The Princess and Me

TPAM: Chapter 1

Maddy

"Are you sure about this? It's not too late to change your mind." Sabi ni Uncle David, my trusted butler and guardian.

"Yep. I'm absolutely sure." I said habang nagbabasa ng magazine. I'm not really reading. I'm just keeping myself occupied para hindi niya na ako kulitin.

Uncle David has been with me since I was just a baby. He's like my second father... always there to take care of me and keep me safe. Which is what he's been doing especially these past four years. He kept me secluded from the world (especially from the people I/we know) to protect me. After what happened to my family, I understood it perfectly.

That fateful day. I remember it like it was just yesterday.
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We were heading to Cannes, from Nice, for vacation. My brother, Daniel, and I were in the same car going to the airport. He was driving, while my parents were in another car; they were in front of us. Just as we're about to reach the tunnel, my parents' car suddenly explode. Shock ran through my and brother's faces when we saw what just happened, and the next thing I knew, the car we were in crashed to a tree.
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"We'll be landing in a few minutes, so get ready. Here's your passport." He said, breaking my thoughts.

"Madelaine Barcelona? Is it really okay to use Mom's maiden name?" I asked while looking at the passport.

"Yes, don't worry. Your mother's maiden name is not quite known in the Philippines. And there are a lot of Barcelonas here so I think we're good."

I just nod in agreement. He's right. Although mom's popular in Europe, she's less known in Asia, especially in the Philippines. Even though she's Filipino. And to think the people here doesn't know I exist. That's because my parents practically hid us from the world.

We landed a few minutes later. I'm so nervous, but I tried my hardest not to show it. Baka magbago bigla isip ni Uncle David.

After saying our goodbyes to the flight crew, we headed to the immigration desk. Fortunately, I passed the 'interrogation' process. Whew!

After getting our luggages, we headed outside to look for our ride. It was not that long before I spotted a familiar face. My Kuya Luke.

"Kuya!!!" I exclaimed as I run towards him and gave him a hug. Kuya Luke's my older cousin on my mom's side. Although we haven't seen each other in a long time, we managed to maintain the bond that we have.

"Maddy!!! I still can't believe you're here! I've missed you so much!" He said, almost about to cry. I can feel the longingness in his voice.

"Namiss din kita, Kuya. Don't cry now. Nakakabawas ng kapogian yan."

"Baliw," he said. "I almost forgot you can speak Tagalog fluently."

"Uu naman! Alam mo naman si Mama, #1 rule sa bahay yan na magsalita ng Tagalog." I remember my mom scolding me and my brother kapag nasa bahay kame and we keep on conversing in English, Spanish, or French. She didn't want us to forget her heritage. Our heritage. That's why she made that rule.

"Hello Master Lucas! It's good to see you again!" Uncle David greeted him from behind.

"Hi Uncle David! It's good to see you, too. And please, just call me Luke. Master Lucas is too formal! And we're going to live in the same house, so you better get used to being casual with us." 

"Sorry, Luke. Nasanay lang talaga ako with the formalities." He said which stunned Kuya Luke, a little.

"I didn't know you can speak Tagalog as well. I assume because of Tita?!"

"Yes. Pati ako dinamay ni Madam."

We all laughed.

"Anyway, we better get going. They're waiting for us na. They are all excited to see you." Pag-aya ni Kuya habang bitbit ang mga bagahe namen.

"Yeah. I'm excited to see them too!" I said while bracing for the tear fest that's about to come. I know for sure.

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A/N:
Thank you for reading this!

I'm so excited kasi this is my first time to write a story. I write for a living (technical stuff), but I struggle with narratives. So bear with me if minsan off yung flow, may grammar mistakes, or sabaw lang. Hehehe.

This story is a work of fiction. Similarities with any stories here, or elsewhere, is purely coincidental and unintentional.

This story is a product of my imagination for a long time. I love day dreaming, at isa ang storyang 'to sa mga nagawa ng utak ko. And ever since I became hooked with MayWard and Wattpad, naisip ko ng isulat ito with them playing the characters in my head.

Hope you enjoy this, and hopefully I'll be able to finish this. 😉🙏🏽🤘🏽