Chapter 35
Mikha POV
Simikat na ang araw, pero hindi ko pa rin magawang bumitaw. Yakap-yakap ko pa rin si Aiah habang tulog na tulog siya. Mahigpit ang kapit niya sa akin, na para bang kahit sa panaginip niya ay natatakot siyang mawala ako.
I watched her chest rise and fall, the soft rhythm of her breathing the only thing keeping me grounded.
I don’t know how many times I whispered “I’m sorry” to her while she was sleeping. My heart aches just looking at her like this—the faint traces of tears on her cheeks, the exhaustion in her eyes. Kaya ko lang naman nagawa yung mga bagay na yun ayokong maisip niya yung mga sobrang gulong banta sa buhay ko. I really just didn’t want to hurt her. Ayokong madamay siya. My life is a storm of threats and shadows, and she… she has a perfect life. It felt so wrong to pull her into my darkness when she deserves nothing but light.
But when she say those words my heart shuttered she loves me so much that she can give her all. Its unfair for her but siguro ganito talaga ang pag mamahal that Why I made a promise I will accept every agape love that she’s giving and I will bring it back to her 100X i will give my life my soul every breath to this girl.
Not just because she loves me, but because I know I love her the most. She is my life now. I would rather die than lose her.
Habang natutulog siya, hindi ako pumikit. For hours, I sat there forming a plan. This time, hindi na para layuan siya, kundi para masigurado na magkakasama kami habang buhay.
While she was sleeping I call kuya Gelo I will change my plan. But this day I will talk to my dad.
It’s been a year I know how much he hates me for running away and become black sheep of the family. And until now babalik ako para kausapin siya still giving him problem but I will shallow my pride I will do everything for aiah.
8:00 AM. I started packing our things. Pinatawag ko na rin ang susundo sa amin. Kuya Gelo arranged everything, making sure to ask Dad for his time para sigurado kaming makakausap namin siya pagdating doon.
But the truth is… I’m terrified. As the car drove closer to the estate I once called home, memories started flooding back like a nightmare I could never wake up from.
FLASHBACK:
Hindi ko malilimutan ang araw na iyon noong High School. Dad caught me with a girl. It was just a simple holding hand, a quiet moment in the garden, but for him, it was a sin.
I can still feel the weight of his hand when he slapped me. My ears rang as I hit the floor.
”Are you a lesbian?!” he roared, his voice echoing in the hallway. Hindi pa siya natapos doon. He cursed at me, calling me a disgrace to the Lim name. Every word was a blow, but the physical pain followed. Binugbog niya ako hanggang sa hindi na ako makatayo, then he locked me in my room. Grounded for months. No phone, no friends, no life.
From that day on, my life became a performance.
Senior year was a living hell. He made sure I dressed like a “proper lady.” He forced me into piano and harp lessons until my fingers were sore. He picked every dress, every shoe, every jewelry. I felt like a doll on display, a piece of meat being prepared for a high-stakes deal.
I had no mother to run to. Walang yumayakap sa akin pagkatapos ng mga hagupit ni Dad. Walang nagpapahid ng luha ko. I was all alone in that massive, cold mansion. I grew to hate the sound of the piano, the feel of the harp strings—everything that reminded me of his control.
On my 18th birthday, the final blow came. He didn’t give me a party; he gave me a business transaction. He introduced me to the man I was supposed to marry—a merger disguised as a wedding.
I was furious, but I was smart. For years, I had worked twice as hard in school to become an achiever—not for him, but for my exit strategy. I secretly used the half of my inheritance I received at 18 to start a hidden business. I was building my own bridge to freedom while he was busy planning my cage.
Then came the night of the pamamanhikan. The mansion was filled with the elite. The air was thick with the smell of expensive wine and fake laughter. My fiancé’s family was there, waiting in the grand dining room. My Dad was at the head of the table, ready to sign my life away.
But I never showed up.
Habang naghihintay sila sa akin para sa pormal na pagpapakilala, wala na ako sa kwarto ko. Wala na ako sa mansion. I didn’t just run into the streets; I had planned this for months. I booked a flight abroad. While they were calling my name, I was already at the airport, boarding a plane to Los Angeles. I left my phone, my jewelry, and everything he ever bought me on my bed. I only took my soul, my secret savings, and the burning need to be free.
I watched the lights of Manila fade from the airplane window and promised myself I would never, ever come back. For a whole year, I lived as a ghost to them. I cut every tie, every string. I was finally free.
