Henny VIII

02: ARTHUR II - Revenge

HENNY

“Henny… ano nang gagawin mo ngayon?”

Nakatingin lang ako sa mga file na pinrint namin ni Trina kanina. Nagtataka nga siya sa ginagawa ko at akala niya ay nag-aaral ako uli.

She came over because I told her I am going through something. As tough as I think I am, I need some help to navigate through these things. Kaya tinawagan ko si Trina dahil alam kong siya lang ang makakaintindi sa ‘kin.

I told her about everything. The cheating, open relationship, seven women… every bit of it.

Trina was shocked to say the least. Matagal ko na siyang kaibigan at ang nangyari sa ‘min ni Arthur ay ‘di niya rin inasahan. Arthur was a good man, he showed us that he can be the best partner. We all believed that. We all did. He was a good man… was.

Trina rubbed my back when I started crying again. Nabitawan ko ang hawak na mga papel at napahagulgol na lang. Ang bigat sa pakiramdam ng mga nangyayari. It is like getting punched in the gut repeatedly.

Sometimes I feel the betrayal piercing through my skin, breaking my bones, and making me bleed. Sometimes I don’t. Kahit alin pa sa dalawa, nakakatakot ang pakiramdam. Nakakalito.

“Bes… kalma na. May mga oras ka pa naman para… p-para kilalanin ‘yung mga kasama ni Arthur sa Coron. ‘Wag mong sagarin ang sarili mo, okay?”

“I need… I need to act now, Trina. This is important,” giit ko naman, nagpunas ng luha. I heaved a sigh and nodded, convincing myself that I need to do this right now. “This is important…”

Hinayaan na lang ako ni Trina sa ginagawa ko. She knows she can’t stop me from doing as I please. I need to know them. I need to know how I could get back at them, too.

They shamed me by cheating with Arthur. All of them shamed me. The eight of them. And unfortunately, they’ll get it back.

I am not as kind as the world thinks I am. I am not as forgiving as Trina thinks I am.

Pumunta si Trina sa kusina para kumuha ng pagkain at para mapilit niya na rin akong kumain. It is past 7 p.m. and I haven’t had lunch or dinner yet. Halos wala akong tulog pero kape lang ang nagpapagana sa ‘kin hanggang ngayong gabi.

Inayos ko uli ang printed copies ng mga file na sinend sa ‘kin ng private investigator na nakausap ko no’ng nakaraan. Apat na araw ang nabuno niya para makilala at mabigyan ako ng detalye sa bawat babaeng nasa video. Madali lang dahil gumamit siya ng kung anong face-recognition system. That's what they do.

I looked at the pages one by one. One paper per girl which includes their information, school background, current jobs… all of them are here. Malaki ang binayaran ko pero worth it naman dahil naiisip ko na rin kung paano ako magsisimula sa plano ko.

Besides, this will be the last time I’m spending sums of money for these ‘people.’

Seven girls are a lot but if you have enough anger to drive you… it’ll be easy.

Yunari Chang. A secretary in a huge tech company.

Delilah Mondragon. An archer training for the National Team.

Kailee Segovia. A business-owner s***h investor.

Samantha Andrade. A bartender in a local nightclub.

Wynona Jacobson. A secretary in an engineering firm.

Lessandra Vasquez. A lady plumber from a huge plumbing company.

Constantina Reynes. A manager from the same company Arthur is working in.

Bumalik si Trina sa living room dala-dala ang isang tray ng pagkain. She reheated some food inside the fridge and made soup, I think.

“Mamaya na ako, Tri. Kain ka na,” tanggi ko nang iabot niya sa ‘kin ang mangkok ng instant ramen. Kahit ang bango noon, wala talaga akong gana.

Huminga nang malalim si Trina, parang nagpipigigil na ibuhos sa ‘kin ’yung sabaw sa katigasan ng ulo ko. “Henny. Kahit humigop ka lang, oh. Isusumbong kita kina Tito at Tita kapag ‘di ka kumain.”

I rolled my eyes in annoyance. She knows where to push my buttons so I will follow her. “Oo na. Pero Trina… hindi ‘to makakarating kina Mommy, okay? Please. I’ll let them know once I’m done. Pero ‘wag muna ngayon.”

She nodded hesitantly. “Okay. I will try to keep it from them. Hindi ako mangangako.”

Kumain kaming dalawa. Instant ramen at boiled eggs, saka chicken empanada na nilagay niya sa air fryer. It was good. Naubos ko nga ang lahat kahit akala kong ‘di ako gutom.

Sadness makes you immune from hunger somehow.

“Henny… hindi pa kayo kasal ni Arthur. You can easily walk away from that trash,” sabi ni Trina habang sinisimot ko ‘yung isang mangkok ng ramen.

I eyed her, putting the bowl down. “I don’t want to simply walk away, Trina. That’s not happening.”

“So what are you planning to do? Maghiganti?” Trina asked. “Like you’re some teleserye bida? Ruin your life in the process? Huh? That's what you want?"

I sighed, giving her a confused look. “What do you want me to do then, Trina? Let this slide? Like they didn’t do me wrong?”

