Sweetest Goodbye

SG.24 - Going, going, Gone!

Ignacio's phone has a security lock and that bugs me off. Bakit siya maglalagay ng lock kung wala naman syang itinatago. Naiinis ako. Hind yata dapat ako nakipag-usap kay Alyza. Dahil sa kanya, lalo aking naging paranoid. Kung ano-anong pinagagawa ko. Hini ko tuloy maiwasang magduda kay Ignacio sa tuwing may sasabihin siya sa akin. I always ask myself if he was telling me the truth o kung iyong mga pagkakataon na sinasabi niyang kasama niya si Mikee o ang Mommy niya ay totoo nga ba.

I hate what I have become now. Naiinis ako sa sarili ko pero mas naiinis ako kay Alyza. Ano kaya ang pakiramdam niya ngayon na nasa isipan ko panay ang sinasabi niya sa akin? Masaya kaya siyang malaman na hindi rin ak masaya ngayon?

"Miss President, The Queen Consunji have arrived."

Nagulat ako sa sinabi ni Rita. Hindi ko inaasahan na pupunta si Aunt Hera dito sa office, or baka naman sinabi sa aki pero hindi naman ako nakikinig. Napatayo ako nang bumukas ang pinto. Aunt Hera was in the middle. May dalawang lalaking nagbukas ng pinto para sa kanya. I was sure that those were my employees.

"Good morning, Aunt Hera." I walked to her to kiss her cheeks. Sh was her queen self again. She was wearing an all white knee lenght corporate dress. She smiled at me.

"Good morning to you too, Hyacinth."
"What brings you here, Auntie?"

"Oh, nothing. I just want to visit the company and check on the people. Hya, I must tell you, some of your employees look sloppy on their clothes. I fired some of them. Iyong iba, bigyan mo ng memo."

Napangiwi na lang ako. I made a mental note to rehire those she fired. Nilagpasan ako ni Aunt Hera tapos ay naupo siya sa presidential chair na para sa akin and then she sighed. Inutusan ko naman si Rita na maghanda ng breakfast para sa kanya. Ayaw na ayaw ko na pumupunta siya dito nang hindi nagsasabi dahil nga natataranta ang lahat ng tao.

"Auntie, Apollo and I went to the newly acquired lot for the expansion of the leisure resort. We talked about the ground breaking and it will be held next week."

"Good. Good. Have you talked to your father? Kung sabagay, his opinion doesn't matter." Tumawa siya, napangiwi ako lalo.

"Miss President, your father is here."

"Oh, speaking of the devil." I sensed sarcasm on Aunt Hera's voice. Maya-maya ay pumasok si Papa. I kissed his cheek tapos ay ngumiti siya nang makita si Aunt Hera.

"Morning, Hera." Hahalik sana si Papa pero umalma si Aunt Hera.

"Get your ugly face away from me, Yto." She smirkd again. "Anong ginagawa mo dito? Nainip ka rin ba kaya gusto mong manggulo?"

"Hindi, Hera. I always come here t check on Hyacinth. Apollo is outside with Achilles." Pgbibigay alam ni Papa. Napabuntong-hininga ako. Ang dami na ngang gumugulo sa isipan ko tapos dadagdagan pa ng mga sakit ng ulo ko. Nandito si Auntie at si Papa na walang alam ibang gawin kundi magbangayan. Though hindi naman pinapatulan ni Papa si Auntie, napapagod pa rin ako na pakinggan sila.

A little while later, muli na namang bumukas ang pinto at iniluwa niyon ang Vejar Twin Towers -- Apollo and Achilles. The twins wer identical --- really, really identical. Lahat ay magkamukha, the eyes, the nose, the lips, evem their stance and their body figure and the height. Ang pagkakaiba kang nila ay ang peklat ni Achilles sa leeg and especially the way they dress up.

Achilles was more of a suit and tie, pormal kind of person. He was always clean and neat. I have a feeling that Auntie Hera was always happy to see him. On the other hand, Apollo was the opposite of his twin. He's rugged, he's very casual looking - sa madaling salita, mukha siyang mahirap. The only different thing about him were his amber eyes.