END OF FLASHBACK
Nabalik ako sa kasalukuyan nang maramdaman ko ang mahigpit na hawak ni Aiah sa kamay ko sa loob ng sasakyan.
I looked at her, and the fear in my chest softened. I’m going back to the man who broke me. I’m going back to the mansion that felt like a prison. But this time, I’m not that scared little girl anymore.
This time, I’m not running away. This time, I’m fighting for the only person who ever made me feel like I was enough.
Iniwan ko si Aiah sa parking lot. I kissed her one last time, promising her that no matter what happens inside that mansion, I will come back to her.
Pero habang naglalakad ako sa hallway patungo sa office ni Dad, bawat hakbang ko ay parang may nakabaon na pako.
Lahat ng sulok ng bahay na ‘to, may hapdi. Bawat gamit, may dalang alaala ng pananakit. Siguro, mararamdaman ko na naman ang bigat ng kamay niya. Siguro, mas malala pa sa sampal ang matatanggap ko ngayon. But I didn’t care. I am a mother now. I am a partner. Handa akong tanggapin lahat, basta maging ligtas lang ang mag-ina ko. Even if I have to lose my pride, even if I have to lose myself.
Nakarating ako sa tapat ng pinto. My hand was trembling as I reached for the handle, but before I could touch it, bumukas ito.
It was Kuya Gelo.
The moment he saw me, he didn’t say a word. He just pulled me into a tight, protective hug. He knew. He knew how much courage it took for me to step foot in this prison again.
”Go in, Mikha,” he whispered, giving me a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder. “He’s been waiting.”
Huminga ako nang malalim. I pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The office was exactly how I remembered it—cold, smelling of expensive tobacco and old books. At the center of the room sat the man who haunted my nightmares.
My father.
Dahan-dahan siyang nagtaas ng tingin mula sa mga papeles niya. The moment our eyes met, the air seemed to leave the room. Para siyang nakakita ng multo. His pen dropped to the desk, and his face went pale.
”Mi… Mikha?” His voice was barely a whisper, trembling in a way I had never heard before.
Nilabanan ko ang takot. I stood my ground, but the weight of my desperation was too heavy. Before I knew it, my knees hit the floor. I knelt right there, in the middle of his office.
”Mikha!” sigaw ni Kuya Gelo, lalapit sana siya para itayo ako, but I shook my head.
”I’m begging you—” I started, my voice breaking. Tears finally escaped my eyes, blurring my vision. “I know I was a disgrace to this family. I know you hate me because I am a lesbian! I know I ruined your plans, Dad. But please… please help me.”
I sobbed, my forehead almost touching the cold floor. “I have a family now. I have a partner and a baby on the way. And someone trying to kill us. He framed me. I don’t care what you do to me after this. You can curse me, you can beat me, you can disown me a thousand times over I can’t do this alone… please, protect Aiah. Protect my child please. Save them, even if you won’t save me.”
Nakahanda na ako. I closed my eyes tight, gripping my shirt until my knuckles turned white. Hinihintay ko na ang pagbagsak ng kamay niya, ang pagtaboy niya sa akin, o ang mga masasakit na salitang paulit-ulit na bumasag sa akin noon.
But the silence that followed was deafening. Hanggang sa narinig ko ang isang tunog na kailanman ay hindi ko inakalang maririnig ko mula sa kanya.
It was a sob. A broken, agonizing sound of a man whose walls were finally crumbling.
”Mikha anak.. tumayo ka dyan..” Pa-patawarin mo ako… patawarin mo ako, anak ko.”
The word ‘Anak’ hit me harder than any blow ever could. It had been years since he called me that. Dahan-dahan niya akong hinawakan sa magkabilang balikat at pinatayo. When I finally looked at him, I didn’t see the tyrant of the Lim empire. I saw an old man whose face was lined with a year’s worth of regret.
Bawat salita ay punong-puno ng pait. “I was so wrong. I failed you so much.”
Napatitig lang ako sa kanya, hindi makapaniwala. Ang ama ko, na laging nakatingala at puno ng awtoridad, ay durog na durog sa harapan ko ngayon.
”You are my unica hija… my youngest… the purest soul in this family,”
pagpapatuloy niya habang hinahawakan ang mukha ko. Ang mga daliri niya ay nanginginig, tila natatakot na baka maglaho ako kapag hinawakan niya ako nang mahigpit. “But I failed to understand you. I failed to protect your heart because I was too busy protecting my own pride.”
