ONLY HAVE YOU

CHAPTER 14

JAYDEN POV

Almost 2 years since Belle left. And not knowing where she was. Almost 2 years of waking up in an empty house without her voice, without her presence, without the small things she used to leave behind.

At first, I searched everywhere for her. I even used my connections just to find out where she went. But Belle was careful. She disappeared completely, as if she truly wanted to cut herself away from me.

Until eventually, I heard from one of our overseas business partners that she was in New York.

And not just studying. She became successful. A model. An endorser. Someone people recognized.

The first time I saw one of her magazine covers online, hindi ako agad nakapaniwala. Belle changed a lot. She looked more mature now. More confident. Mas lalo siyang gumanda. But somehow… her eyes still looked lonely.

Happy ako para sa kanya. Really. Because I knew how much she wanted to prove that she could stand on her own without depending on me.

Pero kahit ganoon… mas magiging masaya ako kung bumalik na siya.

There were nights when I’d unconsciously look toward the dining table expecting to see her waiting for me with dinner again. Sometimes, I’d even wake up thinking I heard her footsteps downstairs.

But every single time… wala naman talaga siya.

And the worst part? I finally realized how important she was only after losing her.

That morning, maaga akong pumasok sa office because Jun reported that Imperial Agency had signed a new exclusive model for one of our biggest luxury campaigns.

Normally, I wouldn’t care much about these things. But this campaign was important. Hindi puwedeng basta-basta lang kumuha ng endorser from somewhere without proper background checking.

Pagpasok ko sa building, diretso akong naglakad sa lobby habang may inaayos na documents sa phone ko. Then suddenly, napahinto ako.

There was a woman standing near the hallway.

Nakatalikod siya nang bahagya habang may kausap na staff. Tall. Elegant. Sophisticated. There was something strangely familiar about her. Pero hindi ko maaninag nang maayos ang mukha niya dahil nasisilaw ako sa ilaw mula sa glass wall.

Maybe she’s one of the new models, I thought.

Hindi ko na iyon gaanong pinansin at nagpatuloy ako sa paglalakad.

Then my eyes landed on the giant promotional poster hanging near the lobby entrance.

And I froze.

The woman in the poster looked familiar. Too familiar.

Napakunot-noo ako habang dahan-dahang tumitingin dito.

Luxury brand advertisement. A woman wearing a black silk dress. Long wavy hair. Sharp but soft eyes.

And then I saw the name. BELLE DANIELES.

Parang biglang tumigil ang mundo ko.

Nanlaki ang mga mata ko habang mabilis akong lumingon kay Jun.

“Jun…” halos pabulong kong sabi. “Siya ba ’yan?”

Mukhang kabado ring tumango si Jun. “Opo, sir,” sagot niya. “She came from New York. At… madatagal mo nang hinihintay.”

“New York…” ulit ko habang muling napatingin sa poster.

My chest tightened.

“Jun…” mabilis akong lumingon sa kanya. “Si Belle ’to?”

“Opo, sir. Siya nga po. Kaya pinaalam ko agad sa inyo.”

For a few seconds, hindi ako nakakilos.

Belle came back.

After one year… bumalik siya.

And somehow, hindi ko man lang alam.

Bigla akong napalingon sa hallway kung saan ko nakita iyong babaeng nakatayo kanina.

My heart suddenly started racing.

Wait… possible ba siya iyong nakasalubong ko?

Bigla akong napamura sa isip ko.

“Damn it.”

Mabilis akong naglakad papunta sa office ni Mrs. Fe, ang head ng modeling department.

Pagkabukas ko ng pinto, gulat siyang napatayo.

“S-Sir?”

“Give me the records of the model from New York,” agad kong sabi.

Mukha siyang nagulat sa urgency ng boses ko. “Si Ms. Belle po?”

“Her number,” mabilis kong sabi. “Give me her number.”

Agad niyang inabot ang file at number ni Belle.

For the first time in a long while, nanginginig ang kamay ko habang tina-type ko ang phone number niya.

Then I called her.

One ring.

Two rings.

Then she answered.

“Yes? Good morning!”

At boses pa lang niya… I already knew.

It was really her.

“Belle…” mahina kong tawag.

My chest tightened painfully.

“Belle…”

“Speaking?”

Bigla akong natigilan.

Hindi ako makapagsalita.

Because after one year… narinig ko ulit ang boses niya.

And damn it… I almost cried.

I closed my eyes habang pilit kong kinokontrol ang paghinga ko.

But before I could even say another word, the call suddenly ended.

Nanlaki agad ang mga mata ko.

“Belle?”

Mabilis ko siyang tinawagan ulit.

But this time… unreachable na.

“s**t…”

Napahawak ako sa noo ko habang magulo ang isip ko.

Where was she staying? Why didn’t she come home? Was she still angry at me after all this time?

Sabik na sabik na akong makita siya ulit.

And now that I finally knew she was here… pakiramdam ko mababaliw ako kapag hindi ko siya nakita.

Mabilis akong tumingin kay Mrs. Fe.

“Did she leave any address?”

Umiling siya. “Wala po, sir.”

Napapikit ako nang madiin.

Of course. Belle was always careful when she wanted to avoid me.

“When will Belle Danieles return?” agad kong tanong.

“Tomorrow po,” sagot niya. “Start na po kasi ng photoshoot niya bukas.”

Tomorrow. I clenched my jaw habang pilit kinakalma ang sarili ko.

“Okay…” mahina kong sagot. “Okay.”

Pero kahit anong pilit kong mag-focus sa trabaho buong araw… wala akong ibang maisip kundi siya.

And one question kept repeating inside my head. Was the woman I passed by earlier… really Belle?