Marian's POV

Nanlamig ang buong katawan ko sa tono ng boses ni Seth. I had never seen him this angry. At kahit kailan hindi siya nagtaas ng boses ng ganito sa akin. His eyes were sullen and cold as it looked into mine.

I swallowed, feeling like there were sandpapers in my throat. "Yes..." I croaked.

He let out a loud curse as he stood right up. Aburidong isinuklay niya ang mga daliri niya sa buhok niya at tumalikod sa akin. I heard him take a deep breath in bago siya muling humarap.

"Kay Patrick ba?" His voice was slightly strangled.

I slowly shook my head.

"Kanino?! Tell me!" Tumaas na naman ang boses niya.

Napakurap ako. It's yours.

But I could never tell him that. Ako lang naman ang may gustong magkaanak. Mag-isa kong binuo ito. I didn't want to burden him with a baby he never wanted. Besides, hindi naman din siya maniniwala kahit sabihin ko ang totoo. Maybe he'd even think I was going crazy. Even I had doubts that what I did would work at first.

"I... I don't know." Mahinang sagot ko.

"YOU DON'T KNOW?!" Frustrated na sinabunutan niya ang sarili niya. "What the hell do you mean?! What? Did an incubus get you pregnant in your sleep?"

"I had a one night stand!" I exclaimed.

"A one night stand?!" Shock flood his face before his expression turned stern. Sandali niya akong tinitigan at hinilot niya ang sentido niya. A minute passed by before he spoke again. "I didn't know you were that kind of girl."

"I don't think you know much about me." I retorted.

His jaw clenched up and there was so much coldness in his eyes that I could feel piercing right into my bones, making me shiver. "Yeah, I guess I don't really know you at all."

He took a few steps back while looking at me like he didn't even know what he was looking at. Pagkatapos ay tumalikod na siya at naglakad papunta sa pinto. I watched him leave. My heart constricted painfully at the sight of him leaving. I took in a deep breath to keep my tears at bay.

Hinawakan ko ang tiyan ko. Hindi bale, baby. Kahit wala kang daddy, nandito naman ako. Hinding-hindi kita pababayaan. I will love you more than anything in this world.

Seth's POV

I poured myself another glass of whiskey and downed it in one go, the heat travelling from my mouth down to my throat and my stomach. This was my third shot and it didn't even do shit. I let out a frustrated scream as I threw the glass against the wall and it shattered into million pieces. I was so agitated. I felt like I wanted to scream until my throat is raw, smash things, tear things up.

I thought a few shots would help me calm down but it wasn't doing anything! I needed release! If I couldn't kill the guy, I begged to whatever god that can hear me to kill whoever knocked her up. I suddenly found myself laughing at my thoughts like a fuckin' lunatic. Or was I really going loony?

Fuck! I needed to get out of here. I got out of my unit at sumakay ako sa kotse ko. I drove my car like the fuckin' madman I was that night. Driving in full speed used to give me an adrenaline rush but now, it did nothing. It had no effect on me. All I got from it was a speeding ticket. Ah, what a fantastic day. Could it get any better than this?

After deciding, I've had enough. I drove back home but stopped midway. I didn't want to be left alone with myself to know. Damn it! Pakiramdam ko mababaliw ako. I needed someone to keep me company. I found myself driving to this discreet, high-end brotello called Lush. I parked my car in front of the building and went in. I had been in here when I was fourteen, it was out of curiosity and peer pressure. I'd seen women pole dancing and jiggling their boobs but that was about it. My dad had been open about sex since I was a kid which usually irked my conservative mother. He used to tell me that guys who pay for sex are not men. But now i just didn't have the energy to go flirt with women in clubs and bars. I just wanted someone... anyone!

I knocked a few times before the door opened. A pretty woman with bob haircut greeted me with a sweet smile on her face.

"Hi, good evening, sir." She opened the door wider. "Come in."

"I want a woman." I nonchalantly said. No need for formality. I just wanted a woman to take home.

