Past

"PLEASE, say something, Reese. You've been silent the whole time, tell me, what happened?"

Reese came back to her senses as soon as Severus suddenly said something. She's been spacing out ever since she got to talk to her mother earlier and every single thing her mother told her kept on bugging her.

She looked around and she just found out that they finally arrived back from their villa and Severus just opened the car's door for her and gave her a hand.

Reese took out his hand so that she could support herself to get out of the car.

The two of them walked inside the villa and Butler Mo welcomed the two of them in the entrance. "Welcome back, young lady and young master…"

Nabigla si Reese nang hinarap siya ni Severus at pinag-dikit nito ang nuo nilang dalawa.

Reese was surprised herself and she just found herself staring at Severus eyes and her heart just won't stop pounding.

"You're not sick." Wika nito at pinaghiwalay ang nagdikit nilang nuo at marahan na hinawakan ni Severus ang pisngi niya. "Ayos ka lang ba? You've been spacing out the whole party. Is there something troubling you?"

Reese looked at Severus in dismay. "There is something troubling me." Reese said, honestly.

Severus was waiting for her to continue what she was about to say but Reese was just too lost and she doesn't even know which one she should start asking.

Something about his former lover? Something about what happened with lending her parents a huge amount of money?

"Why…" Reese lowered her head and she took a step backward. "Why didn't you tell me about giving my mother a huge amount of money?"

There she finally said it.

"Why? Is there something wrong with it, Reese?"

She was taken aback with what Severus just said. "What excuses did my mother tell you to make you that generous?" Reese asked Severus.

"She did not make any excuses, I gave the money because you are my wife and she's your mother that I consider as my mother as well." Severus answered.

"You don't know anything she might do with the money. If you think it's for the company, then you're wrong. You don't know anything about them." Malamig na wika ni Reese kay Severus.

Severus sighed. "I don't want to fight with you again, Reese. Every time we have to talk about things like this, we always end up fighting." Mahinang wika ni Severus. "I know you hate them and I know you want to get back at them, but isn't it too much, Reese?"

Reese tsk-ed and she looked at Severus with disappointment in her eyes.

"You know nothing about the war between me and my parents. I think I have misunderstood you, Severus. I thought that you know and understand me at this point." Mahinang wika niya at napayuko. "I'm kind of disappointed."

She left as soon as she said those words to him.

She immediately went to her room and locked the door of her room. She looked at the end of her room and she threw her clutch bag out of frustration.

Daha-dahan na napaupo si Reese sa kinatatayuan niya. Hindi niya alam kung bakit ganoon na naman ang inakto niya sa harap ng binata.

Reese is aware that he really knows nothing unless she would tell him about it.

But telling some things about her trauma would just cause her to be in so much pain.

Talking about that traumatic past would just bring anxiety and fear.

She doesn't want to go back to those times she had to suffer things like that. Hindi pa nga sapat ang galit at lungkot na nararamdaman niya sa ginawang pagpapahirap sa kanya ng mga magulang niya.

A parent who can mistreat their daughter should not be called a parent at all.

Words like, 'Family', 'Love' and 'Parents' are words that she curses a lot.

Reese looked at her palms and she was shaking and she couldn't even stop it.

She looked at her clutch bag on the floor and she saw her things scattered on the floor but the flash drive caught her attention easily. She unconsciously picked up the flash drive.

Reese went over to her study table where her laptop is and she opened it. Sinaksak niya ang flash drive sa laptop at kaagad na nakita ang nag-iisang file na laman nito.

Reese looked at the file description and it was a CCTV footage from way back during 2004.

Nagtataka si Reese dahil hindi niya alam kung ano ang kinalaman niya sa CCTV footage na ito para ibigay na premyo ng ina niya.

She was a bit hesitant to open the file itself, everything that he mother gives her is something dangerous as always.

Curiosity is always the lust of our mind, so instead of closing her laptop, she opened the file and a video started playing in her laptop and it was in black and white.

Reese froze as soon as she saw what was in the video. She started to hear her own voice in the video, she was screaming for help and it made Reese shiver and scared.

Reese can't do anything but to stand up and throw her laptop on the floor and the sound of the laptop was too loud and probably the people down stairs would be able to hear it.

She looked at her hands and she was shaking because she got really scared and it was as if it all happened yesterday. She can still feel the pain and suffering she had to deal with.

A lone tear fell from her eyes and she could feel her legs shaking and she slumped down and cried. "How cruel…" Mahinang wika niya at niyakap ang sarili.

This is the only reason she wanted to take revenge on her own parents. At the age of eight, she already experienced what hell felt like.

She was tortured by her own parents, she was almost killed by her own parents --- she almost lost her life because of a simple mistake she did not want to make.

She can hear the screams she made that day, her sobs and everything. Reese covered her own ears and kept on shaking. "Please stop… I'm scared, Mama… Papa…" Reese said in a low hurtful voice.

Reese startled when there was a sound of a loud crash coming from her door. She was about to look up when she was stopped by a sudden hug.

Reese froze from where she was sitting and the fear she was feeling slowly fades away like there was some magic.

"Please don't lock your door anymore. I was scared, akala ko kung ano ang nangyari…"

Just hearing Severus' voice made Reese calm and she was able to release everything that was trapped up.

Right now, it feels like it's the closest that I've ever been to Severus.

"Cry all you want until you can't anymore. I'll be here, I'll be your crying shoulder, Reese." Severus said in a low voice that made her cry more.

She hugged Severus and she cried on his shoulder like nothing around them matters anymore and everything felt safe for her.

