Capítulo 3: Hate at First Sight
God must have been bitching me my whole life.
Hindi ko iyon nasabi dahil lang ipinanganak ako sa isang magulong pamilya, pinalaki ng hayop kong ama, at pinaranas ng lahat ng uri ng pagmamalupit. Nope. It wasn't just that.
It was the fact that that life wasn't supposed to be mine. I was never supposed to be in that house, with that family; wasn't supposed to experience all that pain and suffering.
How hilarious.
Just when I thought I had finally burned all my connections to the past, it resurfaced and crawled back to me, like a hungry zombie. Everything I knew about myself turned out to be wrong, and now, I was fed by newer, or should I say, older facts.
First, my name wasn't really Danielle Alfonso, but Natalia Constantine Ferreira; daughter of Lolita and Aziel Ferreira. And that would lead to the second fact, which was, Henry and Marisa Alfonso weren't my real parents.
Surprise, surprise.
Apparently, Henry kidnapped me when I was two years old. He was one of my mother's—my real mother's—suitors. Ang sabi ay inalok ni Henry na maging kabit si Mrs. Ferreira, at nalaman naman iyon ni Mr. Ferreira kaya't pinabagsak nito ang kumpanya ni Henry hanggang sa nawala na sa kanya ang lahat. Because of that, he resorted to kidnapping me as payment for everything the Ferreiras had done to him.
I didn't doubt that for a second. My father was undeniably a monster. I knew that more than anybody else. Now, it made sense why he loathed me so much; why he repeatedly made my life a living hell, as if I was the one who had done him wrong. Maybe in his eyes, ruining me was almost like ruining my parents.
What he didn't expect though, that the kid he was leading to damnation would be the one to finish what her parents' started.
Nag-angat ako ng paningin, at agad na nagtama ang mga mata namin ni Mrs. Ferreira. Ngumiti siya sa akin kasabay ng marahang paghaplos sa aking pisngi.
Hindi ko alam kung dapat ba akong matuwa o makaramdam man lang ng kahit na anong positibo. Everything just happened so quickly, that all I was left to feel was frustration. Frustration from being so stupid and clueless about everything. Halos labing-limang taon akong nanirahan kasama ang mga inaakala kong magulang, pero ni minsan ay hindi man lang sumagi sa isip ko na hindi nila ako anak. Talagang kung kailan wala na sila, tsaka ko pa malalaman. At sa ganito kabilis na paraan pa.
One moment, I was Danielle, the orphan who lost her family in the fire; then the next, I had packed my bags, and was already leaving the orphanage with a new identity.
And I had no choice but to accept it.
"You look just like your mother," Mr. Ferreira said from the passenger seat, cutting off my train of thoughts.
"Does she?" Mrs. Ferreira asked as she brushed my hair with her hand. "I guess she does. But she certainly got your eyes, Aziel. Just look how fierce they are."
"She is a Ferreira, after all." He chuckled.
I shifted my eyes between the two of them, my hand gripping my bandaged arm that was hidden under a thick jacket. Hindi ko malaman ang sasabihin dahil mukha silang maligaya habang pinag-uusapan ang isang gaya ko, kaya't inabala ko na lang ang sarili sa sakit mula sa pagpisil ko sa aking braso.
But Mrs. Ferreira had noticed. She couldn't even let me out of her sight, like I was a baby. So I had to stop and clasped my hands together, instead.
"Are you okay, Natalia? Are you nervous?" she asked.
Forcing out a smile, I shook my head and said, "I'm okay. It's just that, everything feels... surreal, I guess. It's like I'm living someone else's life."
"I know this may be hard for you to accept just yet, but eventually, you'll get used to it," she assured me.
Though I doubt that, I still nodded.
"Maybe what you need is someone close to your age," Mr. Ferreira chimed in. "Don't worry, you'll meet your older brother once we get home. Maybe with his company, you'll get used to all of this quicker."
"I have a brother?" I blurted out, suddenly feeling weird now that I know I have a sibling, when I was so used to being alone.
