When The Right One Comes Along

"It's about time, Ara. You need to come home a.s.a.p." Binasa lang ng dalaga ang mensahe galing sa kanyang ama pero minabuti niyang 'wag munang sumagot. Kinuha niya ang susi sa bag at binuksan ang pinto ng kanyang apartment. Binuksan niya ang ilaw at nagpalit ng panyapak pagkapasok. She threw her bag on the sofa afterwards. She felt tired but she was hungry as well. Kaya naman wala siyang pagpipilian kundi hilahin ang mga paa niya papunta sa maliit niyang kusina. She took instant noodles from the cupboard and poured hot water for it to cook. Wala ng panahong magluto pa ng disenteng pagkain ang pagal niyang katawan. Living alone sometimes have its down sides. This was one of them. Iyong dadating kang pagod at gutom pero wala kang aasahan kundi ang sarili mo. Ara barely waited four minutes before eating her noodles. She was famished as that was her only meal in the last ten hours. Sobrang busy ang maghapon niya na halos 'di niya namalayang uwian na. "Give your daddy some time before he hands you over to another man." Ara's lips curled into a beautiful smile upon reading another message from her father. Anton Santillan tactically used her being a daddy's girl to convince her to come home earlier. "I still need to finish some tasks before the company would allow me to take a vacation, dad." She pressed the send button as she stuffed some more noodles in her mouth. In less than a minute, she got a reply from Anton. "Vacation? Ara, you promised to resign and stay here for good." Kung nasa harap niya ang ama, sigurado siyang nakakunot noo ito. At hindi makakaya ng konsensya niya na kontrahin ito. But she was glad that he didn't call to press on the issue. Otherwise, even just his disappointed voice would make her obey him at once. And that, she couldn't afford at the moment. Ara's been trying to build herself a career in Los Angeles. Sa kasalukuyan ay manager na siya sa isang malaking kompanya roon. At twenty-seven years old, isa siya sa mga batang nasa managerial level na. Though some people her age are already business executives running multi-million companies, Ara was still proud of her achievement. Everything she achieved was from scratch. Kinse anyos pa lamang siya nang dumating siya sa L.A. Tumira siya sa tiyahin niyang kapatid ng kanyang ina. Pero hindi big shot ang tiyahin niya sa lungsod. Isa rin itong empleyado noon na binubuhay ang sarili sa pamamagitan nang sabay-sabay na pagtanggap ng mga trabaho. It was just that at a young age, Ara looked highly of her Aunt Feliza. Independent ito. Fearless. Noong ipahayag niya sa mga magulang ang intensyon niyang sumama sa tiyahin, katakot-takot na sermon ang inabot niya. Though her family wasn't very rich, her parents could give her a comfortable life without her having to lift a finger. But her desire to be independent was so strong that she dared to use everything to her advantage. And her marriage with Carlos Lagdameo at the right time did the trick. Since then, pinagtrabahuan na niya bawat pagkaing isusubo niya. She worked during day time and studied at night. Alas, after twelve years, she was able to establish herself. But then, the same trick she used to convince her parents to let her go was the very same reason why she needed to go back now. Ara was supposed to do what she wanted in fourteen years as agreed upon. But for some reason, her family informed her that the right time has come for her to get engaged with the man whom she hasn't seen for the longest time. Whatever happened why it was moved earlier, Ara didn't bother to ask why. Maybe Carlos turned thirty all of a sudden. Because that was the agreement. They would get married when he turns thirty. The engagement was set to be held before the year ends. Dalawang buwan na lamang iyon ngunit hanggang sa kasalukuyan ay nasa Los Angeles pa rin siya. Hindi kailangang hulaan na hindi siya interesado. It was a fact. Alam ng mga magulang niya at alam din naman sigurado ng kanyang future groom. Though to be fair with Arabella, Carlos himself wasn't home as well. Nasa London ito since he was ten years old. Thinking about it, the last time they saw each other was before his family migrated to London eighteen years ago. He was ten and she was nine. "I already booked a ticket. I'll be flying by the first week of next month, dad. By the way, is the whole matter still okay with Carlos?" When they were still kids, both of them had no objections. But eighteen years later, things were already different. At least for Arabella, if she had