THE UNTAMED LUNA

A FRIEND FROM THE PAST

Early Saturday morning. I put a little more effort into myself and wore a cute outfit. I've been walking around in front of the mirror to look at the clothes that will fit me. When I come downstairs, Dad looks me up and down.

"Solidad, I think she likes one of them!" My dad says this loudly to my mom, who's still upstairs getting ready.

"I know, honey!" She yells back at us.

Oh Jeezz, I'm so embarrassed! "I'm going to change." I said, and ran up the stairs, but Mom caught me.

"Oh no, you aren't. You look very nice. Now let's go before we are late. We need to make a good impression on your mother-in-law," She says, and Dad laughs.

"Come on! Let's go." Mom says as she pulls me along to the car.

I actually can't stand myself right now. The one who needs to be stuck by her boyfriend's side at all times. When did I become that girl? Oh, right, these previous five days are Pitiful. Suddenly, we were caught up in a little traffic going to Albanzo's house.

"Honey, are you sure we didn't forget anything from home?" Dad asked.

"Me, I'm good. How about you, sweetie?" My mom replied and returned the question to me.

"Nothing, mom,"

"Oh right, I think your heart is already right there, at the house of your friends. While you are here with us" Dad jokingly said, and they led to their laughter.

Upon arriving at the gate, I engaged in conversation with the camera screen.

"We are here to see the Albanzo family."

"Oh yes, Jezz. We were expecting you." the screen responded.

The iron gates creaked open with a mechanical hum. We drove through, the tires crunching over the gravel path that wound between manicured lawns and towering trees. The estate was larger than I remembered, intimidating, almost.

As the car rolled to a stop, I forgot in which way to go next. Then, a flat mechanical voice echoed nearby.

A sleek wall panel lit up, and a robotic face flickered onto the screen.

“Abby Jezz. Welcome back. I am happy to meet your parents. Please proceed to the backyard as instructed by Mrs. Jolina.”

Dad whispered “Fancy.”

We followed the path, passing the trimmed hedges, beautiful flowers and cameras that were installed in all directions. The place has too much space, and too much silence.

When we reached the front door, my parents stopped in awe.

Mom’s eyes darted around the property. “I think I’ve been here before,” she murmured, almost to herself.

Dad frowned. “Maybe you lived nearby once?”

“Yeah… maybe.” But the uncertainty in her voice lingered.

The front doors opened before we could knock. The twins stood there, smiling warmly.

“Good evening,” Joel said, stepping aside.

Dad shook their hands firmly, his usual friendly grin in place. But the look the twins shared between them felt… knowing. Like there was something unspoken.

Mom and I followed them in.

“Mom’s in the kitchen,” Joel said. “She can’t leave the food unattended.”

“It’s okay,” I replied, glancing around. The house smelled faintly of cedar and spices—homey, yet luxurious.

We walked into the kitchen, and there she was, Jolina. She was standing by the stove, stirring something in a large pot.

The scent of simmering sauce filled the air. She turned at the sound of our footsteps, smiling.

Then...

Mom froze.

“Jolina!?”

The word escaped her like a gasp.

Jolina’s eyes widened, the ladle slipping from her fingers and clattering against the counter.

“Solidad?” she breathed.

In two strides, Jolina crossed the room and pulled my mother into a tight embrace.

“I didn’t know what happened to you,” she said, voice trembling as her hands cupped Mom’s face. “I thought you were gone.”

Tears welled up in my mother’s eyes. Dad and I stood frozen at the doorway, trying to piece together what we were seeing.

The twins exchanged bewildered glances.

Mom could barely speak through her tears. “I had to leave. I went to Surigao.”

Jolina pulled her to the table, both of them crying openly now. The emotional charge in the room was heavy, too real, too sudden.

Jolina looked up at me, her voice breaking slightly.

“She’s…?”

Mom nodded slowly. “Yes.”

The word seemed to hang in the air, filling the silence with questions none of us knew how to ask.

I looked between them, my mother, her old friend, the twins watching quietly, and realized everyone here knew something I didn’t.

And whatever it was, it was about to change everything.

The air in the kitchen froze when Marvin suddenly appeared, his face pale, eyes wide with disbelief. The low hum of the refrigerator filled the silence like static in the air.

“Can we… sit down and talk first?” Dad said, his voice is calm but heavy with unease.

I was grateful he said it, maybe now we’d finally learn what this strange tension between them meant.

“Why don’t we go into the living room?” Marvin offered, his tone composed but strained.

