Mabilis na lumipas ang mga araw. I focused on my studies and aced all of my exams. I decided to act like I had before. No distractions.

Kahit si Jhon Rey ay hindi ako pinapansin, which is in favour of me. Although, kumikirot ang puso ko kapag nakikita siya, dahil naaalala ko lang ang nakaraan namin pero sinubukan kong huwag nang magpadala pa sa emosyon ko.

I have also passed on to my professor the letter that was given by Dad. I almost cried reading that in front of the class, but I chose not to, and instead, 'yong mga kaklase ko ang umiyak para sa akin. Somehow, naintindihan na nila ang sitwasyon ko. It was full of words that I had never heard from him. Mostly, it was encouraging me to just be myself and remain the daughter she had known. It was an apology letter from my dad, which I will treasure for my entire life.

Dhonna and Klarissa are no longer bullying me these days. I have learned from Anne that Jhon Rey discovered that the two of them were planning something to take revenge on me, and Jhon Rey immediately stopped them, which is why the incident in the ladies' comfort room took place. That made me guilty, but I have no face to appear in front of Jhon Rey and apologize for what I've said, so I think I'll just let it go for now. I am not going to apologize because he has never done so in the past either.

Talking back about Dhonna and Klarissa, baka nagpapalakas pa sila para sirain akong muli, pero hindi na ako papayag. Lalabanan ko na sila kung sakaling pagsalitaan na naman nila ako ng masasakit na salita. Now that my father has my back, I'll be untouchable.

On a Sunday, my mother knocked on my door to let me know that I had a guest waiting outside. Napaisip ako kung sino kasi kung si Anne, dederetso na 'yon rito sa kwarto. I wonder who that is.

Papalabas ako ng garden nang makarinig ako ng maliliit na tahol ng isang puppy. Naalala ko tuloy si nana, ang aso namin ni Jhunel noon. I wonder kung siya ang bisita ko ngayon.

But I was surprised to see Rod sitting in the garden while carrying a dog. He stood up and smiled.

"Sheen May," bati niya.

"Rod, you're here. Why a sudden visit?" I asked as I looked at the puppy he was carrying.

"I just want to see you if you're fine now. Wala na akong balita sa 'yo after what happened. And hindi rin natin nai-celebrate 'yong mother's day sa bowling alley because..."

Hindi niya na natapos ang sasabihin niya.

Tumango ako bago ko siya tuluyang lapitan. Pareho kaming umupo sa bench while looking at the beautiful landscape na pinagawa ni mom sa garden namin.

"How's life?" tanong niya.

"So far, so good. Wala na akong masyadong iniisip. I can breathe now."

"That's some encouraging news, Sheen. I noticed that you were glowing. Your appearance has evolved, and I must say that you have become very gorgeous."

Napanganga ako at napatitig sa kaniya. Anong gusto niyang palabasin? Matagal na akong maganda!

"Hey, won't you please stop staring at me like that? It is not in my nature to pursue a romantic connection with a woman who is already involved with one of my closest friends."

Napahinga naman ako nang maluwag.

"I was just here to bring this to you. Pwede mo siyang maging baby habang nangungulila ka sa baby mo." Napakagat ako sa labi ko. I am getting close to being emotional, nang kalungin ko ang puppy na binigay niya. It's a corgi.

"May pangalan na?" tanong ko.

"Toto," he said. Natawa naman ako.

"Alright then, I'll call him Toto." Napangiti ako at pinaglaruan ang asong niregalo niya sa akin.

"I felt some kind of happiness playing with this cute dog. I am a dog person, you know?"

"I know."

That made me frown. "You knew? But how?"

He just shrugged. "Can I ask?" tanong niya.

"As long as it's not about him," sagot ko. Tumawa siya looks like he's impressed.

"Of course, it's about you. Do you love him still?"

Muli ay bumilis ang tibok ng puso ko. He's referring to the one who broke my heart into pieces.

"Why on earth would you even ask that?"

