EZH #6: Storm Fortalejo [ON GOING]

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

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"You'll be marrying Storm next month."

Mabilis na napa angat ako ng tingin kay Daddy na hindi ko napansing nakasandal na pala sa door frame ng kwarto ko. I guess I spaced out again.

His words rang through my ears loudly that it made me shocked for a moment.

"What?" I gasped breathlessly, my face full of cofusion and disbelief. "Dad!" Naiiyak nang sabi ko. "Why?!"

I felt my still puffy eyes stung. I'm going to marry Storm?

Dad sighed. He pinched the bridge of his nose before he dropped his hands to his sides. He smiled at me sadly before making his way towards me. Daddy crouched down on the floor in front of me, holding both of my hands in his. I felt another sob make its way up my throat again.

"Wints... you know why." Namula ang gilid ng mga mata ni Daddy. "Your mom's dead..." He chocked out. "...and I need to secure your wellbeing."

"But dad," I whined. Tears were quick to stream down my face in heavy successions. "bakit si Storm pa?"

I knew from the start that sooner or later, this would happen to me. Our family wasn't a stranger to arranged marriages. Even my Mom and Dad met each other thru it.

My mothers death just sped up the process. And that being the reason made it much worse than what an arrange marriage initially entailed for me.

Because if I needed to be married off for the sake of the company, I was very much willing. But now... now that it was weighing heavier on me. Because now, I won't be just doing it for the family.

I was doing it because my mother was dead.

Nagyakap kami ni Daddy at umiyak kaming dalawa sa arms ng isa't isa. The reality slowly sunk down on the two of us. We just lost one of the most important person for the both of us and it was too soon.

I wasn't ready. I wasn't even thinking about it.

Adding to the hurt was the fact that we couldn't mourn as much as we could. No. There were important things to be settled so that we wouldn't be buried to the ground after them soon.

Not to mention who they wanted me to be married to.

Storm Fortalejo was my super best friend since babyhood. He was always there whenever I need him, literally and in all other sense of the word. In fact, kakauwi nya lang because he stayed the whole duration of my Mom's five days wake. We just got home from her burial. Hinatid muna ako ni Storm dito sa bahay bago siya talaga umuwi sa kanila. He's the sweetest.

He hasn't even slept properly in days, just so he could make sure that I had someone with me.

How could I... how could I put on more of my burden to him?

"Bakit hindi, iha?" Dad said, snapping me back to the moment. "He's your best friend. You'll be comfortable with him. Besides, the Fortalejo's are willing to take you in. Your Tita Rain loves you for her son. And you love him, too. Am I right?"

Tumango ako, mas dumami ang pumatak na luha. They chased each other down my cheeks.

"I love him dad," I sobbed helplessly. "but not in the way you think! I love him as a friend! Not as a man!"

I cried again. I just lost my mom from a murder spree. Hindi lang ako ang nawalan ng magulang. Pati mga pinsan ko. Mga parents lang ni ate Demi yung natira. Tapos ito naman?