Chapter 26 Thera Baguio-De Marco

"Gosh!" Laida squealed. Seemed like she had forgotten that she was talking to her boss. She had been talking excessively. "How about the kiss I saw earlier today. Tell me how good it wa—"

She pouted her lips, grabbing the assistant out of the couch. "Why don't you teach me how to change the passcode, huh? So that you can't get easy access to my property and to avoid disturbance next time. Hmm?" she taunted.

"Yumi also told me that you haven't changed the passcode ever since you got this four years ago," Laida blurted out as they headed towards the pantry.

"I've lived here all by myself for four years?"

"Yes. I believe it was on the 25th of November. After your long hiatus somewhere else far. How were you able to get in, by the way? Is the passcode one of the things you've recalled?"

"So, Yumi didn't tell him about the passcode?"

"I don't think so. Miss Yumi expected that he was taking you to his mansion. We were even surprised when he called and asked us to clean the unit."

"Sean and I shared the same passcode," she mumbled to herself, remembering what Sean had told her that night.

"Really?" Laida reacted. Her forehead was slightly creasing.

Considering Yumi's details and some fragments of her memories she had recalled, it was July when Sean got back from the States. The year 2015, if she wasn't mistaken. Aside from that, it was around November of the same year when she obtained the condo unit. How did he know about the passcode?

"I wonder what's the meaning behind that numbers. 101515. It seems like a calendar date, isn't it?" Laida said unknowingly while getting herself busy putting the bottled water in the fridge.

Thera fell into deep thinking. Wondering what happened during that time? Was it really July 2015 when Sean came back? How many times did he return to the country before her accident?

By the time Thera finished taking a shower, she had heard the door buzzing. It could have been Laida and Ringgo. Thera asked them to go on an errand - she wanted to prepare steak and pasta for dinner, so she needed to get the right ingredients for it. It had been half an hour since they'd left. There was a grocery store a few distances away, so it probably won't take them long to come back.

She rushed towards the door, shaking her head. Laida already knew the passcode, and Thera didn't remember changing it, so why bother ringing anyway?

But instead, the one who appeared in front of her wasn't Laida nor Ringgo. It was the guy next door. He was smiling broadly at her.

Hesitantly, she forced herself to smile at him. "H-hi. How may I help you?"

He didn't answer. But instead, a mischievous grin etched across his lips. Thera was taken aback when he pushed her into the room and stepped in without any warning.

"W-what are you doing?" Thera stammered in fear. "Who—?"

The door automatically locked as it clicked close behind him. Then, a broad smile curved on his lips.

"How can you forget so easily, Thera. My jaw hadn't completely healed yet," he told her, slightly tilting his head to show his jaw.

Thera felt confused. She could not remember who the guy was no matter how hard she'd try. She was trying to think what fault she had done to him. Last night, she smiled at him back in the hallway.

"If I did something wrong, I am asking for your forgiveness. Please, I—"

The intensity of the stranger's glare was enough to send chills down Thera's spine. She was taken aback by the menacing look on his face. She was uttering a silent prayer that someone will appear to her rescue.

"You humiliated me in front of those people! Because of you, my wife took all my children away from me. And now, all you could say was sorry? You've got to be kidding me!" he scoffed sternly at her. "A sorry could not compensate for all the bullshit you have put me through!" his face turned grim as he yelled at her face.

Elaine's knees started to feel weak. She needed to rely on the couch's armrest to keep her balance. Her body began to tremble in fear as Sean's words registered in her mind:

"Just two weeks ago, another man sued you for physical injury. He wanted to pursue filing a lawsuit against you just because you got too much pride in yourself,"

Is this the guy that Sean was talking about? Panic started to creep into her, feeling defenseless. She realized that the ghost of her past will forever haunt her down wherever she will go.

Before she could even run away, the guy was fast to catch her wrist. He threw her on the couch. She felt like her spine was going to break by the impact. Then, he slapped her hard on the face as she attempted to sneak away. Her head started to spin. Before she could react, the man cornered her, grabbing a handful of her hair. Thera shut her eyes in pain. Her heart was pounding as he looked down at her. He leveled his head on hers, leaning closer and closer.

"Look at me, bitch!" he yelled.

Afraid he might hurt her, she followed as said so. She met his threatening eyes filled with lust and animosity. Her chin was trembling. She was fighting against the urge to cry. She could taste her blood on the side of her lips. She could not help but wonder, how was she able to beat the hell out of him before? She wanted to do the same, but she couldn't seem to grasp a single strength to do so.

