Chapter 2 Unexpected Flashback

"Daddy! I am so scared Daddy!” a seven-year-old child wearing her school uniform, wailed as she heard multiple gunshots. She flinched when the window at the back of the car shattered. It was raining bullets that the child hurriedly transferred into the passenger seat and sat on her mother’s lap while her father tried to get away from the car that was following them. "It’s okay baby, Daddy will protect you and Mommy. Honey, get my gun! Hurry!”

Felisse hurriedly picked out the gun from the secret compartment of the car and handed it over to her husband while hugging her daughter tightly, trying to get down hoping that the bullets wouldn't hit them.

"Arman, what’s going on?” Felisse nervously asked her husband. Her eyes widened in fear when she saw Arman about to fight them. “Don’t face them alone! Don’t get out of the car! Just drive until the rescue arrives!” Felisse told her husband while pressing the secret button on her cellphone, that it would alert the headquarters to an emergency.

"I love you Felisse, whatever happens, be strong and take care of our daughter for me.” Arman said before he turned to his daughter, who was trembling in fear. Just seeing his daughter trembling, catching her breath because of severe crying brought agony to his heart. It was so painful that all he wanted to do was to hug and caress his precious daughter's face to calm her down. But alas! Another gunshot was fired, breaking the window on the driver’s side. All he had to do was hold his daughter's hand and kiss his wife.

"I love you, Felisse. I love you Alisha, my princess.” He then stopped his car and shot the wheel of the van which was on the tail of their car. He didn't have a choice but to attack head-on or they would all die in a car accident while dealing with them. He could not let them hurt his family!

Even before he heaved a sigh of relief because the car finally stopped, a man riding a motorbike appeared on the right side of the car and pointed a gun towards him. A loud bang was heard as blood appeared on his wife's clothes. Another gunshot echoed and he didn’t know what happened next because he hugged his wife, trying to cover her and their daughter. He could feel the pain as bullets penetrated his body, before he felt his eyes getting heavy. He still heard his daughter’s frightened pleas as he succumbed to darkness.

"Daddy! Mommy is bleeding! Call your policeman Daddy! Wake up Daddy! Daddy! Wake up! Help me! Bad guys! Bad guys! I am so scared Daddy! Help me…!” the child stopped shouting as the gun of her father that was full of blood dropped in front of her. Her chest tightened, eyes widened in shock, and her tears stopped falling because of fear. "Mommy! Daddy! Wake up! Don’t leave me! Please help me!” The small hand touched her mother’s hand trying to wake her up. It was cold, and the child's eyes froze open when blood started to flow from her mother’s arms. "No!"

"She heard the police siren coming, but she couldn't care less because she knew they were late. With a trembling body, she looked at her body covered with bruises and blood - hers and her parents’.

"For a child who grew up seeing her parents' devoted love for each other, that can be comparable to the fairytales she watched, who’s been treated as a princess and has received care and got everything she wanted, like a queen. That was heartbreaking, distressing, and traumatizing. There were no warriors to defend their palace. As the child finally closed her eyes, she realized that there’s no such thing as magic. But indeed, she's a damsel in distress.

Alisha woke up catching her breath, full of sweat and with tears falling from her eyes "It's the same dream again.” She whispered while trying to calm herself.

"No, it's not just that, it's a nightmare that is still hunting me down, even if it's been two decades since it happened." She rambled to herself. She could still feel herself trembling as if it only just happened yesterday.

"If only I could push myself to forget, I would. But who are you kidding with, Asha? That's kinda impossible." Sighing, she looked at her cell phone to check the time. It's quarter to six in the morning already.

She realized she had just slept for four hours because of the novel she was writing. She wrote in advance because she would be very busy this week. She had just moved into her newly built house and she planned on decorating the interior with her best friend's help. However, the plants that she ordered for her front yard were already delivered yesterday, so that lessened her work, well, she assumed.

She forced herself to get up, fixed her bed while thinking of foods to eat for her breakfast. “I am just going to eat fast food later. Alright! I can do this!” she said, cheering and calming herself.

"Shit! Nenette would surely kill me!” She was about to call her best friend when she saw that Nenette was calling her already. “I am really dead!” She was ready to greet her when her best friend’s angry voice echoed in her room. "Alisha Borja Ortiz! How dare you not inform me that you have already moved into your new house? Seriously? I thought you'd need your best friend’s talent? I cleared my schedule just to help you! I am more excited about designing your home! And yet you asked for somebody else’s help? You are hurting my feelings right now! I swear to God! I swear I am going to burn–”

"There’s nothing to burn, Nette. And will you please calm down?” she said to cut her best friend’s litany.

"Oh?”

"Get ready. I’ll be needing your expertise today.”

"That’s my best friend!”

"Yeah right” she answered while rolling her eyes.

"I’ll pick you up at 7 quarter! Bye Bye! “

She chuckled at her best friend’s reaction before she dressed up. She decided to just wait for her best friend outside.

Nenette’s a blessing to her. She never thought that she would meet a person whom she could treat like a sister. She’s an only child, while Nenette is the only girl in the family, having two elder brothers. She met her when they were in grade school. Nenette was bubbly, talkative and energetic, while she was quiet, timid and shy as a child. However, a fortuitous event happened. Nenette’s painting that she created during their art class, was the exact replica of the poem that she created in their language class. They did not notice until they were being called to recognize their works. She excelled in language, Nenette excelled in arts. After she recited her poem in front of the class, Nenette came to her and showed her art. They laughed together when they realized. However, they know for a fact the reasons why. They may have different personalities, but they have one thing in common. That the two of them only understand. --- Zeke was busy preparing his luggage when he received a voice message.

