Chapter 5.
Ice Prince
"White Chocolate Mocha for Rein?"
Binigyan niya ng tipid na ngiti ang barista na tumapat sa kanya na may hawak na tray. It was her order. "Yes. Thank you." Inilapag nito iyon sa table niya kung saan nakalagay din ang laptop niya.
"You're welcome. Enjoy your drink, Ma'am" the girl smiled then nodded at bumalik na sa counter. Nasa isang coffee shop siya nang mga oras na iyon at nagtatrabaho. Sinend na sa kanya ng firm ang lahat ng kakailanganing documents para sa project na iyon so she was now doing her research. Nakapagdesign na rin siya ng iilang airport sa US dati ngunit ngayon ang unang pagkakataon na siya ang head designer.
Nandoon siya partly because she was used to work in an environment where everyone is doing something. Mas nakakasipag gumawa kaysa sa bahay na inaantok lang siya at napapatulala lang siya. Lalo na ngayon na marami na rin ang mas gustong sa isang coffee shop nag-aaral or nagtatrabaho gamit ang mga laptop nila. Busy but still somehow chill. Bonus na rin ang amoy ng kape habang gumagawa. Divine.
Pero partly dahil umalis si Alex kasama ang mga lola't lolo nito and honestly, she didn't want anything to do with her dad. Hayaan niyang makasama nito ang apo nito pero gusto nito ay pati siya ay hindi pwede.
Rein didn't hate her father. It was something else entirely. She wanted nothing to do with the man.
In fact, kung hindi lang siya nagu-guilty na wala na ngang ama ang anak niya, wala pa itong lolo ay di niya pa gustong magkakoneksyon ang mga ito.
Her father was rich. Filthy rich.
And by filthy, she meant that quite literally.
Simula pa lang noong bata siya ay wala nang panahon sa kanya ang kanyang ama. Lagi itong umaalis at nagtatrabaho. Noong una ang akala niya ay ganoon talaga ang mga tatay at mga nagtatrabaho, laging may bodyguard na mukhang nakakatakot at may mga dalang malalaking baril until narealize na lang niya that her father wasn't a good man. Kaya pala ganoon ay ilegal ang trabaho nito.
Rein knew just how powerful her father was and how dangerous.
Until now ay hindi niya alam kung ano ang business nito and frankly, she didn't want to know. Hell, It could be drugs.
At first she hated him, papaano nito nagawang pumasok sa ganoong negosyo na may anak at asawa. Inilagay nito sa panganib ang buhay nila, may mga kaaway ito sa negosyo kaya rin ganoon na lamang ang mga bodyguards nila. She hated him so much she changed her surname into her mother's. She didn't want anything to do with him. Umalis din agad siya sa poder ng mga ito dahil di niya maatim na mamuhay sa salapi na galing sa maruming paraan.
And worse, her father let her.
She shook the thoughts of her father. According to her mom, legal na ang business nito. He owns a chain of malls. That was the reason she let her father enter their lives again, or Alex's for that matter.
Ibinaling niya ang isip niya sa trabaho niya. Their client is MA Group of Companies, di pa niya nareresearch ang kumpanyang iyon. Pero noong i-brief siya tungkol dito ng firm ay isa ito sa pinakamakapangyarihang kumpanya sa Pilipinas, even some parts of Asia. They own restaurants, malls, etc. even airports at ang gagawin niyang project ay isa pang branch ng airport nito sa bansa, Cebu in particular.
Magkakaroon sila ng meeting with the owner of the company sa isang linggo kasama ang partner local firm nila dito.
Bumaling siya sa laptop niya at pumunta sa Google tinatype pa lamang niya ang pangalan ng kumpanya---para sana kahit papaano ay may background siya sa kakausapin nila---nang mapapitlag siya dahil may nagsalita.
"Rein?"
Gulat na napatingin siya sa pinanggalingan ng boses na iyon. Nagulat siya nang tumambad sa kanya ang isang pamilyar na mukha. Nakakunot noo ito habang nakabaling ng kaunti sa kanan ang mukha na parang hindi pa ito naniniwala sa nakikita o hindi pa ito sigurado.
Nang makita nito nang tuluyan ang mukha niya nang tumingala siya ay ngumiti ito na ito nang maluwag. She knew every woman in that place, if they have seen that smile---which is usually the case dahil sobrang gwapo nito at mapapasunod ka na lang ng tingin, would melt.
