Chapter I

The Beginning.

It was morning.

She was stroking her hair under the bright sunlight while she was sitting in front of her wooden window.

While holding a book, Celeste plastered a sweet smile on her face because of the romance story she was reading. It was the chapter wherein the leading man kisses the girl he loves in front of everyone while they were eating inside their favorite restaurant.

"Oh my goodness. I couldn't believe that he did that! " She exclaimed.

She began to flip the next page to continue reading what would happen next when suddenly she was called by her father, Don Andres.

"Cele, what are you doing? You are supposed to go to the market to buy fresh goods for this night's celebration. " Don Andres said.

Celeste sighed, put a bookmark in the book and placed it beside her. She smiled happily at her father.

"Papa!" I'm just going to do some reading before getting started on my chores. " She said while approaching him and gave him a soft peck on the cheeks.

"I know Hija, but your Mama is already yelling at me downstairs and wanted me to tell you that her Amigas are coming to town this afternoon for our 25th Wedding Anniversary." He exclaimed and gave Celeste a smile.

She gave a reassuring smile to her father. "Don't worry Papa. I will just fix myself and be ready after 10 minutes. "

She then walked to where her closet was and started to find a dress to wear when going to the market in the center of their town.

Don Andres walked closer to where her bookshelves were and glanced at them.

"Hija, How many books do you have here? There are so many. "

Celeste turned around and started to think of the right answer.

"I'd say it's close to 400 or 450 books in total, papa." Why? "

"Have you already read all of this?" Her father asked, completely shocked.

She raised her hand and gave him a thumbs up. Don Andres chuckles and turns his head from side to side. "Por favor hija, Stop reading so many love stories already because it may give you false hope about love. It's not always full of romance and happiness. It's different from reality. "

Celeste rolled her eyes. "But what about you and Mama? You guys have been together for what? almost 30 years of your lives and I can still see that you love each other. Just like what I've read in those books. Always ending with "Happily Ever after."

Don Andres looked at his daughter and waved at her to come closer. She obliged. Come closer while holding the dress that she wanted to wear.

Her father looked into her eyes intently.

"It may sound like a happy ending for the both of us, but not to other people. Happy endings do not always exist if the two of you aren't destined together. To some people, it is a tragedy. "

Celeste went silent and she could see a hint of emotion in the eyes of her father, but it instantly went away.

Don Andres smiled. "Just don't forget that we are in the realm of reality. Some things that we've read in the books don't always happen like we wanted them to. "

Celeste smiled. "Yes Papa. I'll remember that. "

Don Andres nodded and tapped the shoulder of his daughter. He then leaves the room.

Celeste has always been a fan of romance novels. She was always thinking about that happily ever after. She always imagines herself married to the man she loves and having a happy ending.

"I guess happy endings don't always happen."

She sighed and went to prepare before going to the market.

"Excuse me, How much is this?"

Celeste asked the fish vendor while pointing to the Tilapia.

"180 pesos only hija. Fresh from the sea and arrived this morning. " The vendor smiled at her.

"I'll get 5 kilos of this please. Thank you. "

Celeste's eyes roamed around the wet market.

The market is crowded with people since it is also the busiest day of the week. Everyone flocked to the meat section to buy fresh meat and new catch for the day.

Celeste has been purchasing goods and meat for about 2 hours now. The sun is also out, which caused the hot and humid feeling. Fortunately, she brought an umbrella and an eco-bag with her to place her purchases.

She was quite happy because she was given a discount by the vendors in the market.

While holding the eco-bag in the right hand and the umbrella in the other hand, someone bumped into her and the umbrella fell to the ground.

Celeste sighed in relief because the vegetables and the meat didn't fall from the eco-bag.

"Please be careful next time." She said while picking up her umbrella.

When she glanced at the person who bumped her, he was intently looking at her. She saw that the man was wearing a black suit and wearing black shades.

The man just stared at her and didn't say a word, but she just saw his fingers fixed on something in his right ear.

Celeste's eyes widened when she saw it was like an earpiece.

"I'm sorry, my mistake." the man said and took an intense glance at her before he left.

Celeste didn't move and shifted her gaze to the man who was now near the market exit.

She had no idea she was being bumped by several people, but her gaze is still fixed on the man who is now sitting in the driver's seat of the car.

She walked a bit closer to the exit and saw the man in the driver's seat speaking to someone inside the car.

She doesn't know why, but she was drawn easily. The volume of the people around her does not match the pounding of her heart.

She then shifted her gaze to the person in the backseat and didn't know why she suddenly felt anxious and Celeste could feel that her heart was beating so fast.

She couldn't clearly see his face because he was wearing a hat, but she could feel his intense gaze at her.

But then suddenly, he saw the man smiling at her, then the car drove off.

Celeste didn't realize that she was already holding her breath in those moments.

She instantly decided to go home immediately that same hour.

Her head was aching, and she felt a sharp pain on his chest.

and that man inside the car?

She doesn't have any idea who he is.

"Iha, are you okay?"

Celeste turned to face her mother, who stood in front of her. She was still clutching her chest while breathing heavily. When she got home, her head was literally aching so bad that she had to take medicine.

Dona Saffira approached her daughter and sat beside her. "I'll just get a glass of water."

She nodded and took a rest on the couch. Maybe she was just tired and fatigued these past few weeks. It was also because she had a hectic schedule because she had been hired by several parties in their town. She didn't have the time to rest because every night, she couldn't sleep well.

"How many times do I have to remind you that you don't have to work? You can just stay here." her mother said to her while handing her the glass of water.

Celeste just smiled. "It's okay Mama. I like what I am doing and, besides, I'm not a kid anymore. I wanted to earn my own money at this age. "

Dona Saffira just sighed and asked her to take a rest in her room. The party will be later in the afternoon. Celeste immediately walked upstairs and went to her own room.

Her head was still aching but it got a lot better than before. She laid on her bed and just stared at the ceiling. She suddenly felt empty inside. Every single day of her life, she was just being like this. Staring at the ceiling is like searching for the unknown. She suddenly felt empty all of a sudden but she didn't know and understand why.

Celeste touched her cheeks and was shocked to see that she was already crying.

Why am I crying? she said to herself.

She has a complete family, a job that she loves and a stable life that she wanted, but what could she ever wished for?

She just wiped the tears on her cheeks and just breathe heavily.

I shouldn't be feeling like this. This is not normal.

Celeste suddenly remembered the man whom she had seen earlier. Her heart suddenly starts to beat so fast. She felt that the man was familiar to her, but she swore that she had not seen him all her life.

She clutched her chest and she could still feel its erratic beating. She could still remember how he looked towards her, which made her nervous.

The woman simply pushed those thoughts away and pushed herself to sleep.