NELINA
I nodded to the bodyguards standing in front of Marica’s hospital room. I assumed Leo and Marica had hired security personnel just as Royce suggested last night. Four of my bodyguards join them in watching outside the room.
I knocked on the door and patiently waited for Leo to open it for me. It took him so long that my naughty thoughts ran wild. “They couldn’t do it here,” I whispered and tried not to giggle. I didn’t want the securities to look at me like I'm an idiot.
I hated myself for coming up with dirty thoughts in just a little while standing at the front door. By the time Leo opened the door, he looked at me in confusion. His hair was a mess which fed my naughty thoughts about him and Marica.
“What’s wrong? What are you smiling at?”
“Nothing.”
Leo bobbed his head. “Come on in. Marica and I have been waiting for you.”
I followed Leo and the look of Marica’s bed wasn’t helping with my dirty mind. The blanket was a mess and even Marica’s hair.
“What are you laughing at, silly girl?”
“I can’t tell you right now,” I said, chuckling.
“You’re weird,” Leo said, picking up his black leather jacket. “Please take care of Marica while I’m away. I need to go home now.”
“Sure. Take care,” I answered, putting the paper bag of food on the table.
“I’ll be back,” Leo kissed Marie on the forehead before he left.
“Take care,” Marica said as Leo walked out of the door.
“Too sweet to look at,” I said, sitting on the edge of Marica’s bed. I failed to stop myself from laughing. “When will you tell me besty, huh?”
“What? Nelly, are you high? You seem strange today,” Marica asked, shaking her head.
“Besty, you can’t deny it. What happened between you and Leo?” I asked, sitting on the edge of Marica’s bed.
“Nelly, what’s with that naughty smirk? Stop those dirty thoughts of yours, okay? It’s not what you think it is, you silly girl.”
“Then, what is it? What took you guys so long to open the door for me? How can you explain this messy bed? You and Leo had the same messy hair.”
“Eww, Nelly, how did you ever come up with that judgment? My God, that’s worse than I ever thought. I was sleeping and Leo was taking a nap on the couch as well,” Marica explained.
"You can't blame me. You guys look good together, you know. I am for the Marica-Leo love team. I'm sorry, I was just too excited," I said, pouting my lips.
"Come here, you naughty girl," Marica said, her arms wide open for a hug. "Do you have something for me?" Marica asked when we unwrapped our arms around each other.
"Yeah, those are junk foods," I said, pointing at the paper bag on the side table. "Care to eat?"
"Of course, bring them over. Let me choose."
We were sitting in Marica's bed having our favorite "Mang Juan." The old memories came rushing as we opened it. We used to have the same food back in the day when we hung out in their house.
“Hey, you should keep me updated with things happening outside. It’s hard to be stuck here, you know. I can only check my business online through my executive secretary.”
“Something scary happened last night. I got a call from an unknown number, a man in a rough voice threatening me. He said, ``What happened today was my last warning and then he cut the call.”
“Seriously?” Marica asked in disbelief.
“I’m not kidding. You got the idea, right? He was talking about the accident you had or the intended plan to push you off the cliff.”
“So, he is one of the culprits.”
“Yes, or maybe he was paid to do it. Either way, we know he wants me and my family to stop. But unfortunately for them, we already filed the charges against them."
"You guys did? Very good progress. I can't wait to see the bitches reaction, especially in the courtroom. I'm not gonna miss that day, I'll surely be there to witness their disappointments."
“Me too and I can’t wait to end all of these so that we can move on with our lives. I wanna start working again, I miss my job.”
“I understand your sentiment, Nelly. Don’t worry, these will be over soon, you’ll see.”
"I know. There's one more thing I'd like to share. This was when we were in Palawan for my birthday vacation. I saw a suspicious man wearing a black jacket with a hoodie on our way to buy bikinis."
"What made you think that he was suspicious? I mean anyone can wear a black jacket with a hoodie."
"Yes, but my instinct told me there was something wrong with the way he was sneaking a look at us and it was in broad daylight. Marica, it was hot as hell. Why would someone wear a black jacket with a hoodie, and look like a serial killer in a movie? Not only that, I saw the same person when we went back and I had a dinner date with Royce."
"How can you be sure it was the same guy?"
"The body language was the same, both of the incidents he tried to avoid making eye contact but I noticed he was eyeing me, sneaking around. And besides, my instinct could never be wrong. My suspicion was the man was paid to spy on me, it could be from the same men who ruined my family."
"Well, that sounds convincing now. Whoever they are, they wouldn't succeed. We got you besty."
Marica and I had a good talk that we hardly noticed it was evening. We finish all the junk food before 6 in the evening and so, we end up watching TV for fun.
At around 7 in the evening, there was a knock on the door so I opened it, expecting it would be one of the nurses attending Marica. But instead of a nurse wearing a white uniform, Royce appeared with a wide smile on his face.
“Surprise!!" Royce exclaimed.
"Hey, baby, lower your voice, this is a hospital for God's sake. Come on in."
Royce entered the door chuckling. "I was wondering if you guys need something to eat,” Royce lifted the packed food he carried. “Dinner?”
“Sure, I’m hungry already,” I said, taking the paper bag of food. Royce helped me prepare the food at the spacious dining table.
I saw Marica get off of her bed.
“Besty, do you want some help?”
“I got this girl. It’s not that I am heavily injured.” Marica sat on the chair on my left while Royce was on my right.
“Oh, I miss fast food. I haven’t eaten fast food for quite a while. When I was a kid, my mom and I used to eat at this fast-food restaurant when I asked her to.”
“I never had that experience. But when I first dined in Jollibee it was the time I met Nelly. I fell in love with both Nelly and the idea of eating in a fast-food restaurant whenever I have the time.”
Marica cleared her throat. “That’s so sweet. Look at my best friend, her cheeks are red like an apple.”
Marica laughed like we didn’t exist. She was teasing us; karma hits so fast. I only shook my head as I looked at Royce and Marica back and forth.
“By the way, I have good news.”
Marica composed herself as she became interested. “Come on, spill the tea.”
“Dennis and Roxie are gone. They left the country just yesterday. Roxie’s flight to the US has been confirmed by a trusted man, while Dennis’s flight to the UK was confirmed by his father earlier.”
It was a relief hearing Royce said it. “That’s definitely good news. We’re done with them, we only have to face the last culprits of our family and the one who did this to Marica.”
"Let's claim our victory," Marica announced with conviction.
Just when I thought everything would be alright. The unknown number was calling me again. My heart was pounding in my chest as I looked at my phone's screen.