Mas lalo pang lumala ang away ng dalawa.
As Sebastian keeps receiving news na palaging kasama ni Emy si Haow, at si Emy naman ay hindi rin nagpapatinag, the cold atmosphere between them spread all over their residence.
Hindi iyon naging lihim sa mga tao sa palace.
Of course, ikinabahala iyon ng Emperor at Empress.
But obviously, ikinatuwa naman iyon nila Xeno at Misa.
Finally, they found Emy's softest spot.
For others, kayang kaya pang maging open-minded ni Emy eh. She was still calm and prepared for others. But she is definitely acting as terribly as she can at the moment. At pabor na pabor ito sa kanila.
For months, napakaraming pagtitipon ang naganap sa palace. But none of it were attended by Emy. People thought she was throwing tantrums dahil malapit na ang kasal nila Sebastian at Xeno.
It was two weeks before her due date.
At dahil sa mga sinasabi ng tao kay Emy, Sebastian is getting angry. In the end, naibubunton niya ito sa asawa.
Na syempre, hindi rin naman papalampasin ni Emy.
And she always can make Sebastian shut up kaya naman maiiwanan na lang sa labas ang lalaki na nagpupuyos sa galit.
At dahil doon, they also stopped sleeping beside each other.
That made the maidservants of Emy sad. They had witnessed the love blooms between them. How come they are being like this now?
***
"That husband of yours is stupid." Haow said.
Pinaningkitan lang ni Emy ng mga mata ito. She and Sebastian are probably fighting right now but it doesn't mean she will let anyone insult him.
"God, and of course, dahil pinakasalan mo siya, you become stupid too."
"At ano, kung ikaw ang pinakasalan ko, I would not have become stupid?"
"If you had married me, wala ka sanang problema na ganito."
Natahimik si Emy.
Napailing na lang naman si Diana at Lucy. Mabuti na lang at wala pa si Alessandra. She would have probably got hurt because of the exchange between the two.
"Anyway, nalalapit na ang kasal nila, Emy. Anong plano mo?" Tanong ni Diana.
"What is there to plan? Kung ayaw may paraan. But see he is marrying the bitch so let him be."
"Emy..." Saway ni Lucy sa kanya.
Napailing na lang naman si Diana. No one expected them na ganito ang magiging reaksyon ni Emy.
She must be truly hurt.
Anyway, hindi rin naman maiwasan ni Emy na makita si Haow araw araw. Kahit na ayaw na niyang pag-awayan nila ni Sebastian ang lalaki.
Anong magagawa niya? He was a friend of Franco at miyembro na din siya ng Black Council. Hindi niya lang makikita ang lalaki kapag nasa loob siya ng Palace and with the suffocation she's feeling within the palace, imposibleng manatili lang siya sa loob nito.
Hay...
Sa pagkakataon niya namimiss sila Francis at Feng.
How she truly wants a parental love now?
And maybe her heart is already that desperate, that heaven could no longer help but to grant her wish.
That day, she was approached by the Prime Minister.
"Princess Emy..."
He called her out.
Naglalakad siya pabalik ng residence nila ng madaan siya sa garden kung nasaan din ito.
"Prime Minister..." She greeted him. Alanganin siyang tumigil sa paglalakad. Then looked at the man in front of her. 'Father...' she thought.
The Prime Ministet smiled at her.
"Are you from outside?"
Emy just nodded.
"The palace might be too much for you lately." Then he sighed.
There are so much he wants to say to this little lady in front of him. Just like how he wanted to keep reminding his daughters about things. But he held his tongue. He had to remind himself na hindi niya anak ang babae at baka hindi nito magustuhan kung mangangailam siya.
Emy, however, sighed.
"How sad it is that life is not always being happy? That things always need to be shaken up in order for us to grow. Minsan, nakakasawa na lang din."
And there he saw it. The sadness in her eyes. He always sees this lady with a very strong personality and yet, today seemed to be an exception.
His heart was troubled. He felt as if she is his daughter feeling this kind of loneliness.
He had an urge to put his arms on her shoulder and walked with her. But he stopped himself. Instead, he sighed.
"If it is already too much, then you only have two choices. Escape or face it."
Emy showed all the pain she's feeling when she looked at him. "It hurts... so much." She said it almost as a whisper.
The Prime Minister raised his hand to reach for her but he stopped midway and ended up just tapping her on arms.
"It's part of the process. Just think na whatever you're experiencing now won't last forever."
Emy closed her eyes and let his father's words sink in.
***
That night, she stayed up late. Her chessboard is on the table and she quietly played alone.
But it is not like she can still play properly. Her mind is too occupied.
She's thinking too hard. From her rebirth up to this days.
All she want is revenge. And when she finally had it, who would have thought she will encounter Emy's enemies?
Who would have thought she will end up people to love and to protect?
Who would have thought she will marry Sebastian and feel for him?
They all become her weakness. And Xeno and Misa knew exactly now how to pick her weakness until she's bruised and injured.
She sighed.
She's tired and hurt. But she doesn't know anymore how lick her wounds alone.
"It's late." It was Sebastian.
He just arrived home and was surprised to see Emy still awake.
"I know."
Sebastian sighed.
Hindi niya alam kung paanong haharapin ang asawa. These days had been killing him as he fought with her.
May karapatan naman itong magalit eh. And he perfectly understands her.
But it is not funny anymore as their cold war lasted until these days.
He sat in front of her. And took a pawn and move it on the chessboard.
For a while, they play chess. Once... Twice... Hanggang sa hindi na niya mabilang.
Their games are showing what both of them should be doing instead. Their moves indicates the things they wanted to do. But things are not that easy anymore.
"Let's divorce, Sebastian."
Sebastian was suddenly felt like as if a cold of bucket of water is splashed on him. He looked at Emy and his panic is showing in his eyes.
"W-what..."
"I think it was a mistake that we had married each other. We should have just stayed as friends. Or I should have just chosen not to feel anything towards you. I should have stopped myself."
"Emy..." He tried to reach for her hand pero iniwas lang nito iyon sa kanya. Then he saw her eyes. It has tears forming but she looked up to stop them.
"I can't do this anymore. No matter how far I look or try to be open-minded about this, I can't. I don't think we can still be happy after this. I don't think I can still face you after you marry her.
"I promised you alliance. Alright, I can still give you that. I will still help you. I can still lend you a hand so that you can be an Emperor.
"But not anymore as your wife."
Tears flowed down on her eyes.
She stood and was about to enter her room. But Sebastian spoke again.
"So you are choosing escape."
Natigilan si Emy.
Did he hear her talk with the Prime Minister? Or maybe, sinabi ng matanda sa kanya?
"Instead of facing it, you are choosing escape.
"I understand you, you know. I know why you are being like this."
He stood too and walked towards her.
"I am trying as much as you are. If you are hurting then so am I.
"But saying you can't anymore? Isn't this selfish?"
Emy slapped him. Then her eyes glared him.
"Y-you... of all the people. You can't call me selfish. Wala kang karapatan.
"I have given so much for you, for your family. After all of those things I did for all of you, you cannot call me selfish."
Emy lost it then.
Her cry that night would be her last as she finally made her decision for herself.
***
When Serafina saw the divorce paper on the table, she had an urge to talk to Emy. Pero pinigilan siya ni Sebastian.
"It was I who screwed up, Ma. She has no fault."
He took the divorce paper and tore it into pieces.
Come what may, he would not let go of her.
***