272: DILEMMA

DILEMMA

A HIGH PITCHED shriek caused Clark to open his eyes from a deep slumber. He instantly stood up and looked to where the voice was coming from. Only to find out that it was Avyanna who was standing at the edge of his bed.1

I wanted to scold her for what she has done to me, and because of it, my head throbbed. It caused me so much irritation that I had to count to hold my temper.

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU, LADY!" I hissed.

"Oh please! We would be late if you won't get up and get ready your lazy ass ready! Have you forgotten that we'll be cruising all the way to Vienna? My gosh! This is my first to be in a cruise ship and I won't allow you to ruin it!" she melodramatically rolled her eyes at me.

"It's still early in the morning! For goodness sake, Avyanna! The cruise ship will wait for all I care!" I lay back down at my bed to ease the throbbing ache in my head.

"Please, Clark! Please? Get up now.." she sweetly pleaded. How can I heartlessly deny her request?

"Okay, only after this headache, which you caused, fades… and shoo,"

"I'll come back. The breakfast will be ready in thirty minutes brother. Bye!" she grinned.

"What a brat!"

…:heart_suit:…:heart_suit:…:heart_suit:…

"Is there something wrong, father?" he looked at me, his eyes washed in tears.

Orlie looked at his daughter, and then he smiled at her. He shook his head.

"I was just missing you mother so much."

"Oh.. what was she like, father?" I slowly went to his side, took the photo frame from his hand, and caressed it gently with my fingers.

There was not even a hint of memory that remained in me about her. Despite how old the picture looked, yet still, her innocent face is visible. Her curly locks cascading freely at her back, a small flower was on her ear, and she wore a beautiful smile. Her expressive eyes looked straight at the camera. She looked innocent and fragile.

"Hmm… she was the most beautiful woman I have ever met." When I heard my father's answer, I instantaneously looked at him. I saw how his eyes shone as he tried to recall her and their memories together.

"How did you meet her, father?" I turned myself to him to fully face him as I intended to listen repeatedly about their love story.

"Aren't you tired listening to our love story, dear?" my father glanced at me with amusement.

"I won't get tired, so please?" I said with much pleading in my eyes that caused my father to chuckle.

"Okay. Okay! One fine day, I was walking out from the university that I saw a woman, standing opposite to my direction. She was calling the attention of the passersby so that they would buy the flowers she was selling. She was so clever to think that since it's Valentine's day, lots of students would buy flowers and give it to their darlings."

"Did you come near her?"

"Uh, nope. I stood there frozen. I was enthralled by her beauty and I did not notice how shabby her clothes were. I could only see her lovely smile, her dazzling eyes. So I went to the nearest waiting shed to sit and observe her from a far. Well, I planned to buy all her flowers if in case she could not sell it all because I saw how tired she was." He sighed.

"It was only when it's nearly dark that she decided to stop. That's the time I went to her and bought all her flowers." I saw how my father smiled at the memory of their first meeting. "Little did I know that she will change my life forever…" but his smile slowly faded, and a mist was formed in his eyes.

"When we knew about her pregnancy, I immediately married her and since she was an orphan, I took her to my parents' house to introduce her as my wife. I was all enthusiastic that they would accept her. But, I was so wrong! They could not accept her and they accused her of ruining my future because of her pregnancy. I was shocked at their reaction, so we walked out from the house and from their lives."

A tear was formed in my eyes as I imagined my parents' situation. I wanted to hate his parents as well, but I won't. I won't let them be part of my system.

"Do you have any news about them, father…?" this time, his eyes roamed around my face. He reached to caress it lovingly. Instead of answering me directly, he diverted the topic.

"Do you know that you resembled your mother so much?" I nodded, but I sensed that my father is hiding something from me.

"But father, did you receive any news from them?" I repeated. He withdrew his hand from my face.

"Yes." He answered thriftily.

"What are your plans, father? Will you meet them?" it took him some time before he answered me.

"I don't know, dear. Because every time I looked at you, I remembered what they did to her, to us. I could not afford to let them do the same to you…" my eyes widened in surprise when I heard the hatred in my father's voice.

"Because of their cruelty, we suffered. You took part of the suffering. It should not be that way. They did not show pity on my poor wife's situation. They disowned me the moment I chose your mother. They threw us like a piece of trash, out from the house. Warned us to never go back. But now? Hah! They needed my help."

I went speechless. This is the first time I heard this side of the story, so I went to my father's side to console him.

"I could not find a decent job because…" my father sobbed.

"I am so sorry, father. I shouldn't have asked you," I felt his pain that my tears voluntarily shed.

"We are okay now. Whatever your decision is, I will support you, father." We embraced each other, and he continued his silent cry.

"Thank you. I don't what will happen to me if you're not here, dear. Please do not leave me." there was much pleading in my father's voice that I finally decided.

"Yes, I won't," But deep within her, a dilemma is luring.

After their talk, Karyle was caught deep in her thoughts. She was caught between her passion for helping others and the need to be with her father. Besides, she has a deeper reason why she wanted to be in every country. It feels like she was looking for something. Or someone?

The emptiness she felt was slowly gnawing within her that she desperately wanted to find the answer as soon as possible. On the same day, she decided to ask her father.

"Father, did something happen to me in the past? Or did I meet someone in the past?" My father was caught off guard. I noticed his body went tense.

"In the past? There was none. Why did you ask?" her father tried to act cool and calm.

"Oh well, lately I was having some dreams of a little boy and a girl…"

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