"You have two, actually. Rozen, the younger one, is still overseas. But he'd be here next week."
"I think you and Rozen would get along well," Mrs. Ferreira suddenly declared. "He's a lot more fun to be with."
"Are we the same age?"
"Well, he's a year older than you, but I'm sure you two would just click."
"And Carter?"
"He's four years older than you," Mr. Ferreira supplied.
Oh. So that would make me the youngest. How fun.
Ilang oras pa ang itinagal ng byahe namin habang tuloy rin ang ikinukwento ng mag-asawang Ferreira, kaya 'di nagtagal ay tuluyan na akong inantok. I didn't mean to fall asleep, since I wasn't the type to let my guard down with people I still don't trust, but as soon as I closed my eyes, I drifted into my empty dreams. I only woke up just before our car took a turn into a subdivision.
Alta Tierra was the name embossed on the large silver gates that our car had entered. It shimmered like diamonds, giving me a peek inside the lives of those who lived under its name—a life of wealth, power, and fortune.
I wasn't surprised, though. Just by the Ferreiras' appearances, you could already tell that they weren't ordinary people. But seeing just how big Alta Tierra was, saying that the Ferreiras were "well-off", just wouldn't do.
As soon as Mrs. Ferreira noticed I was awake, she started talking again, saying that she had never thought a day would come when I'd come back home with them, together.
"We're finally home," she said, just as our car stopped in front of a huge house.
If I could still call it one.
Kinuha ni Mrs. Ferreira ang kamay ko, at marahang hinila palabas ng sasakyan, kaya't wala akong nagawa kung 'di ang magpatianod. Pagtungtong pa lang ng aking mga paa sa lupa, malamig na hangin na kaagad ang sumalubong sa akin na bahagyang gumulo sa mahaba kong buhok.
Kasunod namin ay bumaba na rin si Mr. Ferreira, pagkatapos ay lumapit sa amin at sinabayan kami sa paglalakad.
As we got closer, the house seemed to get bigger and bigger. The orphanage couldn't even compare to its monstrosity, and that place was already a two-story building. For the first time in a long while, I was in awe that I hadn't noticed the guy waiting for us on the front door, until he had actually spoke.
"Father, Mother, welcome back," he said in a deep voice.
I immediately knew that this guy was Carter.
"Ah, my boy," Mr. Ferreira said, walking towards him. He gave him a pat on the shoulder, while Mrs. Ferreira only smiled at their direction.
Pinasadaanan ko siya ng tingin. He was wearing a suit almost similar to his—or should I say, our father. He had dark curls brushed neatly to the side that fell just past his temples. At first glance, he almost looked like a younger version of Mr. Ferreira, except that this guy had the same complexion as Mrs. Ferreira. But as we got closer, I noticed that that wasn't the only difference they had.
They had a lot of differences, actually. His nose was sharper than that of Mr. Ferreira, his lips fuller, and jaws more defined. Sa malapitan, halos wala pala silang pagkakapareha maliban sa tindig nila.
But the thing that definitely set them apart were their eyes.
Mr. Ferreira had dark orbs, while this guy... had green. Moss-green eyes that glistened against the soft afternoon rays.
"So it's true... you found her," Carter said, finally acknowledging my presence.
I stood straight and forced yet another smile, just as Mr. Ferreira said, "Yes. Our little girl, Natalia."
Turning to me, Carter nodded his head. He looked at me with curiosity and adoration, like I was some pet that the couple had brought home out from the streets. Then his lips stretched into a smile—a really gentle smile. And at that moment, mine had vanished.
I might be overthinking. O kaya naman, masyado lang akong nasanay kasama ang mga taong hindi naman ako gusto. But whatever reason it was, I couldn't deny the coldness lurking within Carter's irises.
It was only a split second; a flaw that momentarily escaped his perfectly constructed facade, but that was enough for me to notice it.
Carter hates me.
Good thing, I hate him back.
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