Minx

Minx

Emma Belle

Copyright © 2021 Mabelle Cuchon

All rights reserved. No part in this eBook may be produced or transmitted in any form, including electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the author.

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This eBook is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual events, locales, or persons living or dead, are coincidental.

Published: Emma Belle 2021

Edited by:Jenny Leabres

Cover Design: Mabelle Cuchon

emmabellexx@gmail.com

Dedication

For you, my darling reader. With so much gratitude.

xoxo

Contents

Dedication

Contents

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-one

Chapter Twenty-two

Chapter Twenty-three

Chapter Twenty-four

Chapter Twenty-five

Chapter Twenty-six

Epilogue

From the Author

About the Author

Prologue

BEAU?

I grunted.

Natawa si Cielo. Mahina pero nakakagaan pa rin ng loob na marinig ang kanyang tawa. She could still laugh and be amused.

Come here, sabi niya sa banayad na boses.

Mabilis akong lumapit sa kanya. She was sitting on her bed. Umupo ako sa gilid at inabot ko ang kanyang kamay. Mas nanikip ang masikip ko nang dibdib. Her hand was cold, pale and thin. Napatingin ako sa mukha niya. She was skin and bones.

Cielo smiled at me. Love was written in her eyes. I felt like I didn’t deserve it. How could she love me still?

I love you, I told her. I love you so much. Bahagyang gumaralgal ang boses ko.

Hey... Hinaplos ni Cielo ang pisngi ko. Everything’s going to be all right, I promise.

Umiling-iling ako. Gusto kong sabihin na hindi niya iyon puwedeng ipangako sa akin. Everything was not going to be all right unless a miracle happened. Hindi nga lang ako makapagsalita dahil sobrang nananakit ang aking lalamunan. Alam kong kapag ibinuka ko ang aking bibig ay tuluyan na akong bibigay.

Namasa ang kanyang mga mata kahit na nanatili ang ngiti sa kanyang mga labi. I need you to promise me something.

Anything, mabilis kong sagot. I was willing to do anything for her.

When I’m gone—

Cielo, come on, pakiusap ko habang nararamdaman ko ang pag-alpas ng kontrol sa akin. Don’t. Just don’t. Please?

I know it’s hard, my love. But I have to say it and you have to hear it, okay? I really need to say it. I need to hear you promise me something, okay?

Nagtubig na rin ang mga mata ko. Okay then. But I’m not gonna promise anything. I was going to promise her anything that would make her happy or give her even a little bit of peace of mind.

"When I’m gone, I want you to find someone, okay? I want you to open your heart to someone or kahit na lang sa isang possibility. I’ve known you since high school. We’ve been together for a long time. I know you. You can be stubborn. And I’m worried, okay? I don’t want you to be sad and grumpy for a long time. I guess you have to be lonely and grumpy for a while, pero huwag gaanong matagal, okay? Huwag naman for the rest of your life.

Life should be lived. I want to believe there’s someone out there for you. I’m comforting myself into thinking she’d come at the right time in your life and she’s gonna make you the happiest man. I’m imagining you getting married and having your own family one day. You’d be a really wonderful dad and husband.

Pinalis ko ang mga luha na tumulo sa kanyang mga mata.  I had no doubt she truly wanted me to be happy, but saying those words to me was still not easy. She fought hard and was still fighting hard to stay, to be the winner in her battle with cancer. Hearing her like this absolutely shattered my heart.

There will be no one, Cielo. Ikaw lang.

Please don’t say that. Please. I don’t need you to promise me you’re never going to love someone else. Hindi na applicable ngayon `yan. I’ll be gone, Beau. Pareho nating ayaw tanggapin pero alam natin na mangyayari. Sinabi na ng mga doktor. Nararamdaman ko nang nalalabi na lang ang mga araw ko sa mundo. I don’t wanna go, don’t wanna leave you, but I can’t cheat death. I need to accept na hanggang dito na lang talaga. I’m so grateful for your love. I’m so lucky I had the time to be with you, to love you with all my heart. I need you to do it again. I need you to fall in love again, be with someone who loves you and would stay with you for the rest of your life.

Umiling-iling ako. God knows I wanted to give her everything she wanted at that moment, I just couldn’t see myself loving someone else in the future. Kahit na wala na siya.

