Chapter 49: Chapter 49

I woke up early that day and decided to go for a jog. I haven't been exercising much these days and I felt like my stomach is bloated. This would be my last morning here since I have decided to go back home tonight. I asked Erin to come and fetch me later since I have no one else to go to and she knows the road better than I do. She agreed and said that she'll come later at six. I took my earphones and put them on before I started my run. I played some instrumental music just to calm myself and to feel relaxed.

Erin's family's vacation house only has a few neighbors and that makes the jog more comfortable and peaceful. I could only see few people on the streets and that is something that I like about being here. It isn't crowded unlike in the city where people are everywhere.

I was in my first ten minutes when I saw a girl who is probably in her teenage years. She was sweeping the leaves on the side of the road; she looked familiar to me. Have I seen her before? I don't think so. This is the first time that I have seen her. I stopped in front of her and smiled. She was kind and smiled back at me.

"Hi," I said.

"Hey," She said. She stopped what she was doing earlier and faced me. "Do you need anything?"

"No, no," I said. "I just thought you look familiar,"

She was about to answer when I heard a familiar voice coming from inside of the house. Was it Vera I just heard?

"Mom, I'm here!" The girl responded to the voice who called her.

I followed where the voice was coming from and there I saw Vera who just went out of the door. So, this is their house? Does that mean that this beautiful young girl is her daughter? I looked at her and she was looking at me. I bet she didn't think I'd be here today.

"Cami!" She called me. I told her not to call me Miss Cami anymore and just call me by my first name. She was hesitant at first but got used to it anyway.

"Hey!" I said and waved at her. She hurriedly walked towards us and stood beside the girl.

"What are you doing here? Do you need anything?" She said. "I'm sorry I didn't talk to you when I left this morning. You were sleeping and I didn't want to disturb you. I just went home to check on my family."

"It's fine Vera," I said. "There's no need to worry about that."

"By the way, what are you doing here?" She said.

"Uhm, I was just taking a look around while jogging," I said.

"Oh, that's nice," She said. "Did you eat already? I cooked breakfast for you before I left."

"Not yet," I said. "I was thinking of doing it when I got back from my run."

"Alright," She said. "I see that you have met my daughter here."

"Yeah, I stopped because she looked so familiar to me, it turned out she was your daughter and she looked just like you," I said.

"This is Aleya," She said. "Aleya, this is Cami. She's Erin's friend."

"It's nice to meet you," Aleya said.

"Well, it is lovely to meet you too," I said.

"Do you want to come inside?" Vera said and motioned to their house. It is a concrete house that is not that big but not that small either; just enough for a family to live in.

"I don't think so," I said. "I don't want to take too much of your time."

"No, of course, you're not," She said. "Come, we're just about to have breakfast and we would love it if you could join us."

"Are you sure?" I said. "Won't you mind?"

"No, not at all," She said. "I also want you to meet the rest of my family inside."

"Well, sure," I said. "I have nothing to do this morning too."

"Perfect!" She said and pulled me into their humble abode. I go with the flow as Aleya led the way for us.

~~~

"Hey," Vera said. She was holding a glass of juice and offered it to me.

"Hi," I said. "Your family is awesome. I wish mine is just like yours."

We were done eating and I have met her entire family too. I must say that I envy them so much. They might not be rich but you could see how happy they are with their lives. We were at the lanai of their house while looking at her husband and kids while they were having fun in the inflatable pool. It was a Friday so her husband had no work.

"What do you mean?" She said.

"I wish my parents were just like you guys, simple and understanding. In my case, my Dad expects so much from me that I can never cope up." I said.

"But I'm sure they love you so much," She said. "Every parent loves their children. They might not show it all the time but they do. They always will."

"How do you know about that?" I said. I remembered the time when Dad forced me to marry an old man for the sake of our company. "You don't know my Dad."

"Because I am a parent myself," She said as she held my hand. "And we only want what's best for you."

I sighed. "You are a good parent, Vera. I am glad that I have known you even just for a short span of time. I never thought I would be sad just by thinking of leaving."

"Leaving? You are leaving already?" She said.

I turned to her and nodded. "Yes, I thought about what you said and you were right. This is my life now and I can never run away from it no matter how hard I try."

"So you're going back home?" She said.

"Yeah, I am," I said.

"I'm happy and sad at the same time. I'm happy that you finally have the courage to go back but I am also sad that you're leaving though I know it's for your own good." She said.

"I know," I said. I held her hands this time and smiled. "Thank you for everything that you've done and told me. I really appreciate how you cared for me during my stay here and don't worry; I'll visit you here as soon as I can."

"You better," She said and stood up. She pulled me with him and hugged me tightly. "Take care, okay? Don't worry; you'll get over this soon.

I nodded. I hope so. I really do. I didn't want to be broken forever and I figured that I can only mend my heart if I start putting back the pieces now. I need to be my own hero because nobody else will.