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Dedicated sayo dahil ikaw ang unang nagbigay ng names: James Ciein and Jendrick Clay, sa ibang nagbigay ng names, salamat po…
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She wanted her babies to be Klein, not Chou. Hindi niya gagamitin ang surname ni Craig, kahit pa nga tuwing pinagmamasdan niya ang kambal ay naaalala niya si Craig, kamukha nga naman ng mga ito ang ama, tama si Leila. Sa ngayon, mas gugustuhin niyang itago sa ama ng mga ito ang mga anak. She doesn’t know what to do in case Craig will know the truth and he will get his child from her. Ikamamatay niya.
She must admit it, their lives when they were in the Gensan with her Dad was far different from what they have right now, but she didn’t care, they don’t care. Her babies and her Mom will be enough for her. Kaya nila ito.
****
Two years had passed (Sabi ko na, there’s something in the two years chuva, something not so important to me..lol) They all gathered in the same apartment that they had when they arrived here to celebrate the twins birthday. Ang bilis ng panahon, ang bilis nilang lumaki, ang kukulit na, ang lilikot, and they are learning to talk fast.
“C’mon boys, blow the candle!” Mavee was cheering her twins. Kuya si James Ciein, siya kasi ang unang ipinanganak, pero mas tahimik ito kesa kay Jendrick Clay, but she is really proud of her boys. At siyempre, proud din ang lola Athena nila.
Nagpalakpakan ang lahat nung mamatay ang dalawang kandila, siyempre, mawawala ba naman ang lukaret nilang Ninang na si Leila? Every birthday yata ay nandun ito, parang mall lang ang Spain sa kanya. Siyempre raw, marami na siyang pera ngayon. Malapit na kasi itong ikasal sa boyfriend na si Cyrus, she’s happy for her, si Cyrus pala ang makakatuluyan nito.
“Mavee, lumalaki na sila, are you not afraid that someday they will be asking about their Dad?” Tanong nito habang nakatingin sa mga anak niya.
“I’ll cross the bridge once I get there. Sa ngayon, I don’t have plans to tell them Lei, they are still young, and I’m sure when they grow up, they will understand.”
“Pero Mavee, ayaw mo bang malaman ni Craig na may anak kayo? What if he will know? Alam mo ba na si Craig ay…”
“Leila please, I don’t want to hear anything about him.”
“But Mavee, it’s unfair for them, sa mag-ama mo, unfair para kay JC and even for the kids, besides, alam mo ba na si JC ay..”
“Wag mo nang ituloy please. I know he’s married now, and if ever that he will know about the twins, what will happen? Kilala mo naman ang mga Chou, di ba? Ayaw ko na magulo ang buhay naming mag-iina. Kahit pa sabihin mo that Craig can give better life for the kids, still they are my children and I will do anything to protect them, especially with Calixto Chou.”
“Mave..”
“Please, Leila, I don’t want to ruin the happy occasion.” Pagsususmamo niya sa kaibigan.
“O sige na, basta ha, I tried a lot of times to tell you about JC but you interrupted me. Halika na nga, lapitan na natin ang mga inaanak ko na kamukha kong lahat!”
*****
Mavee and her Mom could not believe what they had heard, after two years, after those hardships they encountered, somebody will be knocking on their door telling them that they need to go back to the Philippines to claim what they should really have in the first place.
“Ma’am, we had been looking for you for months already, your friend would not cooperate, we had been asking information about you but Ms. Leila would not talk.” Sabi pa ng abogadong kaharap nila.
Wala nga talagang nababanggit si Leila tungkol rito, lalo pa at kagagaling lang ng kaibigan para umattend ng birthday party ng anak.
“I’m sorry but I am not interested, attorney. With due respect to you, please tell Calixto Chou not to mess up with our lives again.” Seryosong sabi ni Mavee sa abogadong kaharap. Hinayaan lamang siya ng kanyang ina.
“Ma’am, I know what your situation here, I’m sorry if we had you investigated, but you see, Calixto Chou is a different man now. He had told me everything he did to you, and he is terribly sorry for that, he wanted to correct everything he had made, and he wanted to start with this.”
“Wow! Ano to, a scene from a movie? After some time yung villain will be a good man? Wag mong sabihing may sakit siya attornet?”
“Ganun na nga, Mavee.”
“Wow! Napanood ko na to!”
