger than you... Don't you feel sorry for what you did?”

“Why on earth would I feel sorry for him? Did he even feel sorry for you? What does his age have to do with this?”

Leigh did not answer. But the look on her face was not buying it. Minah could not help but suspect her, too.

“Be honest with me, do you have a crush on this "Demon" guy that's why you're directing your anger towards me now?”

“Seriously?!” Leigh exclaimed. “You don't get my point, do you? What I wanted was, we could have just reported it to the faculty, right? I tried to stop you but you are not listening to me! You just want to take revenge!” Leigh said exasperatedly.

"Revenge? You're making it sound too barbaric, Leigh. What I did was return the favor. You are being bullied by them, so I gave them the taste of their own medicine. Thanks to me, you guys are now even.”

“But what you did was just way too much.”

“Do I have any better options?” she asked sternly. “They treated you harshly. What do you expect me to do? Pat their head and say ‘well done, sir’?”

“Jeez, Minah,” she shook her head in disappointment.

The smile that was written on Minah's face has gone. She then stared at her sister with a serious look on her face. “You know what, I'm just an inch closer to telling you that you are ungrateful as hell. But I chose not to because of your darn faint heart. Don't you ever lock yourself in your room while you are still emotional, do you understand? If you get a heart attack or something because of me, mom's going to kill me.”

Her sister scowled.

“Let me tell you this, Leigh. While you have just experienced the raindrop, I have already gone through the storm. You are only fourteen when you see the worse and the better, while I have seen a whole lot of them growing up. Remember this, the weak are bound to be devoured and to be fooled by powerful men. Most likely to be oppressed, abused, and bastardized. People like you have no means in the world if you don't put up a fight. So, next time, if they pour spiced vinegar all over you, get ahead of them. Spit on their fucking faces, and show them who you are!”

“You are just four years ahead of me, Minah, but you're preaching now as if you have been carrying the weight of this world for decades.”

Minah fell silent. Sometimes, she wanted to feel envious of Leigh. Despite all the suffering she had gone through in the arms of her abusive father a long time ago, she still viewed the world so differently, like a never ending beautiful rainbow.

Minah hoped Leigh would soon realize that life is full of bullshit.

She was way too nice. Way too forgiving. Her exact opposite of her. Minah never forgets those who mistreated them.

Probably because Leigh was still too young to understand that this world is like a battlefield. That she must win all the time if she wanted to stay alive.

Leigh still believes that everything can be settled just by sitting down and making amends. But life doesn’t always work like that. At least to her and Diana. Had she known how cruel the people were to them, she would have seen the world differently. At the early age of five, she had already lived through a tough life.

“I know that you were only trying to protect me, Minah, and I could not thank you enough. But I hope you will never forget that violence was never the answer. Always choose to be kind, you know. If Damon reports what you did to him to the guidance counselor, mom will surely chew you out.”

Minah grinned from ear to ear. “See? Now, who sounds like someone who carried the world for decades?”

A loud approaching step had stopped Leigh from talking.

They both exchange glances. Diana was supposed to come back home on Saturday. She had been working at Guimaras for a year now and she only gets home thrice a month.

Immediately, Minah grabbed her little sister's arm and went to the room. She carefully shut the door. She will be dead once her mom finds out they cut class today. Well, of course, Leigh's exempted. She always took the blame anyway.

“I'm telling you, Juan Miguel! Why don't you just leave me alone!?”

Minah's forehead creased. Never had she ever recalled a relative named Juan Miguel. Who might that be?

Minah and Leigh both leaned closer to the door, trying to eavesdrop curiously.

Diana's voice sounded so angry. She could hear the heavy footsteps marching towards the living room... and then another heavy step of somebody else's followed. Cautiously, Minah slightly opened the door to peep through that small gap.

“Isn't mom too early to be back home? Did she also cut out work today?” Leigh asked quietly, suppressing her grin. It was as though she had already forgotten their argument earlier. They are on good terms now, maybe.

“Sshh!” Minah shushed her, covering her mouth with her fingers. Then, she peeped through the gap once again. There, she got a glimpse of her mom talking to a tall man. His back was facing her.

“What are you so afraid of? Are you scared she might see me?” the man growled angrily.

“Why would I feel scared? Stop asking me your stupid questions! Just leave and don't show up ever again!”

“Your face shows it all. You’re guilty as fuck, Diana. How could you do this to me? It's been eighteen years since you hid the truth from me.”

Minah felt the intense wrath coming from the man's voice even though he tried his best to stay calm.

“How many times do I have to tell you? I have nothing to explain to you. I have nothing to hide from you!”

Minah could feel the clear frustration from Diana's frantic voice behind the door. Her mother tried so much to sound adamant just so she could hide the fear that was slowly creeping out of her voice.

