His Dangerous Obsession

16

The days were beginning to blur into one another. Sa bawat araw na lumilipas, parang lalong nauurong ang aking isipan. I couldn't tell anymore what was real, what was my choice, and what was just being pushed on me. Minsan naiisip ko, am I really doing this for myself? Or am I just following the whims of the Octavian brothers?

Minsan, kapag mag-isa ako sa kwarto ko, nagtataka ako kung ano pa ang kaya kong tiisin. Hindi ko na yata kayang lumikha ng mas malinaw na boundaries, especially not with Damon. Ang lalaki, bawat galaw ay may ibig sabihin, bawat salita may tinatagong pahiwatig. Pero ako, ako ba? Ako lang ba ang nagkakaroon ng ilusyon na may pagmamahal dito? O baka naman ako lang ang nag-iilusyon na may makakamtan akong pagmamahal mula sa kanya?

"Why are you so lost in thought?"

The voice was cold but familiar. Tumalikod ako at nakita ko si Damon, nakatayo sa may pinto, ang katawan niya masyadong malaki para sa espasyo ng kwarto. Ang mukha niyang hindi ko kayang basahin, parang hindi ko matutunan ang bawat pangungusap ng kanyang mga mata.

"Just thinking," I said, trying to sound unaffected. Pero ang totoo, ang utak ko ay puno ng tanong. Tanong na hindi ko alam kung anong sagot.

"Thinking about what? Or who?" He raised an eyebrow, his gaze fixing on me.

I froze. Hindi ko alam kung papaano sasagutin ang tanong niya. I couldn’t even look at him directly without feeling the intensity of his presence. Ang bigat ng kanyang tingin, parang ako'y nauurong. Nais ko sanang magsinungaling, pero hindi ko na kaya. Lahat ng nangyayari sa aming dalawa ay nagsimula na talagang magulo.

"I—I'm just thinking if I should leave." Sa kabila ng mga saloobin ko, binanggit ko ang pinakamalaking takot na namutawi sa aking puso.

Damon’s eyes narrowed. "Leave?" His voice, though calm, had an underlying tension, as though his words carried weight. "Where will you go?"

I wanted to say I didn't know. Pero ang mga salitang iyon ay parang nakatali sa aking lalamunan. "I don't know," I muttered.

He stepped forward, ang mga hakbang niya ay mabilis at matalim. "You're not leaving. Do you understand me?"

I wanted to answer back. I wanted to fight. I wanted to tell him I wasn't his prisoner, na may buhay pa akong nais ipaglaban. Pero sa bawat hakbang na ginawa niya, sa bawat salita na binitiwan, nararamdaman ko na ang pag-asa ko ay unti-unting nawawala.

“Do you think you have a choice?” he asked, his voice softer now, almost too soft, as if he were trying to reel me in. But there was still that coldness behind it.

Hindi ko siya matitigan. Hindi ko matanggal ang takot na nararamdaman ko. May nararamdaman akong kaba sa aking dibdib—an emotion I hadn’t let myself feel before. "What do you want from me, Damon?"

He smiled slightly, though there was no warmth in it. "I already told you, Cath. You just don’t want to believe me. You’re mine now. And you can’t escape that. Not now. Not ever."

My heart pounded in my chest. My mind raced. Was I really trapped? Was there no way out?

"Why me?" The words escaped my lips before I could stop them. "Why not anyone else? Why does it have to be me?"

He didn't answer immediately. Instead, he moved even closer, his presence consuming me. His gaze lingered on my lips for a moment, and I could feel the tension building between us. The air in the room grew thick, and my breaths became shallow.

"Because you’re the one who challenges me," he said quietly, his voice almost a whisper. "You’re the one who doesn’t fall easily. And that’s why I can’t let you go."

I swallowed hard, feeling the conflict rising inside me. It was true. He had an influence over me, something I couldn’t deny. Pero ang tanong ay, kung hindi ako susunod sa kanya, ano ang mangyayari? What would he do to keep me?

Damon reached out and touched my face, his hand cold against my skin. "You don’t have to understand everything right now. You just have to accept what’s happening between us. You will learn to accept me."

I closed my eyes, feeling helpless. "I don’t want this."

"But it’s happening, Cath," he whispered, his lips dangerously close to my ear. "Whether you want it or not, it’s happening."

And just like that, I realized that there was no escaping. My mind screamed for me to fight back, to find a way out, but my body was paralyzed by the power he held over me. I couldn’t tell where his obsession ended and where my own desire began. I didn’t know anymore.

I felt his hand move down to my neck, his fingers grazing the sensitive skin there. My pulse quickened in response, despite the fear that gripped me.

“Soon,” he murmured against my skin. “Soon, you’ll understand everything, Cath. You’ll understand why you belong to me.”

And with that, he pulled away, leaving me breathless and confused. He walked toward the door, and before leaving, he paused.

“Don’t try to run,” he said, his voice barely audible.

And with that, he was gone.

The silence in the room felt suffocating. My heart was still racing from Damon’s words, the weight of them pressing heavily on my chest. I wanted to scream, to lash out, but what was the point? He had already claimed me, hadn’t he? In ways I couldn’t even begin to understand.

The door clicked softly as it closed behind him, leaving me alone with my thoughts. Alone with the storm inside me.

I tried to steady my breath, but my hands were trembling. Ang mga mata ko ay naiwan sa kawalan. I didn’t know what to feel anymore. Was I scared? Yes. Was I confused? Definitely. But deep down, there was something else—a strange pull, an almost magnetic connection I couldn’t deny. I hated it. I hated that despite everything, I felt it.

I sat down on the edge of the bed, my mind racing back to the moment when he touched me. The coldness of his fingers, the way his voice held both power and danger—it all made my skin burn, even as my mind screamed for me to escape.

What did he mean by “you’ll understand soon”? Was he trying to break me? To turn me into someone I wasn’t?

I wanted to fight back, to scream out for help, but I knew no one would come. No one would be able to save me from him, not even Ruid. He had his own way of pulling me in, of making me believe that he was different. But now, it was Damon who had me in his grasp, holding me with the kind of obsession that was both terrifying and intoxicating.

I ran my fingers through my hair, frustration building inside me. Ang init ng katawan ko, pero may lamig pa rin sa aking puso. I knew I had to get away from this mansion, away from Damon. But how? Where would I go? Ang bawat kanto, ang bawat silid sa mansyon ay may mga alaala ni Damon. I couldn’t escape him, not even in my mind.

Suddenly, the door opened again, and I didn’t need to look up to know who it was. His presence filled the room, heavy and demanding.