Starstruck

by Yuriko Hime

  I patted her leg sympathetically. “I know what you mean. I was the same way when I met Glace. In fact, I still feel shy around her. But that will change right? My best friend is a laidback person. You won’t have problems with her. Just promise me one thing.”

  “What?”

  “That you won’t do anything to make her cry.”

  She smiled at me in a very Eris way, one brow arched, cockiness included. She tossed her red hair over her shoulder. “That’s going to be easy."

  “And don’t ask her to have threesome with another person either. I’ll poison you if you do that.”

  “Of course,” Eris said with a roll of her eyes. “And how about your problem with Frio, what are you planning to do?”

  I squared my shoulders and tried to sound as confident as possible. “I’m going to have a heart-to-heart talk with her. It’s time I know the truth. See this?” I showed her the key to Glace’s house. “I’m going to use my girlfriend privilege to corner her.”

  Chapter 21. Glace

  I glanced at my wristwatch. He was late. I paced the living room back and forth, anxiously waiting for the person I wanted to see least in this world. My mind wandered to his face. He has been giving me tremendous migraines for the past few days, and I could not wait to talk to him to get this over with. Plead with him if needed.

  A mass of jumbled nerves later, the doorbell finally rang. I headed to the direction of the gate. We didn’t greet each other as I opened it widely. We never did. He walked in confident strides all the way inside my house. It has been like this ever since I could remember. He never truly loved me.

  The circumstances were different this time. He was taking something precious from me. I wouldn’t allow that. Not if I could help it. I followed him inside and saw that he has already settled himself comfortably on the couch in my living room. He had that annoying arrogant look on his face. One that I despised yet loved at the same time. I couldn’t avoid it. He was my dad after all.

  “Break up with Andrea,” I said without beating around the bush. It was the only reason why I’d contact him after all those years. My dad placed one leg on top of the other, leaning back on the couch like he owned the thing. It irritated me because I was the one who worked hard for that. For everything that I had at the moment, including the couch.

  “I won’t," he said cockily. His wry smile made his brown eyes twinkle. From a stranger’s point of view, we didn’t look anything alike. While both of us had brown eyes, mine was coffee colored and his was a lighter shade. My hair was also raven black, but his were strangely dirty blonde. He was handsome though, I would give him that. But it was obvious that I didn’t get a single feature from him.

  I glared angrily at my so-called dad. “I’m dating her daughter. I love Dulce.” I was careful not to put too much emotion in my tone, or he’d take advantage of that. My father was a very cunning man. He loved to manipulate people. He would use my emotion against me.

  “I don’t give a fuck if you’re dating Andrea’s daughter. She’s my girlfriend. I’m planning to propose to her in a few weeks’ time. Get rid of that feeling Glace because Dulce is going to be your sister.”

  I tasted blood in my mouth as I chewed on the inner part of my cheek. “You’re an asshole,” I said bitterly. “Don’t you care about how I feel? Even if you’ve refused to acknowledge me years ago, that doesn’t erase the fact that I’m your daughter. Can’t you do it for my happiness?”

  Dad cocked his head to the side. “No. Frankly, that lesbian lifestyle of yours is disgusting. Do you think you can marry Dulce and have a family with her? Of course not.” He raised himself from the couch. “You have no future with that girl. It’s best if you move on from her and settle down with a nice man. Your mother would have wanted that.”

  “Don’t drag mom in this conversation,” I snapped. “She would have supported me no matter what, unlike you who denied having a daughter in front of Andrea. Do you know how much it hurt me when you said that you didn’t have a child? God! You’re the worst!”

  “I don’t have a daughter like you.” He went to the window. Dad gazed with barely concealed interest outside my yard, not a care for how I felt. The words he said was a slap on my face. I knew that he didn’t care for me, but to say it bluntly simply hurts. What kind of parent would do that intentionally to his child?

  Despite everything, I swallowed my pride and begged. I would do everything to keep Dulce. “Please breakup with Andrea,” I pleaded. “I can’t live without Dulce.” My hands clenched. It was the only thing I could do to keep myself from having an outburst. “Please don’t take away the only thing that makes me happy.”

