Kabanata 17

Mess

"Papa," sinubukan naman pakalmahin ni Diane ang kinikilalang ama sa gitna ng kanilang komprontasyon ni Luisito.

Napatingin din si Diane kay Luisito. And for some reason Luisito couldn't take his eyes off of Diane, too. Hindi pa nila alam pareho na dalawa ang totoong ugnayan nila sa isa't isa, pero siguro ay naroon na rin ang tinatawag nilang lukso ng dugo...

"What is my brother talking about, Lui..." Bumaling naman si Margaret kay Luisito.

Tumingin din si Luisito kay Margaret. And only now that he realized his mistake. He should've told Margaret about his past earlier on. Dahil ngayon ay ayaw niya rin sana na pagmulan pa ito ng away nila o hindi pagkakaintindihan sa pagitan nilang dalawa. He turned to look at Douglas again. They all had a past with Rebecca but he thought that it's just all in the past now, but how naive of him to think that Douglas would just accept him for his younger sister?

Sa huli ay nalaman na rin ni Margaret ang tungkol sa kanilang nakaraan. And Douglas also mentioned it to his sister about how he thinks that Isabelle wasn't his daughter. And this brought a shock to Margaret. Hindi niya alam na may ganoon palang iniisip ang kapatid niya all these years. And among the two daughters it's Isabelle? Umiling si Margaret at hindi pa siya makapaniwala...

"Margaret—"

"Let's just talk again, Luisito. For now please leave our house." Magulo na rin ang isip ni Margaret ngayon at iniisip niya rin ang pamilya niya at ang kaniyang mga pamangkin. At kailangan niya pang makausap si Belle.

She looked at Luisito. "I'll talk to you again, just not now." aniya nang paalisin na rin muna niya sa bahay nila si Luisito dahil alam din niyang hindi na kakalma ang kaniyang kapatid habang nandoon pa rin sa bahay nila si Luisito.

And in the end ay wala rin nagawa si Luisito kundi ang umalis na lang din muna. Although he badly wants to talk to Margaret.

At malalim na ang gabi habang nasa kwarto na niya si Margaret ngayon ay hindi pa siya makatulog sa pag-iisip. Inalala niya ang kaniyang namayapang hipag. At ngayon niya lang din naisip na wala rin pala siyang gaanong alam tungkol sa kay Rebecca. Although their relationship back then was okay as sisters in law. Pero wala rin siyang maalala na may binanggit noon sa kaniya si Rebecca tungkol sa nakaraan nito...

And Margaret realized that it's indeed a small world for them now. Dahil sino ang mag-aakala na magiging ganito sila kagulo ngayon...

She doesn't know yet how to feel about Rebecca now, or Luisito and his brother. But most of all, ang kaniya lang pinakainiisip ay ang kaniyang mga pamangkin. And then she decided that she would talk to Isabelle the next day.

Pero sa huli rin ay nauna na niyang kinausap si Luisito tungkol sa maaring pagiging ama nga nito ni Belle...

"That's what my brother said. And he's always doubted Isabelle not his daughter..." Margaret told Luisito. Nakipagkita rin siya sa lalaki kinabukasan.

Nagkatinginan naman sila ni Luisito at nakita ni Margaret ang pag-awang ng labi nito. He looked at her. "Isabelle..."

Margaret nodded. "Yes, my niece that you just met..."

Hindi pa makapaniwala si Luisito pero gusto niya rin tanggapin ang posibilidad.

"Did you love my sister-in-law?" deretsahan namang tanong ni Rebecca sa ngayon ay nobyo na niya na si Luisito pagkatapos.

Lui looked at her. "... I did." There was also no point in lying. He already hid his past from Margaret, or that he didn't tell her right away about it. At ngayon naman ay ayaw na niyang dagdagan pa ang pagkakamali at gusto na lang niyang huwag nang maglihim o lalo na ang magsinungaling pa kay Margaret.

And Margaret just sighed at his answer, too. "I didn't know about your past with Ate Rebecca..."

"I'm sorry, Margaret... Huli ko na lang din nalaman ang koneksyon mo sa kaniya...

"But it's you that I love now, Margaret... I hope that you can accept my past..." sumamo naman ni Lui kay Margaret.

Margaret then just nodded at Luisito. She understands. And she's always been really matured. At mature din siyang mag-isip. Kaya madali niya na lang din na natanggap. After all it's just in the past now, pero ang kapatid niya na lang din yata ang hindi pa nakakapag-move on...

"I'm going to talk to Isabelle now. Gusto mo rin bang sumama?" Margaret told Lui after.

And Lui promptly nodded. "Yes,"

And so they went to talk to Isabelle. And Isabelle was just as equally shocked...

"I may be your biological father, Belle..." Luisito gently talked to Isabelle.

