Chasing the Void (Magnates Series #3)

Kabanata 30

Kabanata 30

Pinagpawisan na ako ng malamig lalo na't lahat ng mga mata nila ay bumaling sa akin. Parang gusto ko na lang maging invisible muna para naman maging handa para sa mga ganito. Tinalo ko pa nasa isang pageant dahil sa kaba ko.

"I-It's okay," halos manliit pa ang boses ko. 

I never thought I'd actually inherit the way Draisen talks. Na sa mga oras ngayon ay pipilitin ko pang maging tipid ang isasagot ko. 

Ilang segundong katahimikan na hindi ko alam ang gagawin ko. Hindi ko naman kasi alam ang sasabihin ko. Wala namang tama at maling sagot para do'n 'di ba? 

Natigilan ako nang marinig ko ang paghalakhak ni Mrs. Velarde. Mapang-asar na bumaling siya sa anak niya na may ngisi.

"As expected," she was almost scoffing as she glances at her son. Muling napatingin sa akin si Mrs. Velarde. "Pasensya ka na sa anak ko, ganyan talaga siya kaya nga nagulat ako nang binalita sa amin na may girlfriend na siya. He's never interested to anyone so this was such a news to us.

Tumawa ako ng hilaw kahit na wala naman akong masabi. Draisen is not saying anything, his attention was all on the food.

"And you know what he told us after we found out about it?" maligalig na tanong ni Mrs. Velarde. 

"Kalystani," Damarcus Velarde said in a warning yet gentle tone to stop his wife. 

Ngumiti ng malaki si Mrs. Velarde. "He didn't confirm it at first. He only said that he's dating someone but it's still not real yet." 

Halos mabilaukan ulit ako nang uminom ako ng tubig. Hindi ko naman alam na talagang sasabihin niya sa mga magulang niya ang sitwasyon namin dati! And what else do I expect, he's Draisen! He would say anything with all honesty!

"He told us that he'll introduce you if it would be real." natatawang sabi pa ni Mrs. Velarde. "And now here you are. So I guess it's a real relationship now, huh?"

Parang gusto ko na lang talaga kainin ng lupa.

Kung saan saan napadpad ang usapan pero hindi naman nila ako tinanong ng kahit na ano. They didn't ask me anything personal aside from my relationship with Draisen. Wala na silang tinanong kaya naging kumportable naman ako.

Natapos kami kumain dahil may pupuntahan pa ata ang mag-asawang Velarde. Mukhang hindi na bago na palagi silang pumupunta ng ibang bansa. Draisen looks like he's used to it.

"Nice meeting you again, Azriella." niyakap ulit ako ni Mrs. Velarde. "And welcome to the family."

Hindi ko alam kung bakit kinabahan ako. It felt warm yet I'm not used to it, maybe because it's been so long since I've experienced that kind of warmth—being part of a family, something I've lost for years. 

"We'll see you again," ngumiti pa si Mr. Velarde. 

I appreciate how they never confronted me about my past. I don't know if they were just being careful but I know that Mr. Velarde knows about me. It made me remember of my plans to ruin Navis before.

Pero hindi pa rin maalis sa isip ko ang dahilan kung bakit nila itinago ang nangyari noon.

Anger was still there but after meeting and interacting with them, it made me question if these good people really did try to hide the issue just to keep their reputation untainted.

But who am I kidding? They could do that if they wanted to and there's nothing wrong with that...unless they know how that explosion occurred, if it's truly accidental or not. 

Napabaling ako ng tingin kay Draisen. I like him, I am aware of that. It's a genuine feeling that made me want to forget about my real plan before. But I won't lie that I really wanted to ask him about it.