chapter 31
Hi guys! Brace yourselves because this chapter is a little bit surprising. I'm sure a lot of you didn't expect this turn of events. LOL. Tell me what you think about this chapter after reading.
A/N!!!!!!: Anyway, this story is nearing its end so i want to set a minimum number of comments that must be achieved before I update. All the next chapters will qualify 100 comments before each update. I just want to have a little bit of fun reading what you think of the story. Enjoy!
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BREY's POV
I sat quietly on the chair at the corner of the alley while waiting for my father to get out of my mother's hospital suite. I didn't know what to think of the fact that he actually went inside to talk to her.
The last time talked to him, he said that he couldn't bring himself to go and visit her after everything that she's done to us. I heaved a sigh of the thought.
I looked at my wristwatch and saw that it was already almost past the visiting time. My father had been inside the room for almost an hour already and I was just patiently waiting outside the whole time.
I took my phone out of my pocket and dialed Juno's number. I've been calling her since I arrived but she wasn't responding to any of my calls and texts. Maybe, she just went home, I thought.
I just slipped my phone back inside my pocket when the door of the room finally opened and my father came out. He looked like he wasn't himself while walking slowly. He looked like he was in daze that he didn't even notice me standing in front of him.
"Papa..." I uttered to get his attention. His slow steps came to a halt and then lifted up his gaze. My eyebrows creased when I noticed that his eyes were red, indicating that he cried. It wasn't hard for me to notice that his chest was heavy with so much emotions.
"Son..." he looked like he was going to lose all the strength he had so I assisted him to sit on the nearby chair.
To my surprise, he suddenly burst into tears upon sitting. I was shocked of what I was seeing. I've never seen my father cry before and it was the first time for me to witness his weakened state. He covered his face with his palms as his shoulders shook. He was crying silently but I could feel the pain.
I gently put my hand on his shoulder, consoling him the way I knew it should be.
I let him cry for a couple of minutes until he finally calmed down a little bit.
"What happened, papa?" I asked the moment he finally stopped crying. He drew a deep breath as a pained smile broke across his face.
"I messed up big time, son." My eyebrows creased when I heard that.
"What do you mean?" he stared right into my eyes. I could see that he was having a hard time trying to pull himself together. It was like he received the most shocking news in his life and he couldn't believe it until that point.
"Papa, I want to hear everything. What happened? Why did you come here? I thought you were mad at her that's why you didn't want to come and visit her?" I queried confusedly. I couldn't help but to barrage him with a lot of questions.
"That's what I've thought, son. When we met for the first time more than three years ago and you told me what happened to you, my anger towards your mother doubled. I thought, she was the biggest mistake of my life. I even regretted our times together because I felt like she was the most selfish and horrible person in the world for doing those things to his own son.
"After what she did to me in the past, you came and confessed how she abandoned you and that added to the rage inside of me. I couldn't accept that I've loved and cherished a horrible woman like her." a sad smile stretched his lips after saying those things then he shook his head.
"But now, I've learned that she was also a victim and I was nothing but a useless b*stard because I let her experience all that by herself. I even contributed to her sufferings without realizing it." his voice cracked upon saying that. What he uttered made me confuse and shock at the same time. Did I hear it right? She's also a victim? How come?
I shook my head vigorously, unable to follow.
"I don't understand you, papa. What do you mean by that? What sufferings are you talking about and how come you contributed to it? How come she's a victim now when she was the one who have wronged us?" he took a long breath before answering my questions.
"Your mother told me everything a while ago. I came here to chide at her for everything that she's done to us in the past. Even though she's sick, I've thought of coming to talk to her once and for all to end everything between us. I wanted to put an end to our connection and forget that I ever met her. But then, what she told me shocked me." he gulped inaudibly before he continued.
"She confessed to me that she didn't have any intention of leaving me in the past but she caught me with Ophelia in bed, naked together. It surprised me because I couldn't recall that I ever slept with Ophelia while your mother and I were still in a relationship. Ophelia was nothing but a friend to me back then. Your mother was the one I loved.
"But then, I recalled one particular night that Ophelia came over to my place. She brought a bottle of whiskey and asked me to have a drink with her. At first, I didn't want to because I was expecting your mother to come over that night but she told me that she had a problem and needed someone to talk to.