  “Enough Glace,” he said sternly. “I’m going to propose to Andrea and that’s that.” There was no breaking his stubborn wall. There was finality in his words.

  My body shook violently like it had a mind of its own. I wanted to stab my own dad. “I hate you,” I said contemptuously. A look of surprise flitted on his face and before I knew it, he was right in front of me, raising his hand to slap me. I braced myself for the impact.

  “Don’t!”

  I recognized the voice in an instant. Turning to the direction of the sound, I saw Dulce standing by the entrance of the living room. She had a pained expression on her face. Her beautiful brown eyes were rimmed with tears. “Please don’t hurt your daughter.” She took a deep breath. “Don’t worry. I won’t see her again.” She turned on her heels and stormed out. I didn’t glance at dad as I ran after her. Dulce was the only one in my mind. The thing I was so scared of happened. She found out that I was his daughter.

  She was a few blocks away when I got out of the house. “Dulce,” I called. She didn’t stop at the sound of my voice. Thank God I lived in the suburbs, or cameras and reporters would have been all over me. She continued down the street, to a grassy area where I loved to run in the morning. The sky rumbled menacingly above us. I stared at the darkening clouds for a second before I trailed after my girlfriend.

  “Dulce.” I panted as I caught up to her. I touched her shoulder. She halted and faced me. There were tears on her beautiful eyes. Her breath hitched as our gaze met. “Baby, stop running away.” I placed a hand on my knee, trying to gulp down air.

  “I can’t stop. It’s the only way I can leave you behind.” I gaped at her as I made sense of what she was saying. Leave me? I knew it would come to this if she found out. And she did. The back of my throat burned because of unshed tears.

  The sky responded for me. Slowly, water poured down on us, drenching our hair, our clothes, and our body. But to me, it was like acid melting my bones. I couldn’t cry, so the sky cried for me. It took all my effort not to break down right then and there.

  “Don’t say that,” I murmured. “Don’t break my heart Dulce.”

  “I have to,” she said angrily. I didn’t know who she was mad at, but I understood her. I wanted to strangle someone, specifically my dad. “Can’t you see what’s happening Glace? Every time we get together, something tears us apart.” She was crestfallen. “Maybe we’re not supposed to be together.”

  My stomach sank lower to the ground. Even if her words hurt, I still closed the distance between us and clung to her. I wouldn’t let go of her, even if she pushed me away. If I did, it was game over and I’d be dead. “I love you,” I choked. “It’s always been you Dulce. You’ll destroy me if you leave.”

  She trembled against me as the rain poured harshly on us. She wasn’t shaking because of that. She was scared. Scared of hurting me. “I wouldn’t leave you,” she said. I almost believed her, but she added, “We’ll always be together because we’ll be sisters.”

  I fought hard not to cry. I swallowed over and over to get rid of the lump at the back of my throat. The pain I’ve been feeling won. In the end I sobbed against her, the tears burning my face like fire as it went down. Despite her mockery, I still held her tightly to me. “Can you imagine loving someone else like this?” I whimpered. “Because I can’t Dulce. I
will only love once in this lifetime, and the person I choose is you. It’s always been you. Even from day one.”

  She tried to pry my arms away. I refused to let go. When she couldn’t, her hands fell uselessly at her side. “Some people are not meant to be,” she said softly, her voice cracking. “Don’t worry. I will never love someone else. My heart is yours forever. But you need to let go.”

  “I won’t."

  “Don't you understand? I need to give my mom a chance to be happy. She took care of me and sacrificed a lot of things all those years. I would do everything to make her smile, even if it means that we’ll be hurt because Rick is your dad.”

  “What about us? Don’t we deserve to be happy too?”

  “There’s no us Glace. Not anymore. Now let go of me.”

  She was being harsh. So harsh that her words were like razor digging in my scalp. But underneath that, I heard the pain in her voice. She loved me as much as I loved her, and it was killing her to say those things to me. It was for that reason that I wouldn’t let go of her. Against my will, someone grabbed my waist and pulled me away from Dulce, from my happiness.