“Whether you like it or not, I'll take my daughter with me.”

Daughter? Minah's chest started to pound. She could see how Diana's face turned pale when she heard what the man just said.

“You are not taking anyone, Juan Miguel! Minah and Leigh are Julian's children!”

“I know how to count, Diana. Minah is my daughter!”

Leigh froze. Her warm hand seized hers. Minah could see from the corner of her eyes how she looked up to gaze at her. Then, slowly, Leigh squeezed her hand tightly, obviously not letting her go.

Minah was expecting her mom to object, but instead, a sob that she has been trying to contain echoed in the entire room. Anxiety arose even more from Minah's chest.

Is this man her real father? But Diana told her that her father had already passed away. It was the same story as their neighbors had been spreading.

“You have one month to confess the truth, Diana,” he said as he began walking towards the main door.

Diana turned to face him, tears still running down her face, but this time, she looked rather stern. “And what are you going to do if you take her from me, huh?” she asked him.

The man stood still. That gave Minah a chance to observe him this time.

There were countless speculations about why she did not have a father. But one thing that will always linger in her mind was, she was the daughter of a married wealthy aged man.

Diana was a mistress.

But she was not looking at some old man that the people were describing; the one who was supposed to have a gray beard or the one who had a pot belly. She was rather looking at a man in his prime. He was in his late forties, handsome and neat. This man was far better than Julian or even a whole lot better than the one she was kind of expecting—filthy or unprivileged like Julian who just had enough to get by.

But where was he when Diana needed him the most? Did he abandon them to enjoy his lavish lifestyle as a single man? Minah wanted to put it like that, but judging from their conversation early on, obviously, her mom hid her from him.

“You must have forgotten what has happened between us, Juan Miguel! How are you going to take away from Minah's image that she's your miatress' daughter? A child born out of sin! That she was born out of Fuego's wealth and power? I still could not believe that until now, you don't know what accountability means, Juan Miguel. You swell with arrogance!”

Mistress. That term cut Minah deep. She saw the pain that crossed Juan Miguel’s handsome face before his expression turned sulky.

He slightly looked over his shoulder to face her. “I will be back after a month, Diana.”

Minah shut her eyes, squeezing her hand into a tight fist when the man walked past the room she was hiding. It was clear to her now. Diana hid her from him for so long because they are not his first family. As soon as the man disappeared from her sight, she returned her gaze to her mother.

Like a melting candle, Diana slumped down on the sofa and burst into tears. She squeezed her eyes shut. She never saw her mom cry so hard, until now. Even when Julian hurt her, she never choked up like that. But this time, she was different. The man was able to make her dissolve into tears for less than a minute.

She could not help but feel mad at her father. He knew he was married yet he still flirted with Diana. She could not fathom the reason why. Was he even aware of how society viewed them and talked about them all the time just because she was born out of wedlock?

Does he even know the desperation her mother had just to give them a decent family? She even coerced herself to marry Julian just so she could have someone whom she can call a father?

Minah was about to storm out of the room to confront Diana when Diana's cell phone rang. She answered it and then stood in a weary manner, composing herself a bit before exiting the unit.

Minah waited for a tad bit more before coming out from the room she was hiding. Leigh followed quietly.

“Minah…”

“I'll be right back, Leigh.” She said and Leigh let go of her hand.

Minah went out of the unit and then rushed towards the elevator. The elevator then slid open and there, she saw the tall man standing in the elevator car.

“Sorry but aren’t you getting in?” he asked but she remained rooted to the spot until the elevator door gradually slid shut.

Without a choice, Minah stepped in reluctantly.

“And what floor?” the man asked again.

At last, she spared him a short glance. The man was wearing a black baseball cap, a black T-shirt tucked in a black pair of denim jeans, and a pair of white sneakers.

Minah didn't say a word. But instead, she lifted her hand to press the button herself. The ground floor button lit up. After that, she stepped backward and stayed in the corner, her arms crossed.

Juan Miguel Fuego… If she was not mistaken, he was a businessman. She often heard about this man on TV every time the media mentioned the list of the most successful and the wealthiest personalities in the country. She could never imagine that her mother was linked to someone like him.

Finally, the elevator chimed, indicating that she had reached the ground floor. She immediately stepped out of the elevator and walked out of the building. She continued walking until she reached across the street. Her mind was too preoccupied; she did not even notice the speeding vehicle coming.

Before she knew it, a hand yanked her out of the road which led her to her safety. Her face was buried in his chest due to the impact. The cap flew away from them then it dropped onto the concrete road.

Minah then slowly blinked her eyes open and pushed herself away from his broad chest. They locked eyes for a second.

“Are you going to kill yourself?!” he snapped.

Her eyes narrowed. “Will you let go if I say yes?”