Intense Affection

IA 3: THREAT

SAIKI couldn't help but be proud of herself because her students' parents were so happy about their performances. She also received good feedbacks and gifts from them as gratitude for her efforts. She doesn't want to accept any donations from them because seeing her student's smile was enough for her, but they insisted that's why she could do nothing but take it.

After meeting and greeting them, she decided to go home. But when she got home, the mysterious man still haunted her mind. As if he was living on her mind. His perfume still lingered on her body even after she had bathed. Her room was airconditioned, but she could still feel the heat on her body.

She tried to erase the man from her mind because it wasn't right, thinking of someone she doesn't know, the man she had just seen, so she decided to turn her attention to her other stuff. She combs her hair and gets the lotion on her vanity table. She was putting lotion on her legs when her gaze moved at the door when she heard a knock.

"Señorita, you have a delivery," said one of her housemaids as she opened the door.

She accepted the package as large as the shoe box.

"From whom?" she asked while looking at the box.

"The postman mentioned nothing, Señorita." She just nodded as she closed the door.

She scanned the package. It was not too heavy and well wrapped. Her name was written on a small piece of paper, but the sender was unknown. She felt something wasn't right about it because the courier's name wasn't familiar too, but she immediately erased that thought in her mind. Maybe she was just paranoid or tired these past few weeks; that's why she doesn't know what was going through her mind.

She even shook it and heard some noise inside of it. She opened the box without hesitation, thinking that maybe it was just some kind of a surprise gift from the guardians of her students or admirers. But she screamed in shock when a bloody doll surprises her, and a picture of her with a red "X" inscribed. She quickly threw it out of fear and called her housemaid again.

That was one of the things that had been tormenting her. It has been a week since she received death threats, but that was the most shocking of all she received because lately, she received some letters only.

"Señorita?"

"Throw that thing away! And next time, don't just accept any shipment from an unknown sender, do you understand?!" She ordered, which the maid quickly obeyed.

She brushed her hair up using her fingers. She was annoyed by the carelessness of the people around him. What if it was a bomb? They were probably dead by now due to a bomb explosion.

She took her phone on her sleeping blouse pocket to call her uncle. She walked back and forth, waiting for her uncle to pick her up. When he finally answered, she told him about the box that he immediately took action.

"Don't worry, my dear, I will make a way to catch the ominous, and I will add more people to watch over you, okay?" She nodded even though he couldn't see her.

"Thank you, Uncle Rod. I'd expect that from you." Then she ended the call.

She sat on her bed to calm herself. Her body was still shaking, and her hands were sweating. In such cases like that, she has nothing else to approach but her uncle since her parents' death. Her Uncle Rod was her only family left, the younger brother of her father.

Her Uncle Rod became her second father. He was just like her father, a kind, loving, and very supportive man. He doesn't interfere with what she does, especially looking for a man she would be with for the rest of her life, not like what her parents wanted her to do last year. The only thing that matters to him was her safety that he would provide everything she needed. In other words, he was spoiling her.

When her parents were alive, her uncle stood as an executive secretary or her father's right hand in their company. No wonder the position as CEO was passed on to her uncle. He cares for the company, Velarde's Construction Company, or VCC. A top construction company in the Philippines.

For more than thirty years, VCC has delivered quality, leadership, responsiveness, and customer service with every commercial construction project. This philosophy of integrity, responsibility, and quality led to VCC receiving numerous construction industry awards, including the EEE General Contractor of the Year and EEE Summit Award for Excellence in Industrial Construction.

That's why she promised herself that when she had enough money, she would build her music and dance school for the poor children. She doesn't want children to have bad futures or dreams just because of poverty. She wants to introduce music to street children. They need attention.

Upon thinking about her dreams and advocacy, her parents suddenly came to her mind. When she was a little, whenever she was afraid of something, they would always hug her. Sometimes they would sleep with her, especially when it rains because she was scared of the rain with thunder and lightning.

But her life is different now. There's no one by her side but her pillows and stuff.

Due to loneliness, she took their family picture to the bedside table. She was only sixteen years old in that photo. It was a picture of a happy family. A family you never thought would have any problems, but behind it, there were a lot of issues that until now she doesn't know how to solve.

She still blames herself for what happened because she feels she was the cause of their death. If she hadn't invited them outside to celebrate their wedding anniversary, they might still be alive. She embraced the frame tightly and remembered her last day with her parents that she would never forget.