Part VIII – Sweet Sunrise (In Filipino "Tagalog" dialect)

Ninoy International Airport, Manila, Philippines

It was 6 pm in the evening when Damon arrived in Manila. Six years din syang hindi nakauwi dito. From the airport, he went straight to his house. He was so tired but his excitement made him awake.

Pagdating ni Damon sa kanyang bahay ay sinalubong sya ni Ate Belen.

“Damon anak!!! Ako’y nagagalak at nakarating ka na! kumusta kana hijo, kumain ka na ba?” hindi pa rin nagbago sa pagiging maaalahanin si Ate Belen.

“Ate Belen! Kumusta napo, aba hindi ka tumanda ah….hindi pa nga po ako kumakain eh, anu bang meron dyan?” pagbati ni Damon.

“Naku, nagluto ako ng marami!! Magbihis kana at ng makakain.”

“Sige, salamat po.” Umakyat na si Damon sa kanyang kwarto.

Bago nagbihis si Damon ay tumawag sya sa kanilang security house.

“Good evening sir!” Tila alam na ng guard kung sino ang tumatawag.

“Kuya Jun, pwede bang pakipahatid dito ung surveillance CD bago ako naaksedente?”

“Yes sir, ihahatid po dyan ni Danny.”

“Ok, thank you.”

After five minutes ay inihatid na sa kanya ni ate Belen ang CD. He turned the video on using his 103 inches flat screen on the wall.

Habang nagbibihis sya ay pinapanood nya ang kanilang video ni Steph 6 years ago.

He watched the video and his feelings toward her came rushing back. It was like deja vu… The video of her brought him back to the day prior to his accident. It was a promising day alright, but unfortunately ended up sadly. He was smiling until it came to that part on the pool where he saw a lady in red two piece swimsuit..

“Well, I’ll be damned……” He moved closer to the screen.

He couldn’t contain his feelings from coming back like wildfire. All consuming excitement and longingness for this girl.  He knew 100% that that girl on the video was Stephanie, only a different Steph... One he vows to meet by all means possible. Kahit umabot sya sa impyerno ay hahanapin nya ang babaing ito at babawiin sa kahit kaninong lalaki, kung meron man.

Steph...where the hell are you sweetheart... He looked closely at the woman on screen. She was a picture of a Goddess... Confident and oh so sexy... Her aura is so much different from the way he knew her before... He zoomed in to her face. Impossible, it can’t be her... His lady in red. Was he just trying to convince himself or just wishing hard that that lady in the hotel was Steph... Yes, he had to admit it to himself that he was wishing it was her alright, because no one ever affected him like Stephanie did and that lady in red gave him the same feeling.

Shit!.shit!.shit!...                                                                                       

He dialled Sally’s number.

“Boss?” sa kabilang linya.

“Sally, give me that lady’s address now.”

“Lady who?” Sagot ni Sally na tila bagong gising.

“Sally, you know who.”

“Oh… yes sir... check your email boss, nandun lahat ng posibleng lugar na kinaroroonan nya.”

“Thank you Sally, goodnight.” Agad nyang binuksan ang kanyang laptop.

Tatlong address and nandoon, with phone number of each. Agad nyang  dinial ang Davao City address.

“Tuason’s residence, how may I help you?” Sagot ng isang babae.

“Yes, I would like to speak with Ms. Queen Stephanie Tuason please.”

“Sandali lang po.”

“Hello, this is Stephanie’s mom, may I know who is on the line please?” Pormal na salita ni Senora Carmella.

“Yes, this is Mr. Samuel of S&S Motors, good afternoon ma’m”

“Oh, I’m so sorry sir, but my daughter is currently out of town, do you want to leave a message sir?” Magalang na tanong nito.

“May I know where she is or can I ask for her number ma’am?”

“If it’s ok with you, let me just give her your  number and she will be the one to call you.”

“Yes,…….yes of course……Please tell her that I need to discuss some things with her… I need to arrange a permanent partnership with your daughter, Ma’am.”

“Certainly Mr. Samuel, I’ll see to it that she calls you asap.”

“Thank you Ma’am, it’s nice talking to you.” Magalang ring pagpapaalam ni Damon.

Gigil na binaba ni Damon ang telepono ngunit hindi nya makuhang magalit sa Senora dahil halatang pinoprotektahan lamang nya ang kanyang anak at propesyonal itong kausap.

Then he dialled the next number…

“You are calling Queen Island Resort, this is Patty, how may I help you?”

“Yes, this is S&S Motors, may I speak to Ms. Stephanie Tuason please?”

“I’m sorry sir but she isn’t here right now, she’s arranging a wedding at the beach front, would you like to leave a message sir?”

Bingo!!!

“It’s okay Miss, I’ll just call back later, thank you.”

Queen Island Resort is located in an island owned by the Tuason.  Obviously, it was named after her. My, that woman is really something.  May naramdamang kirot si Damon. If his Steph and Queen Stephanie are one and the same person, and ibig bang sabihin noon ay nagsinungaling si Steph tungkol sa kanyang pagkatao.. Could she have done that to him, ang magbalat kayong ordinaryong tao? Why would she do that? Well, there’s only one way to find out.

He is flying to Queen Island tonight and he’s gonna see for himself and find out the mystery and truth about Ms Queen Stephanie Tuason. He wanted to see her so bad; he just took a shower, packed some clothes and headed straight   to the hangar at the far back of their estate.

It took 40 minutes to land at Cebu International Airport sakay ng kanyang private jet. Sinundo sya ng isang kotse at bumiyahe sila deretso sa resort. It was another 2 hours travel by land.  When they reached the reception area for Queen Island, he had to ride on a boat provided by the resort for tourists. It was a 20 minute boat ride to Queen Island.