Reese broke the hug and as soon as she was about to distance herself from Severus, he immediately caught her face and he gently caressed her cheeks.

"What happened to you, Reese?" Severus looked at the broken laptop and some things from her clutch bag that were scattered.

Reese stayed silent and she never even dared to say anything. It was as if her mouth was glued and she's scared to tell him what happened.

She can't just talk about her past in any way because it would be hard for her.

Severus sighed and gave her another hug. "It's okay if you don't want to talk about it. But, I was just scared when I suddenly heard something loud coming from your room. I went to your room because I was worrying too much and I didn't have much time to get the spare keys downstairs so I kicked your door." Paliwanag ni Severus at binitawan siya sa pagkakayakap at hinawakan ang pareho niyang kamay at bakas sa mukha nito at matinding takot.

"I… I'm sorry for making you w-worry…" Reese said in a low voice.

"I should be the one to say sorry to you, Reese." Severus said. "We will settle the problem about the money I gave to your mother tomorrow. Say your conditions and we will do it. It was insensitive of me to do things like that. I'm sorry."

And with what he said, Reese is now certain with what she is feeling towards Severus and it is too late for her to say anything anymore, she can't disregard her conclusion anymore.

He shows her unbelievable kindness and gives her a sense of security. Everything is clear for her now and she can surely say that she likes her own husband.

"Oh my god, young master? Young lady? Are the two of you fine?"

Before Severus was about to stand up, Reese did not let go of Severus' hand and she initiated a hug by herself.

She felt Severus froze because of what she did and Reese snuggled her head to his neck. But Reese knew that it was a big bad idea.

"I'm sorry, I'll be back, I'll leave you two alone first." Paalam ni Butler Mo at naiwan na silang dalawa sa loob ng kwarto niya.

The door was on the floor and her room was messy, it was not a good atmosphere for them but she did continue what she wanted to do.

"Reese, are you sure you are okay?" Severus asked her and worry was visible in his voice.

There was a strong scent that entices Reese.

She knew what that scent was and even though Severus doesn't even have any open wound, she can smell blood and Reese is slowly tempted to bite his neck because she's too close to him.

Before she could even do anything to Severus, she immediately pushed her husband away and she distanced herself to him.

She has to control the feeling she is having right now, she can't just bite her own husband because of something she wanted to do.

Severus was about to go towards her and Reese can't even have this temptation anymore, she can't control herself and she's scared that she'll be exposing what she is without confirming that she is one.

Reese took a step backward and she stopped Severus from coming towards her.

"Stay right there, Sev. Just please, stay from where you are…" Mahinang wika ni Reese at napayuko nang maramdaman niya na tila ba ay tumutulis ang ngipin niya.

Reese ran towards her mini refrigerator and she immediately grabbed a drink to relieve the thirst she was feeling.

After finishing a drink, Reese can finally say she got herself controlled.

"Are you fine with the idea of sleeping with me for now?"

Reese looked at Severus who's scratching his head as he pointed to the broken door on the floor that he kicked earlier because of too much worry.

REESE went out of her bathroom and she saw that her room's now clean at the door that was on the floor is still there.

Her broken laptop was immediately disposed of and she saw the flash drive her mother gave her.

Nilapitan iyon ni Reese at matagal na tinitigan.

She will really settle things with her parents tomorrow, the patience she had up until now is gone and she won't hold herself back anymore and she won't even think of them as her family other than her grandfather who is unconscious of things like this.

Reese took the flash drive and threw it in the trash bin. She went outside of her room, it kind of took her for a while to take a bath because she also took her time to cool off from everything and forget everything she saw.

She's standing in front of Severus right now and the thing she and her grandfather talked about before their marriage kept on lingering on her mind.

"I won't be able to keep up with grandfather's favor anymore…" Mahinang wika ni Reese at kumatok ng tatlong beses sa pintuan.

When no one responded, she just twisted the door knob and saw Severus who was already sleeping with a book in his chest.

From the looks of it, he waited for her but he can't fight with his sleepiness anymore.

Reese gently closed the door and went over to Severuss. She sat on the side of the bed and looked at her husband's sleeping face.

She removed the book on her husband's chest and took it away.

It was impossible to keep her grandfather's favor when her grandfather found a grandson-in-law like Severus.

"Is it weird to fall in love with your own husband?" Mahinang wika ni Reese at marahang hinawakan ang pisngi ni Severus na malalim na ang tulog.

Come to think of it, this is her first time setting foot in Severus' room after getting married and getting to live in his childhood villa.

She stood up and she started to look around the room and she can see that he is found with cozy colors because everything in his room has warm color, even the furniture.

Reese stopped in front of his bookshelf and she saw several photo frames on it.

It was photos from his childhood and he even had pictures of him with his parents. Reese stopped in front of Severus' study table and she froze when she saw a photo --- a child's photo.

Reese took the picture frame and her heart started to beat fast when she just realized that it was her.

It was a picture of her when she was a child. She looked at Severus who was sleeping really tight on his bed and Reese was clueless that they already met!

Binaba ni Reese ang picture frame at kaagad na nagtungo sa kama.

She smiled at her husband and she slowly leaned towards him and gave him a kiss.

"I like you very much…" Reese whispered in front of her sleeping husband.

Reese can't confess to him with the state she is in right now, it would be hard for her to digest things if she would confess to him without knowing something about herself -- especially if there is something happening with her body that she can't even call normal at all.

Reese smiled at him and she gently caressed his hair.

"Please don't be in love with someone else until the very day I'll tell you my feelings for you." She whispered.