Chapter 20

Tiffany It feels like it was just yesterday when I thought he was within my reach again. But before I could even hold his hand, he completely turned his back on me. It felt like my heart was stabbed multiple times, trampled upon, and shattered into pieces. This is how painful it must have been for him when I turned away from him. But I know that the wound left in his heart is much deeper. Since he left me in Baguio, I haven't seen him again. However, even without asking, I still know what he's been up to. Jela willingly provides me with information. As for Jairus, he didn't bother me much after I told him everything that happened. But I couldn't help myself from attending the mall tour of their recently concluded TV series a few days ago. The problem was that I didn't have the chance to talk to him or even get close to him. Moreover, his answers during the interview they had afterwards didn't help me sleep either. I let out a deep sigh as I parked the car. It's Christmas Day once again. So, I gathered my courage and went to the Vernon mansion. I stepped out of the car and walked straight towards the door. There was a large Christmas lantern hanging in front, surrounded by garlands. I took several deep breaths before raising my right hand in the air to knock. It didn't take long for the door to open, but time seemed to slow down as I came face to face with Travis' only sibling, Verina. She gasped loudly, her eyes widening upon seeing me. 'Tiffany!" she exclaimed, her voice filled with surprise. I awkwardly waved my hand, rehearsing the words I planned to say when this moment arrived. But it's different when you're actually in the situation. 'Hi?" I greeted her hesitantly, with a mixture of nervousness and embarrassment. Before she could say anything, we heard hurried footsteps approaching our location. Soon enough, Uncle Tyron and Auntie Sandy appeared in front of me, their hands covering their mouths in surprise. My eyes instantly welled up with tears. It had been a long time since I last saw them. God! I missed them! 'Tiffany! It's really you!" Aunt Sandy approached me, tears welling up in her eyes as she embraced me. Unable to hold back any longer, I let my tears fall as well. 'I'm sorry." I couldn't help but sob. 'S-Sorry..." My voice broke. She gently tapped my back. 'It's okay. Don't worry. We're not angry with you or anything," she reassured me with a soothing voice. Somehow, it lightened the burden I had been carrying for four years now. 'Thank you." 'We are glad that you finally came here, hija," Uncle Tyron said the moment Auntie Sandy and I released each other from the hug. I wiped the tears from my cheeks before nodding slowly. 'Yes. I'm sorry it took me this long to gather the courage to come. I felt embarrassed to see you after what happened." I clasped my hands behind my back, nervously playing with my fingers. Auntie Sandy waved her hand in the air. 'Don't be. No matter what happens, you're already a part of our family." My eyes welled up again. Their treatment and words touched my heart deeply. How could I have pushed them away before? 'What are you doing here, Tiff? Are you looking for my brother?" Verina asked mischievously, grinning at me. Heat rushed to my cheeks, and I shyly nodded. Their faces seemed to light up. It was as if they found hope in something I wasn't sure about. 'That's good to hear! Actually, he is—" Auntie Sandy was about to say something, but Verina interrupted her. 'He's at the park where you used to go often. He's leaving for an Asian tour in a few days, so he decided to pass by there before heading to the airport," Verina said, nodding. 'That place became special to him too. He'll be gone for quite a while, around one or two months because he has other commitments lined up. And he's with Jela as well. You can't separate those two; they're always together," she added sadly. I noticed the furrowed brows of their parents. 'What's—" 'So, if I were you, Tiff, I'd go to the park right away and claim what's rightfully yours." Verina winked at me, her eyes sparkling mischievously. Her words struck a chord. She was right. I needed to reclaim what should be mine! I held her hands and squeezed them, smiling. 'Yeah, you're right. Thanks, Verina!" I quickly turned around and ran back to my parked car. 