Chapter 6: Chapter Five

Reese stretched his arms as he entered the dining room. He saw his Dad and his Abuela sitting quietly for their breakfast. They looked at him with a look that seemed to question him. What's wrong? Does he has a body switching with some eff-off ugly? Or does his face turn into a veiny dick?

"Buenos Dias," Good morning he greeted them as he sat down.

Today's mission is to open the space for discussion about Nicky. Reese doesn't know where or how to start to open up about what Nicky was done. She was wrecking his entire being. He wants to open the subject and he makes sure that it won't bring disappointment to them.

These two people were expecting too much from him, they were hoping the wedding would continue next week, everyone prepared, his family abroad book a flight, from wedding hotel, Church, to days of celebration listed, and a honeymoon in a plane, everything is fixed. He was blanked on how to start to open it. But he has no choice because they need to know what had happened.

"What was with that face?" her grandmother inquired.

Now he had to tell them that, the pain and failure. If they violently react, it would not be his problem. He took a deep breath before he answer her. "There would be no marriage ceremony happening next week. The reason was obvious, the same thing happened. History repeats itself, goddammit." He said that his daddy would almost drop the table knife he held. Reese could see his dad's reaction, his face shocked, while some other parts of him wanted to ask 'why' a thousand 'why's.

He expected it. Fate robbed his dad's dream once again. He expected that Don Carlos will hurt over the news. He could see the disappointment in Don Carlos's eyes. He always likes that when Reese has a problem because Don Carlos was the first one to cry, naturally he sympathized. He feels sorry for not fulfilling his daddy's dream.

Reese believes that someone like Arexia and Nicky just passed by, they're just coming and going away. Leaving a problem and pain. That is the cycle because they only come temporarily then they disrupt his life and suddenly disappear. Wow, the world was so cruel, and his fate is playful.

"The old same thing repeats itself," repeated sadly. He missed nothing. He already did his best. "I don't know why I'm like this, why I'm unlucky. At first, it ends like nothing, and now I'm left defeated. Why is fate playful?" He added with sadness in his tone.

He told them the whole story, which shocked them. This was his fate. Maybe it's his destiny to always be unlucky in love or how easily he can be called the 'King's of Brokenhearted. Of course, both his daddy and grandma know his past bitter story. Now, repeated. A tale of a groom that fails for the second time around. A tale without the exciting climax only the conflicts that cannot be solved.

"She's an uncivilized woman!" His grandmother's outrage went wild. There was always a dart in her words.

Don Carlos did not speak he forced his brain to process what he heard from his unico hijo. He felt sorry for his only child, Reese was still young and yet, he had been through so much pain. He's living a fairytale life. Too young to be exposed to kinda damn pain of love.

"Despite everything Nicky is still a good person," Don Carlos said.

"Buena?" (Good) The old woman shouted in despair. "Oh, Carlos, you're out of your mind. You don't know that lady..."

"Yes, she's good. I hope she will find her path to become genuinely good," Don Carlos said as if he was defending her.

Reese's grandmother simpered "Oh, fool. Nicky wasn't for him, she's not. Did you hear what your son just said? It was all 'itchy, Yes, I suspected her in the first place that woman was different, call her in Filipino term kalapating mababa ang lipad (slut) Now look at your son, he seems to carry the weight of the world with all the burden on it. His marriage fate badly tortures him. " She was weeping.

"There's no sense in arguing the marriage that will never happen," he deadpanned.

"Hijo! No Estoy de Acuerdo," (Son, I disagree) Don Carlos blurted.

"There's nothing we can do, Dad." He was despairing. He was hurt. "I'm certain Nicky didn't love me.

"My dream, son." Don Carlos reminds him.

"If you want a grandchild, then we can use science and technology. I think that's the best option in the meantime, surrogacy, or we can hire a lady who's willing to pay off." He said, smirking.

His grandmother protested "You lost your mind. You can't be a single father in an abnormal way. I can't let you go that way hiring women."

Reese sighed. "Right time please." He knew in himself that there will come in his life a woman who was ready to love him, a woman who will share a home with him. The woman who's willing to share his happiness and his misfortune. "And to marry is not a requirement to focus on my work as President of the company, right?"

"But you're already twenty-three."

Reese was clueless why the two forced him to get married at a young age and have a child, he knew he was too young to take on the responsibilities of a father.

"A man cannot bear a child himself unless—"

"Then why don't you come with me when I return to Madrid next week? You'll find your lucky one if you are lucky enough there."

"No Dad." He said interrupting what his Daddy had said. "It's out of context to find a woman abroad, Dad." He added that he seemed disgusted.

"But are you really okay, son?" His grandma seriously asked.

"I'm a man Lola, and after all Nicky isn't a big loss, right?"

"You're right," she said.

"I think I'm late."

"Stay home," said Don Carlos.

"I'm not going to the office now Daddy. I'm meeting an old friend in Cubao." He said stand up.

"A few months from now you will return to Madrid." Don Carlos said coldly.

"I know that Daddy," he said and turned away.

Reese stopped his car on the beach it was far from the city, and he wanted to be alone. He was carrying a beer, and sitting on the rocks and gazing at the welcoming sea. He was alone, he drinking alone.

That place became his favorite because whenever he had a problem he would hang out there, even when he was young he always went there, super breathtaking, and he feels enraptured. That place witnessed the flow of his tears from his eyes.