Mom nodded silently, and we all moved together. The sound of footsteps against the wooden floor echoed through the quiet house. The living room lights were dim — golden from the lamps, flickering faintly as if unsure whether to stay on.

Dad and I stayed close to Mom, while Marvin sat across from us, beside his mother Jolina, with the twins quietly hovering behind them. The twins stood behind the couch, their faces tense, watching everything like witnesses in a courtroom.

The silence stretched, brittle and suffocating. I could hear my heartbeat, slow but loud. Marvin’s gaze shifted — first to me, then to Mom, his eyes unreadable, like he was seeing ghosts. My headache was gone, replaced by a crawling awareness that something deep was about to unravel.

Then Marvin spoke first.

“Mrs. Urdanzo,” he began slowly, “it’s a pleasure to meet you… again.”

The word rang in my mind again. What did he mean — did he know my mother?

“I’m Marvin,” he added, extending his hand. His voice was calm but carried a strange warmth.

Mom took his hand, her eyes glistening. I should’ve been focusing on her, but instead, a silly wave of jealousy washed over me. She gets a handshake… and I don’t?

He turned to Dad next, offering the same courtesy. The air thickened. When his eyes finally found mine, he simply said,

“Abby Jezz.” Just my name, nothing else — but the way it rolled from his lips made my skin tingle.

His voice was deep, and steady the kind that lingers. My stomach fluttered, and I felt my face burn. He chuckled softly, and Mom’s sharp glance told me she noticed. I looked away quickly.

“It seems,” Marvin said, straightening his back, “that we all need to talk.”

The twins exchanged glances, subtle, silent communication only twins could master. I turned to Jolina, who was watching Mom with a sorrowful look that said more than words ever could.

Marvin stood, helped his mother up. Her movements were slow, trembling slightly.

“Solidad,” Jolina said gently, “would you like to explain what’s going on?”

Mom shook her head, voice cracking. “No, you go ahead. I… I can’t right now.”

Jolina nodded and took a deep breath. Her voice quivered as she began.

“A little over eighteen years ago, Solidad and I were best friends…”

Dad’s eyebrows shot up. I gasped. Even the twins stilled. Marvin, however, looked like he already knew.

“She was dating my husband’s best friend — Robert Sandique. At that time, I had a little six-year-old boy… Marvin.”

Mom’s hand found Dad’s. He smiled faintly, giving her courage.

“We were inseparable,” Jolina continued. “Like family. The men worked together, and whenever they were off, we spent our days laughing, eating, dreaming…”

Her voice broke. Mom reached out to her, but Jolina waved softly for her to continue.

Mom took a breath.

“One day, Jolina was watching Marvin while I took a bath. She was in pain, her back hurt badly from her pregnancy, and her due date was still months away. Then she heard the sound of glass breaking. Men had forced their way in…”

The room seemed to grow colder as her words sank in.

“She came running to me with Marvin in her arms. I told her to get to the basement, to the safe room. She knew the code.”

Her voice shook. “I barely had time to grab my phone. I called Robert. The men… they were looking for something. We didn’t know what.”

Jolina’s hands trembled as she took over the story, her eyes lost in a memory too vivid to forget.

“I locked the door of the basement after she banged on it. But one of them saw us. They grabbed Solidad. She screamed for me to close the door..."Jolina, close it!" she yelled. So I did. I had Marvin clinging to me, shaking.”

The silence in the room was absolute, broken only by the sound of her quiet sobs.

Mom’s voice returned, lower, ragged.

“Robert came just in time. He fought two of them off while I tried to reach the basement. But they caught me again. I was dragged outside. He shouted for me to run. Then… something pricked my arm, and everything went dark.”

Jolina closed her eyes as tears streamed freely down her cheeks.

“When my husband arrived, Robert was still fighting. He tried to reach me, but they overwhelmed him. He shouted for me to hide Marvin , so I did. My body was giving up, bleeding from the stress. We heard two gunshots, then silence.”

Her voice cracked.

“When the noise stopped, we came out. Robert and my husband were lying there... both… gone.”

The room felt smaller. The only sound was the soft hum of the ceiling fan and Mom’s quiet sobbing.

I squeezed her hand; she gripped it back tightly, trembling.

Mom whispered through her tears,

“You should thank those animals for saving you.”

Her words confused me.

“Animals?” I asked softly. “You mean… real animals?”

She nodded faintly, her eyes glistening with something between grief and wonder.

“I will,” Mom said, her voice barely above a whisper. “If I ever meet them.”

Mom turned to me then, her gaze heavy with truth.

“Remember the name Robert,” she said quietly. “He was the gentleman who also happened to be your father.”