THE SWEET ESCAPE (Intersex)

03- Reaping What You Sow

"Rina, gaga kaba? Alam mo ba yang sinasabi mo? Hindi mo ba alam na―"

"Tama si Ate Rina, pumayag si Doc Aizenberg na mag vlog kami dito. Kaya mamaya na kaming gabi uuwi." Pagputol ni Knox sa sinasabi ko.

"But Knox, you know what happened last night..."

Knox approached me and pulled me out into the backyard. She looked at me with a serious expression and started speaking to me.

"Tiffany, if anyone finds out what happened last night...." Napabuntong hininga sya.

"What?"

She didn't say a word, but instead, she traced a straight line across her neck, conveying the message to me without uttering a single word. Naintindihan ko naman ang ibig nyang sabihin kaya mas lalong nag-alab ang puso ko galit at pagsisi kung bakit pa kami nagpunta sa lugar na ito.

"Yun ang deal ko.. kaya nya ako hinayaan na makauwi. Kaya please, wag kana lang maingay."

Knox's eyes betrayed a sense of fear. I let out a heavy sigh and took a seat beneath the alatiris tree, my heart pounding with unease. Knox sat beside me, and the silence enveloped us both, blowhorn the weight of our apprehension inside me.

"I know, it's really frustrating. Ang hirap diba? Pero kelangan nating tangapin na ito ang consequences sa mga actions na ginawa natin. This morning, we received a call from overseas, and Mama said that it's possible for them and Papa to come back to the Philippines. Then, I was surprised when Doc Aizenberg called me and said that I need to come back to this mansion in exchange for the safety and work of my parents. So, I suggested that the three of us return to this mansion, dahil silang tatlo naman talaga ang may idea na pumunta dito kagabi kaya dapat lang na kasama natin sila sa situation na to. It just so happened that Joen went home to their house, kaya di sya nakasama saamin."

"You did that? Why did you involve them instead of just us?" I exclaimed in disbelief. My tears started welling up in my eyes out of worries for them.

Knox's silence cut through me like a knife, naiinis ako sa kanya dahil pati yung iba dinamay pa nya na imbis kami nalang dalawa ang nasa situation na ito. I couldn't understand why she had brought Rina and Rose into this dreadful situation. Now, dahil sa ginawa nya, we're all entangled in this nightmare. What are we going to do now? It seems like we're condemned to a lifetime of being held captive by that merciless killer, with no hope of escape.

Umalis na si Knox para balikan ang mga kaibigan namin, while I still here, naiiyak parin ako dahil sa stress tears. I blinked my eyes rapidly, hoping that the single tear on the edge of my eye would fall. But before it could, Aizenberg suddenly came in.

"I'm hungry, hindi pa ako kumakain. Simula umalis ka." Saad nya.

I angrily slapped my hand against my face. "Seriously? Are you kidding me?" I uttered in tinged with annoyance.

Nandun na ako sa state ng deep of emotions ko, and this killer has the audacity to complain about being hungry? How am I supposed to cook a meal for her when she's been nothing but a constant giving me a stress throughout my entire day? It's beyond irritating.

Padabog akong tumayo at nagtungo sa kitchen. Iniwan ko sya sa ilalim ng alatiris tree. Labag man sa kalooban ko ay nagluto ako ng nilangang Peste. nilanga baka!