Till debt do us part

The Beginning

It was still dark when Rae got out of her room, should be preparing for their breakfast yet she was still sitting on the couch they had to put beside the pool because it doesn't match the aesthetics of the living room. The sky was pitched black, no signs and light of stars, and the cold summer breeze embraced her as she realized even if it was early in the morning - the sky cries for sadness.

The birds already started chirping and the crickets were still playing their own music while Rae fell into her own trance, the day when her life turned a hundred eighty. It was still clear in her memory how she felt that day. How fine the day was, how the clouds wonderfully formed in the sky as if it was playing charades with the air and the people looking at it. A shade of blue and a combination of red, pink and orange shined so brightly that looking at it might mesmerize a heart but will sting eyes a bit.

Her heart feels giddy as she wanders the busy streets, trying to market herself to some of her chosen company. So excited that she had finally got to experience real life, get to shed sweat to get to her goals and achieve her dreams. Not until her heart sank when she finally heard from her Tito Kim, her dad's closest friend, that their business declared bankruptcy and she had no other choice but to stay with him and be a wife to his son, Mingyu Kim. She remembered how she prepared everything alone, and no one was there to help her except for the unfamiliar faces from Kim's company. How frustrated and hurt she was when her dad chose to leave her, and he was nowhere to be found since that day. No news, no messages, no everything, only a key to a house and a car was given to her through a parcel.

Not that until one day she woke up feeling fine, it seemed a clear mind that she chose to live the life she was in. That well, in fact, she had a crush on the guy she married. A forgotten feeling in the last days of their highschool and ignited later on when she accepted the contract. Not when a year already passed she still feel emp-

"The breakfast?" finally came to her senses, she looked at the person behind her. "Oh. I'm sorry. Prepare ko madali." Agad agad siyang pumasok at dumiretso ng kusina. "Wag na. Malalate lang ako."

She sighed.

Another day of palpak , she whispered to herself.

"Nak, okay ka lang ba? May nararamdaman ka ba?" Nanay, ang kasama nila sa bahay. Ang tanging taong nakakausap niya sa bahay at matagal ng kasama ng mga Kim's. "Medyo hindi lang po maganda ang gising, Nay. Pasensya na po. Kain na po tayo."

"7pm, Regent Hotel. Dinner with my friends. Ipapadala ko nalang isusuot mo. Mag ayos ka naman. Nanay, I'll go na." He kissed Nanay before storming out of the house, as if he'd be late anytime soon. Sa pagkakaalam niya, never naman nalate si Mingyu at laging maaga pumapasok sa office. Hindi niya na rin inaasahan na bibigyan rin siya ng halik ng asawa, dahil sino nga naman ba siya.

"Magpahinga ka na lang muna, ako na bahala dito. Mag aayos ka pa mamaya." Tumango na lamang siya at hinaan na si Nanay sa kinainan nila.

The dress was beautiful. Mingyu really knows how to pick dresses for her, from the size, the style and the accessories. Inabot na lang sa kanya ng driver ang isang brown bag na naglalaman ng idadamit niya. It was a black silk spaghetti strap dress that flowed up to her ankle, then it was paired by thick heeled heels. She wore a natural looking makeup that suits her dress and put on some gold accessories. Hindi niya inakala na may pagkaformal dinner pala ang pupuntahan niya hanggang sa pinagbuksan siya ni Joshua, Mateo's best friend, ng pinto.

"Hi. Pasok ka." Bati sa kanya ng binata. Hindi man lang siya ngintian neto. Alam naman niya na ayaw sa kanya ni Josh sa hindi niya malaman na rason. She shrugged off the thoughts and sat at the farthest couch in the room and waited patiently for others to arrive. Halos mabuo na ang ngiti niya nang pumasok si Mingyu ng pinto, looking so pogi and hot; hanggang sa nakita niya ang kamay ng lalaki na may hawak na kamay at pumasok nga ang kasama neto. Si Rizza, ang babaeng nililigawan ni Mingyu. A well-known model and influencer. Napayakap siya sa sarili, dagdag sa malamig na hangin pumasok mula sa pinto, kundi dahil sa naramdamang hiya sa katawan at imahe niya kompara sa babaeng kakapasok lamang.