Chapter 14 | The Comment Section
1102 Words
Cassie's POV
_The court wanted me gone._
Friday.
8:02AM.
I opened Dreame.
342 comments on Chapter 13.
`@sunflowergirl: ATE CASSIE ILY!! Dante is husband material 😭`
`@chef_dad_stan: 3 SECONDS HAND HOLD I SCREAMED`
`@single_dad_nextdoor: PLS KISS NA. 14 CHAPTERS WALA PANG KISS`
`@mimi_supremacy: MIMI IS THE REAL MVP`
`@hater_01: Grumpy x Sunshine is so overdone. Pass.`
My face was hot.
“Dante,” I called.
He was under the sink.
Faucet leaking again.
“What?” Muffled.
“May nag-comment,” I said.
“Sabi nila wala pa tayong kiss.”
The wrench stopped.
He slid out.
Looked at me.
Sweat on his forehead. Grease on his hands.
“So?”
“So… readers want it.”
“Readers don’t live here,” he said. Flat.
“They don’t pay rent.”
I closed the app.
Felt stupid.
Since when did I care what strangers wanted?
Mimi was at the table. Drawing.
“Ate Cass, bakit pula mukha mo?”
“Wala, baby.”
“May nag-away?”
“No,” I said.
“May nag-comment.”
Mimi frowned.
“Comment is bad?”
“Sometimes,” I said.
“Sometimes people think they own you.”
---
At 10AM, my shop had a line.
Featured Week Day 2.
But they weren’t just buying.
They were watching.
“Ate, totoong chef ba si Kuya Dante?”
“Ate, kiss na kayo pls.”
“Ate, anong pakiramdam maging muse?”
I forced a smile.
“Sunflowers are ₱150.”
Dante came out at 12PM.
With lunch.
Adobo.
For me.
Still warm.
In a container.
His container.
The girls screamed.
“Ate Cass, kinilig ako!”
“Endgame na to!”
Dante froze.
Looked at me.
Then at them.
“Eat,” he said.
And walked back to 4B.
Fast.
Like he was running.
I ate on the floor.
Alone.
The adobo tasted good.
But it tasted like pity.
At 3PM, reads hit 7,800.
Library: 210.
$10 Daily Bonus: Credited.
*Dreame Editor emailed:*
`Miss E, keep the tension. Readers are hooked.`
Tension.
I looked at 4B.
Door closed.
Since when did “tension” mean “he won’t look at me”?
---
At 5:30PM, Dante came out.
Uniform on.
Night shift. 6PM to 12AM.
He didn’t look at me.
“Mimi, eat dinner,” he said.
“Cassie, money’s on the table.”
₱1,000.
For groceries.
For Mimi.
For me.
“Dante—”
He was gone.
Door clicked.
Quiet.
Mimi and I ate in silence.
Sinigang.
Again.
At 7PM, I tried to write Chapter 14.
Blank.
Cursor blinking.
What do I write?
That Dante won’t kiss me.
That I want it too.
That 12 girls want it too.
That I’m starting to believe them.
My phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
“Ms. Torres?”
A woman’s voice.
Cold. Professional.
“Who is this?”
“Atty. Reyes. Representing Mrs. Liza Morales.”
My blood went cold.
“Dante’s ex-wife?”
“Yes,” she said.
“My client heard about your… book.
And your living situation.”
“What?”
“She’s filing for custody modification,” she said.
“Citing unstable environment.
Cohabitation with an unrelated female author.”
I stood up.
“What? We’re just neighbors—”
“The court will decide,” she said.
“Hearing is in 2 weeks.
December 12.”
Click.
I dropped my phone.
The screen cracked.
Like my chest.
Mimi came out.
“Ate Cass? Bakit ka umiiyak?”
I wasn’t.
But I was about to.
“Lola Liza?” Mimi whispered.
Her voice was small.
I knelt.
“Baby, no. Don’t worry.”
“Is Daddy going away?”
“No,” I lied.
“Daddy’s not going anywhere.”
---
At 8PM, I called Dante.
No answer.
Texted: `We have a problem. Call me. Now.`
No reply.
I called again.
Voicemail.
At 11PM, I heard the door.
Dante.
He looked at me.
On the floor.
Mimi asleep on my chest.
Hair in my face.
Eyes probably red.
“What happened?”
I told him.
Every word.
The lawyer.
The court.
December 12.
Custody.
His face went blank.
The same blank from Chapter 1.
Walls up.
Eyes empty.
“Dante—”
“Pack your things,” he said.
I froze.
“What?”
“You heard her,” he said.
“Cohabitation. Unrelated female.”
“Dante, we’re not—”
“But the court doesn’t care,” he said.
“You sleep on my couch.
Every night.”
“That’s because—”
“Because of me,” he said.
“Because I said stay.”
Mimi stirred.
“Daddy? Ate Cass?”
Dante looked at her.
Then at me.
Something broke in his face.
“Cassie,” he said. Low.
“You have to go.”
The words hit harder than Chapter 1.
Harder than “go away.”
“No,” I said.
“Cassie.”
“No,” I said again.
“You don’t get to push me away because you’re scared.”
“I’m not scared,” he said.
“I’m responsible.”
“For who?”
“For her.”
He pointed at Mimi.
Mimi’s eyes filled.
“Daddy, no.”
“Anak, go to your room.”
“No,” Mimi said.
“Ate Cass is FAMILY.”
Dante’s jaw clenched.
“Cassie. Please.”
_Please._ Again.
I stood up.
My legs shook.
“Fine,” I said.
“I’ll go.”
I walked to my door.
My hands shook so bad I almost dropped the keys.
“Dante.”
“What?”
I didn’t turn.
“If you let me go now,” I said.
“Don’t call me back.”
Silence.
I opened the door.
Closed it.
I didn’t cry.
Not until I was in my shop.
Alone.
Dark.
Smelling like old stems.
Then I did.
Loud.
Ugly.
Because Chapter 14 ended with no kiss.
It ended with a door closed.
---
At 12:30AM, I was at Ate Nene’s.
“Anak, what happened?”
“His ex-wife,” I said.
“She’s taking him to court.”
Ate Nene sighed.
“Takot.”
“I’m scared too,” I said.
“Then fight,” she said.
“Or go home and lose.”
At 2AM, I opened my laptop.
Hands still shaking.
`Chapter 14 | The Comment Section`
`She read the comments.`
`They wanted a kiss.`
`The court wanted her gone.`
`He chose fear.`
`She chose to leave.`
I published.
Then I turned my phone off.
Because if Dante called,
I wasn’t sure I’d answer.
_End of Chapter 14_
- Writer