Huminga siya nang malalim, pilit na pinapakalma ang kanyang sarili pero patuloy pa rin ang pag-agos ng kanyang mga luha.
”I saw her every time I looked at you,” he confessed, tears streaming down his face. “Your mother… she was the love of my life, but she left us for someone else. She chose another life over me, over us. And I was a coward, Mikha. Instead of facing that pain, I took it out on you because you look exactly like her. I tried to control you because I was so scared that one day, you’d leave me too—just like she did.”
Hindi ko na napigilan ang sarili ko. I sobbed, my heart finally breaking open. All those years of thinking I was a ‘disgrace’ because I was a lesbian—it was all just his fear of abandonment masked as anger.
”The night you didn’t show up… the night you flew away… I didn’t get mad because of the merger, Mikha,” pagpapatuloy niya, ang boses niya ay basag at puno ng pagsisisi. “I was terrified because my daughter was gone. My world stopped the moment Gelo told me you were already in the air.”
Huminga siya nang malalim, pilit na pinipigilan ang panibagong bugso ng iyak.
”I’ve spent every single day of this past year looking for you. Pinahanap kita. I know I acted like I didn’t care about you for those years, but I swear… I was thinking about you every second of every day. Hindi ako nakakatulog nang hindi tinitignan ang pintuan mo.”
Hinawakan niya ang mga kamay ko, ang higpit ng kapit niya.
”I acted strong. I acted like the cold patriarch because that’s the only way I knew how to survive the guilt. But I was dying inside, Mikha. I was so scared that my last memory of you would be that slap… that my last words to you would be a curse.”
I felt my heart tighten. All those months in LA, thinking I was alone and hated, andito pala ang tatay ko—naghihintay, nagbabantay, at nagsise.
”Patawad, anak…,” pagsusumamo niya, isinubsob ang kanyang mukha sa mga palad ko. “Lately, I realized… nothing matters. Not this business, not the money, not the name. Only you. Just please… don’t leave me again. Let me be your father this time. Let me fix what I broke.”
He pulled me into a tight, crushing hug. It was the first time I felt his warmth as a father, not as a judge. I felt his heartbeat, unsteady and fast, echoing the same pain I had carried for a year in exile.
I couldn’t say anything. I just leaned forward and hugged him, letting out all the years of feeling like the ‘black sheep.’ In this cold office, the warmth of my father finally reached me. The gilded cage was gone. I was finally home.
……..
Nakahinga ako nang malalim habang nakayakap sa akin si Dad. Sa loob ng opisina, narinig ko ang seryosong boses ni Kuya Gelo habang inilalatag ang lahat ng ebidensya.
”Dad, it’s not just a debt. It’s a syndicate,” paliwanag ni Kuya Gelo, ang kanyang boses ay puno ng galit. “And the mastermind behind all of this? It’s Leo. He used Bino and Hans to frame Mikha in LA. He’s been using her past to blackmail her, para mapabagsak ang kumpanya natin.”
The moment he mentioned Leo, I felt my father’s body stiffen. The sorrow in his eyes didn’t disappear, but it was joined by a cold, lethal fire—the legendary protective instinct of a Lim.
“Leo…” pag-uulit ni Dad, ang boses niya ay parang babala ng paparating na bagyo. “He really thought he could touch my daughter? He thought he could use my silence as a weapon? He made a big mistake.”
”Mikha. I promise you,” he said, his voice regaining its strength as he wiped my tears with his thumbs. “I failed to protect you before, but I will burn the world down before I let anyone hurt my grandchild and the woman you love. You are home now, anak. At hinding-hindi na sila magtatagumpay.”
Nakita ko ang pagbabago sa mukha ni Dad. Ang kaninang mga matang puno ng luha at pagsisisi ay napalitan ng talim at lamig. The legendary John Lim was back.
Humarap sa akin si Dad, hinawakan niya ang magkabilang kamay ko nang mahigpit. “I promise you, Mikha… everything. I will use everything I own—my money, my connections, my life—to protect you. Hinding-hindi ka na nila mahahawakan.”
…..
Pagkalipas ng ilang minuto, pumasok na si Aiah sa opisina. Kitang-kita ko ang kaba sa kanyang mga mata, ang panginginig ng kanyang mga kamay habang dahan-dahang lumalapit sa amin.
