Above the Sea of Fog (Provincia de Marina Series #3)

Kabanata 40

Hello! It's been months since I started ATSOF and now, we're here. Thank you po sa paghihintay ng update kahit minsan hindi ko talaga nasusunod ang pangako ko 🤧. I just want to share that this one was inspired from one of my favorite Studio Ghibli films, "From Up on Poppy Hill". I had a hard time writing this one as I thought of two types of plot but I've made my decision not to change the original one. Nang itinuloy-tuloy ko, I no longer find this story difficult to write as I have come to love Rean's character and Wyatt comes second (haha!) Kaya this story will always have a special place in my heart, not because it was inspired from one of my favorite films but because I really want to write it. Wyatt and Rean were both special. (And for a bit of a spoiler), they're just perfectly made for each other :).

No matter where your heart takes you, always find the real truth. Learn to embrace it and someday, whatever path you take, I hope that the truth you chose to carry will bring you peace.

Kabanata 40

Above the Sea of Fog

Naramdaman kong nilipad ng malakas na hangin ang aking buhok nang tumambad sa akin ang napakalawak na tanawin ng dagat. Ang pamilyar na bugso ng hangin at makulimlim na ulap ang nagpadama sa akin kung gaano ba kabigat ang araw na ito. Tears of rain will soon drop on the dried leaves and stones. Ang dagat ay mangingitim dahil sa kadiliman.

I held on to the small urn that I was hugging. Inside this, was the ashes of the woman who stole my real life from me. The woman who made me open my eyes to the reality that people can be cruel but not to everyone. Binalaan niya ako sa kung anuman ang masamang bagay na sasalubong sa akin sa tunay na mundo, pero hindi niya naman ako binalaan tungkol sa tunay na pagmamahal.

She may have not love me like she loved my sisters, but I was thankful that she did not give me away when I was all useless for her. She kept me like a forbidden gem and my world only revolved around this old lighthouse. A house with a light that guides the lost sea farers. Hindi ko man nasalubong ang mga nawawala, pero naramdaman ko naman kung paano laging salubungin ang bagong bukas. Kung may hinanakit man ako ngayon, iyon ay hindi man lang binigyan ni Mama ng pagkakataon ang sarili na magbago. She never apologized to me. She never said she was sorry about everything...about the hells that I've been through.

Ni hindi niya nadama 'yong paghihirap ko noon.

Pero ano pa bang silbi ng paniningil ko kung wala na? Kung hindi naman mabibigyan ng pagkakataon?

I closed my eyes and uttered a brief prayer. She wasn't loved by many. She was criticized back then. She lived alone but I only pray for her soul to be at peace. Hindi ko alam kung ano ang nasa isip niya noong huling sandali pa. I never heard her say a thing but I hope...I hope she saw that gleam of light. Na sana sa huling pagkakataon, humingi siya ng patawad sa lahat ng ginawa. Kahit hindi ko man narinig iyon, sana naging panatag ang loob niya hanggang sa huling paghinga.

Isinaboy ko sa hangin ang iilan niyang abo. It flew downwards like dusts in the air, freely swaying with the wind and flowing with freedom. Sana pinalaya na siya ng kahapon, kung saan doon naipon ang kaniyang puot at sama ng loob. I hope she realized that life back then maybe cruel but maybe, just maybe in the after life, she'll be given a chance to redeem herself—to do the right thing and teach people not to hate.

Naramdaman kong niyakap ako ng dalawang kapatid mula sa likuran. I can feel drops of tears on my shoulders as they cry. Parang pumatong din sa akin ang sakit at lungkot na nararamdaman nila. She may not be my real mother but losing her feels like losing a woman important to me. Itinuring ko siyang ina na kahit pa sa iilang araw na nalaman ko ang totoo, hindi ako tumigil sa pagtawag sa kaniya ng 'Mama'. That even when I was angry at her, I still mourn for her.