1982

eight.

At the age of 56, Risa has been thankful and blessed for the life she has at present. Together with her four children, she's contended to live her remaining life. Never once did she regrets having them, they were the lucky charm, they brought back happiness and she needed nothing more.

She's been focusing on how to cope with the loss of her spouse since her bereaved husband passed away. She wasn't the only one who was in mourning; as a mother, it's even more difficult to see her children's reactions. She had to raise her children all by herself—it seemed difficult at first, but she loved her children more than anything and is determined to raise them to be self-sufficient achievers with morality and dignity.

She sat on a chair, staring out of the window, reminiscing about the first time she met her husband, Frank. Looking back on 1989, a year of loneliness, Frank was there to heal her and bring back the old Theresia. When Theresia was 16, she was a happy and carefree-spirited teenager trapped in the depths of depression.

✎...

Instead of being distraught when she found out Leonor was pregnant with her eldest daughter, Jessica, a year later, she was elated for the newlyweds. Theresia looked up to Jesse and imagined how lucky they were to have each other. Tears welled up in her eyes every time she remembered how they began and ended with no string attached.

She reconsiders the fact that they were solely friends with close attachment. What frustrates her the most is that Leonor never told Theresia where she had gone or why she had disregarded her letters. If she doesn't disclose that she's waiting for an explanation, she'll lie. Theresia continues to wait for Leonor, uncertain if she did something wrong because Leonor would undoubtedly never approach her again.

Or will they ever cross paths again?

Theresia becomes toxic, but she continues to focus on her health. She proceeded to meet up with guys she met recently, attempt to enter a courting stage, but never commits. In her free time, she'd binge on alcohol, finishing 5 bottles or more. Drinking had become an addiction for her, and she realized that what she was doing was ruining her life.

She realizes that this will indicate how impulsive she is and how she hasn't moved on from Leonor.

She tries to enter a serious relationship in the past and now, but she always ends up breaking the poor men's heart. Men do not provide her with the happiness or pleasure she seeks. She eventually stops because she's weary and sick of trying to convince herself that she'll ever be able to go on.

Not after she met Frank, who patiently waited for her and stood at her side through thick and thin. She wonders if she deserves him. Isn't he afraid that he'll be nothing more than a rebound on someone she never once committed to, but an unresolved complication?

Frank makes her feel as if she is deserving of new healthy love, and he promises to love her eternally. Frank's heartfelt sentiments struck her, and she fell for them, she admits. She hadn't wholeheartedly laughed so hard in a long time, and she'd needed it.

She married Frank in 1990, entirely entrusting him with her life. She was overjoyed and had been anticipating this day for a long time. Finally, she pledges herself to a person who will understand and not mistreat her in any way conceivable by marrying her spouse with no exchange of any material object. She once opened her heart to someone, specifically Frank.

She hasn't deeply committed to him in the first few years of their marriage. Frank's sympathy for her is reminiscent of a married woman with whom she once shared her contentment. She frequently reminded him about Leonor, of how she brings happiness, of how she can make her laugh when she's down, of how the bliss she felt with Leonor—was something he couldn't replicate.

Forget it, it's stuck in her heart no one can ever replace her Leonor.

"Kung magpakita ka sa'kin, ngayon at kailanman kitang pipiliin, ikaw lang hanggang sa nabibilang na araw ko."

"At sa bawat minuto

Ako'y 'di natuto

Ipilit mang iba ako'y maghihintay sayo

Ikaw ang aking kapiling sa huling sandali

Kasalanan ba kung puso natin ang magwawagi

Kahit sandali palayain ang pusong 'di mapigil

Sana'y tayong dalawa sa huling pagkakataon na hindi na para sa'tin

Kahit sandali patawarin ang pusong 'di tumigil para sa'ting dalawa

Ang maling pagkakataon na ika'y magiging akin"

✎...

A/N: Short update? Thoughts so far? Anw I'm planning to write a new lenrisa au, stay tuned!