-=Ang's Point of View=-
I didn't know what pushed me to follow and trail Miranda; my feet just sort of moved on their own to follow her, and instead of using one of the cars in the parking lot, I decided to just take a cab instead.
"Seriously, Ang. Why are you doing this?" I heard a voice at the back of my mind ask as I continued to follow the taxi that Miranda was in.
I thought deeply at first before coming up with a sensible reason why I was acting like a creep and stalking Miranda, and that is because maybe I wanted to apologize to her. After all, I feel like I judged her too harshly. Perhaps she loves my brother so much, which is why they decided to get married.
I continued following the taxi she was in, which, in retrospect, was kind of stupid considering that I could have just called her phone to meet me.
Finally, the car stopped at a mall in Makati, and after paying the fare for the cab, I immediately tried to locate Miranda, but when I got inside, I couldn't see where Miranda went.
I tried to check every floor, hoping to spot where Miranda was, but half an hour had already passed, and I still couldn't find even a trace of her shadow.
"Where are you, Miranda?" I thought to myself while frustratedly running my hand through my hair.
I didn't give up and decided to continue looking for her. I spent another thirty minutes, but I still couldn't find her, and after deciding that my search was futile, I finally decided to leave the place, only to strike my luck when I finally saw Miranda, and this time, she was hailing a cab again.
I was intrigued to see that a man was riding with her in the taxi; their proximity to each other suggested a potential intimate relationship.
I quickly looked for another vacant cab, and luckily, I managed to find one almost instantly.
There was this nagging feeling inside me that was making me nervous, and the need for me to find out who the guy with Miranda was was bugging me.
We reached a well-known restaurant in Makati after thirty minutes.
"Can you wait for me?" I asked the cab driver, and when I noticed that he was going to refuse, I immediately grabbed a thousand pesos in my wallet and handed it to him, not entirely sure if he was going to wait for me or not.
"Good afternoon, sir. Do you have a reservation?" I was asked by one of the hosts when I tried to follow Miranda and the guy she was with inside a restaurant.
Actually, because my attention was only on Miranda and that unknown guy, I was unaware that they had entered a restaurant.
"No, I don't," I answered honestly.
"That's fine; let me check if there is any available table. One moment, please," he replied.
I couldn't help but get worried seeing the number of people inside; just by glancing inside, I could already tell that almost all the tables were taken.
He checked his tablet and fortunately found that there was a last-minute cancellation, giving me an available table.
"Thank you," I told him, and then I followed him to my table. Once I settled down, I immediately scanned the surroundings, looking for Miranda.
A couple of minutes had passed, but I still couldn't find Miranda, and I was about to stand up to have a better view when I finally spotted her getting out of the ladies' room.
I followed her with my eyes to see where her table was, and that was when I saw the man she was with in the taxi earlier.
There were other people with them, a couple perhaps based on the closeness they are to each other. I was about to breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that maybe I was overthinking, but that relief didn't last long when I saw Miranda kissing the man on the cheek.
Impulse overriding reason, I moved with tenacity towards their table, an uncontrollable force driving my actions. Before my own actions could fully register, I grabbed the man's collar and lifted him just a tiny bit off the ground.
"Hey! What are you?" Miranda didn't suddenly stop talking when she finally saw my face, and I could see how pale her face was after recognizing me.
"Let go," the boy next door said while gasping for air, which made Miranda wake up from her reverie.
"Let him go, Ang," Miranda calmly said, and when I didn't listen, she slapped me, making me lose my grip on the man's collar. I wasn't finished yet, but before I could even make another move, I was stopped by the employees from the restaurant.
"Stay away from Miranda! She's mi... she's already married!" I angrily exclaimed.
I was horrified when I almost said that she was mine because of the rage I was feeling; fortunately, rationality kicked in and stopped me from making a fool of myself.
Those words were a reminder for this guy, but for some reason, it felt like I was reminding myself that Miranda is Anthony's wife and my brother.
After that commotion, I tightly held Miranda's hand and led her out of the restaurant. I could feel the stares of the people who witnessed what happened, but I didn't care about their opinions. I was furious as hell, and it seemed like they saw it too, as they avoided us.
