ELEVENTH
Pagkahiwalay ni Rai kanila Reena at Kylo ay naglakad siya palabas ng gate kung saan niya nakitang lumabas si Venice. Kanina pa siya sinusundan ng babae sa loob ng campus kahit bago pa ang play. She already made it clear to her that she doesn’t want to see her anymore after she told her the truth.
“Ano pa bang gusto mo? Sinabi ko nang ayaw na kitang makita pa, ‘di ba?” pagkompronta ni Rai kay Venice nang makarating sila sa isang eskinita.
“Your father is waiting for you,” sagot ni Venice na para bang mababago ng isang pangungusap na ‘yon ang isip ni Rai.
“My father is dead,” mariing sagot ni Rai.
“Your real father is waiting for you.”
“I don’t care about him. Leave me alone.”
“You know that will never happen, Rai.”
“Bakit ba ang tigas ng ulo mo?! Sinabi ko na ngang ayaw ko, ‘di ba? Ayaw kong sumama sayo, ayaw kong pumunta sa kaniya. Huwag niyo na akong pakialaman!” galit na sigaw ni Rai at aalis na sana nang hawakan ni Venice ang braso niya.
“Pinapatagal mo lang ‘to, Rai. Alam mo sa sarili mong gagawin mo ang gusto niya anuman ang mangyari. Responsibilidad mo ‘to bilang—”
Tinanggal ni Rai ang pagkakahawak sa kaniya ng babae. “Don’t you dare talk to me about responsibilities.”
“Wala akong responsibilidad sa kaniya o sa kung anumang gusto niyang mangyari. The moment he refused to be responsible for me, to be a father to me, he already cut his ties with me so tell him that I will never do what he’s asking.”
“Rai, I know you’re hurt but you’re the only one he has. He already lost everything.”
“You’re right, he already lost everything. Even me.”
After saying that, Rai ran. She ran as fast as she could because she knows there was a car waiting for Venice. They might try to force her to come with them and she won’t let that happen.
Nang makarating si Rai sa shelter ay agad siyang pumara ng taxi. Nakipag-unahan na siya sa iba pang estudyanteng nag-aabang ng taxi.
This isn’t her. Ayaw niyang nakikipag-agawan at mas lalong hindi siya nagta-taxi. Sumasabay siya kay Levi papasok at pauwi pero kapag kailangan niya talagang mag-commute ay nagje-jeep siya dahil gusto niyang makatipid kahit papaano.
But she guesses today is an exception. Her mind is a mess. Actually, it has been a week since her mind was messed up because of the truth.
“Are you ready to tell me the truth?” tanong ni Rai pagkaupo sa tapat ni Venice. Venice reserved a function room in a restaurant.
“Ayaw mo bang kumain muna?” tanong ni Venice at inabutan ng menu si Rai pero hindi ‘yon pinansin ng dalaga.
“I’m not here to eat. I’m here to know the truth.”
“Alright,” sagot ni Venice at binaba ang hawak na menu.
“The parents you knew... they are not your real parents,” simula niya.
Isang pangungusap pa lang ‘yon pero pakiramdam ni Rai ay hindi na niya kilala ang buong pagkatao niya.
“Your mother died after giving birth to you. Your father sent you away and remarried. He had four children but his family was massacred not too long ago. He wasn’t there at the scene so he was the only one left. He lost his wife and all of his children”
Napaka-kaswal ng pagkaka-kuwento ni Venice na hindi alam ni Rai kung paano sasagot. She doesn’t know what to say or think. She doesn’t even know where this is going.
“You want the truth? That’s the truth, Rai. And we don’t have much time.”
“What? What do you mean we don’t have much time?”
“Your father wants you back.”
Natawa si Rai. A sarcastic one.
“He wants me back? Ano ako? Ex niya? Ganoon na lang ‘yon? Pagkatapos niya akong ipatapon sasabihin niya gusto na niya ulit ako sa buhay niya?”
“Rai, your father is King Martin. The King of Spain. He needs you to take over the throne.”
Mas lalong natawa si Rai. Am I dreaming? She was just saying something about how the parents I loved and knew weren’t my real parents and now here she goes saying that my real father is a king? Note the sarcasm.
“Nasaan ba ako? Nasa Wattpad? Noong kailan lang ulilang lubos ako tapos ngayon prinsesa na ako?”
