FOREVER AND ALWAYS

THE DAY WE MET

Isabel watched as David struggled with the security guards. He was a thorn in her flesh and he kept on pricking her.

“David, what are you doing here?” She signaled to them to let him be and strolled leisurely toward him.

“Isabel, my little frenemy,” David smiled mischievously as he assessed Isabel. She had grown but she hadn't changed. She still acted high and mighty and she still hated him. “Long time no see.”

Isabel folded her arms, her brows creasing as she gave him a suspicious stare. “I believe you are not here to exchange pleasantries with me. What are you doing here?”

“I think you asked the wrong question, Mija,” David said, smirking mischievously.

“What do you mean by that?”

“I am Joanna's husband. This is my house. Who are you to question me?” He asked, pinching his forehead before continuing, this time, sarcastically. “Oh right. You're the cousin. A distant relative who's, well, not so distant. Isn't it time you move out yet? Why are you still here?”

She glared at him. If looks could kill, he'd probably be dead by now. “David, I know what you're playing at.”

David laughed. “Great. Since you know the game, I don't have to teach you the rules. Anyway, scratch that. Michael misses his mother so we'll be staying here for a while.”

Isabel huffed, trying to look confident. “You wish. I don't think you know about the restraining order Joanna filed against you.”

“And why would she do that?”

“To protect her other kids from you.”

David scoffed, “What kids? Joanna can't even have children.”

Isabel curved her lips up in a smile. She could hear the doubt in David's voice. “I don't suppose you've heard of artificial insemination before. It's when a woman is made to get pregnant through clinical procedures...”

“Shut your darn mouth!” he hissed, cutting Isabel short, “I know what it is.”

“Well then. Sucks to be you! You lost your leverage against Joanna. You've lost, David. Now get lost.”

David looked at Isabel with contempt and walked into his car. She had won this time but he would surely put her in her place. He drove off still thinking of a way to carry out his plan.

* * *

Evie nodded as Isabel finished her sentence. She didn't hear most of what Isabel said because she was feeling sleepy. She needed to go back to her comfy bed and continue her sleep. That was what she had been doing before Isabel woke her up at 2:am for a speech about a scary stepfather.

“I've heard you. Can I go back to sleep now?” She whined as she shifted into a more comfortable position on the couch.

Isabel sighed softly and clasped her hands together. “Evie, please, this is serious. David is dangerous. If he comes back here, no one is safe. Not you, not Caleb. Not even Joanna.”

A cold shiver ran down Evie's spine and she looked up eagerly at Isabel. “How do we stop him?”

“You weren't listening to anything I said earlier, were you?” She asked, disappointment evident in her voice.

“Not really. I was half asleep. But I'm awake now.”

She took a deep breath to calm herself. “Oh Mija, you don't understand what's at stake. David hates Joanna. But he stays married to her because she's rich. He has to have a really evil purpose for coming back.”

“Why does he hate mom? She's not a bad person, is she?”

“No, she's not. Everyone makes mistakes but that doesn't make them bad people.”

“Then, could it be that Pa David is making a mistake too?”

Isabel frowned, folding her arms, “He's not.” She paused for a while as if ruminating about the past. Her shoulders heaved and she took a deep breath. “Believe me when I tell you that.”

Evie remained quiet. She could tell that Isabel not only hated David but feared him too. She probably had some trauma he caused and she must have pushed it down. To her, it didn't matter anymore whether or not David was scheming. All she wanted now was to protect Isabel from him. “I believe you,” she muttered, her voice sounding assuring.

A smile tugged at Isabel's lips. She rarely smiled but today she felt assured so she gave in briefly. “Here's the plan. David will be here soon. I can't prevent him from coming here and once he does, I'll have to leave. So I'll need eyes and ears and there's nobody better for the job than you. He can't chase you out of the house for you are Joanna's daughter so...”

“But I'm not Mom's daughter.”

“Not yet. But he doesn't know that. And thanks to me, he believes you and Caleb are.”

“You lied to him?” Evie quizzed, arching a brow.

Isabel sighed softly, “I had to. Your adoption papers aren't finalized. Even if they were, as Joanna's husband, David can cancel it since she did it without his knowledge. You'll have to go back to your uncle then and it'd be for nought that you came all the way here. But if you were Joanna's birthed kids, he can't touch you. And that's what you have to pretend to be.”

“Okay. I'll explain to Caleb.”

“Good girl.”

“The lawyer will be here in the morning. He'll brief you on everything we have put in place for this plan to work.”

“Okay,” She muttered quietly for sleep was again gradually trying to engulf her.

“One more thing. Michael is moving in soon. You need to be careful with him. After all, he's David's son and the apple rarely falls far from the tree. You can go back to your room now.”

Isabel let out a sad sigh immediately Evie left the room. She knew they would be better off back home with their uncle than with David. However, they were her only shot at protecting Joanna and Joanna was the person who mattered most to her. She would deal with the guilt of sending these kids to the "Devil's lair" eventually but until then, she was going to see this through.

She took a deep breath and picked up her phone. She pressed the number two on her dial pad and held it until a name popped on her screen - Ryan. A feeling of calm enveloped her and seconds later, he picked up. Her lips curved up in a smile as she heard him rasp sleepily from the other end of the phone,

“Hey, Babe.”

* * *

As the car drove in through the gate, Michael felt the knot in his stomach tighten. He had seen this place a few times but he had never been so close or even entered it. This was his mother's home but he was prohibited from even seeing her, let alone visit her. He heard that he used to live with her but he had no memories of then. The abrupt stop of the car jolted him out of his thoughts. On looking out through the window, he noticed a little boy standing with a ball right in front of the car.

He opened the door and came down from the car, immediately noticing two figures approaching him. He guessed Isabel was one of them and holding that thought, he frowned. She had always been jealous of him and would do anything to separate him from his mom. Or at least, that was what his father had said.

“Welcome home, Mijo! How have you been?” Isabel plastered a practiced grin on her face and pulled him into a hug.

How hypocritical, thought Michael. He could tell immediately that she didn't like him. He too didn't like her and unlike her he wouldn't pretend. He broke off the hug and muttered a "thanks" before walking off. Then he saw the other girl and he stopped abruptly.

Beautiful would be an understatement if he used it to describe how she looked to him. She felt somewhat familiar and drew him to her. Now, this was someone's hug he'd enjoy. But if his calculations are right, she was the girl his father had told him to avoid - his mother's daughter. And with the way his heart was beating rapidly and knots were being tied and untied in his stomach, he was certain it'd be a great idea.

"Hola, I'm Evie." Evie stretched out her hand and flashed a smile, revealing the dimple on her left cheek. Her dark brown hair tied in a ponytail was dancing to the wind.

Immediately, his head went blank, gluing his feet to the ground and his eyes to hers. Time seemed to stop as they stood there forever staring into each other's eyes. A wave of hiccups hit him, jolting him back into reality and he looked away from her. He believed getting friendly with her would only cause him trouble so he simply walked away from her, leaving her hand hanging.

Behind him, he heard her voice again. She sounded amused. “Is he always this grumpy?” She wasn't really loud at all but he had exceptional hearing, thanks to training he received from his father.

Isabel's reply came next. “Well, this apple definitely didn't fall far from his tree.”

He felt a sting in his heart and a sting in his eyes. He was nothing like his father, yet he had given them a first impression that he was. Maybe they were right after all. Maybe he was no different from his father.