"You should've had sex with me when I invited you then, Thera! Your husband no longer benefits your body anyway, so what's the use of protesting?"

Thera let out a loud scream as he began licking her neck. She tried to free herself from his tight grip, wriggling, striking, and kicking with all her might only to be punched hard on the gut.

The pain caused by the impact was enough to make her feel weak. She squirmed in distress, letting her body fall on the floor. She tried to crawl, but the man dragged her sleeves and tossed her back to the couch. He went on top of her, pinning her arms against the sofa. Thera could not gather her strength to resist, tears streaming down her cheeks. But the man was turning a deaf ear to her.

"Let's do this fast before someone arrives. Don't worry, I'm not going to kill you. Just be cooperative, and I'll forgive you and your husband,"

She could not grasp what he was trying to imply. Maybe it's because fear overpowered her most. She whimpered, trying to hold out against him as he began to brush his lips against her neck down to her shoulders.

"I was right, Thera. You smelled and tasted so fucking nice," his lustful voice gave her chills even more. His grip on her wrist tightened. "I've always wanted you, you know that? I can't keep my eyes off of you wherever you go. And finally, this chance is served right before me!"

He then tore her clothes, making her shout in utter horror. But she could not hear herself anymore. She was rather horrified trying to think of any ways to keep off of him. Gathering the remaining strength she had, she wanted to push him away. However, compared to his strength, it was impossible to outdo him.

She squeezed her eyes shut as he raised his fist, motioning to give her another jab on the face. She readied herself for the coming pain, but she could not feel anything. Nothing landed on her face. She opened her eyes almost immediately. She didn't know what exactly she was feeling the moment she saw Sean twisting the man's hand.

Sean's glare was murderous. The man's face looked like he's trying to endure the pain as he attempted to grab his wrist. Without saying any word, Sean yanked him off of her and threw him hard on the floor. His back flumped down, making him grit his teeth. The next thing she knew is Sean had beaten the hell out of him until the man no longer hit back to his punches.

"S-Sean!" she called him, her voice still shaking.

Sean paused; his fist hung in the air. He slowly raised his face and stared at her. The savage look on his handsome face slowly disappeared. His expression softened, replaced by worried and relief. He let go of the man's collar, who no longer responded, and rushed to her side.

"Thera…" he whispered. Concern was evident in his voice.

Tears immediately brimmed down her face as soon as she heard Sean's voice. Her body was shivering terribly. He leaned forward to give her a tight hug. She then buried her face in his chest, trying not to think of the possible outcome if ever he didn't come on the scene at the right time.

November 03, 2019

Quezon City

Thera let out a soft moan when she felt someone coming into the room. She heard the person placing something on the side table. Slowly, she squinted her eyes open as she felt a warm finger touch the side of her lips. It was Sean. He was stretching out a smile.

It seemed like she lost track of time, unsure how long she was drifting off ever since the incident. But one thing was for sure, Sean never left her side. The first thing she would ever see was his handsome face every time she would open her eyes. The worried look on his face while holding her hand indicated that he'll never leave out of her sight.

Carefully, he helped her get up in bed, putting a pillow behind her. He was too cautious; it was as though he was holding the most fragile thing in his hand. She smiled slightly at him and leaned against the pillow.

"Are you feeling better?" Sean asked her.

She nodded slowly. She could see a glimpse of sadness in Sean's eyes. After that incident, Sean rushed her to the hospital. She tried to refuse, but he insisted. Earlier that morning, she urged him to go home and rest in the condo unit, but he was rather determined to stay.

"It seems that you haven't slept yet," she commented while staring at his face. He had a few days of growing stubble on his jawline that made his face look darker. Strikingly, it's adding more to his manliness and charisma.

"Does it still hurt?" he responded by asking another question instead. He was caressing her bruised cheeks as carefully as he could.

"I feel a lot better now,"

"I'm sorry for coming late. It was my fault," Sean whispered. "I should've brought you to my house instead. I shouldn't have left you alone in there…" he paused, heaving out a deep sigh. "I'm sorry, Thera. I feel worthless and stupid. Until now, I could not protect you."

"Sean…"

"I wanted to kill that bastard myself, but I wanted to hurt myself more,"

Seeing Sean's eyes glistened in tears urging her to burst into tears too. Who would have thought that a strong man like him could be this emotional just because she was hurt?

