CHAPTER 8

Enya went to Philip's house but he wasn't around, his car was packed yet there was no sign of him. She tried calling him, but the answer she got was that the number was unreachable at that moment.

For a moment she wondered where he could be at that moment then she remembered that he used to go to sit down at the top of a particular roof whenever he was angry or tired. She drove her car to that building and stopped there.

The building was furnished and new but it was still the same in her eyes. She took the stairs up to the roof and walked a distance before seeing him there, he was sitting on a cemented step while looking at the ground level even though he wasn't concentrating.

"You are not easy to find." She said and Philip turned to look at her as he sighed.

"Sometimes it's good to stay hidden." he said and diverted his attention somewhere else.

She sat down beside him and took a look at him, she longed to see his face clearly as before.

"Why didn't you tell me that your mother was sick?"

"It wasn't important to you, and besides I didn't want pity from anyone."

"You always think you are fine on your own...."

"I am fine on my own and I can do well on my own"

"You....." She didn't complete her words before Philip got up from where he was sitting. He was uncomfortable especially with her near him.

"I have heard enough about me...I am not important anymore...I never was so please Enya stop pretending as you care too much for me." Said Philip as he walked away from her while heading down the stairs.

"Why did you not tell me that you were taking medications?" she asked and Philip halted for a moment and then walked towards Enya.

"The problem with everyone around me is that they want to control me, they always want to be the person to hear bad things about me and I hate it with all of my being! So stop hovering around me and stop telling me that you love me.... besides Martins is good for you." Enya could see and feel the coldness in his grey eyes, she had never seen it before. She knew that he was talking out of anger and pain, it had gotten to his brain making him to dig up old wounds.

"What did your father do to you? Why are you so bitter and angry?"

"It's because he had to squeeze me and treat me like another animal. My mother could do nothing but talk and warn him, she could do little to stop him from grinding my head with his legs...I never had a friend and just when I thought I had found a true friend, she left me in the fire. I ran for my life for two years and suffered molestation from men and women who I thought had my welfare in mind. You expect me to come back and be the same person?"

"You never told me all these."

"That's because I never forgave you for what you did to me....making me feel worthless in that fire and then you come to me confessing your love for me....your love only made me feel worthless all the more. Just when I thought that I was beginning to love you, I see you kissing my course mate!" He said with tears running down his eyes to his cheeks.

"I...."

"Stay away from me, I don't want to be loved anymore. It hurts." she watched him walk away from her and she sat down to cry.

She had made so many mistakes in her relationship with Philip, she didn't know him well as she thought she did. He never shared any of his feelings with her because he never forgave her and even before the fire incident, he was watching her to see if his father was right about her, he already had feelings for her and she knew she could feel it at that time but she proved to Philip that his father was right about her when she left him in that fire.

She covered her face crying, still remembering that she had left Philip to become close to Martins and she never apologized to Philip for leaving him in that fire, she only apologized for not being there for him when he needed her.

She wasn't deep and thorough enough with the person she claimed to love, she never cared to understand him but she only cared about her feelings, whether he loved her back or not.

During the burial of Claudia, notable men and women came. Her friends came with their families, and Philip's course mates also came including Olivia. Enya came but she wasn't among the people that talked to Philip or consoled him. She only hid somewhere watching Philip and his mood.

For years now, she knew very well that Philip could fake emotions so well that you would think it was real and that was exactly what he was doing at the burial but he was feeling more pain and hurt than he was talking at that moment.

Philip hugged Olivia and thanked her for coming to his mother's burial, he was really grateful that she was there. Not too long, he saw Richie approaching him with some men.

"It's been a long time friend." Richie said. Philip glared at Richie and for a moment he wanted to slit his throat with his favorite knife.

"You see, when a promise is made, it is indeed a promise....look at it this way...." He drew his ears closer to Philip's ears with a smile.

"I am going to destroy you and Enya is going to leave you behind just like she did the last time. She will see your true colors and leave you without a blink.....but for now, sorry for your mother's death. Such a tragic turn, wasn't it? I am thinking that it's just the beginning. The person who killed your mother might do more from now on...so be careful please." Said Richie withdrawing from Philip then he took a step back to see Philip's face clearly.

