Chapter 14
“W-why are you telling me if this is a secret?” I asked.
She held my hand. There was hope in her eyes. “Because I see goodness in your heart, Miss Alvandra. Please take care of my son. Don’t break his heart.”
Goodness? Since when? All I know is that I’m a bad woman.
“B-but Ismael and I don’t have a relationship,” I answered.
She took a deep breath and sadness appeared on her face. “I see. I must be wrong. My vision must be blurry.”
She let go of my hand and let me finish my meal. She also said goodbye to me while I stayed for a while.
Hold on, if this hotel and that bar are in Ismael’s possession, does that mean he knew everything in the first place? About Professor Sybill’s reservation here. About the woman who was in the room that night. Is that why he was forcing me to leave? Did he try to get me away from the heartache?
Also, that answers my question about why he saved me from being molested that night because he was there since he is actually the owner. Gosh. That was why it was not impossible to see him there but Mrs. Estanislao said it was a secret. Why? Is it because he is a professor? Is that why people shouldn’t know about him owning a bar and a hotel? Then, why did Mrs. Estanislao tell me? Was it because she thought I was Ismael’s girlfriend? No way!
I was still deep in thought even as I boarded the elevator. It is Sunday today and I have no classes so I should go home first. I need to rest from the wild activities I engaged in last night.
The door opened and to my surprise, the man who would enter the elevator was Professor Sybill. He is with a woman. We looked at each other for a while, as if he were hesitant to enter. If the woman hadn’t pulled him, it looks like he would have chosen to take the stairs.
My breathing became heavy. I felt sadness again. Now I can see him with a couple of rings, the same as the woman who is clinging to his arms. It is true. I was just a mistress. And I lose my dignity even more because of that. I am a woman but he made me feel like garbage.
I just quietly watched their backs. Secretly listening to their soft conversations. It really hurts to see the person you love with someone else. I can’t fight because I don’t have the right. And I don’t want to destroy the family. Thinking that they were here, it looks like they also spent the night together. Are they here to celebrate? Is it supposed to be our first anniversary at the same time as their celebration?
I heaved a sigh. A lot of things are coming to my mind again. There are a lot of questions. What did I do to be wasted like this?
“We should be at home now. The children are waiting,” said the woman. I looked up and tried not to gasp. So, they already have kids?
I bit my lip.
“I really enjoyed our time together since we were both busy. Thank you, Sybill, for making this plan to be with me on our fifth anniversary.”
My heart shattered into pieces. They have been together for five years but he still managed to cheat on his wife for a year with me. If I had known, I wouldn’t have done that. I will not force myself into something stupid like this.
I can’t help but feel pity. And in an instant, anger took the place of my love for Professor Sybill. If I could have confronted him right away, I would have, but what I would do would have an impact on a lot of people, even their children.
The elevator rang. I didn’t let myself stay in that place anymore and I excused myself from them. No looking back.
I stopped a taxi and then got in before going straight to my house. Weekends should be my rest days but I was filled with stress because of various things that happened. But the thing is… I began to miss someone. And that someone is Ismael. I felt like I wanted to rest in his arms.
*****
I went to class and as usual, I was late. I have a bit of a headache because I stayed up late last night. Professor Sybill was texting me nonstop and even telling me not to talk about our affair to his wife.
That really made my day worse. He didn’t have to tell me. After he broke my heart, he still had the courage to threaten me not to blackmail him. Why would I even do that?
To think of it, he was also asking why I was in that hotel looking so tired. Well, I left him on seen. Let his brain run wild.
“Hey, do you know the issue?” I heard one of my classmates whisper when I sat in my seat. They are seated at the back of my chair so I can hear what they are talking about.
“What issue?”
“Professor Mondalla was seen in a bar last Saturday night. That’s why he was admitted early yesterday to explain.”
“And why would they ask him about that? It was his private life. Why would they care if he’s at the bar? Does he not have the right to have fun?”
“Because he was seen with a student. They said that student was from Marcus University.”
I was stunned. Did they see us? Are they talking about me?
“Same issue with Professor Sybill before. The source also said that Professor Sybill was also there at the bar on Saturday but he was with his wife so, technically, the issues about him being a womanizer were false. He is a faithful husband. And the deal here is that Professor Mondalla is victimizing a student to satisfy his hunger for lust.”All content is © N0velDrama.Org.
I immediately stood up to them because of what I heard and looked at them evilly with raised eyebrows. They stared at me too. Both were shocked and scared. How can they talk so much about a man they don’t know well? I don’t know but I was hurt hearing those baseless accusations.
“Shut up if you’re just spitting out nonsense,” I told them firmly.
“Why? Are you affected? Are you the girl who was with Professor Mondalla last Saturday night?”
I looked at someone who bugged into our conversation. Who else? It was Savannah. So she was also listening to them?
She approached me. “Are you the reason why our calculus professor will be changed again?”
I gulped. Because of what she said, I realized what I did would stain Ismael’s profile and surely his records here will be affected. And what I promised him-that I would not be a hindrance-seems to have been broken. Because of the burst of my emotions, I got him involved in my mess. Someone else saw us being with each other and that was something I never expected.
“Why did you become speechless? Are you hurt? Well, after all, why would Professor Mondalla hit on you in the first place? Of course, it wasn’t you he was with if the issue is true. He loathed you,” she added before returning to her seat.
The moment she said that, that was the beginning of my anxiety. I can’t help but admit that I am starting to be concerned about Ismael. Clearly, because of my mess, he is at a disadvantage. All he wanted was to stay here but because of my selfishness and foolishness towards the man who never sees my worth, Ismael is the victim of all of my mess.
I can’t stop being ashamed of myself. I should probably distance myself from him now.
I picked up my bag and decided to leave the room but I stopped walking when I met him-the man I should avoid.
My heart melted when I saw his face. I was weak. It was as if my heart was taking all my strength…to beat this fast.
“Where are you going, Miss Alvandra?”