"Don't blame yourself. It was hardly your fault," Thera sobbed. "If you didn't come, I don't know what's going to happen to me," she patted his hand, beaming at him. "I couldn't thank you enough,"

Misty-eyed, she continued. "I owe you a lot. You have already protected me so many times, and you were able to find enough evidence to put Harry behind bars."

It was Harry's fault, not his. The authority confirmed that Harry really did harass her in the elevator a month ago.

She had figured it out yesterday from Yumi. The reason why Sean flew all the way back to Manila was because of her indictment. Thera was utterly unaware of Sean's involvement in helping her case. He hunted through the building's CCTV footage himself just to provide strong evidence to the authority. Footage of Harry stalking her was shown.

"He'll be sent to jail, right?"

Sean nodded. He then leaned closer and gave a peck on her forehead. "Rest. I'll be here,"

As soon as Thera closed her eyes, Sean stared up at the ceiling, deep in his thoughts. All those years, how could he leave her all alone, knowing the world is damn cruel, to begin with.

"I don't think this is a good idea, Thera," Yumi looked as worried as she tried to catch up with Thera's steps on the way to the conference room of The Palace. Thera insisted on coming along with her in the office when she visited her four days ago.

"They have to get used to seeing me here before the anniversary, Yumi. It's my chance to make it up to them," she stopped in her tracks and raised a brow to Yumi. "You told me I can count on you. What's taking you back?"

Thera's decision to stay in the condo while waiting for the hotel's anniversary was firm. But after the incident back in the unit, she changed her mind.

"I do support you, but Sean will get mad. He had just instructed us not to let you go out."

"Alone," Thera added, insisting. "I am with you anyway. Laida and Ringgo were here with us, too," she said, looking over her shoulder to gaze at them who had been following behind her.

"Madam, I wonder what would happen if they'll join forces against us," Laida fidgeted behind her. "On top of that, they would suspect why you're acting differently all of a sudden."

Thera had taken her own measures about her plans. She came prepared, not entirely, but at least for them not to suspect, she came in wearing expensive jewelry and dress instead of a plain shirt, jeans, and sneakers. She looked exactly like the same Thera before the accident. Well, except for the friendly smile she withheld to others for years.

Yumi pushed the glass door open when they reached the conference room. Their entrance got all of the employees' attention. There were more than twenty employees in the room, she reckoned. Thera settled in while her three assistants followed behind.

Thera could not get any more anxious, but she knew she had to do the right thing. She cleared her throat as she stared at them simultaneously. She could not remember what their names were.

"Before anything else, I'd like to express my gratitude for sparing your time for this short meeting,"

As they had planned, she simply gave her apology to them and pledged to treat them fairly starting that day onwards. After the meeting, she invited all of them for dinner at the in-house restaurant in the hotel. She joined them at the table, which surprised them most.

After the sumptuous meal, Laida asked to have a drink. Thera could not refuse since all of the employees' eyes were on her. It was a good start and an excellent chance for Thera. Somehow, she knew that they finally saw her friendly and crazy side as Mrs. De Marco.

It was already nine in the evening when the employees finally bid their goodbyes. Meanwhile, Thera was left at the table with Laida and Yumi.

Yumi dealt with the alcohol pretty well, unlike Thera. She felt like her vision started to spin. She wasn't sure how much drink she had gulped. While Laida was folding her arms on the table, drooling. Thera could not help but laugh at her expense. Nonetheless, it was a fun night for her to consider.

Sean rose to his seat. He was occupying the opposite table of the restaurant just a few meters away from Thera's table and her group. He had been watching them for roughly two hours now.

He received a call from Ringgo earlier that morning, informing him about Thera's plan. He could not feel any more restless as soon as he heard it. He raced towards the conference room immediately since Thera didn't answer any of his calls. He waited outside the door. After their meeting, he followed them secretly towards the restaurant.

He thought that after the dinner, they would leave, but he was wrong. He watched Thera having a drink with the employees as per Laida's request.

Pride rose from his chest while watching Thera sharing a casual conversation with them. Cracking up some jokes that lightened up the atmosphere. The uneasiness they felt slowly faded. Maybe not all of them felt the same way just yet, for sure. However, Sean knew that they saw how she took a few steps back just to reconcile with them. Somehow, it left a mark to ponder.

Finally, he walked in her direction. Thera was leaning over the table. Déjà vu. Sean removed his coat and placed it on her shoulders.