It’s going to be hard for a while, my love. But it’s going to be okay. You won’t be alone. There are plenty of people who love you and care for you. You have the tendency to be closed off, to push people away. Alone can be good but not all the time. You need people. At least don’t push your best friend away, or your mom. Let them take care of you.

Cielo, you don’t have to worry about me. Pilit kong pinatatag ang aking boses. I could tell that she thought so much about this and worried. I’m gonna be okay. I highly doubt that but I could lie for now. I could pretend I’d be okay without her.

Yes, you’re gonna be okay. Because you’re tough and a good man. When the right woman comes along, treat her right, okay? Give her your whole heart.

I love you so much.

Ngumiti si Cielo. I know, my love. I guess I really don’t have to worry because it’s you.

Hindi ko alam ang gagawin ko kapag nawala si Cielo. I was still hoping, searching and praying for a miracle. I felt like I couldn’t live without her and maybe I wouldn’t.

I didn’t want to lose her.

Chapter One

Beau

I HAD been staring at nothing in particular for I didn’t know long. I was in my office. I was supposed to be working. I had responsibilities. I had things to do.

But I was tired. I was tired not because I had been working. I hadn’t done anything since I sat my ass on the chair. I hadn’t even moved since then. I had no energy to do anything, or to just even think of something to do for work.

Hindi ko maipaliwanag talaga ang source ng pagod ko. Pagod na ba ako sa trabaho? Kailangan ko lang ba ng bakasyon? Was I tired of pretending every single moment of every day? Was I tired pretending I was okay and I could still go through life like before? Was I tired pretending life still excited me?

Medyo natatakot din ako talaga sigurong aminin na wala na akong gana pang mabuhay. Hindi ko na makita ang saysay ng pagbangon araw-araw.

Was I tired of living? Should I just end everything?

Bago ko pa man talaga mapag-isipan ang sagot sa mga tanong na iyon, bigla na lang bumukas ang pinto ng aking opisina at pumasok si Andres Felipe, ang pinakamatalik kong kaibigan. Nasa likuran niya ang sekretarya ko na nanlalaki ang mga mata na parang sobra-sobra ang takot. I waved my hand dismissively. It was just Andres.

He has a daughter! bulalas ni Andres bago ko pa man maipon ang enerhiyang kailangan para itanong kung ano ang kailangan niya sa akin.

Andres went to my liquor cabinet and poured himself a drink. He didn’t pour me one, the selfish bastard. I had contemplated a drink. I asked myself if it was still too early or if I even cared. I just didn’t have the energy to stand and pour myself a glass of my finest whiskey.

Then my mind finally processed what he had said when he entered my office. Who has a daughter?

Was I interested to know?

The answer came quickly. Yes, I was. Andres Felipe Allende had been my friend since babyhood. Our mothers had been best friends. We were both only children and we grew up together. We attended the same school from preschool to college. We were not just best friends, we’re brothers.

I looked at my brother and saw how distressed he was. He was a little frantic and seemed to be confused. He was also angry, I could tell. There was a lot going on.

Andres finished his drink in one go and poured himself another one—a very generous one.

Naramdaman ko ang pagsibol ng pag-aalala sa aking dibdib. Hindi naman pala ako manhid at walang pakialam. Kaya ko pa rin palang makaramdam. May pakialam pa rin pala ako sa mga tao sa paligid ko.

We’re not good with feelings, sabi ko kay Andres sa mahinahon na boses. Expressing them. Dealing with them. But we’re good at fixing a problem or a situation. Whatever it is, I’m here to help. I’m sure you know that.

Andres did know that. Kaya nga napasugod siya sa opisina ko. Maybe he just needed someone to talk to. Maybe he just needed his best friend.

I remembered Andres had just lost his father. Guilt spread very quickly in my chest. I had been too focused on myself that I didn’t think of his suffering and loss. His father had been diagnosed with stage four cancer and the doctors could not do anything about it. I supposed the family had time to prepare themselves.

But I knew more than anyone that no one could ever be prepared for the death of a loved one. No one was ever ready to lose someone they loved. The loss would still be too painful to process or deal with. It was going to be better in time, some would say. They had no idea what they were talking about.