"Hey yow Zeke! Open your door for your cousin! I am waiting!

"What the fuck!" Zeke cursed in his mind when he heard his cousin’s voice.

"Another headache to deal with." he thought. He zipped his luggage and just sat on his bed, not planning to open the door for his cousin. He would just pretend that he was not at home, praying that the bastard at his front door would notice and leave. "That’s right."

As he was about to lay on his bed, he received another message.

"I know you are inside. I can hear your music from here.” Cursing, he turned off the music and opened the door. Seeing a man, towering on his doorstep, teasingly smiling at him.

"I really want to punch and remove that smirk off your face,” he informed him as he turned his back and went inside.

"What made you grumpy?” Zander, Uncle Jake’s son, teasingly asked him as that man kicked the door closed.

"You have a key to this condo, Zander,” he answered. “Why bother chatting with me when you can just use it to open the door and help yourself?” he added.

"I wanna piss you off. I think it worked.” Zander grinned. "And what are you going to do with my shirt?” his voice rose and his eyes widened as he saw his cousin cleanse the sofa using his shirt, before comfortably sitting on it.

"Hmm. Just making sure it’s clean. Dustin might have come from here with his mess. I might get infected.”

Zeke could not agree more. All of his cousins had duplicates to his condo, having the privilege of coming over anytime. Zander once visited him but it was Dustin whom he found inside with two women. And they were not stupid not to realize what those two women and Dustin did, especially that the condo was a mess. With clothes scattered everywhere, boxes of condoms on the table, broken glasses and the smell of liquor, it was indeed a wild night. He still remembered how disgusted Zander was. Zander called for cleaning services, and did not enter the place until the disinfection was completed. That’s how obsessed this person was with cleanliness. "What brought you here?”

"I need a long drive, but I can't drive. So, I am coming with you to Baguio."

"How did you know?”

"Dustin happened.” Zander voiced out as if it answered his question. "You have your car, Zander.” "I need you to drive for me” "Really? You are aware that you just pissed me off, right?” "I am. But do I need to beg my cousin?” Zander pouted with pleading eyes. "Zander, I’ll be leaving this afternoon,” he snorted. "I just can not drive." Zander answered helplessly, and Zeke was lost for words. His cousin looked in trouble. "Fine. You’ll go along with me. Prepare your things. We’re leaving.” As Zander prepared his things, Zeke picked up his luggage and keys, and left the plane ticket his godfather gave him on his bed.

He was about to ask Zander to carry his luggage out when he saw him staring blankly into space. Rubbing his cheek, he tapped his cousin and went out the door first.

"What about your restaurant?” he asked Zander as they were trapped in the traffic entering the North Luzon Expressway. "It will still run even without me. I asked my father to look at it for me.” Zander said reassuringly. "Have you informed Ali that we’re coming over?” he asked, pertaining to their cousin, Uncle Jay's son. "We? Why? Aren’t you going to stay at your parents’ house?” Zander asked him. But it seemed like he remembered something. “Oh! Aunt Au must be pestering you again! “ "Shut it!” Zeke exclaimed, but Zander still continued. “You know Zeke, Aunt Au is right. You are not getting any younger!” "You are just two years younger than me!” he extorted. "That makes your age two years nearer at the end of the calendar and you never even once introduce a woman to them.” Zander responded in a matter-of-fact voice, irritating him. "Not because I never introduced someone to them means I never have been --” "Kissed? Fucked? But you really never courted someone, Zeke!“ Zander cut him. "That’s because I want the first woman I’ll introduce to them to be the last one. I am in a serious relationship. I want to meet someone who values relationships the same way that I do! I am also just making sure that those women I’ve met before deserve to be introduced.” he defended himself. "Oh come on Zeke! Don’t mention those mushy things in front of me. It’s creepy! Just save them to your only-last one.” Zander acted like he would be vomiting at what he had just said. "But that's… That’s the truth! It’s not my fault that those women I've met before turned into a fling or a one-night-stand fucking body. Don’t blame me if what they want is just my money and…. And my… my…. delectable gorgeous body!” he confidently said while showing his biceps to shut his cousin up, but Zander, as crazy as he was, just laughed heartily. "Your… your …” Zander could not finish his words . “delectable… gorgeous…. body?!” Zander laughed uncontrollably. He even wiped the tears from his eyes as he laughed hysterically as if not agreeing with what his cousin had just said.

Sighing and gripping the steering wheel, Zeke just tried to focus on driving even though what he wanted was to strangle his cousin’s neck. However, he knew that he would never win over his cousin’s mockery, so he let him be.

He stepped on the gas instead so they would reach their destination right away. He wanted to get rid of his cousin fast. Driving for him was not a good idea.

He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the street signage of where their house was located. He stopped the car in front of a white house and turned to Zander, who looked at him amusedly. "You really wanna get rid of me, huh?” he chuckled. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to tell Ali Sander about your mother’s plea.” Zander hurriedly went out of the car when he saw him holding a bottle of water to throw at him. "I will just let Dustin inform him instead!” Zander even shouted before saluting towards him and entered the house with a grin.

"Zeke then followed the path that led to his parents' house. As he was about to enter the garage, he noticed a dog feeding its puppies, so he avoided them. While retreating, he heard a crash from behind his car. "Holy shit! Did I hit someone?” He quickly got out of the car and looked for it.

He sighed a relieved breath when he noticed that he hit a plant on the side of the road. Shrugging, he entered his car and parked it in their garage.