a choice, she didn't want to marry a man who had become a stranger to her. Pero alam niyang napaka-importante kay Anton ang pangakong binitawan ng namayapa na nitong ama sa lolo ni Carlos noon. "Damien and I already talked. Carlos will be flying back next week." "That's great then." Ara put her phone on the side and stared gloomily at nothing in particular. She wished she could have a word with Carlos. An idea came to her mind and she quickly grabbed her phone again. She opened her f*******: and typed Carlos' name on the search bar. Several profiles were suggested. But then Ara realized that it's been almost two decades. The face that she could barely remember now was that of a little boy. He should be twenty-eight now. For sure, iba na ang itsura nito. Still, sinubukan niya isa-isa ang mga nasa resulta. Baka may isa ro'n na may makilala siyang kamag-anak nito. Sa huli, disappointed na isinara niya ang cellphone niya. It was depressing how she knew it all along that she was going to marry Carlos one day. Yet she didn't do any effort to maintain communication with him. ---*--- Napakabilis ng mga sumunod na mga araw. Next thing Ara knew, the plane she was on board already landed on Philippine soil. She was home. After twelve years, she was finally back. Excited siyang makita ang kanyang pamilya. Sa nakalipas na mga taon, it was them who would visit her from time to time. But their last visit was already two years ago. Nakikita naman niya ang mga ito via video call pero iba ang pakiramdam kapag kaharap mismo ang mga mahal sa buhay. Ignoring the real reason why she was back, Ara was elated to be finally reunited with her family. "Welcome back, Arabella." She told herself while pulling her luggage behind her. She didn't take much with her dahil hindi niya balak magtagal. After the engagement which will be on a month and a half's time, she'll fly back to L.A. Tapos babalik na lang siya ulit for the wedding. Walking out of the arrival area, Ara thought of booking herself a cab. Ayaw niyang magpasundo kasi taga-ro'n siya. Hindi niya gusto ang pakiramdam na para bang 'di niya alam kung saan siya uuwi kaya susunduin pa siya. Napangiti siya sa sarili nang maalala kung paano siya pinagalitan ng inang si Stella. Ang tigas daw ng ulo niya at hindi nakakatuwa ang independent attitude niya. Hindi raw kabawasan sa pagkatao niya kung hahayaan lang niyang sunduin siya ng mga taong sabik sa pagbabalik niya. But in the end, wala rin itong nagawa nang kampihan siya ng kanyang ama. "Arabella Santillan." Suddenly, a cold baritone voice called out her name. Mula sa booking app sa cellphone niya, nag-angat ng paningin ang dalaga para sinuhin ang tumawag sa pangalan niya. Few inches away from her, stood a handsome man in an expensive suit. He was probably over six feet at kinailangan niyang tumingala para tingnan ito sa mga mata nitong tila mga mumunting tipak ng yelo. Malamig ang mga tingin nito at pakiwari ng dalaga ay maninigas siya kung 'di siya gagalaw. She frowned. Hindi niya ito kilala. At hindi naman siya artista that people would randomly call her name in public. Ara also realized that almost everyone's eyes were fixed on this man standing before her. His aura made it impossible to ignore him. He was definitely a stand-out. 'Baka siya ang artista.' Naisip ng dalaga. She wasn't into celebrities kaya wala siyang ideya. "Come with me," the man said. Bago siya nakapag-react, natagpuan niya ang sariling hila-hila ng gwapong lalaki. "Hey!" protesta niyang binabawi ang braso sa mahigpit na pagkakahawak nito. "Let me go!" "Shut up and don't make a scene." Tuloy-tuloy lamang ito sa malalaki nitong mga hakbang making it hard for Ara's shorter legs to keep up with him. She realized his point though about making a scene so she stopped struggling. If it was k********g in broad daylight, did they really need to send someone as good-looking to avoid suspicion? Probably not. So she dismissed the idea at hinayaan itong hilahin siya. He better has an acceptable reason why he had to act that way. Pero nang makarating na sila sa parking lot, pinilit na niyang makawala. Hindi niya pa rin ito kilala para pumayag siyang magpakaladkad kung saan man siya nito planong dalhin. Kamuntik pa siyang mawala sa balanse nang bigla nga siya nitong bitawan. It took her few steps backward before she regained her footing. "Who are you?!" she angrily snapped at him. The man smirked, revealing arrogance on his handsome face. "It's a shame that you don't recognize the man you agreed to get engaged to, Arabella..."