'Merry Christmas, Tiff! Be happy!" Verina shouted, and her words brought a smile to my face. I heard their parents calling after me, but I just waved at them before getting inside the car. As I was about to leave, I saw Verina leap into the air and throw a punch in the air. I couldn't quite understand why Aunt Sandy seemed to be scolding her, though. I drove off in haste, not caring if I exceeded the speed limit or if other cars honked at me for my fast driving. It didn't matter as long as I reached Travis and finally said the words I had wanted to say for so long. In about fifteen minutes, I managed to arrive at the park. As soon as I stepped out of the car, I sprinted towards the park's entrance. Breathless, I came to a halt when I reached the spot near the river where we used to hang out frequently. There was no one else around except for a woman sitting on a bench, arranging something in her bag. She slightly tilted her head, and even with sunglasses on, I immediately recognized her. Why didn't she tell me about her departure with Travis? Was everything planned from the beginning? As I started walking towards her, I noticed Travis' smiling face from a distance. He had brought some food, probably from one of the stores near the park's entrance. My heart ached at the sight before me. He handed the food to Jela and even carried her belongings as she stood up. My fist clenched. I knew we didn't own this place, but it held special meaning to us. Did that woman have to take everything away from me, even this place? The whole time, I genuinely thought she was concerned about my relationship with Travis. But it turns out she had other intentions in mind. I mustered all the courage I had and shouted his name as loudly as I could. I couldn't delay expressing my feelings for him any longer. 'Travis!" I saw Travis' back stiffen. Jela turned her head, her eyebrows furrowing as she looked at me. She took off her sunglasses, and her eyes narrowed as she scrutinized me. Then she let out a loud gasp, seemingly unable to believe what she was seeing. I ignored her presence and continued walking towards the two of them. I stopped right in front of Travis, his back still facing me, while Jela's jaw dropped, staring at me. I forcefully calmed my racing heart before I began to speak. It's now or never. 'First, I want to sincerely apologize. I know I was selfish and didn't consider your feelings that night. I swear, ever since I left you, I haven't had a decent night's sleep. Every day, I question myself if what I did was right and if I'm truly happy with how everything turned out." I bit my lower lip to hold back the tears welling up in my eyes before continuing. 'I admit that at first, I was overjoyed with your efforts, the excessive love you gave me, the attention, the care, and everything. I felt so special and loved. I felt like I was the luckiest girl in the world to have you, the guy that most girls in school dreamed of." He remained facing away from me, while I could sense Jela's full attention on me. As much as I wanted to dismiss her presence, I chose to ignore her and continue. 'But I woke up one day with a feeling that something was wrong. That's true, anything excessive also brings us something unpleasant. What used to bring me happiness slowly became annoying." I turned my head. 'I started feeling suffocated. I felt like I lost my freedom. I was suffocated by your love, and you didn't even leave a tiny hole for me to breathe. It's as if everything around me suddenly disappeared, and I was slowly enveloped in sadness. The person who used to be my light became the one who covered me in darkness." He didn't say a word. He didn't even look at me. 'Until I exploded. I thirsted for the freedom I once had. I wanted to see the light again. And in order for me to achieve that, I didn't have any other option left. I did what I thought I needed to do because I didn't want us to reach a point where we hurt each other. So, while it was still early, I took precautions." I couldn't hold back any longer and started sobbing. 'I know it was wrong because I didn't talk to you about it first. But that was the only choice I had at that time. Besides, you weren't like that when we first started. That's why I can't understand why you suddenly—" I stopped when he finally spoke. 'That's the only choice you have? No! You had other options. But you chose what you thought was best for you!" I almost jumped in surprise as his voice grew louder. Jela gently tapped him on the shoulder, as if trying to calm him down. 'I know. I know I'm also at fault. But can you blame me? That guy keeps on bothering me. He's just waiting for a chance to steal you away from me. So, because I was afraid of losing you, I became selfish. I admit that." His voice became calmer at that moment. I could see how his fists were trembling, tightly clenched now. I bit my lower lip harder. His anger towards me is still intense. 'But maybe we both made mistakes. We were both afraid to speak up. If only I had told you why I suddenly changed, maybe you would have understood me." His shoulders shook, and I could feel his anger with every word he uttered. Jela kept on calming him down. But Travis was now avoiding any attempt to get closer. I was about to ask him what he meant by continuing when he spoke again. 'I was about to tell you everything that night of our second anniversary. I had plans already. But it's too late. You got tired, and it's my fault. I admit I was angry at you. But I'm even angrier at myself. I didn't know that by trying to protect you and our relationship, I would end up losing you." His voice weakened, filled with pain and regret. I was stunned for a moment. I had no idea what he said. During those times, he had no other intention but to protect me. Yet what I returned to him was my resentment and anger. 