Venice maintained a straight face, showing Rai that she isn’t joking around and that this isn’t a joking matter but so is Rai. Rai is not kidding, she is being sarcastic because she wants Venice to realize how unreal and crazy she sounds.
“This is the reason why I stayed by your side all this time, to bring you back,” seryosong saad ni Venice.
“Wow, okay. So, you’re telling me everything was part of the plan? So, how about the death of my ‘parents’? Is that also part of the plan? Trip niyo lang saktan ako, gano’n? Nasaan sila? Are they secretly alive, hiding from me, because it’s part of your great, big plan?”
“About that... they really died. That... that wasn’t part of the plan,” nakayukong sagot ni Venice. She sounds down and sad.
Rai knows it also affected Venice when her parents died but now... she doesn’t even know if any of that was real.
“They truly loved you. When they were offered money, they refused it and just wanted to name you. That was all they asked for. They’ve always wanted the name Riley, they said they’d name it to their son or daughter but they weren’t able to conceive one on their own so when they had you, they were sure that they’d name you Riley. They said they’d name you Riley Genesis because you’re a new beginning for them. And when they met you, they said they’d also name you Venus because you were so beautiful. I told them maybe three names is a bit too much but they just answered, ‘it’s our only shot to name our own child, nothing’s too much.’”
“They really thought of you as their own child but things don’t always go the way we want them to. When they died, everything was ruined. They were the ones who were supposed to tell you everything. So, when your uncle and aunt took over the responsibility of taking care of you, it wasn’t just hard for you, it was also hard for me because I didn’t know how to tell you. But your aunt and uncle found out the truth about you. They saw the contract between the Royal Family of Spain and your parents so they tried to contact the Royal Family to have an agreement. You know that your aunt and uncle are greedy, right? They asked for a huge amount of money in exchange for you. Of course, your father agreed so he gave the money but they asked and asked for more. Almost everyone in that household already knew that you aren’t their real niece because they kept on receiving money and they weren’t even cautious about it,” kuwento ni Venice.
“The parents you knew were rich even before they had you. They agreed to take care of you without anything in return but the Royal Family insisted in exchange that you will never find out the truth until you needed to.”
“So, you’re telling me... if my ‘father’s’ family wasn’t massacred, he wouldn’t have reached out to me?”
Hindi agad nakasagot si Venice. Mukhang nagulat siya sa tinanong ni Rai at ayaw naman niyang magsinungaling.
Napangiti nang mapakla si Rai. I knew it. I’m not important. I’m just another piece for him to use. Lahat naman sila ‘yon lang ang habol. Her uncle and aunt raised her to be this perfect lady every girl wants to be. They don’t have a child of their own so they made her look like their own but they never loved her. They just wanted to show her off, to show everyone that they raised a perfect girl.
At least her fake parents loved her even just for a short time—well, at least in her memory she has always thought they loved her. She was still young when they died that she doesn’t even remember most of her memories with them. All that’s carved in her head is how her aunt and uncle raised her to be perfect.
She knew she wasn’t loved in the house she grew up in but she had no choice but to force herself to love them because they were all she has left. She thought maybe if she loved them, they would love her back. They did say they love her but she never felt it. It was nothing but empty words.
When the driver told her that her ‘family’ wasn’t really her family, she somehow felt relieved. She didn’t know if it was true but as she was running away from where she was at that time, she felt free. She didn’t know what will happen to her but she still felt happy because, for the first time in her entire life, she can finally breathe. And then she met Levi.
Like destiny or fate or whatever they call it... she met Levi. He was also leaving that place so she asked—no—she begged him to take her with him. It wasn’t an easy bargain but somehow, she managed to convince him and that brings her to where she is now.
“I don’t want to see you again. Don’t you ever show your face to me again,” tayo ni Rai.
“Rai—”
“No! Don’t even call my name. Don’t call me, don’t touch me, j-just... disappear.”
Dali-daling lumabas ng restaurant si Rai at naglakad nang mabilis palayo. She doesn’t know what to think anymore but she knows that she’s walking home. This is the direction to Levi’s house so she’ll take this road.
Ilang minuto pa lang siyang naglalakad nang wala sa sarili nang biglang may bumusinang sasakyan sa tabi niya na nagbalik sa kaniya sa katinuan. Nagpatuloy siya sa paglalakad pero bumusina ulit ang sasakyan kaya napalingon na siya at nakita ang sasakyan ni Levi.
