Chapter 148: Two Worlds That Collapsed

So, she was the one who abandoned me in front of Grandma’s house?

My body froze instantly. I felt like I might faint right then and there. I could barely breathe.

“So … all this time I am the result of…?” My words got stuck in my throat.

Please, anyone, tell me that all of this is a lie.

Suddenly, the pain struck again. It slammed into the memories I had tightly sealed away, piercing my heart that had been masked by the layers of lies I had created myself.

I closed my eyes tightly. I clenched my fingers hard to keep control of myself, but the effort was useless. My blood felt like it was boiling and my chest grew hotter and hotter. I could no longer hold it in. Instantly, I slammed the door with all my strength.

BANG!

The loud crash startled everyone there. They looked at me with various expressions, but I didn’t care.

“Enough!” I shouted hoarsely. “Stop lying to everyone, Claretta!”

She shook her head violently, with tears that made me feel sick.

Unconsciously, tears began to wet my cheeks. I briefly looked at Mr. Aditya. His eyes were watery as he looked at me sorrowfully, radiating deep tenderness and longing. But I wasn’t sure. Maybe it was just my feelings, or … ah, Kevan! I saw him too, but that look … no! I couldn’t guess it anymore. That gaze was very hard for me to read.

“Frel, listen to Dad first,” Mr. Aditya said in a trembling voice that was almost inaudible.

“I said enough!”

I clutched my chest. My solar plexus felt extremely sore, the pain spreading through my bloodstream to my entire body. It hurt. So much.

I stepped back. I didn’t want to stay in this place any longer.

“Don’t come closer! I hate you all!” I screamed before turning around.

I ran through the half-open gate. Ignoring the voices calling my name, I kept pushing myself to run as fast as I could.

I ran through small residential alleys so that no one could chase after me. I ignored the strange looks from people I passed. Right now, I just wanted to go as far away as possible, to a place where I didn’t know anyone. I wanted to pour out everything in my heart, scream, and cry as loudly as I could.

My steps grew faster, my breath racing. Now, everything I felt about Kevan became very clear. The comfort I felt when I was near him, the sense of déjà vu when we first met, and every time I looked into his eyes, it was as if I was filled with thousands of moments of peace I had never obtained before.

The strange feeling that always appeared whenever I was with Mr. Aditya also turned out to be real.

Everything had been answered. This was the answer to all the questions that had been disturbing my peace all this time.

Oh God, it turns out Kevan is my biological older brother and Mr. Aditya is my biological father. What should I do now?

Suddenly, my foot hit a stone. I fell forward along with the shattered pieces of my heart. I sobbed uncontrollably, mourning a fate that felt so heartbreaking. The rain began to fall, soaking the earth, as if nature itself were mocking my destiny.

I tried to stand with the little strength I had left. I lifted my face, challenging the rain that poured over my entire body.

“Why did you come down? I don’t need your pity. I don’t need you to hide my tears. I also don’t need your rhythm to disguise my sadness. Even without rain, I will still cry. Do you hear me? I will not hide my tears anymore. I will cry as much as I want!”

I no longer cared about my surroundings. I screamed hysterically until several people came out of their houses, cursed at me, and called me crazy.

Yeah, I am crazy. Thank you for reminding me. I have gone crazy because of my own storyline.

I walked unsteadily under the pouring rain and rumbling thunder. My steps grew slower as my body began to shiver. A bolt of lightning suddenly struck right in front of me, making me gasp and step back several steps in fear.

My eyes closed. “Don’t be afraid, Frel. You are strong. You have to be strong,” I whispered to myself in a trembling voice.

The lightning was not something that needed to be feared. I planted that sentence in my mind again and again.

In the end, I chose to take shelter in an empty guard post by the roadside. I hugged myself to ward off the cold. My lips trembled violently. I buried my head in the crook of my arms on top of my knees.

Kevan’s face crossed my mind. I still clearly remembered his sorrowful expression and empty gaze. I knew that right now he must be deeply shaken after hearing this truth. He must be suffering greatly.

Why did fate bring us together like this? Why did there have to be feelings between us?

And that woman. Why did she have to be my biological mother, God? Then, are Abel and Reno really my younger siblings?

“How should I call them now? Is all of this real?” I asked in my broken heart.

I lifted my head and wiped my tears roughly. My gaze was fixed on my bleeding knee. Suddenly, scenes from my childhood flashed through my mind. I remembered when I used to run and then fall. Back then, Grandma would shout in panic out of worry.

“Frel! Dear, don’t run around! Look, your knee is bleeding!”

Meanwhile, Grandpa would immediately squat down and ask me to climb onto his back. “Come on, get on Grandpa’s back. A strong child must not cry over a small wound like this.”

I smiled faintly in the middle of the pain. I wondered what my life would be like if I had never had them.

A flash of lightning lit up brightly in front of me again. I was startled because for a moment I felt like I saw Grandpa and Grandma standing in front of this guard post.

“Grandpa? Grandma? Is that you?” I called softly into the darkness.

Ah, maybe I was just hallucinating.

I had to contact them immediately. Why did I only think of it now?

I quickly took my phone out of my pocket. The screen was dark. “Damn it! Why at a time like this?” I muttered softly when I realized my fatal mistake.

I had forgotten to turn it back on after finishing charging it. As soon as the phone turned on, a call came in and startled me. One name appeared on my phone screen.

Dara.

“Hello, Dara?”

“Why are you so hard to reach, Frel? Tomi and I have been confused, looking for you.” Dara’s voice trembled with tears.

“You’re crying? What’s wrong?” I asked anxiously.

“Frel, I beg you, you have to be patient.”

My eyebrows furrowed. “What do you mean?”

“Your grandfather and grandmother, Frel. They….”

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