Chapter 39
WITH one swipe of her hands, Maria parted the curtains of their house neatly. She then hid behind the floral cloths as soon as Euclid passed by their window. But, she made sure that she’ll get a glimpse of his face through a hole in the cloth that she made exclusively for peeking.
When Maria was sure that he has passed their house, she stepped out from behind the curtains and leaned on the window to look at him walking away. Her brows drew together when she didn’t see Euclid anywhere on the street.
“Where did he go?” Maria asked herself. She looked around and when she turned to her side, her gaze met Euclid’s eyes and furrowed brows. “Oh!”
“Looking for me?” he asked, trying to hide the smile on his handsome face.
Maria pressed her lips and looked away from him. “Of course not, why would I look for you?”
Euclid laughed. “Do you want ice cream?”
‘Ice cream…’ she repeated in her mind. Ice cream is her favorite. Her mother never bought ice cream for her, but only for her brother.
“There’s a store nearby that sells ice cream,” Euclid said. “If you’ll come with me, I can buy you the flavor that you want.”
She crossed her arms in her chest. “Is that a peace offering for making me wait at the cottage last night?”
The scratched the side of his brow. “If you wanted to think about it that way, then yes. It’s my peace offering for you. Will you accept it?”
She waved her hand. “As if I have a choice,” she said and rolled her eyes ceilingwards. “Wait for me on that street, I’ll sneak out when my mom was out to deliver the sun-dried fish.”
As soon as Euclid walked away from their house, Maria closed the door and went to her room. She looked at herself in the mirror and checked her appearance. The hand-me-down dress that her cousin Ellie gave her was a bit worn out and has holes on the skirt. If she’ll use it, Euclid might think that she’s not excited to see him because she wore a not-so-fancy dress.
She sighed. “Do I have other options?” She threw the dress on the floor and plopped down on her bed. “If papa was still alive, I’m sure he’ll buy a new dress—”
“Maria!” Her mother slid open the curtain in her room. “Go out and deliver—” Her eyes darted down at the dress on the floor. “What are those clothes on the floor? You don’t like it?” She went to her and pulled her hair. “How ungrateful of you! Your cousin gave you that dress and you just threw it!”
Maria tried to stop her mother from dragging her hair, but she won’t let go. “Mama, please stop, my head hurts!” she said and cried.
Her mother released her hair not to stop her from hurting her but to slap her face repeatedly. “You’re so ungrateful!”
“Mama, please stop—” Maria cried but her mom won’t let her. On the last slap, her lips cut and bleed. “Mama… please stop hurting me…”
“Those were not enough for killing your brother,” she said and hit her with her wooden slipper.
“I did not kill Angelo…” she said in between tears. “How many times do I have to tell it to you that he got heart atFredk—”
Her mother threw the slipper on her face and caused her left brow to bleed. “He died because you let him do all the deliveries that I told you to do!”
Maria stood. “Angelo died because you make us work all day, while you’re busy gambling all the money that Papa left us—”
Another slap in the face cut Maria’s words. “Get out and deliver all the dried fish before I lock you again inside the dog’s cage!”
Maria picked up the large baskets of dried fish and ran out of the house. She didn’t care if her lips and brow were still bleeding or her clothes were dirty because her mother hit her with a muddy sole of her wooden slippers. All she wanted to do is to get away from their house which became hell since her father died.
She was just about to turn by the corner when she heard a familiar voice calling her name. And, it’s too late for her to at least wipe the blood in her face and tie her hair because Euclid was already just feet away from her. She forgot that she told him to wait for her.
“What happened to your face?” he asked worriedly and took out his handkerchief from his pocket. “Who did this to you?”
Maria shook her head. “It’s nothing—”
“It’s just nothing, Maria!” Euclid said in a stern voice. It’s the first time that she saw him mad like this. “Look at yourself. You got wounds on your face and head. Your hair is a mess, and so are your clothes. It was a clear indication that somebody hurt you or maltreated you.”
Maria, once again, got amazed by Euclid’s intelligence. That’s why she loves him, he’s smart, unlike her—a lowly, stupid girl.
Euclid held her hand. “Tell me, who did this to you?” he asked again in a calmer voice as if telling her to trust him, and that she’ll be safe with him. “Is it your mother?”
Maria’s tears fell on her cheeks as she nodded her head. “Yes… My mother did all these wounds to me,” she said and wept in tears.
Euclid pulled her in his arms. “Shh… I’m here now, Maria.”
“She’s blaming me for the things that I didn’t do,” she said in between tears. “Euclid… Help me get out of here.”
Euclid pulled free from her to look in her eyes. “I will, Maria. I will take you with me and we’ll live a life far from here, far from your mother.”
Maria wiped her tears. “When it will be?”
He cupped her face in his hands. “After my graduation.”
***
