Love Me Like You Hate Me

Chapter 29

⚠️ Trigger Warning: Violence

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I just got home from school, and I had just finished my glass of water when Tam appeared in the kitchen. The brat looks so fucked up kaya nilapitan ko ito agad.

"What the hell happened to you?"

She was teary when she looked at me and I was caught off guard when she suddenly hugged me.

"Ate..." She mumbled and cried so hard.

"What happened?"

"Ate... Ate... it hurts so much." She sobs. "Make it stop, ate... Please... make it stop."

Hindi ko alam kung anong dapat na maramdaman habang naririnig ko itong humahagulgol sa balikat ko. I'm mad and worried at the same time, but nothing's more painful as an older sister to hear your sister cry like this.

...

Tam insisted to sleep in my room at kahit hindi nito sinabi sa akin ang buong nangyari ay alam ko na agad kung anong problema nito. Nakatulog na nga rin siya kakaiyak.

I took a deep breath before getting my keys and helmet. I've decided to use my bigbike to go to my penthouse and talk to Miss Carter about this dahil hindi ko talaga alam kung anong magagawa ko if I didn't release this growing anger inside me.

Huminga muna ako nang malalim bago ko buksan ang pinto and I was welcomed by dim lights. Dumiretso ako sa living area pero agad akong natigilan when I saw her sitting on the couch.

Nakapakit ito nang abutan ko but I think she felt my presence kaya agad ding bumukas ang mga mata niya at tumingin sa 'kin.

"Oh. What brought you here at this hour, sweetheart?" She smiled but it was a faint one. Her eyes look so tired too and she's still in her work clothes.

"I think, we can talk about it tomorrow. You should rest." I can't stand seeing her at this state kahit madami akong gustong itanong at sabihin.

"No, come here. Take a seat." She scooted sideways and tapped the space beside her.

I shook my head. "You look tired. You should rest first."

"You'll not come here at this hour if it's not important. C'mon, honey. I still have enough energy for you." She insisted kaya wala na rin akong nagawa.

"Is it about your sister?" She asked as soon as I sat beside her.

"Tam broke down when she came home earlier. She's inconsolable, and it makes me frustrated." I paused and took a deep breath to calm myself. "I know something happened between her and Miss Andrade. She's your friend, right? I already warned her about this, but she hurt my sister again."

"They are both hurting." She said that and took a deep breath too. "I was with Ava earlier, and I tried to ask her what happened. She said she's not sure because she can't remember what exactly happened at the party, and I have a gut feeling that she was set up by her half-sister."

She went silent for a second until she heave another sigh before she continued.

"Suzanna has always been envious of Ava, even though she was never accepted by the Sy's. Ava may seem to be very strong and composed on the outside, but she's very fragile inside, especially when it comes to her family. She tried her best to be acknowledged by making them proud, but for those people, it was never enough. When she graduated from college, she was flooded with offers locally and even abroad, but she still chose to stay in Callister just to please her grandfather, who wants her to teach at the university. Her whole life was controlled by them, but they still have the audacity to reject her."