Time and Again

[77] Love Hurts

Isabel went out from the car. She was hesitant to ring the doorbell. There were a lot of things that was stopping her. What if Ken was not inside? What if he was together with Chailai? She raised her right hand to press the doorbell but her left hand was stopping her right hand from pressing the doorbell.

She paused. She was thinking that if she’s going to give up and go back to the Philippines, she might lost this once in a lifetime opportunity to be reunited with the love of her life. She weighed things out until she finally made up her mind. She realized that it’s better to fail on this attempt rather than regret the thing she didn’t do. She rang the doorbell. A tall, sophisticated woman opened the door in the front gate.  

“Hi, my name is Isabel. Is Ken available right now?”

“Nice to meet you Isabel. I am Ken’s aunt. Please come inside.”

“Thank you.”

Isabel was glad that the person who let her in knew how to speak English. Ken’s aunt was very much different from his parents. Her aunt looked professional unlike his parents who were very rude. 

“You just stayed two or three days here in Thailand but I already heard a lot from you. If I’m not mistaken you were Ken’s girlfriend he brought from the Philippines.”

Isabel did not respond. Her first impression to Ken’s aunt changed from being sophisticated to being vulgar.

“I don’t want to be mean but I have to be straightforward to you. You know that Ken is already engage to Chailai. He has been engaged even before he went to the Philippines. Both of their fathers were already business partners even before they were born. We didn’t send him to the Philippines to bring another girlfriend. We sent him to the Philippines to study English so that he will be more efficient and effective in handling our family business. The merging of the two family businesses is very important for us. I hope you will understand.”

Isabel did not respond.

“I don’t want to hurt your feelings but I need to show you this so that you can snap yourself back to reality. Come over here.” 

Ken’s aunt pulled Isabel inside. They stood near the door.

“Look at them. Don’t you think they’re perfect for each other?” 

Isabel was horrified to see Ken and Chailai standing beside each other. They were facing Ken’s parents and another old couple probably Chailai’s parents.

Isabel couldn’t understand their conversation. Based on their gestures, she understood that they already come up with an agreement. She didn’t need to ask what their agreement was. She walked out the door without looking back. Ken’s aunt followed her outside the gate.

“Isabel.”

Ken’s aunt touched Isabel’s shoulder. Isabel stopped and faced her with teary eyes.

“I’m sorry. We didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. Who knows there may be someone better than Ken that will come into your life and will love you better? There are still a lot of fishes in the ocean and canned goods in the grocery store.”

“Yes, there may be billions of men in the world but there will be no man better for me than Ken. Anyway, I won’t bother you anymore. I’ll go back to the Philippines right away. I wish them all the best. Thank you for your time.”

Isabel hailed a taxi. She went directly to the airport. Her eyes were filled with tears. She did not look back. She didn’t want any member of Ken’s family to see her crying. She never felt so foolish in her life before. She hated herself for hoping that they would be back together again.

When Isabel arrived in the airport, the three police officers who arrested and helped her asked what happened. She didn’t understand what they’re saying. She didn’t respond to them. She went directly to immigration. 

Isabel cried the whole time she was on the plane. There’s nothing she can do but cry. She hated herself for being foolish by eloping with a younger man. There’s only one thing she knew for sure; she never regretted fighting the man she loved even if she didn’t succeed in taking him into her arms.

When the plane landed on Mactan International Airport, Isabel was uncertain where to go. She remained seated. She waited first until all passengers had already went outside the plane before she stood up and went outside the plane. 

Outside the plane, Isabel was breathing the air of despair. She walked slowly because she was thinking where to go next. This was the second time that she felt so depress. The first was when she lost Emile. She prayed to God that He will take her life right at that very moment.

“Excuse me, ma’am. Do you want to take a taxi?” A man in white polo asked Isabel.

“No, thank you.”

Isabel continued walking. She wore woes as others wore velvet; sorrow flatters her like the light of candles; tears became like jewels to her. The sky darkened in accordance to her mood. The rain started to pour down.

“Dear God, help me. Where are my nameless saints?”

The rain poured harder. Isabel stayed in the corridor of the airport. She hugged herself tight. She waited an hour or two for the rain to calm down. She looked at the falling of the rain from the rooftop. She remembered the curtain of the magnificent Atlantis blue  Inambakan Falls. Inspiration struck her. When the rain calm down, she decided to go to Ginatilan. She hailed a taxi and asked the taxi driver to take her to Cebu South Bus Terminal. The taxi driver dropped her at Cebu South Bus Terminal. She paid the fare and took a bus going to Ginatilan. 

For Isabel, their Taj Mahal inspired home was the most beautiful tourist destination in the world. She couldn’t replace it anywhere in the world. She went up inside the home she loved most. She lied down on the bed and closed her eyes. She wanted to feel the sweetness of the memories once again. 

She was snapped back to reality when she heard a knock from the door. She opened the door. 

“Good morning madam.” Rodel greeted.

“Hi. Good morning.”

Isabel was glad to see Rodel. He served as the cupid on their epic love story.

“I’m glad to see you madam. Where is your partner?”

“He went back to Thailand.”

“I see. Don’t you have any plans to follow him?”

“Actually I went with him to Thailand but I failed that’s why I needed to come back to the Philippines. So here I am.”

“Why did you fail?”

“Ken is already engaged to someone else. When he introduced me to his family, they immediately separated us.”
 
“Don’t despair. If you are meant to be for each other, love will always find a way.”

“I hope so.”

“Have you eaten your lunch?”

“Not yet.”

“Perfect. Come to my house and join me for lunch.”

“Actually I’m not hungry.”

“Come on. The food I prepared is enough to feed a whole barangay. I prepared baked scallops and boiled crab done with coconut milk. I’m sure you’ll like it.”

“I don’t have the appetite to eat.”

“Don’t despair yourself too much. Who knows he will call you once you’re full.” 

“Ok.”

Isabel went with Rodel inside his house. She joined him for lunch. She burped.

“Excuse me.” 

“No it’s ok.”

“Thank you for the delicious meal.”

“It’s my pleasure. You can stay and rest here for the meantime if you want to.”

“I appreciate the offer but I prefer to stay in the tree house.”

“I understand. Just relax first while I’ll wash the dishes. You can browse our family’s photo album so that you will not get bored. After I’m done washing the dishes, I’ll take you back to the tree house.”

“You’ve already done too much for me. Just don’t mind me and do whatever you need to do.”