"May God be with you, Stellar."

I nervously smiled to him. Gabriel walked behind me while I was accompanied by two guards on both side. My eyes were fixed on the handcuffs sealing my hands. Everything that has happened until now still feels surreal.

"This will be your last day on that body." kaswal na sabi ni Gabriel habang naglalakad kami. "I'm sorry if it had to be in the courtroom. Really, it sucks. I feel so bad but this was written on the Holy Calendar."

Napangiti naman ako sa sinabi niya. Gustuhin ko man siyang kausapin ay pinigilan ko ang sarili ko. Ayaw kong isipin ng mga kasama namin na nababaliw na ako.

Ngayong araw magaganap ang paglilitis kay Gaia Venice. After my near-death encounter with Auxen, I surrendered myself to the authorities and confessed as the suspect in the murder of Stellar Lumina.

We arrived outside the courtroom at the same time Conan did. Just like me, he was still handcuffed... but today he's going to be the witness while I'm the defendant on the court. This trial is supposed to prove his innocence.

"Hi. The weather today is nice." Ngumiti sa akin si Conan, walang bahid ng galit o sarkasmo. "Now I know why you looked awfully familiar to me. We met back in high school, didn't we? When I saved Stellar from your beating."

I pursed my lips. "I'm sorry, Conan."

I'm sorry for not loving you back. I pray that you find someone who will love you as much as you loved me. You deserve the best. Someday, you'll thank me for rejecting your feelings.

Binigyan lamang niya ako ng isang maliit na ngiti. Mas lalo akong humanga kay Conan dahil hindi man lang siya nagtanim ng galit kay Gaia Venice bagama't alam niyang ito talaga ang tunay na salarin sa pagpatay sa akin.

Nauna kaming pumasok sa loob ng hukuman.

"He's too tired to even harbor ill feelings for anyone."
Gabriel commented sympathetically. "I pity him. It must've been depressing to be dubbed as a murderer by the whole country."

"He didn't deserve any of this." malungkot kong sabi.

"He's nice. Bakit hindi mo nagustuhan iyon?"

I eyed him. "Hindi naman natuturuan ang puso."

He nodded in agreement. Umupo na ako sa pwesto ko at nagmasid muna ako sa paligid habang hindi pa nagsisimula ang paglilitis. Napakaraming tao, karamihan ay mga mamamahayag. Sinubaybayan ng buong bansa ang kaso ng pagpatay sa akin, at ngayon ay mailalantad na ang katotohanan.

"What's going to happen after this?" tanong ko kay Gabriel na noo'y pirmi lamang na nakatayo sa gilid ko.

"You'll be transported back to Oblivion until He bestows his judgment to you." He adjusted the tie of his suit. "Gaia will reclaim her body and by the time she snaps back into reality, she will no longer be sane."

My lips parted. "What do you mean?"

"It's part of her punishment. She will no longer enjoy the pleasure of peace. Every night, someone will be sent to haunt her in the form of nightmares. Iyon ang parusa niya. Patuloy siyang paparusahan sa mga panaginip niya hanggang sa masiraan na lang siya ng bait."

A slice of pity cut through my heart. As much as I despised her existence, I couldn't help but feel bad. I could only imagine how difficult things would be for her from this day onwards.

Gabriel looked at me in the corner of his eye. "Don't feel bad. She deserves it. Had it been you who killed her, you would've suffered the same fate." he softly explained.

Ngumiti na lamang ako at tumango.

My heart thumped when the door of the courtroom swung open and his debonair figure emerged inside. I have never seen him so gallant before. The look on his face was determined.

He was determined to take me down.

Nang magtama ang paningin namin, kusang nagwala ang puso ko. Nanatili sa akin ang mga mata ni Atticus at halos mapaso ako sa lamig ng kanyang titig.

To say that he was upset would be an understatement.

He was beyond mad and furious.

Hindi ko alam kung para kanino ba ang matalim niyang tingin... Kung para kay Gaia ba o para sa akin mismo.

Taas-noong naglakad si Atticus palapit sa pwesto ni Conan. His ever cold and arrogant secretary stood up then whispered something to him. Paulit-ulit naman siyang tumango sa mga ibinulong ni Sandro.