"Pasok ka, ipakikita ko sa'yo ang mga-"

"Wanna go to my place?" I asked her, not interested of what she was saying.

She paused and looked at me for a few seconds, as if she was studying. Then a smile spread across her face. "Well... sure."

"Great!" I grabbed her hand and dragged her to my car and we took off.

Nang makaakyat kami sa condo unit, she didn't waste anytime. She wrapped her arms around my neck the moment I closed the door behind us. She was about to kiss me when I turned my head away.

"Whoa! Easy there, baby." I said, putting my hands on her shoulders and pushing her away. "Why don't we get ourselves a drink first, huh?"

"Okay." She shrugged.

I walked to the mini bar in the corner of the living room and grabbed a bottle of vodka and two glasses. I went back to where she was and saw that she had already made herself comfortable on the couch.

"Do you mind?" She took out a stick of cigarette.

"No, not at all." I said, sitting down next to her. Ibinaba ko ang dalawang baso sa ibabaw ng coffee table at nilagyan iyon ng vodka.

"So, what do you want to do?" She seductively asked, she took a drag and puffed out the smoke.

"I don't know, talk?" Kibit-balikat na sabi ko.

"You do know I'm a prostitute, right?" Natatawang sabi niya.

"I am perfectly aware of that." I said, taking a sip from my glass.

"Okay if you want to talk, then let's talk." Sabi niya. And talk we did. By the time I got to my fifth glass, I was already feeling a bit out of it.

"Then we got this stupid fucking tattoo!" I blabbered, pointing at the tattoo on my foot.

"Yin and yang, the symbol of everything, the representation of life, the light and the dark, the sun and the moon, the chaos and peace, the good and the bad... two opposites that can't live without each other. Nabasa ko sa isang librong. Interesting, huh?" She nodded her head as she looked at my tattoo.

I gave her a scowl. "Yeah, I don't care. I'm going to peel off this tattoo with a knife. I hate it."

"Bakit? Maganda naman."

"It's only going to remind me of her."

"Hindi ba iyon ang dahilan kung bakit kayo nagpatattoo? You got the tattoo because you two wanted something to remind you of each other?"

"Yeah but it's just so fuckin' complicated right now. So anyway, I took her home after getting our tattoo and we kissed, twice! And I couldn't stop thinking about the kiss the whole night and I went to her house this morning and we made out on... on her fucking bed."

"Mmhmm..." She nodded her head like a patient therapist listening to her loony patient. "And then what happened?"

"I woke up, caught her with a pregnancy test, she tried to hide it but I didn't let her off the hook. It was positive, shawarma!"

"It's Chantala!" She rolled her eyes and then patted me on the back. "But congratulations, magiging daddy ka na. You should be proud of yourself, at least alam mong  hindi ka baog."

"It's not mine!" I exclaimed. "We never had sex! She's pregnant with the spawn of a random shithead she doesn't even know. If she wanted her itch scratched she should've just- FUCK!"

"Aw, poor you." Sabi niya.

I grabbed the bottle of vodka and was about to down it when she took it away from me. "Tama na. Lasing ka na."

"Putangina, pinrotektuhan ko siya kay Patrick tapos sasabihin niya sa akin na nabuntis siya sa one night stand!" I snapped.

"Halika na nga, nasaan ba ang kwarto mo. Matulog ka na, lasing na lasing ka na oh." She grabbed my arm up. "I'm going to charge you extra for this!"

Marian's POV

I had already scheduled an appointment to an OBGYN. I had to take another pregnancy test because I wanted to make sure and it came out positive again! Hindi pa din ako makapaniwala hanggang ngayon na may baby na na lumalaki sa tiyan ko. Some would think it was just pure luck but I knew this baby was heaven's gift to me, a silent prayer that had been answered. This baby was my miracle and a surprise blessing from God.