'I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I didn't know," I let my tears fall continuously. 'But who are you referring to that wants to ruin our relationship? Please tell me everything now," I pleaded with him. Everything seemed to pause around me as he slowly turned toward me. 'Mike." My mouth dropped open. Of course, I knew Mike. He was known as the leader of a fraternity at the university back then. My attention sharply shifted to Jela. She immediately looked down. As far as I knew, Mike was his stepbrother. Did she know about what that guy did? 'He has connections with other groups in school. He really wanted to take you away from me during those times, so he used that as a weapon against me. He constantly threatened me, saying that he would take you away from me. He even said that something bad would happen to my sister if I didn't comply." He shook his head. 'But I couldn't bring myself to tell you because he said my family would be the ones to suffer the consequences. I didn't want to choose between those moments. Both you and my family are important to me. So, I did everything to protect you both, even though he kept pushing me to break up with you back then." Gradually, his expression softened. However, a mix of emotions was still evident in his eyes. 'That's why I used the opportunity to enter the industry to establish connections and influence, even just a little. Aside from that, I gained the support of other frat groups in the university who also didn't agree with Mike's actions. On the day of our anniversary, I agreed to an offer from a talent manager who approached me back then." He touched his neck. 'Even Jela visited me and talked about helping me with whatever I planned against her brother. She accidentally overheard our conversation with Mike and told their parents. But what surprised me even more was finding out that even their parents were willing to help. They had known for a long time that there was a problem with their son's behavior." I almost held my breath, trying to absorb everything he said into my mind. 'Until you broke up with me. A few minutes after you left, he suddenly arrived. He had a knife with him. Fortunately, their parents and some of my acquaintances arrived quickly, so he didn't succeed in his plans back then." I felt like a dwindling candle that fell to the ground because of what he said. He quickly supported me. I knew nothing. I didn't ask. 'I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I didn't even ask you. I didn't even care. Please forgive me." I sobbed heavily. He helped me sit on the bench here. It was then that I noticed Jela was no longer here. My mind felt like it was about to explode from the overwhelming things I learned today, and my breath felt short. But one thing is for sure: I was the one who made a mistake. It wasn't his fault, and it never was! He didn't change. I misinterpreted his actions back then. I kept shaking my head repeatedly. 'If only I could turn back time and undo everything that happened and the words, I said that night—" 'You already did." I looked at him with swollen eyes, even though I could feel the puffiness. 'What do you mean?" He looked down at the promise ring he was wearing. 'It's past six in the evening. We're here in the place where we always meet, and it's Christmas Day today. In this place, at this time and day, you broke up with me." 'Meaning—" He slowly approached me before kneeling in front of me, aligning our faces. I blinked as he wiped away the dried tears on my cheek. 'I was about to go to you, you know. Because I think four years of giving you freedom is enough." He smiled. 'Now, should I continue to say Happy 2nd Anniversary and Merry Christmas?" Tears welled up in my eyes as I nodded. At this moment, there was no more hesitation. 'Yes. Happy 2nd anniversary and Merry Christmas." For the very first time since we reunited, I saw his sweet smile again. He slowly leaned in toward me, causing my eyes to automatically close. As our lips met, I could hear the successive bursts of fireworks in my ears. I knew that this was just the beginning of even more challenging trials we would face. But I believed that our foundation was stronger now. I can't thank God enough for bringing us back from that night. Everything has been restarted, just as I had wished. We were momentarily separated when Travis' phone suddenly rang. He quickly answered it and pressed the loudspeaker button. I noticed it was Jela calling. 'What is it?" 'Mike! Mike escaped!" I gasped loudly, and Travis and I exchanged shocked glances. But his gaze seemed to pierce through me; his eyes were filled with anger. 'No!" he shouted. In a swift move, he grabbed me and switched our positions. Then, a gunshot echoed in the surroundings. 'Travis!"