Deceret Series #1: His Lips On My Neck

Chapter 22

Seryoso pa rin siyang nakatitig sa akin, nanantiya ang mga mata. His soulful eyes are staring at me. Philodemus look pained. Sumakit tuloy ang dibdib ko sa nakita.

He swallowed violently. "Ever since she died... you only cried once." bulong niya sa akin.

"Tinatatagan ko ang loob ko." nanginginig ang boses kong wika.

"Allen... Allen is devastated, too. We all are. But I'm really worried about you. You're doing it again... you're bottling up your emotions inside of you. I'm not worried if you'll explode on me. But I'm worried on what will happen to you if you bursts..."

I turned away. Hindi na kami nakikinig dalawa sa sinasabi ng pari at mahinang nag-uusap. Halos lahat ng batchmates namin noong high school pa kami ay narito. Madalas sa mga babae ay umiiyak samantalang ang mga lalaki naman ay mahinang nag-uusap rin sa isa't-isa. They're trying to reminisce how much of a good sport Zechariah is.

Dead people receives nothing but good words about their life. It's like when you die, people tend to forget all the ill things you've done before and only picked the good memories you left.

No one will ever dare to talk ill towards a person lying inside a coffin.

Huminga ako nang malalim. Unang tumayo si Allen. Sa nanginginig na mga kamay ay inihagis niya ang puting rosas para sa kaniyang nobya. It's going to be the last rose that he's going to give for her. Iniisip ko pa lang iyon ay nadudurog na ang puso ko.

Sumunod ako. When I walked, the tail of my dress danced around my ankles. The sheer fabric moved elegantly as I threw a bloody red rose towards her coffin.

"I'll see you again, Zec..." I whispered.

Naramdaman ko nalang ang malaking bulto ni Philodemus sa aking likuran. His hands snaked on my waist, pulling me closer as he threw a white rose to her coffin. Nang matapos kaming dalawa ay nagsisunuran na ang mga classmates namin noong high school. Ang iba'y hindi pa rin tumatahan sa kakaiyak.

I stayed for a little while even after the burial. Philodemus wrapped his hands around me and planted a kiss on my forehead.

"Do you want to go home?"

I nodded my head weakly. Iginiya niya ako sa kaniyang kotse. Philodemus cancelled the afterparty for the success of our Intramurals when the incident happened. The driver who hit Zechariah was drunk. He was put behind the bars immediately. I don't know what would happen to him. Part of me wants to blame him for killing Zechariah. I want him to spend the rest of his life in jail. But the other part of me wants the man's freedom. I'm sure he didn't want to kill anyone in the first place. Isang simpleng driver lang siya na lumabag sa batas at nag-drive kahit nakainom. May asawa't anak pa siya. I'm sure they will worry to death if the father doesn't come home to their house anytime sooner.

Habang naglalakad kaming dalawa ni Philodemus ay namataan ko ang isang heavy-tinted SUV sa di kalayuan. The driver climbed out of the car and opened the door. A few seconds later, the mayor stepped out with a grim look on his face, wearing his funeral tux.

My breathing hitched. Alam na kaya niya ang tungkol sa tunay niyang relasyon kay Zechariah? Is that why he's here? Because if he does, I am sure that the driver will never get out of jail. The mayor would make sure that he will rot in there. I know Mayor Tesorio. He's just as ruthless as my father.