What Belongs to Me [COMPLETE]

Chapter 31 "What Belongs to Me"

2020

“Yesterday, I was just crying with Cizar because after finally meeting each other again after how many years, he was already engaged with someone. And the following days, I spent my nights with him in secret, only to find out that her fiancé was already pregnant and soon they are going to get married.” This thought was constantly ringing and banging inside my head for the last couple of weeks. But in just a few minutes of our encounter with Sunny and Oliver at the restaurant, everything had changed, the universe had flipped over again and I’m not sure if it’s a work of destiny. If so, I needed to thank Mr. Destiny for putting things in favor of me again, for always being there guiding me whatever I planned to do.

After the issue I was into, I stopped being active on my social media accounts for a while to avoid other people talking about me. When I came back to Manila after my Palawan getaway with Cizar, he talked to me seriously on having a new beginning together. Telling me now that he had already broken his engagement, finally he can focus all his attention to me. That he wanted a new and fresh start in our relationship, just doing everything that we wanted without anyone’s approval and not caring whatever the world thinks of us. He talked to me on having a vacation to our hometown, to the city where we both studied and graduated. While he is telling me that, the thought of our apartment and my room randomly flashed and projected through my memory but I didn’t say anything to him. I made another long leave of absence from the office, leaving my works to my trusted managers, and I was sure that they can manage well because I trained them. I never said anything to my family because I didn’t plan on going home; I just want to stay with Cizar for the whole time, like what we’ve been dreaming for so long.

We decided to go to Ilocos region first for a stop-getaway before going back to Penablanca city, Cizar took his BMW sedan because we think that being in a car on the highways is more of an adventure than boarding a plane and sleeping for an hour. The gigantic windmills on the highways of Laoag city was putting us in astonishment because of its awe-inducing view, ‘a real work of a genius’ I thought. We rode the famous ‘kalesa’ at the street of Vigan city laid with pure cobblestones all over while wandering the ‘bahay-na-bato heritage’ that was once had become part of the ‘seven wonders of the world’. Sitting under one of the stripe red and white café-awning on the street, staring down the road in front of us, the yellow-orange flare of the lighting was warming up our faces and our mood. I was staring on Cizar’s beautiful dark eyes while they glimmer on the effect of the warm pendant lighting in a basket-like frame. While talking about the fresh scents coming from the flower shop beside the café blending with the acrid tang of someone’s cigarettes, the waiter in casual outfit wearing an apron delivered our steaming large cups of filtered coffee, admiring the beautiful prints of vines on the ceramic cup and how the smoke swirled blending with the cool air. Some people are walking on the street- mostly tourist on backpacks, but our eyes was rested on the lady at the other side of the street wearing a sleeveless floral dress and a sandal, closing her store and folding the awning perfectly squared before entering the house.

We stayed for a night at Ilocos before barreling and bustling to Penablanca city along the highways of farms and greeneries, hanging bridges over briskly flowing rivers and all the fragrance and sweetness of the provincial air- clouding us. I asked Cizar to open the windows so that we could intake all the positivity of nature and then we made several stops at the landscapes that had amazes us. Seating and leaning on top of his car watching the magnificent view of the mountains while the sun-warm of the afternoon light is causing our skin to shimmer and glimmer in deep tan. We’re almost touching down Penablanca city shortly before six p.m., before the gold rays of sun was totally gone to the other side of the horizon. I told Cizar that we have to find a perfect hotel to stay throughout our vacation but he just smiled at me and,
“We’re going somewhere.” He said.
“Can’t we just go there later, maybe in the next days?”
“Of course not! We have to go there now.” I rolled my eyes and looked out the window feeling the fresh evening breeze, touching my face and blowing my hair.
“Just make sure, that I’ll be pleased with it.” I said.
“Pleased? That’s not enough to call it. This is a “Surprise” I’m telling you.” He said grinning sheepishly.
“It better be, or else…” I said but I could feel that my face is blushing and I couldn’t wait to see what he’s saying. Is he be any chance taking me to dinner at a five star restaurant and had arranged a surprise with bouquet of roses and some men in suit playing violin while we’re eating and dancing? ‘Oh my God! Stop dreaming.’ I told myself and continue gazing outside until I dozed off. I was awaken by the sounds of cars, and everywhere was illuminated by red lights, we’re stacked on a traffic,
“Where are we Cizar? What is this now?”
“We’re near the plaza and night markets are everywhere that’s why cars couldn’t pass freely, but don’t worry, we’re almost there, promise…” he said rubbing my thigh while his left hand on the steering wheel and eyes on the street. I fixed my hair and I nodded at him politely saying,
“It’s alright. Anyways, I’m amazed on how this city had progress already, but this traffic needs to stop.” I was saying and then Cizar turned the car on a very familiar crossing to me and said,
“You’re right, so much has changed, and can you remember this street?”
“Of course, this is going to my school, and I could remember us walking every night in this street when we’re having our dinner.” I said pressing my lips tightly, "Those chilling nights.” I said with a smile all over my face.
“Yes those days.” He said.
“Wait! Where are we really going?” ‘I don’t see any romantic place here’ I thought.
“Just enjoy looking outside, we’re almost there.” I never complain anymore and leant my head on the window gazing outside. While Cizar was driving cautiously, I began to reminisce the random memories on every corner of the street, the horizontally long SM building where I usually hang out after class. Going straight through the unending campus of the university that I went into with a new enormous arch on the gate but I could still see the statue of Saint Anthony inside with the prominent old building behind it. The enormous column of white and green dormitory, cafeteria and food-courts in front of the school, some group of the students dancing outside the school- maybe practicing for p.e. Everything is just bringing back the memories, though so much had change already but students were still the same, hanging out in the stores everywhere- smoking and holding a can or a bottle of beer.