"Smile will you? We haven't seen each other in years."

"If I find out that you are the Mastermind, I will tear you into two with my own hands." Philip said and Richey smiled mischievously.

When the burial ceremony was over, Philip kept his flowers on Claudia's coffin. Some minutes later, Enya knelt down in front of the grace and placed a ring on the coffin.

"I won't leave him from now on, I will always be there for him like the friend he never had. I love him sincerely but I will correct my mistakes, I promise." she said. When she got up, Paul had already come with two men to drag her out.

"Don't come near my family's business again!" He ordered the two men to take hold of her and throw her outside then they heard Philip's voice.

"Leave her...."

"What are you saying? I told you not to go near her again!"

"Dad, she is at Mom's burial. Mom would not like it if you ever did this when she was alive." Philip said.

The men left Enya alone and followed Paul out of the place. Philip looked at her for a second and turned to leave, she might have come with Martins and he didn't want to see them together. In fact, he didn't want to see her.

"I was scared that if I rescued you, the man would kill me." She said and Philip halted on hearing her words.

Tears filled her eyes as she approached him from behind and stood beside him.

"I was also scared that I would not survive if I saved you....the reason I was obsessed over you was that, I wanted you only to myself and I thought you would see that obsession and fall in love with me."

"Why are you telling me all these?"

"I promised that I would start all over again and this time, I will do anything to stay by your side as I should have done. I love you with all my heart and that is the truth....." She said then she stood in front of him and for the first time, they looked into each other's eyes for a moment. "And I will wait for you no matter how long it takes." She said finally before walking off.

Philip knew that he would never stop feeling that love and affection that he had hidden from her for so many years. Even after she had done what she did in that fire, he couldn't stay away from her that was why he had to show it by protecting her from problems that she could not come out from. He was always there for her and now, she was the one offering to do the same thing.

Paul slapped Philip on the face when they got home. He was so angry at Philip for allowing Enya to stay at that burial after he had warned him not to get involved with her again.

"You are going to see the last of this Philip. I am warning you! Stay away from her or you're going to regret having me as your father"

"What wrong did she do by coming to honor mom at her burial?"

"You know your problem? your problem is that you are so pathetic and stubborn! That girl is going to do you no good, stop forgiving her for the wrongdoings that she did purposely. Enya has no good intentions for you."

"Not every girl is like mom. So stop using Enya to teach me how bad and unfaithful mom was to you" Philip said.

Paul's tongue got stuck on hearing what Philip said. He swore that one day, he was going to knock off Philip's teeth if he ever spoke to him in such a manner again.

He planned to bend Philip into a thing that he could use at any time to do anything, he wanted to make Philip a slave to his voice unfortunately for him, Philip was different. He was a wild cat with inner modesty, quiet but easily irritated. Now he had to deal with more than Philip's stubbornness but he had to deal with Philip as an individual, he had to teach Philip a lesson.

"You are going to regret it slowly, I will make you crawl back to me." Paul said finally before walking away from Philip.

Some days later, Philip was jogging along a road for exercise. He thought about his mom and how painful her death was to everyone, it was a surprise to the world that she had died but they didn't know how she cheated on her husband and got poisoned by a man that she hardly even knew except in bed.

Philip shook his head to forget those depressing thoughts and then something came up in his mind. He had remembered the description that Henry's neighbor had given about a friend that usually visited Henry.

It occurred to Philip that he had never seen the man before or the picture of the man, he stopped for a moment and exhaled; he had gotten an idea of what to do next.

Two days later, he went to a professional artist and the artist agreed to sketch for him so they both sat down and Philip began describing the features of Henry to him and it came out as a familiar face that he had seen at his mother's burial.

He suddenly remembered that he had seen the man with Richie at his mother's burial. He thought about the facts but he believed that it wasn't true until he described Richie to the artist.

The sketch looked exactly like Richie then he described the features of the friend that usually visited Henry. The result of the sketch looked exactly like Richie.

Philip stood up and walked out of the office; all this time, he was searching outside instead of searching inside.