It had been six months for me. It was not better. I realized one could die very, very slowly with grief and depression.

Then I realized now how shitty I had been as a best friend to Andres. I was not there for him. It was a difficult time and he needed a friend. He was there when I needed someone.

My dad, sabi ni Andres pagkatapos ng ilang sandali ng katahimikan. He has a daughter. His trusted attorney met with me before the reading of his will tomorrow. Bilin daw ng dad bago pa man siya maratay. I should know about his daughter first so I can prepare my mother. A day before his will be read. God, I hate him!

It took a while to really absorb what he had told me.

I couldn’t believe it. Magkasabay kaming lumaki ni Andres pero masasabi na hindi ko gaanong kilala si Jose Luis, ang ama niya, sa personal na lebel. I knew he was a brilliant mind. He was the eldest son of the world renowned businessman. He was groomed to be the chairman of Allende Corporation just as Andres was born to inherit the position. He was a brilliant businessman and he expanded the already vast fortune.

Even Andres was not close to his dad. He was an absent father. It was expected for someone in Jose Luis’ position. He couldn’t be a brilliant ruler of a business empire and a good dad at the same time. He was a workaholic all his life.

Alam ko na natanggap na iyon ni Andres. Matagal na niyang naintindihan ang sitwasyon. Mahal niya ang ama sa kabila ng lahat. Kaya mahirap tanggapin ang nalaman na mayroon itong anak sa ibang babae.

When did Jose Luis have the time to have an affair? Was it an affair? Or just a one-night stand?

Ibinagsak ni Andres ang katawan sa pinakamalapit na upuan.

How old? tanong ko. Are they sure it’s his? I really couldn’t fully wrap my head around the news.

Oh, they are certain. They kept tabs on her for twenty-one years. She’s given a small portion of his estate.

Oh. The daughter is twenty-one years old. Wow.

Tumango si Andres na mukhang kahit na paano ay nakalma na ang sarili. I have a sister, sabi niya, parang hindi pa tuluyang naipoproseso ang kaalaman na iyon.

Pinagmasdan ko ang aking matalik na kaibigan. Huh, ang nasabi ko mayamaya. You have a sister. Parang noon ko lang din nalaman ang bagay na iyon.

A twenty-one-year-old sister, sabi ni Andres habang napapabuntong-hininga. She’s ten—eleven years younger than me.

"Are you really, really sure? You’d require a DNA test, right? Anuman ang sinabi ng abogado sa `yo."

I’m pretty sure she’s my dad’s. I’ve seen pictures. The family resemblance is... uncanny. And you know my dad. He’s not stupid. He would not bother if this was not his child. I just can’t fathom how... how...

How can he not acknowledge her? How can he not be a dad? I paused. He doesn’t know how to be one, paalala ko sa aking kaibigan. Jose Luis Allende might be one of the most brilliant minds in the business world, but World’s Best Dad he was not. Far from it.

Napabuntong-hininga si Andres. I know, bud. A part of me understood he couldn’t be a typical dad, but I still can’t believe he did this. Alam niya na may anak siya somewhere. And the people who knew about her were lawyers.

I can give you a lot of reasons pero hindi mo rin maiproseso. You would not feel better hearing them, even if a part of you already knows some of those reasons.

Tumango si Andres at walang sinabing anuman. He looked like he was really trying to process the huge change in his life. It was rare to see him in this state.

Are you going to see her? Introduce yourself? tanong ko mayamaya.

I don’t know, man. Should I? He looked at me like I had all the answers and I felt my heart squeeze a little. She doesn’t know about her dad, the lawyer told me. She had no idea her bio father is—was an Allende. Should I just barge in and tell her about our dad? Is that smart? Is that the right thing to do?

I really can’t answer those for you. I wish I could give him more, say something that could help him, but I know he had to be the one who should make a decision.

Kung ako ang nasa kalagayan niya, ano ang gagawin ko?

Would I be curious enough? Would I be interested?

Would I even care?

I don’t know, muling sabi ni Andres.

I felt sorry for my best friend. This made me realize that the world didn’t revolve around me. Not everything was about me, or my suffering and loss. There were people I cared about. People who needed concern and support from me.

Because I was still alive.

