“Ma’am Adele!”
They surrounded me, and others were still panting as if they’d been doing this for a long. Someone older approached me. Her eyebrow arched. She was dressed differently, like Esther and the other maids, although she was dressed in the same hue. She moved in front of me, and the servants stood aside to allow her to pass.
“Where have you been?” She was smacking a tiny stick in her hand. Her glasses were smudged, and her hair was knotted. Some of her hair has already turned white. In the novel, she is like the man’s mother and the antagonist.
“Here.” I pointed to the door behind me. That opened and Estella came out. She bowed and waved at the old woman. The old woman’s expression changed quickly. If before she was scary, now it has softened, and she smiled. She messed up Estella’s hair. She communicates with Estella using sign language, we just watch them. When she noticed we were looking at them, the old expression returned and she looked at me.
She hem. “Do you know how long we’ve been looking for you?” She walked slowly around me. She looked at my body and face as if examining me. “Señorito Hugo has been looking for you for a while. He said you suddenly disappeared last night, so madam quickly searched for you.”
I looked at her, confused. What suddenly disappeared she talking about? Isn’t Hugo’s fault why I came out? He’ll turn me around just so his mother won’t chide him! If he only knew his mom knew we were pretending!
“Where’s Hugo?” The annoyance was already evident in my voice. I just woke up, and it immediately opened up to me? If I just didn’t need the money, I might have turned down his offer yesterday. “He’s in the kitchen eating,” she replied. I passed to them immediately. I could still hear her talking, but I continued. Before I could finally get down, I even heard them call the old woman “Mrs. Dola.” She might be the head maid here.
When I went downstairs and entered the kitchen, I saw the arrogant man eating delicious food with a newspaper in front of him. Looks like we can’t get along because of this guy’s habit! Besides being arrogant! Still a liar!
“What are you saying I suddenly left last night? Aren’t you the reason I did that?!” I fired. He kept on chewing and ignored me. Annoyed, I knocked on the table. “I don’t know where you stuff all the ugliness of habit into your body!” I feel like my face is heated with anger.
“Still consider that a sudden disappearance.” he lowered the knife and fork. He sipped his coffee and looked up at me.
“Ha! Do you hear what you’re saying?”
“Clear without buffering.” He even gave his voice a tone and grinned.
I’m running out of things to say to this man. I didn’t know that he would get worse. Even though my voice would go, my tongue would hang out. His habit still doesn’t change.
“You have such a nasty habit!” I roared. He just laughed. As we were fighting in the kitchen, someone suddenly entered. Mommy Helena!
“What’s going on here? I’ve heard the shouting outside. What’s the matter?” She looked at me, “Dola told me you slept in Esther’s room.”
There was no trace of anger or anything on mommy Helena’s face. Just pure curiosity. I remember what she said about ‘Don’t tire of his son even if I can’t understand him sometimes.’ There was an evil that entered my brain.
I grabbed mommy Helena’s arm, clutched it, and showed a miserable expression. I have a take advantage because I know mommy Helena already knows our pretending. Sorry, Hugo! I’m still in advance with you!
“Mom, the helpers told me that Hugo told you I left suddenly last night.” I bowed my head to make it even more believable. “That’s not true. I slept in Esther’s room because he threw me out. I helped him remove the puked in his body, but he got mad. I don’t know why he did that to me.”
Do you want to pick a fight with me?! Now, we’re going to annoy each other. You thought I’m going to lose?! NO! NEVER!
“SON!” Mommy Helena’s eyes widened. I stuck out my tongue and show it to Hugo to annoy him even harder, “WHY DID YOU DO THAT?” More.
“Mom, what? NO!” Why would I do that to my FIANCEE, right? He glared at me. It was as if he was going to stab me with the blade of his gaze. You don’t want to lose, eh? I’ll make sure I’m the winner of this round. For lucky, because I think we still have a lot of rounds to go through.
I forced my eyes to water. It wasn’t difficult because I seemed to be used to crying. I think I can be an actress. I sniffed and tightened my grip on mommy Helena. “Didn’t Esther tell you I get him lukewarm water and a basin to wipe him?”
“I don’t need to know because I saw myself last night that you came down to return the basin,” she comforted me and touched my head, stroked my hair, and shot a sharp stare at Hugo, “Son! If you’re not married yet and you’re already doing this to Adele, what about when you’re married ?!”
While he was being told, Adelard, Hugo’s dad, entered next. “What’s going on here?” That was his first question as soon as he stepped into the kitchen. He was still wearing gardening clothes, his boots were muddy and his clothes were full of dirt.
“Hon! Why did you come in dirty! Look what you did to the floor!” Mommy Helena’s hysterical shout.
Daddy Adelard turned around as if he didn’t know that he covered his body in mud. “I’m sorry, honey. I can hear you and Hugo, so I thought something is going on.” He pulled mommy Helena towards him even though he still had gloves on and his body was covered in mud.