"I felt sorry for her that I agreed. After a couple of shots, I noticed that I was beginning to get tipsy. I remembered saying that I didn't want to drink anymore but Ophelia insisted for me to take one last shot. I took it so that she would stop bugging me already. But after that, I didn't know what happened. I passed out.
"When I woke up the next morning, I thought, I passed out of drunkenness. I wasn't naked and Ophelia wasn't next to me. But now, I realized that Ophelia must have spiked my drink that was why I got knocked out. After that incident, I couldn't contact your mother anymore. She disappeared. I almost went crazy especially when I read her letter saying for me to just forget about her; that she has someone else.
"I was so mad that I flew into a fit of rage. Of course, Ophelia was there to comfort me. Just like I've told you before, she was the one who help me forget about your mother." A humorless laugh escaped his lips upon saying that while slowly shaking his head.
"I thought I was still lucky back then because I had her by my side. But now, I suddenly learned that Ophelia actually played us around with her little finger because she was the one who destroyed your mother and I's relationship. She planned how to break us apart from the beginning." My chest suddenly ached while watching my own father wept in so much regret.
"What did she do?" I asked through gritted teeth.
"She intentionally sleep with me in my bed, naked, so that your mother would see us that day. She managed to remove my clothes because she drugged me. She told your mother that I've been cheating on her the whole time. Not just that, she was the one who threw your mother out and forged a letter for me. Now, I understand why her penmanship was slightly different. I didn't realize that because I was so blinded by rage thinking that she just went away with some other guy.
"Apparently, Ophelia didn't stop. She hired someone to threaten your mother. Your grandparents almost died because Ophelia used them to scare your mother. The person she sent threatened your mother not to come back to me again nor approach anyone from the Amouretti family in exchange for the safety of her parents.
"Your mother got scared and just complied quietly. She agreed because she was scared that they might really kill her parents if she ever dared come back or talk to me. Her fear intensified when she discovered that she was pregnant with you." tears started pouring from his eyes once again after saying all that.
I was about to tell him to just stop for now because he looked like he was having a hard time telling me about the past but he stopped me by raising his hand.
"Listen to me, son. Your mother never wanted to abandon you nor treat you like you weren't her son. She was forced to do so." I furrowed at him, more confused than ever.
A humorless chuckle escaped my lips.
"Papa, there's no excuse of what she did to me. She acted like I was never her son. She even chose to be with another man's daughter rather than to be with me, her own son. Now, how can you tell me that she didn't want all that to happen when she actually did everything in her own free will?" I couldn't help but to raise my voice an octave.
"Believe me, son. I want to tell everything to you but it's better for you to hear everything from her. Go inside and talk to your mother." I swallowed hard. Yes, I've already decided to talk to her and hear her out but now that the time is here, I felt like backing out.
I felt my father's hand hold my hand. He was staring at me pleadingly.
"Please, son. Hear your mother out." My lips opened, wanting to answer but I couldn't find the right words to say. Then, after a couple of seconds, I suddenly remembered what I've told Juno last night. I sighed in defeat.
"O-Okay." He smiled faintly.
"That's my son. Go on, she's waiting for you." I nodded my head and then slowly stood up. I wrapped my hand around the door handle and was about to open the door when my father spoke.
"Hear everything that she has to say and don't let your anger win this time."
"I'll try, papa." I answered and then opened the door. When my eyes landed to my mother, lying on the hospital bed, I felt like my body went frozen. I felt like my throat became dry as my heart thumped. I've never felt this tense for so long. I inhaled and exhaled a couple of times before decided to approach her.
She opened her eyes and when she saw that it was me, a small smile broke across her face.
"I'm glad you came, B." her voice sounded so weak but she was obviously struggling to sound fine.
"Come and sit next to me." she pointed at the vacant chair next to her bed. I obliged like I wasn't myself. I couldn't even stare at her for long. I couldn't look at her in the condition that she was in.
When I sat on the chair, no one of us spoke right away. The silence was deafening. I had a lot of questions in my head but I couldn't voice them out for an unknown reason. After hearing what really happened to my parent's relationship in the past, I got lost. I felt like I didn't have any right to just throw hurtful words just like that without hearing her out first.
Something was telling me that something made her do what she did to me in the past. Deep inside of me, I was silently wishing that I was right because I didn't know how I could forgive her if she did those terrible things without a valid reason.
