Chapter 32: Burned

I was awakened by the slight movement of my mother. It was just a small stir, but it was enough to rouse me from my sleep. I'm not a heavy sleeper like others. Even the slightest rustle is enough to wake me up, just like now when my mom's minor movement had me wide awake.

I opened my eyes and looked at my mother, then my gaze drifted to the clock situated on the upper part of my vanity. It was only four in the morning. Once my eyes were open, there was no hope of getting back to sleep, no matter how much I tried.

My drowsiness had completely faded, so I moved a little, but did not rise yet.

My mother glanced at me when she noticed that I was awake. She smiled. I returned the smile and promptly got up, heading straight into the bathroom to wash my face.

I decided to shower as well to fully awaken my body. After that, I quickly dressed and applied lotion and sunscreen on my skin since I planned to go outside that morning.

Exiting the bathroom, I noticed my mother on the balcony. Her hair was dancing in the wind, and she was dressed in her black sleepwear, staring at the still dark sky where the sun had yet to rise and probably wouldn't for a while.

"Mom?" I called out, catching her attention. She turned towards me. I approached her, looking at the dark night sky before turning my attention back to her.

"Is there a problem, mom?" I asked, even though I knew there must be something wrong.

"It's nothing, dear. Just a minor disagreement with your father, but everything will be alright. We're both just cooling down..." she said, which made me nod in understanding.

I spent a few more minutes with my mother on the balcony, dressing in my sports bra and leggings because I planned to go jogging. I also grabbed a towel to wipe myself if I needed to.

"I'm going for a jog outside, Mom..." I told my mother. She just nodded. I went down to my room and saw my father on the sofa, drinking coffee. He looked up at me and looked behind me, probably expecting my mother, who didn't seem to have any plans to come down yet.

"Your mother?" He asked me.

"She's upstairs," I replied.

He nodded and sighed heavily. I told him I was going out for a jog. He nodded again and looked up towards my room.

I brought my cellphone with me. As usual, I played some music and put my earpods in. I kept the volume low. It was still early, so there were only a few cars on the road. I left the subdivision, planning to jog further out.

There were many people jogging along the same path as me, some my age and some older. Some of them glanced at me, and a few even recognized me.

I quickly took a break when I spotted a waiting shed. I sat down there and immediately wiped off my sweat. I tied my hair up more securely.

I picked up my cellphone and switched on my data, only to be greeted by a flood of notifications. The incessant barrage of updates had begun to irritate me and it was causing me to overthink.

There were numerous news stories on TV broadcasting the incidents. I wasn't surprised when it started trending. After all, when the Fuentes family gets involved, the conversation is bound to heat up.

I read through all the comments, spending several minutes scrolling and reading. I would have continued had it not been for the person next to me speaking up. I glanced at him, my eyebrows furrowing in confusion when I realized it was Zach. He was looking at my phone screen.

"You should stop reading it, it would be better to go for a jog and just relax, ignore social media for a while," he advised.

I wasn't sure what came over me to take his advice. But it was sound advice. I would definitely feel more relaxed and breathe easier if I didn't burden myself with things that I knew would just cause me a headache.

Therefore, I decided to deactivate all of my social media accounts. I began unfollowing and unfriending everyone on my social media platforms before deactivating them.

I sighed in relief when I had finished. I promptly deleted all the social media apps from my cellphone. All the piled-up notifications at the top of my screen disappeared, leaving only Google and YouTube notifications.

"How are you?" Zach asked. We were sitting across from each other. He sat down in the chair opposite to mine.

I arched an eyebrow at him. "Are we close?" Instead of answering his question, I responded with another question.

I had thought that he might be offended, but he wasn't. He even laughed.

"I was just asking," he replied with a grin.

His grin immediately irritated me, and I refrained from saying anything else.

Ignoring him, I felt a sudden thirst. Zach handed me a sealed plastic water bottle. I then noticed he had two bottles.

I accepted the bottle without protest, even thanking him for it.

He excused himself and said goodbye. I wanted to ask him why he felt the need to say goodbye, but decided against it, afraid it would result in a long conversation.

I tossed the plastic bottle into a trash bin marked 'plastic bottles only'.

I immediately started jogging back home. I covered quite a distance since I was enjoying the jog, so I didn't get back home until five-thirty. I unlocked the gate and entered.

I headed straight for the kitchen where I found my mom drinking coffee, sitting far away from my dad. I grabbed some water and drank it as I watched them. I chose to have breakfast before taking a shower.

I served myself breakfast, and so did mom, not letting dad do it for her. I watched my dad's reaction. He looked disappointed. He swallowed nervously, clearly uneasy about my mom's cold treatment.

Our breakfast was unusually quiet this morning. I immediately felt a sense of discomfort, an awkwardness that hung in the air like a heavy cloud. It was not like them to be this silent. Usually, my dad would be making a cheerful racket at this hour, and sometimes even Mom would join in the lively chatter. But today, the only sounds that filled the room were the clinking of spoons and forks against ceramic plates.

After that eerie morning meal, I retreated to my room. I didn't bother turning on the heater, as my body was already warm from the discomfort, and I craved the cool relief of a shower.

Once I was done, I quickly changed into my casual clothes. My hair was still damp, but I didn't mind. The thought of using the hairdryer seemed too tiresome at that moment.

I began to tidy up my law books that were scattered on my desk. As I did, my eyes landed on a box sitting near my trash can. It was filled with photos that I had painstakingly printed, developed, and even decorated with designs.

I picked up the box and started going through the photos. Each one was a painful reminder of Kyle. I loved him, but he had squandered my affection, carelessly throwing away someone like me.

How easy is it for a person to succumb to temptation without considering the possible consequences of their actions? I sat there, feeling betrayed and let down.

I picked up the photos and went to the backyard, lighter and some papers in hand. I was about to set them ablaze when one photo caught my attention. It was a photo of Kyle and me, both of us flashing bright smiles. I remembered that day clearly. It was our first year as law students.

My heart ached with regret for the years I had devoted to him, for the efforts and love that I had bestowed upon him alone.

I regretted ever letting him into my life. In an act of defiance, I broke the picture frame, grabbed the picture, tore it into pieces, and swiftly set it on fire in a large black can that we usually used for burning things.

One by one, I burned all the photos, making sure not even a single one was left. I watched as the flames consumed those memories, turning them into ashes. I sighed.