Falling for Her Shadows

CHAPTER 23

BEFORE sending back Nylah and Evron to the coffee shop, inaya ni Ashriel ang mag-ina na kumain muna. Kumain sila ng lunch sa isang kilalang restaurant malapit sa magiging school ni Evron. Tahimik lang si Nylah habang pinapakain si Evron ng mashed potato, habang si Ashriel ay nakasandal sa kinauupuan at pinapanood ang dalawa.

As he watched them, something was stirring inside him. Para bang may kakaibang dulot na gimnhawa sa kaniya ang simpleng eksena na nasa kaniyang harapan. Isang tanawin na para bang gisto niyang masanay na makita araw-araw.

I like Nylah, yes. But isn’t it that this was too much for me? Ashriel thought. Seeing them was already enough.

Para bang buo na ang araw niya kapag nakikita niya ang dalawa.

Pero bago pa man tuluyang matangay sa tahimik na sandali, isang babae ang biglang lumapit sa mesa nila. Maganda ang babae at sopistikada. Wearing make up and jewelries. Halatang kilala nito si Ashriel.

“Your son?” tanong ng babae.

Sinulyapan lang naman ni Nylah ang babae at tinaasan pa siya nito ng kilay ngunit hindi na niya ito pinansin. Hindi naman niya nagustuhan ang tono ng babae, iyong parang may halong pang-aasar at pagmamayabang.

“What do you think?” Ashriel retaliated in a cold voice.

Nagulat ang babae pero halatang hindi agad nagpaawat. “Oh, I was just asking—”

“Can you go away now?” putol ni Ashriel sa iba pang sasabihin ng babae. “You’re disturbing us.”

Namutla naman ang babae at halatang napahiya sa mga taong napapalingon rito. The woman stomped her feet and marched away.

Napatitig naman si Nylah kay Ashriel. “You’re so… cold.” She doesn’t know if she will give him a thumbs-up or what. Though she was thankful Ashriel made that woman go away, she’s a woman, too. What Ashriel did can make someone’s pride hurt.

Umiling si Ashriel saka bahagya na lamang ngumiti. “Sorry about that. Ganun na talaga ako sa ibang tao.”

“Then how about me and Evron?” tanong ni Nylah, tinusok niya ang lettuce ng salad niya bago siya muling tumingin sa binata.

Ashriel leaned forward slightly, resting his forearms on the table. “You and Evron are different,” he said softly.

Napatigil si Nylah. She noticed that there was something in his tone—sincere. “Different?”

“Yes. You’re not like them,” sabi ni Ashriel. Tinignan niya si Nylah sa mata. “You don’t try to impress or chase. You just exist. And that’s enough to make me look twice.”

Bahagyang nag-init ang pisngi ni Nylah, kaya ibinaling na lamang niya ang tingin kay Evron. And then asked, “But who’s that woman?”

“I don’t know,” sagot ni Ashriel na parang wala lang.

Napatanga naman si Nylah sa sagot ni Ashriel. “You didn’t know? Then why—”

“She’s just a woman who wants my attention.” Bahagyang bumuntong-hininga si Ashriel. “Huwag mo ng pansinin. She’s not worthy of our time.”

Napailing si Nylah. No wonder that Ashriel Rios, president of the multi-billion-dollar empire Rios Group, was known for his ruthlessness in business, but didn’t confirm a relationship to any woman who was linked to him. “Lagi ba ‘tong nangyayari?” tanong ni Nylah, halatang curious.

“Sometimes,” Ashriel answered. Inabot niya ang baso ng tubig at uminom. “And sometimes, I will be linked to some women I didn’t even know. You know how the media works. Making stories for them to have money.”

“You never dated?”

Ashriel smiled, shaking his head. “I didn’t. Just this time.”

“This time?” ulit ni Nylah at nagtaas ng kilay.

Ashriel’s lips curved into a teasing smile. “With you and Evron.” He winked at Evron, who looked at him with bright eyes as he was busy eating his food.

“But yeah,” dagdag ni Ashriel matapos ang ilang segundo. “I did blind dates arranged by my mother. None lasted for more than a day.”

“Bakit naman?”

Nagkibit ng balikat si Ashriel habang nakatingin pa rin kay Nylah. “Because no one ever made me want to stay longer than that.”

Tipid lamang na napangiti si Nylah at nagpatuloy sa pagkain.

Nang matapos silang kumain, hinatid ni Ashriel ang mag-ina sa coffee shop. But as they were on their way, inside the car, every few seconds, he would glance at the rearview mirror, just to see Nylah’s reflection. Her head was slightly tilted, hair falling over her face, and one of her arms protectively wrapped around her son.