"I'm sure, your papa told you to come here. I'm sorry that you're obligated to come visit me because he asked you to." My jaw clenched.
"I came in here not because he obligated me to but because I wanted to hear the truth. I want to talk to you once and for all. Ever since I a kid, a lot of unanswered questions were already circulating in my mind and I've grown tired of it." I met her gaze for the first time since I entered the room.
"Tell me your reasons, if there are any reasons of your past actions. I don't want to just assume things anymore. This is so tiring for me already." she slowly nodded her head.
"I understand, son." She took a deep breath before continuing.
"Just like what I've told you before, since you were still in my womb, I already loved you more than my own life. I've planned on taking care of you by giving everything that I could as a mother. I had a lot of plans. I was so happy when I first saw your cute face when I gave birth to you. I was so overwhelmingly happy that I thought I got the greatest gift of my life."
"I told myself that I would fulfill the role of your mother and father at the same time and would never let you feel alone. That was what I promised but I was such a weak person. I couldn't do anything to protect you." her eyes began brimming with tears.
"What do you mean by that?" I asked with an almost inaudible tone. My voice was slightly trembling.
"During your 7th birthday, Ophelia accidentally saw us together. She asked me who your father was but I denied your paternity because I knew what she was capable of doing terrible if she learned the truth." My eyebrows creased. I was with her on my 7th birthday?
"I told her that your father was Tony, who was then my suitor. I didn't have a choice but to lie. She looked doubtful that time so I had to make a move. I accepted Tony in my life and married him. I did all that just to keep you away from Ophelia and the Amouretti family. I told Tony everything and he agreed to help me.
"But that was the biggest mistake of my life because Tony didn't have the intention to accept you as his own son all along. He initially agreed because he wanted me. He couldn't accept you no matter how much I've begged him. I tried to fight for you, in order to be with you after the wedding, but he threatened me that he would go to Ophelia and tell her about who your real father was if I wouldn't give you up.
"I was so lost back then and I felt so trap. I wanted to be with you but with Tony continuously blackmailing me, I couldn't even approach you. I didn't have a choice but to leave you with your grandpa and grandma. I was full of regret of all the wrong decisions that I've made. Whenever I tried to go and see you, he was always there, guarding every move I made. He even had bodyguards following me around." My hands balled into fists upon hearing all that. Anger was slowly consuming my entire being.
"Even though I couldn't get near you, I tried everything in my power to support you. I always send someone to give your grandpa money so that you could buy whatever you needed in school and whatever you wanted to eat.
"I pained me to see everytime your grandma and grandpa take you to that family restaurant that you loved on my stead because I couldn't take you out myself. I was just watching you from afar because I was afraid that if I'd dare approaching you, Tony would see me and that could endanger your life." I got surprised when she suddenly took my hand and held it.
My hand slowly went relax as I felt her touch.
"I couldn't do anything but to give you those small things without anyone noticing. I've lived like a robot by Tony's side. He never listened to my pleas. Then when you were twelve years old, you got hospitalized. I couldn't stop myself and went to the hospital to see you but that was so careless of me. I didn't consider the danger of what I was doing. I thought I got escaped but the men of Tony caught me visiting you in the hospital and told him about it.
"He was so mad. He was so obsessed with me that he never wanted me to associate with my own family, especially to you. He just wanted me to stay in the house and take care of Juno; be his wife and nothing else. He felt like he would lose me if I would keep in contact with you.
"Because of that, he contacted Ophelia and told the secret that I didn't want her to discover. I've endured being with Tony because I wanted you to be safe but all of my efforts went down the drain in a blink of an eye.
"That night, your grandfather got into an accident followed by a threat letter saying that if I didn't want you to die just like what happened to your grandpa, I would make sure not to let any of the Amouretti family discover about you. I was so scared back then. I knew that they could do whatever they please because they have all the wealth and power.
"I was so devastated because I lost your grandpa not to mention that I had to totally give you up. I tried to beg Tony again to take you in but he never listened to me. After what he did, I tried to leave him but his blackmailing escalated. He threatened me that the moment I stepped out of his house, he would make sure that you and your grandma would suffer the consequences. I tried calling the police but all he did was to pay and he was spared.
"I felt so desperate and hopeless back then. I didn't want someone so dear to me to die because of me so I had to learn how to act cold and heartless in front of you even more than what I've been doing before. Even though my heart was breaking into pieces everytime you come and see me, I had to turn you down like I didn't care at all." Her voice cracked as her tears fell upon saying those things. She bit her lower lip to prevent her sobs.