Dahan-dahang bumukas ang pinto ng opisina. Pumasok si Aiah, bakas ang kaba sa bawat hakbang niya. Pero bago pa man siya makapagsalita, bago ko pa man siya maipakilala nang pormal, nakita ko ang pagbabago sa mukha ni Dad.
Nawala ang lahat ng bigat. Nawala ang lahat ng dilim.
Ang mukha ni Dad ay biglang naging aliwalas. Isang tapat at malapad na ngiti ang sumilay sa kanya—isang ngiting puno ng pag-asa at tiwala. Para siyang nakakita ng anghel na nagligtas sa kanyang anak.
Hindi siya naghintay. Mabilis siyang lumapit kay Aiah at, bago pa man makapag-mano o makabati ang asawa ko, ay sinalubong na siya ni Dad ng isang mahigpit at mainit na yakap.
“Welcome to the family, Aiah,” bulong ni Dad, ang boses niya ay malambot at puno ng pasasalamat. “Salamat… salamat sa pagmamahal mo kay Mikha.”
Naramdaman ko ang pagluwag ng balikat ni Aiah. Nang kumalas si Dad sa yakap, ang paningin niya ay agad na bumaba sa tiyan ni Aiah. His eyes lit up with so much excitement. Hinawakan niya ang magkabilang kamay ni Aiah, tila ba ito na ang pinaka-importanteng tao sa buhay niya.
“A grandchild…” manghang-manghang sabi ni Dad, hindi maalis ang ngiti sa kanyang mga labi. “I’m going to be a grandfather! My first grandchild! Anak, huwag kayong mag-alala. Gagawin ko ang lahat. I’ll prepare the best nursery, the best doctors… everything. This baby will grow up knowing only love and safety.”
Humarap sa akin si Dad at kinindatan ako—isang pagpapakita ng tiwala na matagal ko nang hinahanap. “Good job, Mikha. You chose well. Napakaganda at napakabuti ng napili mo.”
….
Hindi nag-aksaya ng panahon ang “bagong” John Lim. Habang inihahanda ang pag-alis namin, inilabas na niya ang unang bala laban kay Tito Leo.
“Leo wants to use the ‘scandal’ of my daughter’s happiness to destroy us? He doesn’t know who he’s dealing with,” sabi ni Dad sa kanyang PR team nang may kumpiyansa.
Kinabukasan, naging laman ng mga tabloids, broadsheets, at digital ads ang isang malaking balita na ikinagulat ng lahat.
“JOHN LIM PROUDLY WELCOMES HOME HIS UNICA HIJA; CELEBRATES THE UPCOMING BIRTH OF HIS FIRST GRANDCHILD.”
Nag-post si Dad ng isang napaka-eleganteng picture. Nakatalikod kami ni Aiah habang dahan-dahan kong hinahaplos ang kanyang tiyan sa ilalim ng liwanag ng araw. Blurred ang mga mukha para sa aming seguridad, pero ang caption ni Dad ang bumasag sa lahat ng plano ni Leo:
“Ang pamilya ay hindi nasusukat sa kung anong gusto ng lipunan, kundi sa pagmamahal na nagbubuklod dito. I am a proud father to Mikha, and I cannot wait to hold my grandchild. Our family has never been this strong.”
Sinira nito ang plano ni Leo na ipahiya kami. Ang dating “scandal” ay naging kwento ng pagtanggap at pag-asa.
……
The Fortress in Ilocos
Habang nira-raid na ng NBI ang mga hideout nina Bino at Hans sa Maynila, dinala kami nina Kuya Gelo sa isang lihim na farm sa Ilocos. Napapaligiran ito ng mga bundok at dagat—isang paraiso na puno ng kapayapaan.
Pero hindi lang ito basta farm. Ang bawat trabahador na nakikita namin sa bukirin ay mga lowkey elite bodyguards na binayaran ni Dad para magbantay 24/7. Walang makakalapit na kaaway.
“Dito muna kayo, Mikha. Breathe the fresh air. Focus on Aiah and the baby,”
bilin ni Kuya Gelo bago sila bumalik ni Dad para tuluyang tapusin si Leo. “Leave the dirty work to us. Pagbalik namin, malinis na ang lahat.”
Huminga ako nang malalim habang nakatanaw sa malawak na bukirin, yakap-yakap si Aiah mula sa likod. Sa wakas, ang takot ay napalitan ng tiwala. Dahil ngayon, alam kong ang buong pwersa ng pamilya Lim—at ang pagmamahal ng isang amang nagbalik—ang nagsisilbi naming liwanag.
………..
To be continue…
