Chess Pieces Aftermath: Lucius D'Angelo

Chapter 14

I sighed when I heard my phone ring for the nth time today. It was already inside the drawer of my office desk. Kanina ko pa inilagay iyon doon dahil kanina pa ako naiistorbo sa pagtunog but it still didn't even conceal the sound and I could still clearly hear it.

I should've set it to silent instead. I was hoping that the caller would give up after ignoring his calls pero hindi pa rin naman tumigil sa pagtunog ang phone ko. I guess I underestimated my father.

Nang sa wakas ay tumigil na ang pagtunog, I quickly took out my phone and set it to silent before my father could call me again. Inilagay ko na iyon ulit sa loob ng drawer at ipinagpatuloy ang pagbabasa ng files sa harapan ko.

But I couldn't do it. I couldn't go back to review the files. I was reading the same sentence over and over for about some minutes and when it was about five minutes of doing so, I admitted to myself that I was already distracted.

Damn it. I was doing it to take my mind off today's date, of the reason why my father was calling me a lot of times now, of why I refused to move off my chair and go home even if I had nothing to do as I already finished all my tasks.

It was Ishtar's birthday today and I knew why my father had been calling me. He wanted me to go to her birthday party.

But I didn't want to. Fuck, I didn't even want to see her. Or to talk to her. Anymore. If I could just erase her in my memory and forget I even knew her, I would. I would gladly do it.

I sighed. I wasn't sure if any of my friends attended her party pero kahit na sabihing nandoon sila, it wouldn't compensate anything. Hindi ko matatagalan ang party na 'yon. Hindi ko matatagalan na magpanggap na parang ayos lang ang lahat.

Ishtar's existence was screaming at the fact that Angela is dead.

But my father kept on calling me. Alam kong pipilitin n'ya akong pumunta sa party kaya hindi ko talaga sinasagot ang mga tawag n'ya. I had no strength to do that. I want nothing to do with Ishtar anymore. And yet my dad couldn't seem to understand that.

Maybe he was still hoping that we would reconcile. Just like when Ishtar and I were still kids. Na kapag may ginawang mali si Ishtar, I would still tolerate her. I would still forgive her matapos ko s'yang pagsabihan na parang isang nakatatandang kapatid. Because that was what I am to her.

I treated her like my sister. A sister I would always tolerate no matter what she did. I tried to fill in for what she was lacking. A family. Because I knew what his father did to her mother. And I didn't want Ishtar to think that it would be a problem for her.

And then there was Dad that was hoping he could give her a decent family. He became a good father to her.

But that was before. Hindi naman maliit na bagay ang ginawa ni Ishtar na pagkatapos ay pwede ko s'yang pagsabihan at patawarin. Hindi na kami mga bata. May nawalang buhay dahil sa ginawa n'ya.

I couldn't forgive her. Not anymore.

I was interrupted when the intercom rang. I answered it and I heard Glenn's voice from the other line.

"Sir, your father's on the line."

Mariin akong napapikit. Fuck it. I should know that my father wouldn't stop until I talk to him. He must've realized that I'm ignoring his calls.

"Sir? Should I tell him you're busy?" tanong ni Glenn nang ilang sandali akong hindi sumagot.

I sighed. I knew my father wouldn't stop. He was... strict. Probably because he was the former King of EL Ordre as well as the former CEO of this company. He hated it when I was not answering his calls. There was a big chance he might come here kapag hindi ko pa sinagot ang tawag n'ya ngayon.