"Ma! Ano bang nangyari?" Nag-aalalang tanong ko na nagmamadaling lumapit sa nanay ko.
"Maxine!" Agad n'ya akong sinalubong ng yakap.
"Ma, what the hell happened? Nasaan si dad?" Tanong ko nang humiwalay kami sa yakap.
"He's inside. Nakikipag-usap sya sa mga authorities," tugon ni mama na may pag-aalala. Hindi ako nag-aalala sa tatay ko, kundi sa nanay ko.
Nakakabwisit na pati si mama ay nadadamay sa mga kagaguhan ng daddy ko. Kaya ang hirap magpatawad, e.
"Ano ba kasing ginawa nya?" Napakunot-noo kong tanong.
"He was framed by stealing money sa business partner nya, but, Maxine, he told me everything. Hindi sya ang nagnakaw," balisang sagot ni mama.
"Calm down, Ma, I'll... I'll try to talk to him, hindi ako pwedeng makisawsaw," ani ko. Hindi ako pwedeng humawak ng kaso lalo na't tatay ko ang naframed.
Hindi pwede ang pagiging bias sa batas dito, sobrang higpit, at isa pa, ay defense lawyer ako, hindi business lawyer.
"Maxine," mahinang banggit ng tatay ko sa pangalan ko.
Hindi ko alam ang sasabihin ko, o may dapat ba akong sabihin dahil ito ang unang pag-uusap namin.
"Maxine, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he repeated. I still don't know how to react, I somehow felt nothing.
"What happened to you?" Ang tanging natanong ko na lang.
"Maxine, I was framed, and I don't know what to do, nobody believes in me," mangiyak-ngiyak na tugon ng tatay ko. Pero seryoso ko lang s'yang tinignan.
Naupo ako sa harapan n'ya. "You know, I wasn't supposed to be here since I don't really care about you, but here I am," I directly said as he looked at me in surprised.
"I know, and I'm sorry for everything, I am not a good father and husband to you and your mom," bumaba ang tingin nya sa mesa.
"Sorry isn't enough, Dad," marahan kong sinabi, at napagtanto ko na tinawag ko pala s'yang Dad. Napaangat s'ya agad ng tingin sa akin kaya naman bumaling ako.
He smiled. "Maxine, I'm fine with going to jail, but I just want you to forgive me," he said. "After all, I have sinned against your mommy, you, and God. I have not been a good man, but I hope you can forgive me,"
My heart softened as if relieved by what he said. It is right that he should be imprisoned because he committed a big sin. But as a lawyer, and I'll say this, too, as a daughter. I need to know what really happened in the robbery.
"Dad, it's hard to forgive, especially since I don't know how. Give me more time to think, but I'll do what I have to do. I'll find out who's really at fault in the case," I said, standing up from where I was sitting.
Napansin kong malungkot siyang tumingin sa akin, pero tumahimik na lang ako at bumuntong hininga.
"Do what you have to do, Maxine, thank you," he said, I just nodded and walked away.
"Maxine! Anong nangyari?" Tanong agad ni mama nang makita ako.
"Nag-usap lang kami, I'll hire a business lawyer para sa kanya," tugon ko.
Nakahinga naman ng maluwag ang tingin ni mama sa akin. "Salamat, Anak," sabi niya habang mahigpit akong niyakap.
I just smiled and hugged mom back. I went back to work because there was still some paperwork to take care of.
"Any updates?" Andre asked, sitting down in front of me.
"Not entertaining, bakit mo natanong?" Nakataas kilay kong tugon.
YOU ARE READING
Lost Love In Silence | College Series 1
Fanfiction"It hurts so much to love you, I almost died." I, Maxine Reyes, am a law student, and life hasn't been easy for me. Loving Andre Matt brought its own challenges. I thought studying law would bring me closer to him, even though I wasn't keen on it a...