I was at lost for words. I didn't know what to do or react. It was too much for me to absorb all that. But I could feel all the pain in each words that she was saying.
"Even though I didn't have enough evidence who killed your grandpa, I knew that it was Ophelia. At first, I also thought that your father participated in what Ophelia did to me to take his revenge, but I was wrong." She sobbed.
"When your grandma sent a letter to your father, informing about your existence, I was so scared that Ophelia might be the one to receive it and would do anything to harm you so I made a deal with her. I told her that I would leave and would make sure that your father would never discover about you in exchange for her to leave you alone. I was desperate back then.
"Tony was ecstatic that I agreed to relocate to Greece with him and Juno. I didn't tell him about the deal that I had with Ophelia. That decision was the best for me that time. I wanted to keep you from any danger. Even though I knew that you would terribly get hurt, I chose that for you than for you to get harmed by that monster.
"Even though I almost gave in when you begged for me to stay, especially that your grandma just passed away that time, I stood on my ground. I knew that I was the most horrible mother for doing that to you, abandoning you for good but I only wanted you to live peacefully. I gave you that money because I wanted you to resent me and forget about me. Even though I was dying inside, I did it.
"When we were in Greece, I secretly created a bank account to transfer money to your account. I wanted to support you financially. I used another name. I told the bank to tell you that the money came from your grandparent's savings. Thankfully, Juno was a big help that time. Whenever she asked me to take her out, she didn't want to be with any bodyguards and Tony always obliged to his daughter's requests. I used that as an opportunity to go to the bank." My mouth fell open.
"T-Those money came from you? I-I thought---." she smiled faintly and then nodded her head. I couldn't believe it.
The bank called me about that money 6 months after my mother left me. I had nothing back then and almost couldn't continue my schooling. But then, things changed when I received that call.
"Even though, I only got to send small amounts at a time because Tony wouldn't let me work, I used every chance I got to send you. I couldn't just give up because I was always thinking of you." she chuckled softly. I tried to speak but I felt like I lost my tongue. I got overwhelmed by all the things that I was hearing from her. Those amounts that I got in the bank helped me a lot.
The money that I got from it and the amount that I worked hard to earn were the ones that I used to start a small business when I finished university.
"Ophelia is an evil woman. She managed to play with all of us; wrapped all of us around her little finger. She did all that because of her greed and jealousy. She stole your father from me. She and Tony stole our times together as a mother and son and I was such a weak woman because I couldn't do anything about it. For years, I couldn't even fight for you." she took a deep breath once again as another whimper escaped her lips.
"I'm sorry that you had to endure all those sufferings alone, B. It was all my fault. If I was only a braver mother to you, I could've done something to prevent all those things from happening." Her shoulders shook as her sobs became more audible.
I felt like the door of my heart opened and all the negative emotions that has been residing in there for a long time flew away just like that. I didn't need to think twice.
Then I found myself embracing my mother for the first time in so long. I couldn't even recall the last time that we hugged each other. All the emotions within me rushed like the strong current of a waterfalls.
"No, you weren't weak. You were such a brave woman. Thank you, mom. Thank you for all the sacrifices that you've made and endured for me. I'm sorry because I couldn't understand you. Please forgive me because I failed to see through your actions." I couldn't hold back the tears that fell from my eyes. It hurt me so much thinking that she suffered a lot because of me.
I felt like the dark cloud around my head faded. I couldn't help but to feel happy. She did love me. She loved me so much that she willingly stayed with the man she hated the most just to keep me safe.
She suffered enough and I felt the need to give back by loving her and accepting her. There was nothing to forgive because she was just protecting me, her son.
I was about to pull away from her and tell her what were on my mind when I heard her gasped for air followed her groan while clutching her chest.
"Mom? What's happening?" I asked with widened eyes. She looked like she couldn't breathe. She tried to talk but nothing came out. Fear ate my whole system when she slowly closed her eyes as she lose consciousness.
"N-No...Mom, no!"
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Aw. So touching. A mother can really endure anything just for the sake of her children.
Who among you predicted this to happen? Did it occur in you that Brey's mother had reason of her past actions?
Will Brey's mother survive?
What do you think will happen next?
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