PART ONE: WHERE IT ALL STARTED

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"NASA KANTO AKO."

After I received such message at this hour where everyone was asleep, I immediately get my jacket on top of my study table. With ease trying my best not to make any noise, I sneaked out.

Dad will really kill me if he finds out.

I grinned.

Soon as I closed the gate, I replied, 'On my way.'

In a blink, the cold wind touched my skin. I shivered as I put my hands inside the pockets of my jacket, seeking a familiar warmth.

Within few steps, I saw a familiar figure standing in the corner of the street. From there, I noticed that the orange light coming from the nearby light post was the only light guiding him away from the night's total darkness.

As I scanned him, I noticed he was wearing his weary and overly used black jacket he had been using since high school.

He waved his hand soon as he saw me. I smiled.

"What's with the sudden text?" I asked, smiling.

He smiled back.

"I just wanna see you. Why? Can't I?"

Beat.

There was something wrong with his smile. Instead of his signature cheerful and bright smile, it turned into a bitter and weak one. He looked so exhausted, seemed like he aged a lot when in fact he was just 19.

"You speak as if I'm your girlfriend when I am not," I jokingly said, trying to lift up the atmosphere. "May problema ba?"

"Do I seem problematic?" he asked, acting like he was offended.

"You always are," I joked.

We ended up laughing.

"How's school?" he asked soon as we went back to our senses.

I grinned.

"Well, just so you know, girls from different departments are asking where you are and when are you coming back. Even Lady Snorlax, she misses you."

We laughed again, making fun of our professor who openly showed her sexual desire for him.

"So, kailan ka nga ba papasok ulit?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I doubt that. Siguro, mag stop muna ako."

My eyes widened. Between the two of us, s'ya itong ganado parati mag-aral.

"Why?" I asked, worry could be seen on my face. "M-May problema ba?"

He smiled bitterly as he met my eyes.

"It's dad..."

I felt my heart took a sudden leap. His dad had always been his problem since we were children. He was, and still is, being beaten up for apparently no reason at all.

His family was once a wealthy family in our city, not until his alcoholic and gambler dad ruined things for them.

His mom had no choice but to accept random cleaning jobs for years until my dad personally hired her to do our laundries and that's when we became friends. We often played, colored our books, and re-enacted famous scenes from the TV series we both loved to watch. I had witnessed how his mom will ask dad for advance payments for them to at least have a meal for the day.

Not just that, I witnessed also how his dad beaten him up: by hands, broom, hangers, and even through a belt. I had seen his scars and bruises. I was a witness of how traumatic his childhood was.

"Defend Me, Attorney." (Law Series #1)Tahanan ng mga kuwento. Tumuklas ngayon