A severe pain ran down him, even though he said nothing had happened to him, that it doesn't pull him down for god's sake. However, it still left a painful wound in his chest, burning his soul.

He asked himself if Nicky was being happy with what she was doing to him. He doesn't know if she has a conscience, but she seems to be happy with what she was doing. Hell.

"You're so bad." His pronunciation of that line was inadvertently amplified. Later he heard two women talking pass behind him. He heard that the two said he was crazy and depressed, the conclusions of the two old ladies were tolerable and he no longer contradicted them. Indeed he was really out of his own mind.

Reese was electrified by pain and depression, the marriage depression. He's scared of telling that to the world or else he will receive tons of 'I told you so'.

"That's how young people are today, Mare. Maybe that one is frustrated with love," said the fatty lady.

"I don't know about them, they enter a relationship, and then when they are hurt they cry. Where is the courage there Mare, isn't it when you are in love you are ready to accept the consequences if it fails, if the person you love leaves you, you must be strong. That is why no one can compare with us as a product of three decades ago, even if it hurts, we can still get up and face tomorrow with a fan say adieu." The other lady answered.

A groom without a bride for two times, that's a big tale that I couldn't tell to the world, and Hell I can't.

He looked at them while they were walking away. He realized that they have the point actually. Reese needs to be a man and face the situation, then the right time will come for him.

He sighed and stood up. One thing in his mind that's to bury what had just happened in oblivion. Reese thinks of a woman whose heart was full of kindness.

Later, her image plays in his mind, the shape of her body, her voice, her blue eyes, the perfect Zev seems lovely. He's willing to venture a way to her heart.

I'll show you who's Reese without you Nicky-a total cold-blooded, but you'll get jealous later when the right princess claims me as her prince.

***

Reese is in his room. He was silent as he typed his tenth novel, tragic genre, marriage failure theme, a glimpse of his experience. The young man plans after publishing that novel he will go to Wuhan, China to visit his best friend Lee.

Even in a broken-hearted situation, the young man was forced to work his brain to imagine.

Even though he wasn't a professional novelist his novels were written well and his imagination was running wild, his imagination was continuous. He's not like the stranger Zev he met the other day who was a super fan of Romance. Zev? suddenly he asked himself. Reese stopped what he was typing. The lights made the things glisten, that's my—

But he was interrupted by the ringing of his cellphone, Matt was the name registered on the Caller ID of his cellphone.

"¿Que fecha es hoy?" (What's today's date) he asked immediately on the other line.

"Primero de Octubre," (It's Monday, October) first he replied. "So what's about the Date?" He asked again.

He could hear his friend chuckles from the other line. "Supposedly." He sneezed before continuing to say "Isn't today the wedding ceremony? Supposedly. Ah, so perfect and fine day perfect for wedding, but unfortunately-hmmm... Wedding bells just rang in my damn head."

His body suddenly reacted to a sudden pain that ran down him, he felt a rush of adrenaline, he was stabbed in the chest ten times and it was freaking hurt. Reese had to control his eyes from a burning sensation. But he could not stop the tears from falling. He quickly wiped them away with his palm.

"Still there?"

Reese sighed.

"I heard you sighing"

"Que planes tiene para esta noche?" (What are you doing tonight) he just asked his friend, to temporarily forget the pain that tortures him.

"As usual Bro. By the way, the clothes you left in Zev's apartment are already here. Dude, are you sleeping with her? Hey, I'm telling you asshole, she's innocent."

"What a fool brain." He threw himself on his bed. "Why my clothes was with you?" He forgets that it was Matt who send him to Zev's apartment.

"She left it to me."

There he grabbed the chance "Are you guys related." A little bit of curiosity fills him.

He laughed. "Zev is my kababayan."

"I see! Also from Las Piñas?"

"Dickhead of course. Hep, Kiddo, Don't tell me you're interested in her irresistible charm. Hmm, baby, you'll make me insecure, I'm jealous."

"Fuck you."

"I'm looking forward to it."

"W-what?" He gasped.

"The day you'll fuck me," he said without stopping the laughter. "I know your beast long member..."

"Asshole wanna see a bullet hole in your head."

"In my ass, daddy. I wanna feel your dick invading every part of me. I wanna take in, every inch. "

"I wanna punches you, for sure. Bye for now bullshit."

Reese heard his laugh. He's funny. Matt is his best friend, a trusted one, kind, and like a brother to him. Jolly and badass.

He's a sweet guy, but he knows he's also interested in men. No, he's not a bisexual, he's straight, he understood Matt why he was attracted to his fellow man, to the gay and bisexual guy, he once told him about Kith.

He didn't know who Kith he was referring to, but he seemed happily to mention Kith's name. He was bewitched with that Kith.

Matt sighed and Reese heard it, he wasn't hung up yet, Reese loves listening to his rant. Matt was funny. He uses a lot of jokes just to make Reese smile. Matt knew he was broken, so he understood why it suddenly became weird that moment.

"Bitch, I'll hang up," he sighed.

"Take Care of yourself," he said from the other line.

"Is that legit care, Matt?" he laughed.

"Scam, All right, I know you'll court Zev,"

"Will you support me?"

"I will support Zev, not you." He guffawed.

"Bitch, adios"

"Adios" (Bye) he said goodbye

He put down his cellphone and smiled as he remembered the name of a beautiful goddess that conquer his heart. A heart that was in pain but slowly healed with her images animating his thoughts. Is he in love with her?