"How..." while Belle was just almost speechless.

Pagkatapos ay bumaling din siya sa kaniyang Tita Margaret na may nag-aalala rin namang mga mata para sa kaniya. "I've read it in Mama's diary..." she told Margaret.

Bahagya naman nanlaki ang mga mata ni Margaret sa pamangkin. "Did she mentioned it there, Belle?"

Pero umiling naman si Isabelle sa tanong ng tiyahin. "She didn't..." Dahil walang nabanggit doon sa kaniyang diary si Rebecca kung sino nga ba ang ama nina Isabelle at Diane...

Margaret sighed a bit.

Pero simula noon ay halos palagi na rin pinupuntahan ni Luisito si Isabelle, sa pag-iisip nga na maaring anak niya ito. At naging komportable na rin sa kaniya si Belle. Dahil sa ang mga pinapakita sa kaniya ngayon ni Luisito ay ang hindi maipakita at maipadama sa kaniya ni Douglas...

Habang may narealized din si Sam sa mga nalaman nila. All along Douglas thought that Isabelle wasn't his daughter. Kaya ba basta na lang nitong pinakasal si Belle sa kaniya? Ito ang mga naisip din ni Sam. And worst of it he's now also thinking that Douglas might have probably just forced Isabelle into marriage with him...

Kaya tinanong na rin niya si Isabelle nang mapag-isa rin silang dalawa kinagabihan sa tinutuluyan nila sa base. Ang kanila namang magiging bahay ay napaumpisahan na rin nilang mapagawa.

"Belle... did your father, I mean, did the Major General only forced you to marry me?" He asked her.

Belle's lips parted. At nagkatinginan silang dalawa ni Sam pagkatapos ng tanong nito. She opened her mouth to speak and stopped for a moment before she just ended up telling him the truth about what really happened. She slowly nodded her head at Sam. At dito pa lang ay umawang na rin ang labi ni Sam bago nag-igting din ang kaniyang panga sa pag-iisip ng pamimilit ni Douglas kay Belle. And he's yet to confront his superior for his maltreatment towards Isabelle. Dahil hindi ito nakakalimutan ni Sam. He got angry at Belle's father for Isabelle.

While Belle just remained looking at him. And she actually wanted to reassure him that it's all right now. Because it's all in the past now... And she wants to tell Sam that it still turned out well, anyway...

At na masaya na rin naman siya ngayon na mag-asawa sila ni Sam.

But she just couldn't bring herself to say it to him. Because this time it was still early for her to say such words to him...

At habang nangyayari ang kaguluhan sa mga De Leon ay nagpakilala na rin si Edward kay Sam.

He already talked to Douglas. At doon na rin niya nalaman na lumaki nga sa mga Luzuriaga si Samuel. And Ellen used to work for the Luzuriagas in the province. At talagang malakas lang din ang kutob ni Edward na anak nga niya si Sam...

"I know it's already too late... but I still want to show my condolences to you... I just learned that your mother has passed away years ago in the province..." ani Edward kay Sam.

Nakatingin lang naman si Sam kay Edward. He doesn't know what to feel about him now. It's already been many years. At wala na rin si Ellen. Back then when she was still living, Sam also asked his mother about his father. At sinabi naman ni Ellen sa kaniya ang totoo sa mga nangyari sa kanila dati at sinabi rin ng ina sa kaniya na hindi alam ni Edward ang tungkol kay Sam...

But then Sam had always thought to himself that his father must have find a way para mabalikan sila ng kaniyang ina sa probinsya... pero marahil ay hindi nito ginawa...

And since then Sam only thought of his father as an irresponsible man getting a young woman pregnant and left her all alone to deal with the responsibility of having a child at a young age and at the poor situation.

Kaya naman hindi rin madali ngayon kay Sam na basta na lang din niyang tanggapin si Edward...

"Sam... are you okay?" Belle asked her husband as they lay beside each other in bed at night. Wala pang nangyayari sa kanilang dalawa aside from the kiss they only once shared, although they already share a bed now.

Bahagya naman bumaling si Sam kay Belle. He was unusually this quiet and Belle has noticed that. But Sam denied it to let Belle know about Edward. "Yes, I'm fine..." ito lang din ang sinagot niya kay Belle.

And Belle also didn't ask him further to not bother him...

When in truth Sam's mind was already in a mess at this point. Iniisip pa niya ang mga ginawa noon ni Douglas kay Isabelle at ang pamimilit lang din nito kay Belle na pakasalan siya. And he worries for Belle more...

At nand'yan pa ang ngayon niya lang nagpakilalang ama na si Edward. Magulo ang kaniyang isip, at parang biglang hindi na rin masiguro ni Sam ngayon ang tungkol sa kaniyang pagkatao...

And Belle doesn't deserve someone like him who's in a really messy situation right now...