RDD 108

RDD 108

"Roman, where did you learn that language?"

He was still a child. So I didn't want to tell him about what my Father did. 

"Isn't it what grandma said earlier? I just repeated what she said when she berated Uncle Jeremy and Sean."

"..."

Mon could not control her words whenever she was agitated. She probably said the word "asshole" without knowing that the kids were listening. 

Mom... You might not be a good grandmother at all. I can't believe that you let that word slip and taught Roman in the process. 

"Besides, people on the television said this too. Didn't Sophia learn "Pwathetic" from television?"

Alright. I changed my mind. Television(Media) can influence kids in a very bad way. 

Should I subscribe to a cable for children's channels? So that the kids could watch shows that were meant for kids, not adults? Let's do that once my income is steady... Especially when I spent almost the profit this week. Something that I didn't expect. 

I sighed and rubbed his hair. 

"Son, your grandfather is not an asshole... He is just stubborn."

A stubborn bastard. 

"Is that so? Then, why didn't he show up? I feel like your relationship with Grandpa is terrible."

"It is. But you are too young to understand."

"... Tch."

Roman entered the room.

"Roman, I already prepared your bed. So go to sleep, don't make your sister wake up."

"Okay, Mom."

Penelope made sure that the kids would go to bed before closing the room. 

"Honey, do you think everything will be alright?"

As Penelope slipped into the bed, she asked me something I was worried about as well. 

I knew my father... He might stroll into the house and cause another scene. 

"Don't worry... If Dad really showed up, I will beat him."

"... Pfft--!"

Penelope laughed at me and slapped my shoulder. 

"That's not a good thing. You should never hurt your father. He is your father, after all."

"He is just narrow-minded, but I'm sure he will never do something bad in front of the kids."

My father, Ernesto Castillo, was a very workaholic/serious person. Born second in the family, Ernesto Castillo wanted to make sure that he would receive a proper inheritance. 

Although this was nothing but the past since my Dad already acquired half of my grandfather's property. The construction company that my grandfather founded became Dad's property. Even the Corn Chips Factory became his(Grandfather invested in that company while Dad made it prosper.)

But because of his strong motivation decades ago, he became obsessed with statuses. 

So he decided to arrange marriage his three sons, Jeremy, Sean, and I with daughters from successful families. 

Jeremy didn't marry his fiancee because he was seduced by my sister-in-law... That woman(Isla) was actually terrifying and calculative. She made Jeremy's fiancee broken and depressed. So I usually had to act respectfully toward her. Seriously, I wonder how Jeremy tamed a woman like her. 

Regarding Sean's fiancee... The answer was obvious. Sean didn't like to start a family so he kept avoiding her. I didn't even know if the engagement was still firm. Right now, Sean was dating Mari Mar, an actress. 

As for me, my fiancee was my childhood friend, I didn't have any romantic feelings for her. I heard she went to America to further her studies. 

All I can say to my father was that his arrange marriages were a complete failure. An utter disaster. Not only did we end up with different partners, but we were also happy living with them too. 

Now, the real problem, why I hated my father was because of what he did to Penelope. 

He tried to convince Penelope to leave me in exchange for 1 million pesos. In 1994, that amount was extravagant for Filipinos, perhaps even in the present days. 

Penelope didn't agree, of course. 

But there was one thing that my father, Ernesto Castillo, said that almost made me loathe him. 

My father tried to force Penelope to abort the child. That was right, he wanted Roman dead...

So I could not tell my son that his grandfather actually tried to abort him. Even going as far as taking Penelope to an aborting clinic. 

It traumatized Penelope... She didn't want to meet my family since then. 

"Wife..."

I embraced her and pulled her closer to me. 

"Don't worry, those things happened in the past. I'm a mature person now, I know what to do."

She giggled and kissed my forehead... Why did she do that? 

"Are you jealous because my Mom kissed my forehead?"

"H- Huh? Of course not! I just want to kiss your forehead, what's wrong with me kissing your forehead?"

"Hehe, you can kiss my forehead all you want."

"T- then... Muah!"

We giggled and cuddled before going to sleep. 

I decided to let go of all of the things that Dad tried to do to break my family. My Dad was wrong, I know it very well. 

But I was not a good child as well. A young man who didn't have a choice, of any skill to prove himself to the world, decided to start a family. My Dad was worried about my future so he decided to do bad things. 

If I'm going to meet him... I don't know what to do. Perhaps I will give him a punch, or perhaps I will cry. 

A perfect family was impossible to find. But a family that would stick together despite many differences and troubles was worthy to be called a perfect family... At least in my opinion. 

My wife and I had quarrels so many times, I made my wife cry in some cases. I went into alcohol addiction, got robbed, and lost the will to live. Yet here am I, still feeling blessed because I'm with Penelope, Roman, and Sophia. 

As long as I'm with them, I feel like I can overcome anything. 

I hope my father understands that too. That status and prestige were not the only things important.