"I'm just curious. I mean, I won't tell him about this anyway. I just want to know if the feelings are mutual."

"Tsk. Of course it's not. We both know who he really loves!"

"Do you really know?"

That made me confused too.

"He's now free, and that's what he wanted before," I stated.

"Yeah, before."

Umiling ako. "Don't start anything, Rod. I'm begging you. If you still want to be friends with me, don't talk to me like that."

I have no intention of trying to mend your broken relationship. The way you are right now makes me pleased. You have at long last come to an understanding of your value and of what you deserve."

"Of course, after all that happened, who wouldn't be awake from everything?"

Tumawa siya.

"Do you remember what I told you—that when he shows you his right side, it's more likely he trusts you?"

"Yeah, I guess. It's one of the perks of being smart. Kahit gusto mo nang kalimutan ang mga bagay bagay, you ended up remembering it all 'cause it's stuck up there."

He smirked.

"I was wrong when I said that, and I realized that when someone trusts you, he will show you his true side, be it wrong or right."

That caused a furrow to form between my brows.

"I realized it the first time he spoke about you, and he wanted to put a stop to his plan for deceiving you. But I wanted to help him as his friend, in secret. It was me who gave the two of you the alcohol that night. It was me who invited Quency to that party, so I can check if something really has changed. His heart changed, and I proved it when he saw you."

The hell. I was merely speechless.

"That's why I made that article. I want the both of you to end up together, not only because it was the right thing to do, but because it will benefit him too. His father doesn't treat him right, so I thought maybe your father would. But I never thought that would be the cause of such a mess. I am sorry. It was me all along. Because of this, he intentionally causes you pain so that you will run away from him. He's trying to sabotage everything because he doesn't want you to suffer your life with him; that's why he faked your marriage."

"So you knew it was a fake marriage?"

"I just thought of it but never confronted him to confirm it. I thought the two of you were getting along, so fake marriage is not the issue; if you two end up loving each other, you can remarry."

I gasped. There are no words left to say now. Everything appears to be clear now.

"However, I'm sad to hear that it resulted in the death of your child. If I had known that something like this would occur, I would not have intervened. Because of this, I came here to offer my apologies as well. The guilt is devouring me from the inside out."

Napabuntong-hininga ako ngunit hanggang sa huli ay hindi nakapagsalita at nanatiling nakikinig.

"I know I told you that I don't tolerate bad things my friends do, but I did all of that. Jhon Rey has only been trying to save you from him."

That tore a hole in my soul.

"I am very sorry, Sheen May; I broke your trust. If those things made you despise Jhon Rey, I am saying those things are not his fault but rather mine. If I never intervene, things will turn out better, maybe."

I was unable to hold back the tears after he left. I have no idea what to make of this at this point.

Ilang araw ang lumipas, at hindi ako makatulog dahil sa mga nalaman ko. Pinilit kong pagtagpu-tagpuin ang lahat ng nangyari, and trying to make sense of it all, I realized that I was clearly foolish. My thoughts are all over the place, and all I've wanted to do lately is confront Jhon Rey about the truth. And my heart is shaking whenever I get to think of doing that. Kahit kailan talaga nagagawa akong aningin ng isang Jhon Rey. Siya talaga ang malaking kahinaan ko.

I looked at Toto. Nakaupo siya sa kama habang nakatingin sa akin na para bang sinusuri ang kalagayan ko. Nginitian ko lamang siya.  It's weird how simply staring at my small dog can take my mind off of everything that's been bothering me. Sometimes I play with him, so he never gets bored. Binilhan ko rin siya ng toys. I wonder if I'll be this happy too, kung buhay pa si Kento.

Muli na namang bumuhos ang luha ko nang maalala ko ang sinapit ng aking anak. Parang may nakabara sa lalamunan ko. Maging sa dibdib ko ay may bigat akong dinadala. I really have no idea what to do or how to solve this distress of mine.

Should I talk to him now?