I was in high spirits the next day.

Hindi naman ito nakalagpas kay Atticus na noo'y kagigising lamang at umiinom ng tubig sa kusina.

He yawned. "Did something good happen?"

"Nothing." I answered while humming a song.

"Really?" inaantok niyang sabi at tumingin sa salamin habang hawak ang mga labi niya. "Ouch. My lips hurt. You bit me too hard last night, Stellar."

Halos himatayin naman ako sa hiya nang dahil sa sinabi niya. Seriously, he makes no effort to filter his words! He just says whatever comes into his mind!

"Anyway," I cleared my throat. "Pabayaan mo nga ako kung masaya ako. Ang sarap kayang mabuhay sa mundo."

"Kahit hindi naman sayo 'yan at nakikihiram ka lang ng katawan?" he noted with sarcasm.

I grunted. "Ang KJ mo. Huwag ka ngang epal."

His grin grew wider. Ang sama talaga ng Atticus na 'to. Pagdating sa love niya, handa siyang gawin ang lahat. Kapag sa akin naman, parang bawal akong sumaya.

Kahit ako ang nasa katawan ni Gaia, parang nasa kanya parin ang huling halakhak.

Because she's the one he loves.

At ako lang itong nakikisawsaw sa kwento nilang dalawa. If I didn't even enter the picture, perhaps they're already married by now.

"My brat, don't sulk." he suddenly pulled me towards him. My jaw dropped when he quickly kissed me on the lips.

Smack lang iyon pero halos mabaliw na ako!

"Will you please stop kissing me randomly?!"

"Basically, that's the body of my future wife. I can do whatever I want with it." My heart sank to what he said.

Oh, my god. Napapadalas na iyong masama kong pakiramdam sa tuwing binabanggit niya si Gaia. This is really bad. Ano bang nangyayari sa akin?

Ginulo niya ang buhok ko. "Get dressed, Stellar. May pupuntahan tayo."

"Can't I stay here?" I sighed, suddenly feeling so drained. It's funny how fast my mood could change.

"No, you need to come. We'll go and visit love's family." Tumingin siya sa akin at ngumiti. "Before we proceed to our little mission, I need to sort out things first."

"Okay," I answered, defeated. I had no choice but to comply when he shoved me into my room.

Binilisan ko na lang ang pag-aayos dahil ayaw ko rin naman siyang paghintayin. After half an hour of fixing myself, we took our leave.

I pretended to be asleep the whole time.

Anong klaseng pamilya naman kaya ang meron si Gaia Venice? Is she a good daughter? Her mom's replica? Or Papa's girl? I wonder which one is she.

After an hour, we arrived in a house somewhere in General Trias. Atticus said that Gaia's family owned two mansions and resorts, but they frequented more here in Gen Tri. Peaceful daw kasi rito at malayo mula sa magulong syudad.

Hindi ko naman naiwasang kabahan habang bumababa ng sasakyan. Mukhang napansin naman niya iyon kaya hinawakan ni Atticus ang kamay ko.

Bigla naman siyang natawa.

Napasimangot ako. "Ano na naman?"

"Ang lamig ng kamay mo." komento niya.

I frowned. "Naiihi na ako sa sobrang kaba."

"Don't be nervous. I won't force you to act like Gaia but you should know a few things about her so they won't feel odd about you."

"Like what?"

"Hmm. My love is very calm and collected. She acts demurely and doesn't talk too much. A sweet daughter to her mom, the best sister in the world. Gaia is distant to her Dad but she loves him just the same. She doesn't laugh too loud. She doesn't run, and her steps are very ginger. She always--"

Pinutol ko na ang sinasabi niya. "In short, pabebe ang fiancée mo." I entered the house, leaving him outside.

"Gaia! What a surprise!" Sinalubong ako ng isang magandang babae, at sigurado akong siya na ang ina ng katawang ito. God, they look so alike!

Both are meztizas, and they're equally beautiful. But there was something else aside from that jaw-dropping beauty. I felt odd. I didn't like her aura.

I wonder why.

"Good afternoon, Mom. It's nice to see you again." I cautiously eyed Atticus. He smiled and raised a thumb to me, assuring me that my acting's okay.

"Of course. Have a seat." She sat on the sofa and I obediently took a seat beside her. "Why didn't you tell me that you're going to visit today?"

I faked a smile. "I wanted to surprise you, Mom. I really missed you."

Yeah, I fucking missed you, Madame. I don't even know who you are.

Nagpatuloy lang ang kwentuhan naming tatlo. Sometimes, when I don't know how to answer the madame's questions, Atticus would change the subject. Mabuti na lang at nandiyan siya.

I still felt uneasy having Gaia's mother around, but I needed to bear with it. Konting tiis na lang, Stellar.

"Do you wanna peek on your little brother before leaving?" tanong ng ina ni Gaia Venice. I looked at Atticus.

"Would it be okay?" I asked.

He nodded in response. Umakyat na kaming tatlo at masasabi ko talagang malaki ang bahay na 'to. The rooms were easy to remember, though. Hindi naman siya kaligaw-ligaw.

"He's sleeping. Huwag na natin siyang gisingin, Gaia. Your brother's doing good in school and I can see how hard he's trying to be like you. I'm so proud of our little boy."

Napangiti ako habang tinititigan ang isang batang lalaki na mahimbing na natutulog sa kwarto niya. He seemed around five to seven years of age. Ang laki ng age gap nila ng ate niya!

That aside, he looks like a mini Gaia! So adorable.

"Eh?" Napahawak ako sa pisngi ko. "Tears?"

Umiiyak ako.

Sa hindi malamang dahilan, umiiyak ako.

What are these tears for? They're neither tears of joy nor pain. Wala sa dalawa. Kung gano'n, bakit?

Siniko ako ni Atticus. "Why are you crying?"

Agad ko namang pinunasan ang pisngi ko.

"He's so cute." I reasoned out.

Ngumiwi siya. "Huh? You're so weird."

I shifted my gaze to Gaia's mom. She was smiling to me. Ngumiti rin ako sa kanya bago siya magsalita. "You must've missed your brother so much. I hope the next time you visit, he's awake so the two of you can talk."

She led the way downstairs. While the two of them were busy making small talks, I felt something weird... like someone was staring at me.

At nang mapalingon ako sa gawing kanan, may napansin akong pinto. I blinked twice when I saw that the door was heavily guarded with multiple locks.

I poked Atticus. "What's that room?"

"Not sure. That's off limits." he replied nonchalantly.

My eyes darted on the unfamiliar words on the door.

Il Bambino Adottato

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