After that commotion, I pulled Miranda out of the restaurant, and thankfully, she didn't resist and just remained silent until we were finally outside.
"I can... explain," she said, but I didn't want to hear any more lies from her, especially when I remembered how she affectionately kissed the man in the restaurant.
The image was making me furious again, and I had to restrain myself from going back inside and beating the hell out of him.
What I witnessed was enough evidence for me to know that my suspicion about her was right.
"How could you cheat on my brother? How heartless can you be taking advantage of his condition?" I angrily yelled.
"Listen to me, Ang. It's not what you want," she persisted, but I didn't let her finish and cut her off.
"To think I was considering that I might have wronged you by thinking the worst of you and that, in fact, you really love my brother, but then again, you have proven that I was right; you're nothing but a conniving, gold digger bi..."
Miranda slapped me hard across the face before I could continue speaking, and I was astounded by the pain that was engraved across her beautiful face as she tried to hold back the tears that were about to escape from her eyes.
"Since you're so sure that I was the worst, then, I guess, it would be pointless for me to defend myself," she said with so much bitterness in her voice.
I was certain she wiped the tears from her eyes before turning her back on me completely.
She was probably only pretending, so I wouldn't feel guilty, and I despised myself for being so trusting of her. That day, I made a promise to myself that I would no longer fall for whatever she showed me since, in my opinion, Miranda Sandoval is a fraud. I also resolved to have her marriage to my brother dissolved and to ensure that she had no financial support from my family at all.
I didn't need to catch another cab because I quickly went back to the one that was waiting. Fortunately, it was still there.
"Where to, boss?" the driver asked, smiling, which was far from my mood right now.
I yelled, "To hell!" at him, and in return, he scratched his head. I calmed down by taking a big breath and then directed him back to the house.
Though I didn't want to acknowledge it, I was feeling bad once more after I eventually stopped being so angry and remembered the tears she had attempted to conceal earlier.
"Crocodile tears," I thought to myself.
-=Ang's Point of View=-It wasn't until the cab driver informed me that we had arrived at our destination that I even realized we had arrived home.My mother gave me a warm greeting as soon as I walked inside the house. I excused myself politely and headed straight for my room, locking the door behind me.While lying in bed, I still couldn't brush off the thought of Miranda and her lover. Yes, in my mind, I knew that Miranda was betraying my brother, and some images made it hard for me to calm down.I imagined them in a private place being all cuddly and maybe doing something more; however, it turned out that I was overthinking when I later discovered that Miranda also arrived home that night.The following morning, I decided to head out to start my responsibilities in managing the family company. It was too early when I got there, and when my mom's husband got to the office, he appeared off guard, seeing me in the office."You should have told me that you would be here," he said."I
-=Ang's Point of View=-The following morning, I decided to take my plan into action, so I looked for Miranda, who happened to be in Anthony's room."Good morning!" I cheerfully greeted her, and I found her talking to the comatose Anthony.I could tell that I caught her off-guard since it hadn't been that long since I showed her animosity, but since we agreed on a truce, it wouldn't be that surprising if I tried to treat her better."Good... morning," she hesitantly replied, her confusion evident on her beautiful face.For some reason, I felt a sense of irritation inside me when I noticed her touching Anthony's hand, seemingly genuinely concerned for my brother. If she really cared for him, she wouldn't be flirting with any other man, but of course, I stopped myself from saying things that would blow up my plan.My objective was to win Miranda over and remove her from my brother. I would make sure she had no choice because she refused to voluntarily sign the divorce papers. The most c
-=Ang's Point of View=-I didn't have to get up early because it was Saturday, and I didn't have to go to the office today. Nevertheless, I got up early to carry out my scheme to win Miranda over.I saw Miranda leave Anthony's room that morning, so I approached her decisively, "Miranda, can I talk to you?""Yes," she curtly answered. To avoid Mom hearing us converse, I decided to speak with her outside in the garden.I informed her, pretending to be hesitant, "Uhm, I need your help. I'm planning to surprise Mom and her husband," and saw the joy light up in her eyes.She smiled and said, "Sure, what's your plan?" I gave her a response with a hidden smile in return.I began to tell her about my claimed "plan," and she listened intently to everything I had to say."I'm organizing to have a family dinner later, but the fact is, it's for them, and we'll leave once they're comfortable and let them enjoy their intimate meal," I added with a grin on my face.She said, "Wow, that's nice, but t
