David’s P.O.V. But whatever it was, I would not make a big deal out of it. Kung tutuusin ay pabor na pabor ‘yon sa’kin. I knew that Kuya Liam only did it for good. For all the things he did to me, alam kong hindi ako kailanman ipapahamak at pababayaan ng bayaw ko. Kuya Liam was the one who bailed me out of the jail and at that time, he even flew all the way to Europe. He gave me a lawyer who would take care of my case, without me worrying so much about my future. Of all the people, I would trust Kuya Liam even more. Kung ano man ang naging usapan nilang dalawa ni Don Miguel involving Athena and I, the deal was indeed at my advantage if part of the plan was for our paths to cross again in the corporate world. I wished it was, pero hindi ko pa rin napigilang mapalunok. If that was the case, what about the stage

David’s P.O.V. [Back to the Present] Nagmamadali akong bumalik sa opisina ko, pero wala na akong inabutang Athena na naghihintay sa loob nito. Just when I thought that I would be able to surprise her, I was the one who got surprised at all. And what made me even more surprised was seeing her mini robot still on top of my coffee table. I even knocked on the door of my personal restroom dahil nagbaka-sakali akong nasa loob lang siya nito, pero ni anino niya ay hindi ko nakita nang buksan ko ang pinto nito. It had been a month and I wasn’t yet able to tell her what I had discovered. Actually, hindi ko alam kung paano ko sasabihin sa kanya ang totoo. Alam kong mabibigla siya, kaya hanggang ngayon ay humahanap pa rin ako ng tamang tiyempo. Nagmamadali akong lumabas at napag-alaman kong naka-lock na ang glass door ng opisina niya, which possibly means na umuwi na siya. Kumatok pa ako roon nang ilang beses—making sure na baka nasa loob lang siya, pero wala talaga. These past few days ka

Athena’s P.O.V. It had already been almost four months since my accidental eavesdropping happened, and until now, I still didn’t know how to treat Cristoff right. I was guilty as hell, knowing that I was slowly walking away from him while weaving different sets of alibis. What I said when we were on the fire exit was true—Nadine and I really stayed at our mansion in Quezon City to talk about the reason behind that old letter. She explained to me her reasons and I was informed then, that she had also explained her side to Cristoff. I let that one pass. Siguro, kung ngayon niya ginawa sa’kin ‘yon ay hindi ko ‘yon mapapalagpas. Magagalit talaga ako kay Nadine dahil parang trinaydor niya ako sa kabila ng tiwalang ibinigay ko sa kanya. But then, hindi pa naman niya ako noon kilala at kailangan niya lang talaga ng pera. There was nothing weaker than a person’s mind, most especially in the face of money. Kapag gipit na gipit ka na, gagawin mo talaga ang lahat kahit na ang kumapit pa sa pa

Athena’s P.O.V. It was just a short drive as we only decided to dine in at the ground floor of the Lexington Hotel, located at the east part of Countryside, Alabana. Halos hindi na nga kami nakapag-usap sa loob ng sasakyan. And that was a good thing dahil hindi ko rin naman alam ang sasabihin ko sa kanya. Not until… “Grabe, Cristoff! Ang dami naman nang in-order mo. Pinapataba mo ba ako?” nakangiting sabi ko sa kanya while still exploring my sight sa iba’t ibang putahe na inilalagay ng waiter sa mesa. I guessed Cristoff ordered via call or online. From the looks of it, I could say that he even reserved the restaurant for the two of us tonight. Masasarap ang lahat nang in-order niya at paniguradong masisira ang diet ko. Like The Mediterranean, the Lexington Restaurant also offers European foods—probably, to get three Michelin stars and have a healthy competition with the former. What I was seeing right now were paella, pierogi, goulash, gyros, and cheese fondue. “Hmmm, sort of!” C