Pagdating nila sa harapan ng coffee shop, hindi siya agad bumaba. Ni hindi rin agad binuksan ni Nylah ang pinto.

“Thanks for the lunch,” sabi ni Nylah.

Tumingin si Ashriel kay Nylah at ngumiti. “You’re welcome. I enjoyed it.”

Nylah looked at her son. “Evron enjoyed it too. He was so full that he fell asleep.”

Ashriel chuckled softly. “He eats like me.”

“Meaning?” tanong ni Nylah, smiling teasingly.

“I like feeding the people I care about.”

Natigilan si Nylah. “You… care?” her voice became a whisper. Hindi niya inaasahan ang sasabihin ni Ashriel.

Ashriel didn’t answer right away. Instead, his hand reached for the rearview mirror and adjusted it slightly, para mas makita niya ang dalaga. “Let’s just say, you and Evron make my day less dull.”

Natawa ng mahina si Nylah. “That’s one way to say it.”

Natawa na din si Ashriel. But he meant what he said. “Do you need me to carry him?”

Umiling si Nylah. “Kaya ko naman.”

“Sure?”

Tumango si Nylah at ngumiti — the kind of smile she seldom shows to other people — small, polite but warm. Binuksan niya ang pinto ng kotse saka lumabas. Maingat niyang hinawakan si Evron upang hindi ito magising.

Ashriel watched Nylah the whole time — how she cradled her son, and how the sunlight touched her face.

When she finally turned to wave goodbye, his hand lifted automatically.

He smiled as he watched Nylah and Evron enter the coffee shop and disappear from his sight.

Aalis na sana siya para magtungo sa Rios Tower nang may pumarada na magarang sasakyan sa tabi ng sasakyan niya.

Then the driver — it was a woman — stepped out.

Kumunot ang nuo ni Ashriel nang makita niya ang mukha ng babae. The woman entered the coffee shop — she was tall, elegant, and effortlessly poised. She also carried the confidence that only someone used to attention could carry.

Kumunot ang nuo ni Ashriel. That face…

He couldn’t place it at first. Hindi niya matandaan kung saan niya nakita ang babae pero alam niyang nakita niya ito dahil hindi naman magiging pamilyar sa kaniya ang isang tao kapag hindi pa niya ito nakita.

“Where did I see her again?”

Ashriel fell into deep thoughts.

Then it hit him.

France. Two years ago.

The charity auction was hosted in Marseille. Galing siya sa isang mayamang pamilya na kilala sa buong mundo kaya imbitado siya. That night was filled with champagne flutes, whispered deals among the business people, and camera flashes. Hindi siya maaaring magkamali. Nakita niya ito — in crimson dress, laughing with investors, her name was being mentioned more than once among the elite.

Elise Moreau.

Naalala na niya ito. A rising star in the European business circle. It was rumored that she was a sharp, ambitious woman and was rumored to have charmed her way into powerful negotiations—the kind of woman who didn’t go somewhere without a purpose.

At alam ng lahat na may Boss si Elise Moreau na walang nakakakilala kung sino. It was a powerful boss that moved in the shadows. And there were whispers among the folks that Elise Moreau Boss was also a powerful individual in the Underground Organization. That Boss… he never heard the name. No one dared to mention the Boss's name in the business circle.

“Anong ginagawa niya rito?” nagtatakang tanong ni Ashriel saka lumabas ng sasakyan.

Salamin ang dingding ng coffee shop ni Nylah kaya naman kitang-kita niya ang paglapit ni Elise sa counter. Sandali itong nakipag-usap kay Rita bago ito dumeretso sa isang pinto.

Ashriel froze when he realized that the door was for Nylah's office in the coffee shop.

Ilang minuto ang lumipas, lumabas ang dalawa at umupo sa may bakanteng lamesa sa gilid.

Through the glass, he saw Nylah and Elise talking. The two women exchanged words that he couldn’t hear.

They know each other.

Bahagyang umigting ang panga ni Ashriel. Something about that realization unsettled him. Elise was not just anyone—she was connected to circles that thrived on influence and secrets. If she were here, she wasn’t by chance.

Humugot ng malalim na hininga si Ashriel. His eyes were fixed on the two women behind the glass. The sigh shouldn’t have bothered him, but it did.

Dahil sa pagkakataon na ‘yon, a quiet unease whispered inside him — not the cold suspicion of a businessman, but something far more personal.

Nylah doesn’t belong to that world. And yet, that world just walked through her door.