Saving Lucas

Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Maria sat in his husband's study. The scent of camomile candles enveloped the air, making it hard for her to breathe. She bought these candles for Karl a few moments ago. She remembered the time when she and Karl enjoyed the same familiar scent, remembering the warmth of his embrace complementing the sweet tang of camomile that made her senses tingle, carrying her into a state of euphoria. But as she lifted the photo album, the picture in her mind faded into a blurry puddle of mud. She opened the photo album, and traced her fingers along Karl's young face; a picture of them smiling with delirious ecstacy in the golden beach of Boracay. She flipped the photo album, carrying her into yet another place in time, where she donned a beautifully taylored wedding gown, and her husband, a handsomely taylored barong Tagalog; her head nestled softly against his chest. She averted her gaze to the next picture, where they both stood with pride and raw vulnerability at the altar; both afraid and excited about the future in front of them; contemplating the minutes that would tick by as they lived eternally as husband and wife, and if they'd ever make their love last eternally, so to speak. Her breath hitched as she recalled the feeling of being called Mrs Esteves for the first time, and with that, her chest heaved anew, making it hard for her to breathe, creating the illusion that there was a stack of cement slowly piling up in her chest. She reached for her oxygen and pushed the tube up her nostrils and began to breathe normally. She felt so small, so helpless, her life depending on air trapped inside a huge can. 

A droplet of liquid moistened the album, landing squarely on the face of one of her relatives standing below the altar during her wedding day, taking a pose for the family picture. She flicked her teardrop away, wondering if she was crying because she missed Karl or because of the agony of not being able to breathe normally on her own. She guessed both. She traced the teardrop and wiped it away with her index finger, and looked at the face of her half-sister, Samantha. She looked beautiful as well, her cocktail gown creating a regal fascade. Samantha always looked beautiful. After all, she believed that beauty was passed on to generations, the specific order of Adenine, Guanine, Thymine and Cytosine, that others would later on grow to envy and covet. Her eyes watched Samantha's face carefully, comparing it to her memory of Samantha's daughter. She looked just like her mother. The poor little girl. The sins of her mother leading her to live a rather unstable life. That should never be. And even if Maria wanted to be of help, well, they knew that her father will never give her custody. Aunts like Maria are meant to stand in the bylines, watching little girls like Winnona grow up with her ever absent father, suffering the torment of not being able to be with her mother. Maria just watched her from afar since then, wondering if the poor little girl even remembered her Aunt Maria carrying her when she was just two years old. Karl never even got to meet his niece. 

The picture faded into a blur as she started to cry. She closed the photo album and was about to put it back to the shelf when the phone rang. Still dazed by the unpleasant memories that came swirling back in her mind, she picked up the reciever and managed to whisper a curt 'hello.' The voice at the end of the line sent her reeling back, dropping the reciever to the floor. Her hands fled to her mouth, her eyes widened with disbelief. With her hands shaking and her eyes darting, her gaze fell back to the photo album, sprawled on top of the desk, the pictures inside seemingly springing to life.