Broken Bones and Scar Souvenirs

Chapter 2 - A Glimpse of Your Fire ( Part 1)

Sabrina gently pulled her raven hair back and tied it to a low hanging ponytail. Muling niyang pinasadahan ng tingin ang sarili sa salamin. Litaw na litaw ang malaki at maamo niyang mata, mahabang leeg at makinis na kutis. Huli niyang sinuot ang pendant niya na hugis kalapati.

She was supposed to meet her fiancé today and if everything goes well, she should be moving in to the Vescozar family mansion up until her wedding day then God knows what Yalmar’s plans are, if he even had one. Isa na naman itong malaking pagbabago sa buhay ng dalaga. Nasanay na rin siya na walang kahit anong permanente sa mundo niya. Her mom was taken too soon from her. Her father was barely even there to be considered a variable let alone be a constant figure in her life. And Sabrina herself made it to a point not to get too attached with people, not to be so taken by the idea of friendship and love. Makakaabala lang ito kapag dumating na ang panahon na lilipat na naman siya.

That was her only constant, the move from one school to another, from one country to the next, from one single serving interaction to the next.

At ngayon ay ikakasal na siya. Not to get things wrong, Sabrina used to dream of her wedding, that godforsaken day that every dumb little girl dreams of. Pero habang tumatanda siya ay naglaho na rin ang pangarap na iyon. Walang kahit na anong perpekto at permanente sa mundo. Even then, she still thought that maybe if she couldn’t have a perfect fairy tale love story, maybe she could still experience love for herself even for just a while. She still hoped that maybe she could be free enough to make life changing decisions for herself. But now, she knew all of that was out of the window.

Thanks a lot, Dad.

The doorbell of her condo rung and she was quick on feet to open it only to see a total stranger dressed on a casual dark blue t-shirt standing on her doorsteps.

Alam niyang hindi ito si Yalmar dahil nasa files na s-in-end ni Patrice ang mukha ng buong pamilya Vescozar. At kahit naman hindi niya nabasa iyon ay makikila niya pa rin ang fiancé. The young Vescozar was often featured in magazines as one of the most eligible bachelors in the country and he was multiple times in the news as the young tycoon leading the Vescozar Group of Companies’ finance department.

Looking at the man in front of her, Sabrina was sure he didn’t come close. Simple lang ang pormahan nito, may katangkaran, at medyo moreno. He wasn’t too bad to look at with his sharp cheekbones, brown doe eyes, and soft dark curls but Sabrina was a bit apprehensive of the stranger.

“Miss Buenavista?” pukaw ng lalaki. May dinukot naman ito sa bulsa at agad na napaatras si Sabrina.

“Who the f**k are you?” tanong niya.

“I’m Toni. I work for Yalmar Vescozar and he told me to pick you up.” Agad na tinaas ng lalaki ang wallet na dinukot niya at kinuha ang company ID para ipakita sa dalaga.

“You’re his executive assistant?” Tiningnan niya naman ito mula hanggang paa. “Could’ve fooled me.”

Sino ba naman ang maniniwala na empleyado ito g isa sa pinakamayamang tao sa Pilipinas eh mukha lang bibili ng kape? She didn’t mean to judge but if he was who he claimed to be, it seems like Yalmar is a bit too relaxed on his assistant’s dress code.

Mukhang na-gets naman agad ni Toni ang mapanuyang kumento ni Sabrina. “It’s my day off, Miss Buenavista. Someone was supposed to pick you up but most of the drivers are preoccupied. I was in the area so I’m here to take you to the mansion.”

Tumaas naman ang kilay ng dalaga sa paliwanag ni Toni. Mukhang mabilis niyang kinain ang mga sinabi. She didn’t see any reason why he would lie. She takes pride on being a good judge of peoples character. It was a skill that she had to teach herself through the years. Maybe he was dressed a bit too casual for her liking and his tone was bit more stern for an assistant but she could that there was sincerity in his eyes.

“Let me just get my purse. Stay here and don’t do anything stupid,” she surrendered.

It quite irked her. For starters she wasn’t expecting much from her fiancé to begin with. But he gave little to no regard for her that he literally just sent some of his push overs to fetch her like she was a delivered good. It left nothing but a bitter taste in her mouth.

How romantic.

Nanatili namang nakatayo lang sa pintuan si Toni ngunit hindi nito mapigilang dumungaw sa condo ni Sabrina. He knew that she was Yalmar’s fiancé and he honestly thought that his boss was a damn lucky bastard to even land a woman like her. Nakita rin ng binata ang mga gamit ng dalaga sa sala nito na hindi pa naiimpake.

All her furniture and clutter were still where they would usually be. It was odd for Toni because he was pretty sure that Sabrina was scheduled to move in to the Vescozar mansion sooner rather than later.

“Come on.” Lumabas na ang dalaga sa unit nito na may dalang maliit na clutch. Nakasuot na rin siya ng itim na open-toed heels.

As they walked down the hallway Toni couldn’t help but point out. “You haven’t packed any of your things yet.”

Hindi naman inasahan ng dalaga. “Ganyan mo talaga kausapin ang mga boss mo?”

“I work for Yalmar not you. I’m just trying to warn you.” He pressed the elevator button for her. “If you think you could postpone or even cancel any deal you make with their family, save yourself the trouble. There is no way out but only through it.”

Sabrina wanted to pretend that she didn’t hear it. Hindi pa ba sapat na halos itapon na siya ng sariling ama sa impyerno at ngayon naman ay kahit ang assistant ng fiancé niya ay may mga unsolicited tips pa.

She noticed that the elevator was going up instead of down. Kumunot naman ang noo niya at tinapunan ng masamang tingin si Toni. “Where the hell are you taking me?”

“Sa rooftop tayo. Naghihintay na roon ang chopper.”

“Excuse me, what?” She tilted her head. “Chopper?”

“Yeah. It will take us to Hacienda Vescozar.”

Nanapanganga na lang ang dalaga. Wala namang may nagsabi sa kanya na sa hacienda pala sila magkikita ni Yalmar. O baka naman plano nila lahat iyon ang isakay siya sa helicopter at itapon ang katawan niya mula sa himpapawid?

Crazy theories started to run in her head that she practically zoned out.

Oh my God, is the end?

“Hey? You okay?” pasigaw na tanong ni Toni habang inaakay siya palapit sa chopper. She just nodded absentmindedly.

Nang handa na ang lahat para makaalis sila ay nahalata naman nang binata na parang namumutla si Sabrina. He took it upon himself to hold her hand to omfort her. “Hey, first time? Don’t worry, okay. Mikey here is the best pilot we have and I’m sure as hell that I will bring you to Yalmar unharmed.”

He gave her a gentle smile. And there it was again. He had that glaze of loyalty and sincerity in his eyes and for some odd reason, she felt safe. In the world they live in, the rarity of people like Toni was refreshing to her.

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