"Andrew?" gagad niya.
Nagkibit balikat ito. "The one and only" anito.
Nagpanic siya at lihim na tumingin nang mabilis sa likuran nito bago bumalik ang tingin dito. Ang lakas ng tibok ng puso niya. Shit. Shit. She suddenly thought of numerous ways how to escape.
Andrew Salvador was Miguel's bestfriend.
Bago sila bumalik ng US, balak niyang tapusin lahat ng kailangang tapusin sa project na iyon nang hindi nakakakita ng pamilyar na mukha. She wanted to be under the radar of anyone from her past. Especially Miguel's friends!
Shit. Shit.
To hide her nervousness, ibinalik niya ang ngiti nito at tumayo para yakapin ito. "Christ, it's been years since i've last seen you" sabi nito nang maghiwalay sila. Tinignan nito ang kabuuan niya habang hawak siya sa magkabilang braso.
"Yes, you look handsome still" aniya. It was true. Andrew Salvador was a pretty boy back in college. His grin would always make girl swoon. Now, it was better. His good looks wasn't "pretty" anymore but could only be described as gorgeous. All man.
He chuckled at tinignan ang kabuoan nya. "And you're more beautiful than ever. " He smiled genuinely. Her pinks heated a bit and she knew she was blushing. Hindi niya alam kung nambobola ba ito. Alam naman niyang nagmature na ang mukha niya or in short, tumanda na siya and not to mention nagkaanak na. She knew she changed a lot after giving birth to Alex. She wasn't in her 20s anymore.
"Mind if I sit?" Iminuwestra nito ang upuan sa tapat niya. Wala na siyang nagawa kung hindi tumango at sinarado ang laptop niya. Naging kaibigan niya rin ito dahil nga ito ang pinakamatalik na kaibigan ni Miguel. They had other friends pero eto ang magkasundong magkasundo. In fact, they even ended up brother-in-laws dahil pinakasalan nito ang kapatid ni Miguel na si Bianca.
Of all people na makikita niya, ito pa talaga. She wondered if sasabihin nito kay Miguel na nagkita sila nito. God, please no. Her blood run cold at that thought.
She looked at him, bakit parang di ata ito galit sa kanya? Inaasahan niya na galit ang pamilya at mga kaibigan ni Miguel sa kanya kaya naman iniiwasan niyang may makita sa mga ito.
"I just finished a meeting with a client here when I saw you. You looked familiar and tama nga ako. It's so glad to see you. I missed you" anito sa sinserong tinig. Naka-suit nga ito at may dalang messenger bag.
She felt relieved and returned his smile. "I missed you too, Andrew. It's so glad to see you too. How are you?"
Something flashed in his eyes. "I'm okay." Iniba nito ang usapan. "Anyways, what are you doing here? Dito ka na ba uli last I heard you went out of the country just don't know where" His head tilted to the side.
"Not really, may project lang ako dito ngayon. After that, balik na kam---ako sa States uli" she bit her lips. Muntik na siyang madulas
Nagusap pa sila nang matagal bago niya tinanong ito, "How's Bianca?" hindi kasi nito nababanggit ang asawa. Rein loved the two of them together. Bianca loved Andrew so much, the love that you feel in your bones, down to your soul and in his way, she knew Andrew loved Bianca with the same intensity.
Pain flashed in his eyes before his jaw hardened. Tumingin ito ng mataman sa mata niya bago umiwas ng tingin. "You didn't know?"
Kumunot ang noo niya. Naghiwalay din ba ang mga ito?
"S-she d-died, Rein. Car accident. Four years ago" anito sa gasgas na tinig, almost a whisper.
Napasinghap siya, feeling a blow to her stomach. "Oh my god" she covered her mouth. She felt the bile creeping up her throat.
"Please tell me you're kidding. Please" she whispered.Naramdaman niya ang mga nangingilid na mga luha sa kanyang mata. Nang maghiwalay sila ni Miguel ay mas pinili niyang putulin na rin ang koneksyon sa lahat ng kakilala nila at hindi na rin siya nakikibalita sa mga ito. She's close with Bianca. Everyone adored her. She was a sweetheart.