The trial began shortly.

"You may all rise. The court is now in session."

I lost myself in the opening remarks. Wala na akong naintindihan sa sobrang kaba. Pilit naman akong pinapakalma ni Gabriel na noo'y hindi parin umaalis sa tabi ko.

The trial started with the prosecution. They presented evidences, specifically the CCTV footage wherein Conan was seen on his way to the parking lot where I was found dead. They also presented the fake knife that Auxen and Gaia switched with the original one.

Ipinakita rin nila ang autopsy results na nagpapatunay na nagtalik kami ni Conan at semilia niya ang nakita sa katawan ko. Kung hindi ko lang alam ang tunay na nangyari, baka naniwala na rin akong ginahasa talaga ako ni Conan at tsaka pinatay.

"I won't change my initial statements. Everything that I've said before is the truth." Conan firmly attested. "I didn't kill her. Half an hour has passed when I decided to run after Stellar. She was already dead when I found her on the parking lot."

His eyes welled up with tears upon reminiscing the scene.

"She was in a horrible shape, you know. I panicked. It looked so painful so the first thing I ought to do was to remove the knife stuck on her chest. I was hoping to resuscitate her or to at least stop the bleeding of her injury, but it was too late. She no longer had a pulse."

After his narration, Atticus took over. Bumalik na sa kanyang upuan si Conan at tinapik naman siya ni Sandro sa balikat. Tila hinimas ang puso ko noong maluha-luhang ngumiti si Conan.

"The tool used in killing the victim was replaced with that one." He pointed the fake knife. "I hereby present the original weapon, Your Honor." Atticus asserted.

Umugong ang malakas bulungan ng mga tao. Hindi na rin ako mapakali sa pwesto ko dahil sa kaba. Maging si Gabriel ay seryosong nakikinig sa mga nagsasalita.

"Where did you get that?" The prosecutor questioned then turned to the judge. "Your Honor, we cannot consider it as an evidence unless an informant or reliable source proves it!" mariin nitong sabi.

Atticus smiled in triumph.

"I would like to call forth a witness."

Natahimik ang buong paligid noong lumabas mula sa isang pinto si Auxen. Mayabang ang pagkakatingin niya sa paligid ngunit walang emosyon na mababasa sa kanyang mga mata. Kalmado siyang umupo sa gitna ng korte at nilapitan naman siya ni Atticus.

Auxen cleared his throat. "I swear that I will speak of the truth and nothing but the truth only." he swore imperviously.

Atticus stared at his brother, his eyes ablaze.

"The prosecution has taken possession of a knife. Will you attest to everyone in this court that the said knife is fake?"

Biglang natahimik si Auxen. Hindi siya nagsalita at nanatili lamang na nakatulala. Nanliit naman ang mga mata ni Atticus at mababasa mo ang mga galit dito.

"I said, attest." mariin niyang utos sa nakatatandang kapatid ngunit hindi parin ito sumagot. "You swore to speak of the truth and nothing but the truth only. Now tell us the truth and attest to my statement!"

All of us were surprised by his sudden outburst. The prosecutor stood up. "Your Honor, the defendant is leading the witness!" he pleaded, but the judge dismissed his objection.

Nagsukatan ng tingin ang magkapatid.

Matapos ang ilang minuto, nagsalita na si Auxen.

"I was present in the scene when the murder took place. It was me who replaced the original knife with a new one. I served as an accomplice in committing this crime."

Napayuko naman ako sa sinabi niya.

"I swore that I will speak of the truth and nothing but the truth only. This is the truth. The weapon in the prosecution's possession is fake." Auxen added coldly.

Tinalikuran na ni Atticus ang kanyang kapatid at taas-noo niyang hinarap ang hukom. "That is all, Your Honor."

My chest pounded when I was called forth. Gabriel took hold of my hand then gently squeezed it. Ngumiti siya sa akin at sinabihan niya ako na huwag masyadong kabahan.

Muling umingay ang paligid habang naglalakad ako patungo sa gitna ng korte. When I reached my designated spot, I stood rooted to my position.

"State your name and age."

I cleared my throat and mustered all my courage to speak.

"I'm Gaia Madison Venice. Twenty-eight years old."