I was happy, I really was but guilt started rushing in. One thing I had in common with Mama Mary was that she got pregnant a virgin. But Jesus was conceived without sin. This baby was conceived in a sinful and unnatural way. I practically stole Seth's semen and I lied to him about the baby's father.

Whatever we had was enough and I didn't expect more from him. Mabuti na yung ganito. Mabuti na yung wala siyang alam. He deserves to live his life without any worry or responsibility. Kung anuman ang meron kami, tapos na iyon ngayon. I knew by the way he looked at me yesterday, like I was a piece of trash. It was good while it lasted. The moments we shared together was special to me but I knew it wasn't as special to him. He was just probably angry because he found out I was pregnant before we could even have sex. Typical Seth.

All I could do was act like nothing had happened and that it didn't hurt. I would still go to his condo and clean his place. And that was exactly what I did today, I went to his condo to clean his place up.

Pagkapasok ko pa lang bumungad na sa akin ang dalawang baso na nasa ibabaw ng coffee table, at isang boteng vodka, and a butt of cigarette with a lipstick mark on it. He was definetely with a woman. He probably kissed her the way he kissed me and the thought of it made my heart ache.

Dinadampot ko pa lang ang mga baso sa mesa nang bumukas ang pinto nang kwarto ni Seth. Lumabas siya mula doon kasama ang isa na naman babae. Ano ba ang bago doon? 

"Take care of yourself." Malambing na sabi nang babae habang hinihimis ang pisngi niya. He just gave her a faint smile and then his eyes darted towards mine. Napaigti ako nang magtama ang mga mata namin.

Sinubukan kong umiwas sa kanila. I quickly picked up whatever I had to pick up and rushed to

the kitchen. I heard the door open and close.

I screamed in pain when I felt a sharp pain slice through the bottom of my left foot as I made my way towards the sink. I looked down and saw tiny shards of glass. Inilapag ko sa kitchen island ang mga hugasin at umupo sa stool.

"What happened?" Nagmamadaling pumasok si Seth sa kusina.

"Nakaapak lang ako ng bubog." I said, resting my left foot on my right lap.

"Let me see." Sabi niya. Lumapit siya sa akin at tinignan ang paa ko. One tiny shard of glass stuck to my skin. Seth was able to pull it out and blood gushed out of my skin. Hindi naman malalalim ang sugat. I guessed I was just more surprised than hurt. He cleaned it with betadine afterwards and put a bandaid on it.

"Magwawalis lang ako dito-" I said about to jump out of the stool.

"No." Seth said in a stern tone. "You shouldn't be here anymore."

"Huh?" I looked at him. His eyes were stoic and controlled. Agad siyang nagbaba ng tingin ng titigan ko siya.

"I think you should just go home... and leave my key."

"Ano'ng ibig mong sabihin?"

"You're, um, pregnant.You shouldn't do these kind of work anymore. Take care of yourself and the baby." He took a quick glance on my flat tummy before his eyes fell to the ground.

"P-paano ang utang ko sa'yo?" I asked. Why does it feel like my heart had dropped down my gut?

"Forget about it." Nagkibit-balikat siya.

"But..." Mahinang sabi ko. What was I going to do? Beg him to let me stay? Gusto kong matawa sa sarili ko. Pinakakawalan na nga ako, ayaw ko naman umalis. Had I develop some kind of Stockholm Syndrome-ish thing? If that was what he wanted then fine. I raised my chin up. Kinuha ko ang susi sa unit niya sa bulsa ko at inilapag ko sa ibabaw ng island table. "Okay, here's your key. Salamat naman at hindi ko na kailangan bumalik dito."

"It was nice knowing you." Walang bakas na emosyon na sabi niya. I felt like my chest was being ripped apart from the inside. Ganun na lang ba yun?

Pinilit kong ngumiti kahit parang gustong sumabog ng dibdib ko, kahit parang may nakabara sa lalamunan ko, kahit mahapdi na ang mata ko sa pagpigil ng luha ko. "Good bye, Seth."

"Bye, Marian." He smiled at me with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.