  “No!” I yelled as I struggled against my dad's grip.

  “Go,” he said to Dulce. “I’ll correct this mistake.” I watched helplessly as she gave me one last look and ran away, taking my heart with her.

  How many days passed after that? A day? A week? I didn’t care. I didn’t go to school either. I simply stayed in my room and refused to function. The doorbell rang. Again. It has been like that since the day I saw Dulce. I didn’t go out to open the gate though. Rotting inside this room while contemplating everything that happened was what I preferred to do. Call it slow suicide. After I heard the doorbell ring for the umpteenth time, I fell into a deep sleep.

  “Wake up Frio,” someone said. When I didn’t move from the bed, the person yanked the comforter from my body, making me shiver in the cold.

  “What the heck?!” I protested and glared angrily at that someone. I was surprised when I saw that it was Patty, Dulce’s best friend. Ugh! “What are you doing here and how did you get in?” I asked in a dead tone.

  She placed a brown paper bag on my bed. Her blue eyes pierced through me. Patty brushed her bangs away from her face before replying. “Eris gave me a key to get in.”

  “Of course she did.” I pulled the comforter forcefully over my head. With a sigh, Patty removed it again.

  “Please don’t do this to yourself,” she said. “Look at you. Your hair is messy. Your eyes are puffy. And you look thinner. Are you trying to kill yourself?”

  “What if I am? It won’t matter anyway because Dulce is gone.”

  “Of course it matters,” she said sympathetically. “Your millions of fans will cry for you.”

  “I don’t care about the fans. I became an actress for one person, and that person left me. There’s no point in it anymore. Go away.” I’d rather wallow on my sadness alone. It didn’t help that she was Dulce’s best friend either.

  Patty pulled a chair next to the bed. “Dulce is worried about you. That’s why I’m here.” The first statement caught my attention.

  “She is? But she doesn’t want us to be together anymore.” My heart broke like tiny little shards. It was hard to accept that she didn’t want me, even after I tried to be everything she wanted.

  “She loves you Frio. Believe me. . . She called me and Tim after that day and cried for hours. Her mom kept on asking about it, but she wouldn’t tell Andrea. She’s as messed up as you.” Patty sighed and shook her head. “This shouldn’t have happened. But you know what? I know that my best friend is so in love with you, and because of that I’ll help you.”

  I didn’t allow myself to feel a glimmer of hope. “It’s useless Patty. She’d rather her mom be happy than both of us.” I felt conflicted with that. Of course I cared for Andrea too. But I have waited for her daughter for the longest time, and Dulce was the only one keeping me sane all these years.

  “Get up,” Patty urged, a determined look on her face. “We’re going to a party.”

  I gave her an are-you-crazy look. “Seriously? You want me to party after my girlfriend dumped me?”

  “Dulce will be at the party. Tim is taking her,” she explained patiently. “She’s depressed right now because of what she said to you. Do you want Denise to take advantage of that? You know how my best friend can be a little naïve.”

  I closed my eyes briefly before getting rid of the comforter on top of me and standing up from the bed. “Let’s go,” I said, turning to Patty.

  She rolled her eyes. “Ok, we’ll do that once you get dressed. You’re in your underwear. I swear, you and Eris are really friends.” If the situation wasn’t really bad, I would have laughed at her. Eris loved her lace lingerie like me.

  After showering and dressing as fast as I could, Patty drove us to the venue. I ignored the gawkers, aka half the student body and their friends as I made my way inside the house. I was determined to talk to Dulce. Damage control would be for later.

  I looked everywhere but she wasn’t in sight. A brief recollection of Denise lying on top of Dulce at a party like this entered my mind. It was the time when Denise spiked my girlfriend’s drink so she could take advantage of Dulce. Don’t tell me. God no. I ran on top of the stairs, pushing other people out of the way. With trembling fingers, I peeked on each room, only to find that it was empty. The last room on the hall was the only one I haven’t tried yet. When I opened the door, I nearly died at what I saw.