The prosecutor circled around me. "What is your association with Stellar Lumina?" he asked impatiently.

"She was my adopted sister." tipid kong sagot.

"How would you describe your relationship with her?"

Bumigat ang dibdib ko sa kanyang tanong. Bumalik sa akin lahat ng alaala ko kasama si Gaia. Lahat ng mga pang-iinsulto at pagmamaltrato niya sa akin ay hindi ko parin nakakalimutan.

"Bad. We never really liked each other." pag-amin ko.

"There was a certain time period when Stellar Lumina went missing in action." He pursed his lips. "Is it true that prior to this crime, you held her captive for three years?"

I swallowed the lump on my throat. "Yes."

"What happened during those years?"

My throat hurts. I didn't expect that I'd have to go into details with the most sordid years of my life. "Abuse beyond your imagination. I treated her like an animal."

Ramdam ko ang matalim na titig sa akin ng mga tao.

"What do you have to say about the murder?"

"I did it. I'm guilty." I placidly replied. "I was having a heated conversation with Auxen Sylvensen when my sister overheard us. We got into an argument. I was blinded by my rage. And then it just happened."

I couldn't supress my tears any longer.

The moment my teardrops fell, time came to a halt.

Akala ko namamalikmata lang ako ngunit noong tumingin ako sa paligid, literal na huminto ang oras at ang mga tao sa paligid ko. Nilingon ko si Gabriel na noo'y nakatingin sa kanyang relo.

"You only have a minute." he softly remarked.

"Thank you, Gabriel." I was even more shocked when Atticus replied to him. Wha- Do they know each other? More importantly, how could he possible see him?

"My pleasure," He smiled to the both of us. "I cannot freeze time for too long. Make the best out of that one minute."

He suddenly vanished into thin air. Hindi parin ako makapaniwala sa nasaksihan ko. Once again, I looked around. Everything was literally frozen in time.

"Hi." Atticus said barely above a whisper.

I faked a smile. "Hello."

"How have you been?" malumanay niyang tanong.

A sob escaped from my lips. "I'm okay. And you?"

"I'm fine." His tears fell. "It's been a while, Stellar."

It was such a heartbreaking reunion.

We were forcibly separated by fate. It felt like after all the years robbed from us, this is the very first time that we meet again as the Stellar and Atticus from the past.

"Were you lonely?"

Mas lalo lamang akong napaluha sa kanyang tanong.

"Gabriel returned my memories. I remember everything now."

Ngumiti naman ako nang pilit. "Is that so?"

"You died because of me." I closed my eyes when he lovingly cupped my cheeks. "Were you lonely, Stellar?"

Tumango naman ako. "I was lonely, Atticus."

A spasm of pain crossed his face.

"But I endured everything for you. I was desperate to survive. I kept reminding myself that I must live because someone was waiting for me. Pero nalaman ko na lang na wala na pala akong babalikan, Atticus. You broke your promise to me. Iniwan mo ako. Hindi mo ako hinanap."

He shook his head frantically.

"I looked for you. I spent years of finding you, Stellar. Hindi kita sinukuan. Hinanap kita. Hindi ako naniwalang iniwan mo na lang ako bigla. I waited patiently for your return, but you never came back. I got tired of waiting. It was so depressing and I decided that it was finally time to heal myself from you.

"Now I understand why Gabriel took our memories. He wanted us to find our way back to each other again. He interlocked our red strings of fate once more. Because even though I learned to be happy with Gaia Venice, I was searching for someone in the depths of my soul. It was none other than you, Stellar."

His words left a bittersweet taste on my mouth.

"This might be the last, so I want you to listen." He rested his forehead on mine. "No words can depict how much I love you. Forgive me if I gave up on you. I'm sorry for not being able to protect you."

Tears streamed down to his cheeks.

"But I want you to know that no matter where you are, whose body you possess or what lifetime we are in... I will find you, Stellar. I will always come back to you."

My tears fell as he planted a soft kiss on my lips. By that time, I knew that it's all over but I was satisfied. Despite my tragic fate, I was happy with how I lived my life. To meet Atty. Atticus Sylvensen VII was more than enough. He made this lifetime worthwhile.

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