-=Ang's Point of View=-"I like her."As I lay in bed, those phrases kept going through my head. To be honest, I had no idea where that began. I've been lying in this position for some time, turning and tossing, still unsure of the emotions surging inside of me. Even though I despise her, I can't help but think about her.The scene where I was dancing with her kept appearing in my memory, making it hard for me to fall asleep.I must have fallen asleep around three because I awoke with a minor headache, unhappy that the housekeeper had woken me up, and when I opened the door, the maid told me that Mom wanted to see me.I went to the bathroom to fix myself, and after looking in the mirror and seeing that I was somehow presentable, I made my way to the dining room where the others were waiting.I forced a grin and said, "Good morning," to everyone. I avoided looking at Miranda, who had her head lowered."Good morning to you too, son. I was told that last night didn't go as planned, but f
-=Ang's Point of View=-When we arrived home later that night, Andres just excused himself and didn't even bother to look in Miranda's direction before he made his way to their room.I couldn't stop staring at him until I couldn't see him. Even in the car, he stayed silent during the trip, and I couldn't blame him.Imagine finding out that the woman your son married has a questionable background and got married not just once but several times already, which would definitely destroy someone else's mood.I knew Andres loved his son, and he wouldn't take this lying down, which is why he decided to help me make sure Miranda would leave Anthony after we had enough evidence."Please excuse him; he might just be too tired," Mom apologized to Miranda."It's alright, I understand. If you'll excuse me, I want to see Anthony first before going to bed," she said, looking directly at Mom, but when she turned around, our eyes briefly met before she continued her way to Anthony's room."I'm sorry, d
-=Ang's Point of View=-I decided to miss dinner, so when one of the maids knocked on my door, I told her to tell my mom that I wasn't hungry and just wanted to sleep, but the truth is, I just wanted to make sure that everything was ready for the fruition of my plan.Actually, everything was ready; the hidden cameras were all set, as was the computer, but I guess I was just readying myself for what was about to happen between me and Miranda.I was gazing at the ceiling of my room when I heard another knock on the door, thinking it was one of the maids. I opened it, only to be surprised to see a confused Miranda."Care to explain to me what's with the flower and your notes?" she asked sternly.I inhaled deeply to control my emotions at that very moment. I knew I should despise Miranda, but I couldn't help but feel a strong urge to embrace her and give her a passionate kiss. I resisted the urge, though."Did you like the flowers?" was what came out of my mouth instead of a reply to her
-=Ang's Point of View=-"She's a freaking virgin." That's exactly what crossed my mind when I woke up the next day. When I woke up next to Miranda sound asleep, I felt a soft warmth around me, her contented face leaning against my arm while I enjoyed the soothing sound of her breathing.Honestly, I wouldn't get tired of looking at her face—the face that gave me countless sleepless nights—but I knew I had to think, so with a heavy heart, I carefully lifted her head and laid it on the pillow.I walked to the couch and sat on it, while the thoughts of the truth kept running through my mind."She's a virgin," I thought to myself, or most correctly, was a virgin, since I had already taken her virginity last night, and my eyes automatically moved to the stain on the side of the bed, the evidence of her lost virginity.I wanted to wake her up and ask her the truth, but I didn't have the heart to disturb her slumber, considering how exhausted she must be after our repeated intimacy.After ta
-=Ang's Point of View=-To be honest, I don't even know where to begin because I really don't know much about Miranda's life."And yet you judge her as if you're absolutely sure that she's despicable and the worst person in the world." I feel even more terrible when I think about how I've depicted her from the beginning as if she's the worst person when I haven't even tried to learn who the real Miranda is."You can see that she's a good person, but your blind anger has blinded you because you thought she was only after your brother's money," the other part of my mind says. I still don't understand how she could be a virgin after being married multiple times, and one of my concerns is that Anthony will wake up and discover what I did to his wife. But for the time being, the most important thing is to find Miranda and ask her forgiveness. I'm willing to kneel in front of her simply to be forgiven."You're such a huge idiot!" I say fiercely to myself, tears streaming down both cheeks,