Accidental Infidelity (Heartbreak Diary #1)

Kabanata 35.2

Hi, this is the last chapter of Accidental Infidelity. Maraming salamat po sa matiyagang paghihintay at pagsubaybay. I never thought a lot would appreciate this story and Lieve's existence. And I hope you guys will find it in your heart your true value and you may find the reasons why you need to keep going :)

Kabanata 35.2

Accidental Infidelity

Lahat ay nagulat sa aking sinabi. Some of my relatives gaped at me as if I was crazy for saying such thing. Bakas din ang gulat sa mga mata ni Ahma. The man beside her almost dropped his jaw as my announcement caught him by surprise. Alam kong hindi niya rin naman ito gusto. I can tell from the way he put his hand on his back and look at me. Hindi rin naman ako papayag na may makulong sa ganitong sitwasyon nang dahil sa akin.

"Lieve!" I heard my mother called my name loudly. Ilang hakbang lang ay inabot niya ang aking balikat.

"What are you saying? You can't defy your grandmother! At nakakahiya sa mga bisita ngayon. It's the company's party for God's sake!"

"This is exactly what I wanted, Mom..." Inalis ko ang hawak niya sa aking balikat. I looked around me. May ibang nagtataka kung ano ang nangyayari. I can hear low chatters and whispers from everyone. Dumapo ang tingin ko kay Diego na nagtatanong ang mga mata sa akin. I smiled, telling him that everything's going to be fine.

Bahagyang nanginginig ang kamay ko habang hawak ang mikropono. I held onto it tightly as I faced the crowd. My heart's beating so fast I can almost hear it echoing in this hall. Wala akong marinig kundi ang malakas at mabilis na tibok ng aking puso.

I shook my head lightly, reminding myself that this is not only for myself but for those in our family who wanted to experience love...and not just some stupid arrangement.

"I'm Lieve Adelaide Lim Tuason. Not a lot of people know me since I've never wanted being in the spotlight. Through the years, I kept asking myself why there has to be a tradition that we needed to follow. I know that it's the foundation of our family. It was our strength pero ni minsan, hindi ko nagustuhan kung paano mamalakad ang pamilya namin."

"Lieve, what are you doing? Put that mic down!" pabulong na sigaw ni Mommy sa akin.

"Let her speak, Lianna," my grandmother interjected. Nagkatinginan kaming dalawa. She gently smiled at me which caught me off guard.

"My family is one of the most successful families in our country. Marami kaming negosyo, we had so many connections but I always think that my family lacks one thing: knowledge about love. Kung magkakagusto man kami sa isang tao, we need to find someone who are among us——a Chinese to be exact. 'Yong mga kaibigan mo, mga kakilala mo...it's like a requirement. At nakakatawa kasi hindi ko talaga nagustuhan iyon. I watched my cousins, my younger aunts and uncles let love slip away because of this tradition. They forgot how to love...they forgot how to fall in love. I always thought that the Tuasons are strong but when it comes to love, they couldn't fight for it. So I...I'm here in front of you today, despite a lot of things that happened recently, declare that I do not want to be married to someone who's been picked by my family for me. I stand here today because I want to fight for my choice...for my desire."

Huminga ako nang malalim. My eyes landed to the man who took care of me. In his subtle ways, he was able to divert my attention. He made me fall in love with him, and he doesn't know that I dreamed of living with him for the rest of my life. Alam kong marami pa kaming kailangang matutunan tungkol sa isa't isa. But I also believe that we've got a lot of time to get to know each other better.

"Others may find it rude or disrespectful but I believe, I own the choice whether to reject this or not. Hindi ko rin alam na mangyayari ito ngayong gabi. In fact, my grandmother told me to breakup with my boyfriend after the issue that surfaced weeks ago. And although none of them were proven true, my grandmother's reason for the breakup was because we needed to stick to the tradition. But I was known to rebel against it and that's why tonight, I want to make a change in this family. I don't want to see our next generation lacking knowledge about what love really is. Ayaw kong makulong sila sa konseptong ang kailangan nilang mahalin ay ang taong pinili ng mga magulang nila para sa kanila. I want them to have freedom on how to love, on how to choose. Ahma," hinarap ko silang dalawa na nakatingin na sa akin. And while my grandmother was just smiling, I couldn't paint my mother's expression. She's not a Tuason by blood, but the Lim's tradition is also the same. And it was up to Lean too if she's going to fight for her love.