Chapter 3

Qyxiella 

“OH, C’MON, QUE-xa-ella! You can do it! You can easily find a man who will willingly give in to you tonight!” Zhenesca, one of my best friends, naughtily smiled as she drank her own mixed tequila and said my name drunkenly.

I exhaled a bored sigh. Zhen is correct. I could easily meet a man tonight if I wanted to, because this was Zhenesca and Forester's dare, to give up my first kiss to the man who would catch my eye tonight. Our bet was made five years ago, but would only happen tonight. 

“Stop it, Zhen. Let Qyxie decide on her own.” Forester, who was busy mixing her drinks, glared  at Zhenesca to stop her.

Zhenesca shook her head because Forester was always contradicting whatever she said.

The three of us were having a good time at Club QyZheTer. This high-end club was located in the beautiful city of Cebu and was owned by us, hence the combination of our names. We founded the club four years ago, after my 18th birthday. Managing the club was my only hobby at times when no one wanted to talk to me in my family. 

I loved to mix drinks. It is either alcoholic or not. So, when my friends and I decided to build this club, I put all my effort and heart into it.

 I also found comfort in this club when my parents mistreated me. I was thankful that my parents didn’t stop me from doing this even though I know they hate to see me succeed, which I didn’t understand why.

“No, not going there again!” I immediately stopped myself from thinking further. 

The three of us are seated on the club’s second level as our routine. We could see the loud and chaotic club hoppers dancing below through the solid and transparent glass wall.

The club’s interior design was in the shape of a bowl. There was a circular bar counter encircling the dancefloor in the middle on the first floor, where there was a small stage, and a band was performing. The second floor is more significant because it serves as a VIP room for guests who prefer privacy.

What a lovely sight, I thought as I looked down at the club hoppers. I was here to have fun, just like the rest of the people downstairs. I was there to celebrate my freedom.

I let out a bitter smile. The term “celebrate” was not precisely correct. I should be in mourning right now and not celebrating because my mother died. But I had no desire to feel sad. What I was currently experiencing was happiness and freedom.

Why does half of my heart rejoice at my mother’s death? Why didn’t I have the strength to weep? Is it because my mother’s death doesn’t bother me? Do I have the right to feel this way?

I scoffed.

My beloved mother, whom I treasured from the day I was born, was now back where she was from. Despite the pain and neglect I suffered, I still loved her dearly.

Daughter’s love. A daughter’s love was eternal. But why couldn’t my mother feel that? I did everything that she asked me to do.

I worked hard in school, earned a good college degree, and started my own business. But my mother never once acknowledged all my efforts. I didn’t even feel that I had a mother because she didn’t even give me maternal love.

I was always left alone.

My life with my parents has been a dark one. They are the ones who put out the light on my future. That’s when my affection for my mother gradually faded. The lamp that illuminates the path of a daughter’s love for her mother fades as there has nothing to fuel it.

I ended my relationship with my boyfriend when I was eighteen because my mother said so. And if I were late for home, my mother would not feed me for a whole day.

I would never forget when my mother tied my hands and legs if my homework was wrong in primary school—beaten, handcuffed, and hungry to death. I did not protest. My reason? I loved my mother. So, whatever my mother does to me, I accept.

On the other hand, my father was not particularly strict with me. Although he did not do anything to harm me, he spoke to me at least once a month. That made me happy. In the house where I am living, I couldn’t even call it home, I could feel my father was still my family member. Because whenever I am alone in my room, I always think that I am an outsider.

 Zhenesca and Forester were my true friends, like my real sisters. The gals who gave me the best of luck and motivation to continue living.

 The three of us are neighbors and the two are the only people my mother allowed to enter our house. We grew up together and opened this club with our own money, actually only the two because I don't have riches. It was these two who insisted that I am also the co-owner of the club.

They are always there to protect me from my mother’s cruelty. They will secretly enter our mansion through the secret tunnel connecting Forester’s house to ours. They assist me if they discovered that I was tied up or that my mother had locked me in a room and had not fed me.

 I regarded them as my true family rather than my own parents. These two friends of mine demonstrated what a family should be like. Because my parents are always away, Zhenesca and Forester can quickly enter our house to help me.

These two also contributed significantly to my needs. I am a gullible person. I was ignorant of some things, because of how my mother treated me. I would have remained naive about the world if it hadn’t been for the assistance of my two friends.

I let my heart kill the love I felt for my so-called parents as I grew into a beautiful and refined lady. Because of what my parents are doing to me, I no longer believe I was their biological child.

I no longer wonder why I felt joy at my mother’s death, despite my mother being brutally  murdered and my father seeking justice.

“You’re doing it again!”

When I heard Forester’s voice, I closed my eyes tightly. I wiped away the wet liquid that had run down my cheek. I had no idea I was crying while reminiscing about my past.

“I thought you were looking forward to this day? It finally arrived. How come you don’t appear to be happy?” Zhenesca inquired. Her gaze focused on the bar counter below.

Zhenesca was the one who forced me to find a man tonight and kiss him, something I hadn’t done in twenty-two years of my existence, to finally bid our bet. 

When it comes to the opposite sex, I am not entirely innocent. Because my two friends never stopped teaching me about sex. And I was always embarrassed about it.

I followed Zhenesca's gaze down to the first floor while still feeling down. My face was riddled with a gloomy expression. My mother's cruelty still lingered on me even through her death, but somehow she is still my mother.

“My mother passed away, Zhen. Even though my heart tells me to be happy, I still felt a bit sad. There is still a part of me that is wounded. Because no matter how much she mistreated me, she is still my mother. She still gave me my life here on earth.”

Zhenesca and Forester sat beside me, squeezed my body in the middle, and caressed my back.

“Qyxie, we know how you feel, okay? The anger you felt towards your mother is as great as Mt. Everest because she mistreated you. But we also know that you still have love left for her despite that. Just let it out. Don’t bottle it up, okay?” Zhenesca hugged me softly.

“Losing a mother is like losing a limb. It’s difficult to stand on one leg without a crutch, but that’s not the end of the story, okay?” Forester said kindly before hugging me too. 

“That’s why we’re giving you a drink!”

The two stopped hugging me and Forester handed me another glass of her mixed vodka.

“Treat you to a drink,” Zhenesca smirked as she pointed downstairs, “and a guy,” she teased.

I shook my head in disbelief, but I still followed Zhenesca's finger out of curiosity. I could see the man my friend had mentioned because the bar counter was below our seat. 

My world halted and stopped spinning when my eyes fell on the man seated at the bar counter. Excitement rushed through my entire being like an avalanche. The man’s Adonis-like face attracted me at first look, and I was taken aback. I didn't know I could feel this way and the desire to have him skyrocketed.