I sighed. I was still alive.

Pinagmasdan ko si Andres na mukhang malalim ang iniisip. My best friend had been with me at my darkest time.  He didn’t hover all the time. He didn’t talk nonstop. He didn’t always say everything would be all right especially when it was clear that nothing would ever be all right.

But Andres had always been there for me. He would silently stay near. He would tap my shoulder or back. He would pour me a drink when he thought I needed it. When I broke down, he had been a great support.

Now he was the one who needed support, a friend.

What do you need? I asked him. I was not certain if I could be as good as him, but I was certainly going to try.

Napangiti si Andres. Kahit na paano ay umabot naman iyon sa mga mata niya.

I could be a good friend. Iyon muna ang saysay ng buhay ko sa ngayon.

I need to see her, man, sabi ni Andres sa mas kalmadong boses. May tatag sa boses niya at mukhang buo na ang pasya pagdating sa bagay na iyon. Pinagkakatiwaalan ko naman ang desisyon na iyon. Mukhang mas kaya na niyang mag-isip nang tuwid. Kaya nang maging rasyunal kahit na paano.

But I could see that he was still full of emotions. He couldn’t be completely rational or pragmatic when he needed to.

She’s my sister, sabi niya. I need to get to know her. I want her to know me. I can’t pretend she doesn’t exist.

Tumango ako. Naiintindihan ko naman ang ganoong pakiramdam. I didn’t expect anything less, to be honest. Andres was the type of person who couldn’t go through life like he used to knowing he had a half-sister somewhere.

Pakiramdam din ni Andres na pinabayaan ng ama nito ang anak sa ibang babae. Ni hindi man lang kinilala o pinagkaabalahang kilalanin. He would feel like he had to do something about that. Puwede kong sabihin na hindi na niya iyon obligasyon at lalong hindi kasalanan, pero mararamdaman pa rin ng kaibigan ko ang bigat ng responsibilidad. He was going to be a part of this young woman’s life whether she wanted to or not.

Okay, sabi ko gamit ang pinakakalmado kong boses. I’m going with you. You don’t have to do it alone.

Hindi lang suporta ang puwede kong ibigay. I could be the rational or the pragmatic one if needed be.

Hindi namin kilala ang kapatid daw ni Andres. Hindi pa namin alam kung anong klase itong tao, kung paano napalaki. Ipinag-aalala ko na baka mapagsamantalahan si Andres. There was something set aside for this sister, but what if she wanted more? What if she figured she could have so much more?

Heck, she was twenty-one, of course she would want more.

I needed to protect my friend. Andres needed someone to be there for him.

But then, more was not really a problem. My issue would be someone playing with Andres’ feelings. I couldn’t let that happen.

I’m so overwhelmed, Beau, pag-amin ni Andres. I’m almost thirty-two and I went through life thinking I was an only child. Now, I have a sister.

Take time to process, payo ko. You need time to really think about this and feel, I guess. You need time to make some plans. You can take your time.

I need to tell my mother.

It was another hard thing to do. He had to tell his mother his father cheated on her and he had a daughter from that cheating. His mom was the sweetest and the kindest of women, apart from my own mother. Aunt Sarah had been a neglected wife but she never neglected his son. She had given all her love and affection to Andres.

She’s going to take the news hard. She was still dealing with the loss of her husband and now this.

Do you need me to tell Mom so she’d be ready? My mom would be there for his mom. It was going to be hard but she would not go through everything alone.

That would be a great help. Just tell Aunt Chloe to wait until I explain.

Tumango ako. Aunt Sarah is a tough woman. She’s not going to break.

Tumango rin si Andres.

What about... this s-sister? Does she know or have an idea about you and your mom? Did someone talk to her already or something? What do we know about her?

I’m not sure. Her mom died after she was born. Some complications during or after childbirth. The lawyer said she was brought up by her grandmother. She has an uncle who’s a professor in a university and an aunt who’s in London working as a nurse. She has two cousins. Datu, who’s a couple of years younger than us. He’s working in the finance department of a food manufacturing corporation. Mahalina, she’s four years older than her and she’s on a doctoral program. Marahas na nagpakawala ng buntong-hininga si Andres. Natalia. Her name’s Natalia.

Natalia. I