Grieving Soul [#Wattys2019 Winner]

Chapter 31

"Do you like it?" I heard Gio asked me.

Alam niya na noon pa na gustong-gusto ko ang mansyon na ito lalo na't mayroong dagat sa likod pero hindi ko alam kung bakit tinatanong niya pa iyon sa akin. Did he want me to give him a credit?

"When I was still in England, I was able to earn an ample amount of money while supervising the land of Valientes," pagsisimula niyang magkuwento. "Mabilis akong nakapag-ipon dahil mabilis ang pasok ng pera. In just a year, I negotiated with the owner of this mansion and bought it because I remembered how much you adore it. Noong una ay ayaw pa nga nilang ibenta pero pumayag din kalaunan. There were some parts of the mansion that needed to be renovated before kaya pinakiusapan ko si Mama na siya ang umasikaso no'n habang nasa ibang bansa ako."

Nilingon ko siya at kita kong nakatingala siya sa ceiling. He was also looking at the chandelier that I was fascinated with. He was wearing a smile on his face and the lights of the chandelier were reflecting on his eyes like he was staring at the stars.

"The truth is... I only bought this mansion as a gift for you to live in with your future family..." he said. "Hindi ko inakala na hindi ko lang pala ito basta maibibigay sa'yo kundi parehas pa tayong mamumuhay magkasama rito."

When I saw him turning his head to look at me, I immediately looked away. I made myself wore a stoic expression with my cold aura before looking at him again who was casually leering at me with his deep eyes.

"Nasaan ang kwarto ko?" malamig kong tanong sa kanya.

Ilang sandali niya pa akong tinitigan gamit ang kanyang mabibigat na titig bago tumayo ng maayos.

"Halika sa taas," sabi niya na lang.

Lumapit siya sa hagdanan at inilahad iyon sa akin upang mauna na ako sa pag-akyat. Mabilis ang aking bawat paghakbang at nakasunod naman siya sa akin. Nang makarating sa taas ay hinayaan ko siyang mauna na sa akin dahil siya ang nakakaalam ng mga kwarto.

He opened the first room on the left and immediately opened the lights to illuminate the whole room.

The room was way bigger than my room in our mansion. It looked warm and cozy because of its brown, cream and taupe interiors. Just like the living room, it also had a very minimalistic arrangement. My eyes darted on the king-sized bed in the middle of the room. Para akong tinatawag nito na mahiga na at makapagpahinga dahil sa sobrang pagod na nararamdaman.

I scanned the room even more and saw two picture frames hanging on the wall. The first one was my picture with Gio during our JS Prom and the second one was during our college graduation.

"The door on the left is our bathroom, and on the opposite side is our walk-in closet," he informed me that made me glance at both doors. "Nakaayos na roon ang iilang mga gamit at damit mo. Bukas ay ipapakuha ko ang natitira."

"I can take care of my things, Gio," simple kong sabi sa kanya. "Ako na ang kukuha sa amin bukas dahil wala naman akong gagawin sa plantation. Ang sabi ni Mommy ay siya muna ang magt-take over sa supervision."

Kinagat ni Gio ang kanyang ibabang labi na para bang nag-iisip siya ng malalim.

"Kung ganoon, puwede bang sa makalawa na lang para masamahan kita at matulungan?" tanong niya. "I need to visit our plant in San Antonio with Mama tomorrow."

"Ayos lang na ako mag-isa. Nandoon naman si Kuya Diego at ang driver namin. They can help me," sabi ko na lang.

Napabuntong hininga naman siya bago tumango-tango ngunit hindi pa rin nawala ang pag-aalala sa kanyang ekspresyon.

"I might also not be able to come home tomorrow. Baka sa makalawa na ako makauwi," paalam niya sa akin. "Maraming gagawin sa planta at paniguradong gagabihin. Mama told me to spend the night there at huwag ng bumiyahe ng gabi."