“Mavee, calm down. Let’s listen to this man first. He came all the way from the Philippines to tell us about this.”
“Mommy! What if Calixto will just get my children? Hindi ko kakayanin. Tama na sa akin kung anong meron tayo rito.” She was already crying.
“No, Mavee, we don’t have plans to get your children from you, in fact, Calixto knew even before that you and Jay Craig do have children, he respected your decision to keep quiet, so please, don’t worry. Please calm down and listen to me first.”
“Calixto had met an accident three months after you went here, his family left him prior to that, he was alone for more than a year now. His wife actually went back to him and tried to take care of him but he refused, you see, Calixto got a pride as high as Mt. Everest. Few months after, he was diagnosed to have a colon cancer. He knew about this years before but he ignored, now he cannot do anything about it. It was malignant already.”
Mavee doesn’t know what to say, matutuwa ba siya na mabilis ang karma ni Calixto or malulungkot.
“Calixto wanted to settle everything Mavee before he will leave this earth. He said he wanted to give back what he had taken from you, I know he cannot give back your father’s life but you see, para sa mga anak mo, para sa kinabukasan nila, at para na in sa ama mo na pinaghirapan kung ano man ang gustong ibalik ni Calixto ngayon.”
“Pag-isipan nyo po, Ms. Klein, Ma’am. I’ll leave this to you, plane ticket nyo po pabalik ng Pilipinas, para sa inyong lahat, and this is my calling card, just in case you wanted to keep in touch. I’ll go ahead, I am already done in giving enough information to you. Magandang araw po.” Pagpapaalam nito.
Naiwan silang mag-ina na hindi alam kung paniniwalaan baa ng sinabi ng abogado o hindi.
**********
Kababa lang nila ng eroplano, parang kailan lang, they were here two years ago to leave the Philippines but came back to get what is due to them. Her Mom would like to have a closure, para raw sa katahimikan nilang lahat, para sa mga bata. Perhaps, her Mom is right. Hanggang kailan ba sila magtatago? Lumalaki ang mga bata, maghahanap ng ama, kaya ba niyang sagutin ang mga magiging tanong ng mga ito? And perhaps Leila is right, it would be unfair for both the twins and Craig not to know the truth, not to know each other.
Pero aaminin niya, natatakot siya.
Natatakot siya that Craig will get her children away from him.
“Mavee, nandito ako, hindi natin hahayaang mangyari yun, besides, he’s married, bakit niya kukunin ang custody ng mga anak mo, and we need Calixto this time, kapag totoong ibibigay niya kung anong meron sa atin before, Craig will not tell us that we cannot give the twins the life that he can give.”
“Thanks Mom.”
They just checked in in a hotel where Attorney had given them, lahat yun binayaran ng kausap nila. An sabi nito, Calixto would like to talk to her Mom first, ayaw man niyang iwan ang ina but she said she will be alright. She knew her Mom can be that vulnerable to look at but she’s a tough woman, if not, hindi nito kakayanin kung ano man ang nagyari sa kanila. Sa hotel lang sila tumuloy ng mga anak, any moment darating si Leila na alam niyang mangungulit na naman na dun sila sa condo nito tumuloy. Actually, that was their plan, kaso lang mas makulit si Attorney.
Nahihirapan mang magbantay sa dalwang anak ay hindi siya kumuha ng tagapag-alaga, kaya naman niya. She was feeding both of them when someone knocked at the door. Alam niyang si Leila yun. Tama nga siya dahil pagkabukas pa lang ng pinto ay tumili na ito.
“OMG! It’s really true! You are here!” Tumingin ito sa mga karga nyang chikiting. “And the lovely boys are here. I missed you guys.” Kinarga nito si Ciein na nagsimula ng hilain ang buhok niya. “Ang kulit –kulit nyo talaga.”
Napatingin si Mavee sa lalaking kasama nito na hanggang nagyon ay nakanganga pa rin. Tulala, si Cyrus. Ngayon pa lang nga niya nakita ang kambal.
“Hi Cyrus! Good to see you.’
“Oh my God! They look exactly like him.” Alam niya ang tinutukoy nito. Si Craig.
“I told you Baby! Carbon copy sila ng guwapo nilang Daddy! I’m sure JC will faint once he will know that he has children, and twins! Handsome twins! You’ll gonna tell him Mavee, right?”
KInabahan siya. “Ye-yeah, I will, soon.”
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Thanks for reading!