I was so drown to everything along the street when Cizar abruptly turned the car to a very familiar street and I stared at him nodding.
“Where are we going Cizar…?” I asked him slowly, and he wheeled the sedan in front of a three-story building with a penthouse on the rooftop but I wasn’t really sure because it’s already dark. He looked at me as soon as the car stopped and said,
“Surprise!”
“Oh my God! What are we doing here Cizar? This is our old apartment! Do you still rent a room here? But you already left much earlier before I left the building?” I was asking really puzzled, but he asked me to stay on the car, took some keys on his bag and hopped outside. I was left checking in what is he going to do, he walked over to the now renovated black main gate, pulled it open and went back to the car. He pulled the car inside the carport, turned off the ignition, removed his keys and told me,
“You can get out now!” I was still in shocked because he’s not explaining to me what’s going on. He closed the gate and open the three padlocks of the main door, just then I noticed that no one is in the building, with all the light switched off and the ground floor was totally renovated. With a carport enough for three cars and I was left searching for the staircase going upstairs.
“Hey, where are the people? The boarders?” I asked.
“Come inside!” He just said and so I followed, he switched on the lights saying, “SURPRISE!” and he hugged me from the back, his head hooked on my shoulder. And then I was left in awe, not because of any luxurious interior design but by the total renovation that happened to the place. A circular staircase going all the way to the third floor is transformed into an elliptical mezzanine with a weird room at the corner, giving access to the high ceiling. An enormous column made of marble that rose up to the second floor holding the mezzanine. I still don’t understand what’s going on,
“Is this our old apartment now?”
“Yes Lheam. Are you surprised?”
“Wait, how come…”
“This is my house now Lheam, I bought it with my savings when the owner put it on the market when they migrated to Canada.”
“What? But why?”
“What do you mean ‘why’? When you left…” His voice sunken. “When you left me, I came back here and rented your room, even after I graduated, I held on to it.”
“Why did you do it Cizar…?” I asked with moistened eyes.
“Because of the memories Lheam, our memories inside that room.” He looked up at the weird room that I noticed on the mezzanine earlier which was the only thing that he didn’t change.
“I mean, why did you come back here? Why did you have to torture yourself?” I held his hands tightly, “I’m sorry; I didn’t know you suffered so much in silence.”
“It’s ok Lheam; I eventually got better as the years passed. Look, I even got engaged to Sunny. What’s important now was that we’re finally together Lheam.” I hugged him tightly.
“How can you be so romantic?”
“So are you surprised?”
“You’re right, surprise is an understatement Cizar, and I was flabbergasted! by everything about this place.” He kissed me.

“Do you want to look around?”
“I would love to… But wait, who designed your house?” I frowned at him.
“It was my architect friend.” He said smiling to the high ceiling with a custom-made mix of wooden and brass chandelier.
“Oh I see, that is why…” I said nodding.
“What huh?” he said gripping his grasped on my hand bulging his eyes on me.
“Nothing, I mean I can differentiate a work of an interior designer to an architect, that’s it!” the design of his home is a mix of industrial and modern, the ground floor has the recessed to the floor square living area, a dining room and a huge kitchen with the bathroom. The entire second floor was converted to a mezzanine with a huge space outside the only room for recreational purposes. Going to the third floor is the master’s bedroom and two other guest rooms with an entertainment area on the center.
“Are you ready to go to the rooftop?” he asked me excitedly.
“Sure…” and so he led the way, opening the double lock of the metal door going out. As soon as we stepped outside, the soft breeze of the howling wind welcomed us, blasting everywhere. I was astounded with how he transformed the rooftop to a penthouse; a pair of wooden rocking chair and set of sillion-fraille are over the shed over-looking the street and all. I couldn’t really see everything clearly because it’s dark and so Cizar grabbed me to squat on the black and white tile flooring in checkered layout like sitting on a chessboard. As always we sat there gazing at the night sky while talking about our lives in the past eight years that we’re not together.