Pumikit ito ng mariin, confirming her fears. Nanlumo siya. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry, Andrew"
God, Miguel. Paano si Miguel? Parang hindi siya makahinga.
Miguel doted on her sister. He loved her dearly at laging iniispoil ang ito. She had him wrapped around her finger. Rein could not imagine how Miguel handled her sister's death. Napapikit siya ng mariin. So much for saving Miguel.
"I apologize for my mother's behavior"
Napapapitlag si Rein sa malambing na boses na pumutol sa kanyang pagmumuni muni. Tumingin siya sa pinanggalingan n'on. It was Bianca. Miguel's sister. She was smiling at her with her hands the her back na para bang nahihiya ito. She was very gorgeous, mukha namang nasa lahi ng mga ito iyon. Even her mother na kahit na hindi maganda ang trato sa kanya ay di maikakaila na maganda ito, Their mother is Brazilian while their father is a Chinese-Filipino. But they didn't look even a bit Asian, nakuha lahat ng mga ito ang features nga mga ito sa mother side.
Bianca looked like a model or a beauty queen. She was very tall, a few inches taller than her and she's already 5'6". She wasn't blue-eyed like her brother instead it was grey. Pointed nose and great cheekbones. May dimples din ito. She looked like Miranda Kerr with hints of Adriana Lima.
"Thanks" aniya at tipid na nginitian ito. Nagpapahangin siya sa garden dahil hindi niya na maatim ang pakikitungo sa kanya ng nanay ni Miguel. The woman hated her, and she didn't hide it. Hindi niya alam kung bakit. Nasa party sila sa loob ng masyon ng mga ito.
"You can spit in her drink, I won't tell" biro nito.
Tinaasan niya ito ng kilay. Bianca's eyebrow raised playfully."What? She's a bitch"anito. They laughed.
"I like you for Kuya." anito pagkatapos ang ilang saglit na katahimikan. Katabi na niya ito sa upuan at nakatingin sa malayo.
Her hearts swelled. She may not have his mother's approval pero malaking bagay sa kanya ang sinabing iyon ni Bianca. Mahal na mahal ni Miguel ang kapatid nito. Alam niya iyon base sa mga kuwento nito sa kanya.
Nagulat siya ng hawakan siya nito sa kamay. "No, thank you. Thank you for making my Kuya happy. I've never seen him this happy. And you're the reason behind that. So thank you"
Nag-init ang kanya pisngi. "Dami namang thank you n'on." She smiled at her. Tinignan niya ito nang mataman. She could not pinpoint what it was but she was certain na may nagpapalungkot dito. There was something off with her eyes kahit na nakangiti ito. She'd bring that up with Miguel, baka may problema ang kapatid nito na hindi sinasabi.
Bianca giggled. "I wouldn't mind sharing kuya's attention if ikaw ang kahati ko." She tiled her head. "And wag mo na isipin si Mama, she's really a bitch." Bumungisngis ito, further flashing her dimples, "and really the spit thing, that'd serve her right."
Bumulong ito. "Our cook does that with her plate"
Her eyes widen and disbelief and they both laughed.
Naputol ang pag-alala niya sa unang pagkikita nila ni Bianca nang tumunog ang phone ni Andrew. Nang tignan nito iyon ay napatingin ito sa kanya.
"My mother-in-law"
Nanlaki ang mata niya. Oh fuck. "Uhm, if you don't mind, wag mo na lang banggitin sa kahit kanino na nakita mo ako dito. Even---uhm M-Miguel" aniya sa nakikiusap na tinig, panic eneveloping her whole body.
Tinignan siya nito ng mataman. "Miguel and I aren't talking anymore" anito sa malamig na tono.
She stiffened at napakunot noo. "What?" Nang hindi ito sumagot ay tinanong niya, "Why?"
He shrugged his shoulders. "Bianca died. He hated me. Blamed me for what happened. Which is kind of true." Dumaan na naman ang sakit sa gwapo nitong mukha.
"Don't blame yourself, you said so yourself it was an acci--"
Tumayo na ito---interrupting her. "Gotta go, don't worry, I won't tell her, or anyone that I've seen you, even the ice prince." Hinalikan siya nito sa noo bago tumalikod at umalis.
Sinundan niya ng tingin ang papalayong bulto nito---along with other girls admiring his backside---and thought, Ice Prince?