“Get in,” saad ng binata pagkababa ng bintana at sinara din iyon kaagad.
Nabalik sa realidad si Rai nang may nagbukas ng pintuan ng sasakyan. Nagulat siya nang makasalubong ng mga mata niya ang mga mata ni Levi.
“A-Ah, manong, sorry po. Ito po yung bayad,” nagmamadaling kuha niya ng pera sa wallet niya pagkaharap sa driver.
“Nabayaran na ng boyfriend mo, hija,” sagot ng mama kaya napalingon si Rai kay Levi na nasa may pintuan lang ng taxi.
“Salamat po, ingat po kayo,” sabi na lang ni Rai at lumabas na ng taxi.
Sinara ni Levi ang pintuan ng taxi at nauna na rin kay Rai papunta sa gate ng bahay. Habang tinitingnan ni Rai ang likod ng lalaking naglalakad palayo sa kaniya ay pakiramdam niya’y ayos lang ang lahat kahit nasa likod pa rin ng utak niya ang lahat ng problema niya.
Humarap si Levi kay Rai pagkabukas niya ng gate at pinauna niya itong pumasok. Pagkapasok sa gate ng dalaga ay sinara niya iyon at sumabay rito papasok ng bahay.
Napangiti si Rai. ‘I’m not happy. I’m just... thankful. I’m thankful that in this messy world, I met Levi.’
Levi is different. Rai knows he doesn’t have any intention to use her like everybody else. He took her in even when he won’t benefit from it. She’s not just another piece for him to use. He may not care about her at all but Rai thinks that’s better than having the intention to use her for his own good.
Pagkapasok nila sa bahay ay tumutugtog ang speaker. Mukhang kanina pa nakauwi si Levi.
Wala sa sarili, naglakad si Rai papuntang hagdan pero agad din siyang nabalik sa ayos nang marinig ang boses ni Levi.
“Rai.”
Hindi lumingon si Rai. Huminto lang siya sa paglalakad at hinintay si Levi magsalita ulit.
“Rai,” tawag ulit ng lalaki kaya lumingon na si Rai. It’s the same straight-face Levi she sees every day, nothing new.
“Are you okay?”
Instead of answering his question, Rai just stared into his eyes. She doesn’t know if she’s okay, she doesn’t know what to tell him. Besides, she knows deep inside, that he doesn’t care. Maybe he’s just asking to show some decency.
“You don’t have to answer,” ani Levi at naglakad palapit sa dalaga. Nang nasa tapat na siya ni Rai ay kinuha niya ang cellphone sa bulsa niya at nag-iba ang kanta sa speaker. Napatingin si Rai sa speaker nang marinig ang pamilyar na tunog at saka ibinalik ang tingin kay Levi.
Levi approached her and held her hand. Nakatungtong na si Rai sa hagdan kaya paglapit sa kaniya ni Levi ay halos magkasingtangkad na sila. He guided her down the stairs and held her waist.
“Practice with me,” he said as he was staring straight into her eyes.
~~The day we met
Frozen, I held my breath🎶~~
Levi started to move so Rai just went along with his every step.
~~Right from the start
I knew that I’d found a home for my heart
Beats fast
Colors and promises🎶~~
As Rai is staring right into Levi’s eyes, she feels like her heartbeat is becoming one with the beat of the song. His eyes... his beautiful really dark eyes... they’re trying to say something but she just couldn’t figure it out.
~~How to be brave?
How can I love when I’m afraid to fall
But watching you stand alone
All of my doubt suddenly goes away somehow🎶~~
Rai really doesn’t know what she’s doing but as she’s standing in front of Levi right now, swaying along with him... everything just feels so right.
~~One step closer🎶~
Isinandal ni Rai ang ulo niya sa dibdib ni Levi at naramdaman niyang ipinatong ng binata ang baba nito sa ulo niya.
~~I have died every day waiting for you
Darling, don’t be afraid, I have loved you for a thousand years
I’ll love you for a thousand more🎶~~
It felt like Rai has escaped all the troubles that have been following her around. As she’s here, hearing Levi’s every heartbeat, it’s just peaceful... it’s calming... it’s home. Her home.
♤♤♤