“ADELARD!” Mommy is angry, maybe she doesn’t want to be dirty, “So your son is like that because you have the same temperament! Come on, Adele!” She pulled me away from there.
“Mommy, just calm down. Do you want some water? I’ll get you?” I removed her hand and was ready to get her water when she stopped me.
“No. I’m okay.” She pulled me back and drag me to their room. “I’m just ashamed of you because you’re already helping him but that’s what he’s still doing.” We sat on the bed and she held my hand and squeezed it.
“It’s nothing. I’m the one who’s ashamed. Even though you know what Hugo and I are doing, you’re not angry. You were the first person to accept me after my family died.” I also held her hand. It’s true what I’m saying now. I feel like when my sister disappeared I had nowhere to go, but somehow I felt better in their mansion even though I didn’t like Hugo.
She stood up and took something under the side table. I looked around; it was just the same as Hugo’s room. The only difference is that it is pure white and does not look dirty despite the many appliances.
She shows a large photo album. She looked at me with a smile. “I want you to know Hugo. Here are photos of him when he was young.”
She opened it and the first thing that came out was a picture of him when he was a baby. Mommy Helena is carrying him, wearing plain white clothes and pajamas while mommy Helena was in hospital clothes. Maybe she’ll just give birth here.
Next to the page when he had been baptized, below was as he was crying and holding ice cream. We were laughing there when mommy Helena gave me the photo album. She put it on my legs.
“The next pictures were when he was in high school. It was here that he became estranged from us. He preferred to be in the bedroom and just read about our business. He said no one else would inherit that if not him. “
I turned to the next page and straightened up in my seat when I saw the photo that same his room. The only difference now is the woman’s face. That is clear.
“Who is this? I also saw this picture in Hugo’s room. The only difference is that the woman’s face is erased.” She held the photo and took a deep breath. “This is Soleil,” when I heard “Leil” I immediately confirmed. “Her family is one of our business partners. The only case is that while they were on vacation, the plane they were on exploded.”
“How did she become connected with Hugo?” I couldn’t help but ask. Not because I’m jealous or anything. I was just wondering why he didn’t want me to use liquid soap.
“Soleil and Hugo were in the same class then. At first, we didn’t know, until one day Soleil’s company was included in the issue, we were surprised when Hugo asked us to help their company.” She looked out the window as if reminiscing about what had happened.
“At first we didn’t want to. Who was the business executive/businesswoman who wanted to help the company involved in the issue? But Hugo pleaded. That was the first time he asked and approached us for help. He admitted to us he wanted to marry Soleil.”
It was as if the pain had passed in my heart. I want to experience that too. It’s like you’re in a fairy tale and gambling because your loved one will make sure he wins the game.
Mommy Helena continued. She turned the photo album page. There I saw Hugo’s different faces, happy, laughing, sad, and frowning. It was as if we were thinking the same way was when mommy Helena said, “We didn’t respond when he confessed to us he wanted to marry Soleil. We thought he was young, immature to think, and making hasty decisions, but we are wrong. All the reactions we didn’t see when he was young until he get a teenager we saw them because of Soleil. “
“So that’s why we allowed him. They became engaged after 4 years. It’s only a year and they’re getting married, but you don’t know when death will pick you up. It was a day for the Soleil family to go on vacation and choose what to wear to the wedding, but no Soleil came back to Randall.”
“So I’m telling you to take care of my son because I don’t want to see him miserable anymore. It’s only been six months since he got back to the office. He’s been productive and no longer drunk. Soleil has been dead for several years. Five years. Hugo is 30. He’s wasted five years. Mommy started sobbing. Even I was surprised to find out. He’s 30 while I’m only 18?! Fortunately, and not obvious in Hugo’s look.
There was a knock on the door just as mommy Helena stopped speaking. “Adele, let’s talk.”
What is this man’s problem again? I looked at mommy Helena wiping away tears; she nodded at me as if to say I can go to Hugo now. I hugged her first before standing up. I just opened the door a little and saw that Hugo still looked the same.
“Let’s go to the bedroom, I’ll tell you something.”
I raised an eyebrow at him. “Why? Isn’t it okay here?” He looked behind me as if to say that mommy Helena was behind me. Ha! I’m sorry because she already knows.
“Ok.” I pretend.
When we were in the room, he locked the door. Come up to me and slowly closing our distance.
“Hep! No touching without consent. Rule #8.” He stopped approaching.
“Okay, sorry for what I did last night. We shouldn’t have done that earlier because they might find out the truth. We should work together.” I suddenly remembered mommy Helena’s story, and I didn’t know myself. Pity prevailed over annoyance with Hugo.
“I’ll buy you your soap too so you won’t have to use what you used last night.”
I just stared at him as he spoke. Is that kind of face so miserable? I could no longer hear his voice because I was busy watching his face.
It only brought me back to my senses when he suddenly stole a kiss from me.
“Don’t even stare like that.”
After he said that, he left the room and left me stunned there.