He was already so beat when he arrived at the resort. Magkahalong jetlag at gutom ang naramdaman nya. He didn’t want her to see him so haggard so he went straight to his suite, ate dinner and took a nap. He was indeed so tired, it was already dawn when he woke up.

Naligo at nagbihis si Damon, lumabas sa kanyang suite facing the beach. He couldn’t help himself from being impressed. He had seen a lot of private five star beach resorts but Queen Island is an enchantment. Everything looked so natural and the beach was like crystals with sparkling diamonds on it. No wonder she was staying here. It was a place for a goddess like her.

Speaking of his purpose of being there, she is probably still asleep right now so he decided to go for a walk. Damon is a keen observer and very particular with details. While he was walking along the beach, he noticed an area which looked off limits but he imagined it to have a perfect view of the island kase nasa taas ito ng bato behind trees and shrubs. He was almost at the top when he heard someone sobbing. Nagdahan-dahan sya at sinilip kung saan nya ito narinig. His heart stopped….There she was sitting on a hammock, looking at the beach... crying. She looked so magnificent still. Napakaganda nya. He found her at last, his lady in red. He was so sure it was that lady in the hotel that was sitting just a few meters from him. He wanted to run to her but his feet wouldn’t let him. Para syang paralyzed na hindi makapaglakad. Maybe because she was sobbing and looked so lonely, wala syang lakas ng loob na lapitan ito. Why was she crying in the first place?

She was hugging this black book... He wanted to hug her and kiss her, he felt in love. He decided to just watch her from a far. He would surely meet her but not in this situation. She wouldn’t want to talk to someone or would be embarrassed to know that someone was watching her in this state. He had mixed feelings. He felt his feelings for Steph and his admiration for that lady at the hotel.  Could they really be one and the same?

He decided to linger. Maya-maya ay napansin nyang tinapon ni Steph ang itim na libro sa dagat. She threw the book at the cliff.  Sinalo ng dagat ang libro at hinampas sa bato ng paulit-ulit. He got so curious with the book kaya’t dali-dali syang bumaba at nagbaka-sakaling kaya nyang languyin ang libro. Pagdating ni Damon sa ilalim ng cliff ay napansin nyang nasa may dalampasigan pa ang libro, dinala ng alon sa may batuhan. He picked it up but it was so wet, the pages would be torn if he would open it. He had to let it dry first.  He went back to his cabin and placed it under a hand dryer, then he left again para silipin muli kung nandoon pa si Steph. She was still there alright but this time she was already lying still on the hammock. He went a little bit closer. She wasn’t moving. Then he had a perfect view of her angelic face, her eyes were closed, lips slightly parted. She looked asleep. He went a little bit closer…some more steps closer. He almost couldn’t stop himself from touching her. He sat near her, inhaled her scent... He was ready to face her in case she wakes up, but she was in deep sleep and looks like she was having a dream.

His heart stopped… He touched her face slightly, she leaned her face towards his fingers, he didn’t withdraw his hands.

“Steph?” Mahinang bulong nito.

“Hhhmmm..” It was the most seductive sigh he ever heard in his entire life.

“Sweetheart?... It’s me, Damon.”

She smiled…

“Damon? What took you so long, you said you’ll come back for me” she was sobbing but still, her eyes were closed… She was dreaming.

He slowly leaned forward to kiss her inviting lips... It was like heaven here on earth. She tasted like strawberries and honey. Then she parted her lips and his tongue touched hers. He couldn’t and isn’t gonna hold back this time. He let his hands caress her back.

“Damon?” She slowly opened her eyes but she didn’t protest. Instead, she held his face between her small hands and kissed him back this time.

Cold and heat collided. Damon pulled the shawl off her shoulders and touched her smooth skin.

“Sweetheart... I want you, will you trust me?”

Steph just nodded and hanged on to him while he carried her from the hammock and slowly walked her to his cabin. He was kissing her hair and forehead while he was walking, Steph leaned her face on his neck.

Oh God... please don’t wake me up, I want to feel like this forever.

Damon kicked the cabin door and went straight to his bed. Hindi nya inihiga si Steph sa halip, pinatayo nya ito without letting go of her waist. He cupped her face with his hands.

“Sweetheart, you are not dreaming anymore, If I’m getting the wrong impression that you also want me, please say no right now before I lose myself.

Hindi umimik si Steph.. nakatingin lang ito sa  kanya with teary eyes.

“I waited for you” Yun lang ang nasabi ni Steph, then her tears fell.

“I’m so sorry sweetheart... I looked for you but you were gone.”

“Just kiss me please...” Steph pleaded.

Then he lost control. He kissed her deeply. He pulled her tube sundress down exposing her silky soft skin. She was wearing a two piece red swimsuit.

“Steph, I want you sweetheart, right now... right here.”

“I’m all yours Damon.”                               

It was a night made in heaven... They made love for the first time... She couldn’t understand how she really felt... It felt so right and perfect in his arms. He felt so warm and gentle. She never knew an overflowing emotion could exist like how she’s experiencing right now... She never knew that offering yourself to someone for the first time could bring her  so much joy, contentment and peace.

They slept clad in each other’s arms, it was Steph who woke up first and had the chance to look at the man beside her... It was like a dream. Her body aches because of their passionate lovemaking but it was nothing compared to the overwhelming love she is feeling right now for this man.

To be continued...


Next: Part IX - To Love Or To Hate

Previous: Part VII - False Impressions