“No. I want you to move forward, Hen. And pick up the things you left before you and Arthur got together. Forgive but don’t forget.”

I shook my head. That simply isn’t happening. I will pick my lost pieces up when I’m done with them. Malungkot ako at nasaktan, pero ‘di ko kayang ipagpasa-Diyos ang lahat ng ito.

“Henny… I understand, okay? G-Galit ka. Galit na galit, I know that. Pero… pero, Hen, I don’t think this will be worth it. I don’t think they’re worth it, I don’t think Arthur is worth it. This will cost you so much. Financially, emotionally… mentally. Please, Henny. Listen.”

Naisip ko nang magiging nakakaubos ang gagawin ko. I’ve thought about that, I am aware of that. Kaya nga gagawin ko ang naiisip ko…

I will move people without spending much of my resources. I will get back at them while I’m feeling good.

“They aren’t worth it, of course,” mabilis ko namang sagot. “But they deserve retaliation. They need to pay.”

“So what are you going to do? Susugurin mo sila? Knock those seven girls off plus Arthur? Drag them through the streets, hit their heads with something?”

“If that’s what I need to do,” bulong ko naman kahit ‘di sumagi sa isip ko ang maging bayolente.

Trina shifted on her seat. “Look, Hennessy… ano bang mapapala mo rito? M-Mas masasaktan ka lang lalo, alam mo ‘yon, ‘di ba?”

“Anong mapapala ko? Shame, Trina. Shame,” sagot ko. “I want the same thing for them, of course? Hindi puwedeng ako lang ang napahiya rito, ‘di ba? They need to feel the same thing. That’s how things work!”

“Gosh, Henny. Hindi magandang ideya ‘to.”

“It doesn’t have to be a good idea, Tri,” tugon ko naman. “I’ll shame them. Then I’ll leave. They can’t giggle behind my back forever.”

“Henny, they can gang up on you! Those are seven people, all cheaters! They—”

“They’re eight.”

Napakurap-kurap ang mga mata ni Trina. “What?”

“Including Arthur. Arthur is the eighth.”

Hindi makapaniwala si Trina sa narinig. I know she won’t approve of me doing this and I understand. But I want to get rid of this feeling.

It is itching my skin. Malalampasan ko ‘yung galit ko; kaya kong kalimutan ‘yung sakit. Pero hindi ko kayang alisin sa sistema ko ang kagustuhan kong bumawi. My mind won’t simply allow it. My ego won’t allow it.

Besides… gusto ko ring maranasan kung ano ang naranasan ni Arthur. I want to do every single búllshít he did behind my back. Acting like we’re in an open relationship, tasting women after women, having pleasure every single night.

I’ll hop on different beds too just to spite that man, the only difference is I’m not cheating. We’re in an open relationship.

And I’m pretty sure that will make my cheater fiancé crazy. The thing about cheaters is that they don’t want their victim having fun, it’s their version of kryptonite.

And even if we’re in an open relationship, I am sure Arthur would want me for himself only. I am his trophy girlfriend, after all.

But do I give a shít? Of course not. I’ll let him choke in his words if he says something about my séx life… if he ever learns about it.

Umalis din si Trina nang gabing iyon. Nakatulog din ako agad pag-alis ni Trina at nagising ako sa condo na mag-isa.

Hindi ko alam kung galit o ang ego ko lang, pero hindi na ako naiiyak ngayon. I had the whole plan laid out. Masiyado na siguro akong okupado ng gusto kong gawin kaya ‘di na lumuluha ang mga mata ko.

Isa pa, ‘pag mas mabilis kong natapos ito, mas mabilis kong mapapalaya ang puso’t isip ko.

Sa kuwarto namin ni Arthur, I rummaged through his closet. Sa ilang minutong paghahanap, nakita ko ang personal laptop niya na tagong-tago pa. I smiled. Vander said there could be more files about his girls and I think this is where he’s hiding them.

I tried to open it but it’s encrypted. Napabuntong-hininga ako pero noon din ay parang may bumbilyang nagliwanag sa utak ko.

I laid on the sofa and set-up a dating profile in a paid, anonymous site. Exclusive ang site at kailangang magbayad ng ilang daang piso para makahanap ka ng makakausap.

When my profile was ready, I searched for a very, very specific tag: tech guy.

There were a lot of results, but one guy with a company name in his bio stood up. Napangiti agad ako at hindi ko maiwasang magdiwang sa nakita.

Parang kakampi ko naman yata ang mundo ngayon?

He is working at this tech company where Yunari Chang, one of Arthur’s seven girls, does too.

I clicked the like icon and bit my lower lip.

This is going to be fun.

I want my revenge. But I don’t want to exhaust my savings and all that just to expose these people.

Arthur used women to shame me, so I’ll tackle the opposite way.

Walk away and let go? No, of course not. Never.

What I’m gonna do… is I will use men to shame them. And what's that famous line again?

Ah, yes. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Fight fire with fire. If Arthur thought he's good at hopping from one bed to another, we'll see who'll do it better between us...