All Chapters of Afterthought: Chapter 1 - Chapter 3

Taimtim kong pinasadahan ng tingin ang kabuuang itsura sa salamin. I’m wearing a guipure lace panel cami summer dress that shows a lot of my collarbone and chest. I never thought I’d look good in white with my natural tanned color. Hindi rin nakatakas sa paningin ko ang bagong kulay na buhok. My natural jetblack hair was gone and replaced with golden brown. Only my skin color now is the only thing that identifies me. Without this, I am no Maria Arabella. Mapakla akong ngumisi sa naisip. Because isn’t it the goal why I was turned like this? To erase almost everything in me that could identify me as Maria Arabella? Because starting today. I’m no longer my parents’ daughter. I am no longer a Cortel. Starting today, isa na akong Maria Renee Garcia. The daughter of the dead couple who owns this mansion where we live. The daughter who’s born smart, pretty, and of course. . . rich. And the daughter that. . . will marry a Villacorta who could make my name thrice richer. “Ang ganda mo, Ar

Tahimik kong pinusod ang aking mahabang buhok habang nakatingin sa salamin. I’m wearing one of Renee’s floral dresses again, and it appears shorter to me because I’m a bit taller than her. Mas hapit din ito sa akin dahil mas malaki ang hubong ng katawan ko kaysa sa kaniya. My eyes stopped my hair. The more I see its strands in different color, the more it reminds me of stealing someone’s identity even if she herself knows it. I honestly don’t know where this would bring me. Marami rin naman akong pangarap para sa sarili ko at kina Mama. I want to be a professional architect and earn huge money from it. I want to own a house and a car that’s from my own hardships. I could’ve left my parents and live on my own. To do everything in order to reach those dreams without help from them. Kaso wala e. Magulang ko sila. Ako lang ang anak nila. Kahit gaano sila kasama, the blood that runs in me runs also in them. And also Renee. . . I can't leave her. She’s already like a sister to me. Mapa