  “Get off my girlfriend!” I said as I forcefully pried Denise who was on top of Dulce. The blonde squirmed against my firm hold. I tossed her to the floor like a rag doll. “What did you do this time?!” I shouted. I didn’t wait for her to reply and turned my attention to Dulce who was giggling on the bed. Fudge! She looked high. “Baby,” I said, taking her in my arms. “You’re going home with me.”

  Denise tackled me to the floor. “She’s mine!” she snarled and attempted to slap me. I quickly got to my feet, allowing me to move away. Desperate to bring me down, she took hold of my right leg and pulled me, causing me to tumble on the floor. She rolled on top of me and sneered. “Get your own girlfriend bitch!”

  I flipped us with a roll. “Maybe you should look in the mirror while saying that you crazy slut!” Unsatisfied, I leaned to her and whispered. “I have a lot of respect for your father Denise, but I will never let you touch my girl. I’ll destroy you with everything I have if you do. I’m willing to kill for her,” I finished savagely and got up.

  Without looking back to Denise, I went to the bed and carried Dulce in my arms. Denise didn’t do anything to stop me. I headed to the hallway, then down the stairs, eager to get out of there. People stared at me as I passed. They were probably wondering what was happening. I groaned to myself. It would surely appear on the headlines tomorrow.

  Tim and Patty saw me in that instant. Knowing what I was going through and what would happen if they didn’t do anything, Tim clapped loudly so everyone would turn to him. “Don’t mind them,” he said. “They’re just playing.” When everyone didn’t acknowledge him and still continued to whisper as I passed with Dulce in my arms, Tim went to the middle of the room and shouted, “Hey everyone! I’m gay!” The whole room immediately quieted down. They turned to him collectively.

  I quickened my pace. The front door was just several steps away from me. By then, everyone was talking at the same time. They were too shocked at Tim’s revelation to even notice me slipping away. Wanting to help his friend, Patty joined him in the middle of the room. “Guess what? I’m gay too!” she yelled. “I’m in love with a freaking supermodel, and she’s so yummy I could die! Woohoooo!”

  I couldn’t help but smile to myself as I got out of the house, straight to Patty’s car. I fished the key she lent me from my pocket. Once the door was opened, I positioned my girl comfortably inside. Dulce was fast asleep, curled like a ball on the passenger seat. She looked innocent and vulnerable. I got o
n the driver’s seat and buckled the seatbelt on both of us. I had to thank her best friends later for taking one for the team. But for now, we were going home.

  Chapter 22. Sisterly Love

  Glace

  “We need to talk.” I was met with silence. “Are you still there Dulce?”

  “Yes I’m here.” She exhaled. “Let’s meet. But not in your house. I can’t handle that right now.” Her voice was shaky, like she was trying hard not to cry. I knew the feeling because I was doing the same thing.

  “Okay. Let’s meet at the park. Few people will be there since it’s nighttime.”

  “See you in twenty Glace.” She hung up.

  Twenty minutes later, I tapped my foot on the ground nervously. I couldn’t stay still on the bench. Maybe she didn’t want to see me. I breathed a sigh of relief when she appeared. Dulce still looked amazing despite having dark circles around her eyes and looking thinner than before. My heart ached at the thought of her losing sleep or skipping meals because of me. She wrapped her jacket self-consciously to her, sitting beside me.

  No one wanted to speak first. It has been too long since we saw each other. In reality, it has been a week. For both of us, that could very well be eternity. I broke the silence. “I miss you. I really do.” There was confusion on her face. She tucked a stray hair behind her ear. I have always loved that red hair of hers. It reminded me of fire. And that was what she was to me, a flame that I couldn’t extinguish no matter how cold I was inside.

  “I miss you too,” she admitted. “More than you know.”

  Our eyes met for the first time in days. God, I adored those brown eyes. “Why can’t we just stay together? This is not right. We have to think of our happiness too.”

  She shook her head sadly. “We can’t. This is for my mom. She deserves a second chance at love.”