?HIS BALLERINA?
THEME: {What the heart sees}
✍️ Written By Precious Pinky✍️
?Chapter Thirteen ?
~Silence…~
?CLAIRE?
“You want to see me, dear.” Claire said, as she walked into her niece’s large bedroom. It was clean and spotless as usual. She knows how much Ballerina hates dirtiness even before she became blind. She was literally a neat freak.
“Yes, aunt. Hope you don’t mind?” She asked in a lower voice, adjusting for her aunt to sit. Claire sat down on the spot Ballerina had created for her to sit.
“Of course not. What is it?” She asked. She knows exactly why Ballerina asked to see her and she had prepared an answer to give. The coronation should have happened today if she didn’t postpone it. Yes, everyone had waited patiently for the day to come, even she had waited for it as well but she can’t let power and wealth blind her sense of reasoning. She can’t let her niece end up like her late sister, the queen, and also her mother.
“Something tells me that you know exactly what I’m talking about, aunt.” Ballerina said, still maintaining her calm voice.
And she was right. Claire remained silent for a pretty long time, she was Just staring at her beautiful blind niece, she was at the verge of shedding tears. Would she ever forgive her if she come to know the truth?
She didn’t know why but she felt the urge of hugging her and she did just that. She pulled Ballerina into her arms for a warm yet cold embrace.
She wants her to be happy. Because she deserve all the happiness of life and not the pain, hurt or tragedy. Her life has been turning upside down since the day she lost her parents. At first she thought she was going to be okay, she thought Ballerina will be fine as time went on. Yeah, she became fine and alright throu-ghthe help of ballet but everything came shattering down again the very day she lost her sight. Claire can’t even imagine the pain her niece must be going throu-ghevery pa-ssing day. She knows how it feels to be locked up in a dark room with no escape or redemption. Just you and the darkness. It was more like falling in the pit of hell.
“My beautiful niece.” She breaths out, stro-king Ballerina’s hair. “My dearest niece.”
“Aunt…”
“It was for the best.” Claire cuts her off from whatever she was going to say, pulling away from the hug and looking into her blind eyes. “I had no other option than to postpone it.”
“Why?” Ballerina breaths out. “I mean, what are we going to tell the ministers was our reason for postponing the coronation? And why didn’t you tell me earlier before going for it? I thought we both made a promise to always do things together and not keep secrets from each other, aunt.”
Claire nods her head in approval. “Yeah. We did promise that. I was going to tell you anyway but I couldn’t find you around. Mercy, the maid was the one who told me that you went to the beach and that Heather have gone to get you. I’m sorry for not telling you first before going on with the plan.” She said. Part of it were true. Yeah, she did search for Ballerina but it wasn’t because of the postponement of the coronation. She just wanted to check on her. Stupid how she think she could hide it from her.
Ballerina let out a sigh with a nod of her head, taking in everything her aunt had just said. Then a question struck her. “Why?” She let it out.
“What?”
“Why did you postpone the coronation at this short notice? And besides you were the same person who agreed to the fixed date so, why the sudden change of plans?” She asked, expecting for a honest reply from her aunt.
Claire was silent. She didn’t say anything. She thought she was ready for this question, she thought she had an answer but she was so wrong. She has run out of answers _Lies_ She can’t tell Ballerina the truth, telling her the truth means making her worried and scared, and making her worried and scared will only worsen the whole situation. If only she was blind, then she would have tell her the whole thing…what was she even saying? Ballerina was damn smart and would have been able to put two to two together just by looking into her eyes.
“Aunt?” Ballerina called out just to sure she was left alone in the room.
Claire placed her hand over Ballerina and sque-ezed it a little. “I can’t tell you, Ballerina.”
“Why not? You can tell me anything, aunt. We are always in everything together, remember?”
“What if we were never in anything together?”
“What?”
“What if I’ve been lying to you and keeping things away from you, Ballerina?” She questioned, waiting for the worst.
“Wha…what are you saying, aunt?” Ballerina asked in a shaky voice. She was always emotional since the day she lost her sight. Little made her cry. And that’s another reason Claire decided against telling her anything.
Claire let out a breath as she sque-ezed Ballerina’s hand again. “What I’m saying is that, is not everything you have to know. At least not now.” She said in a whisper.
“But it has something to do with me, don’t it?” Claire didn’t say anything. “If it has something to do with me then it’s enough reason to tell me what’s going on! What are you hiding from me?” Ballerina snapped out, surprising Claire.
“I’m sorry.”
Ballerina angrily jerked her hand away from Claire’s grasp and turned her back to her. “Get out.” She said coldly.
Claire was taken aback. Ballerina never acted like this. She was never this cold, if it were normal, she would have just said, ‘alright. But promise you will tell me one day?’ That was what Claire had expected to hear from her and not this.
“Balle_”
“I said get out. Just leave.” She was emotional like she usually was, she was rather cold and mean. It was so unusual and scary.
“Fine.” Claire stood up quietly. She had already taken two steps towards the door when Ballerina spoke out, saying something that did nothing but to surprise her even more.
“I might be blind but that doesn’t make me stupid. I just hope you aren’t guilty in anything_”
“Ballerina_”
“Because,” She continued, with no emotions. “If it turns out that you are guilty of anything…I will forget everything you’ve ever done for me.”
Claire sigh as she nods her head sadly. “I hope I will be around to receive your wrath.” She said before stepping out of the room and slamming the door shut behind her.
de-ep down she knows this might be the last conversation they may probably have. She wasn’t so sure but she knows her life wasn’t guaranteed. Maybe she should have just told her…Maybe. Even with everything, she knows Ballerina will come to know about everything and probably hate her for ever doing what she did in the first place. And those words were fact.
But then again, what does she mean by those words; * If it turns out you are guilty of anything, I will forget everything you’ve done for me…* What does she mean? Guilty of what?
Wait a minute…Does Ballerina knows about her late parents death. How much does she even know?
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?PAULO?
“Why are you always like this, Paulo!?” Ace snapped, shooting daggers at his friend.
Paulo was a bit taken aback from his friend outburst. But what more should he expect from him. He was always like this. Always ready to vent out his anger or something or someone. Well, he wouldn’t blame him anyway. He takes the blame for triggering his anger.
“I’m sorry, man.” Paulo said, shooting up his hands in surrender but he knew better, sorry wasn’t going to change anything neither was it going to make Ace any better.
“Sorry?” Ace scoffed. “This isn’t the first time you are doing this. why is it that whenever we are saying something about this, you talk about the possibility of me being the one with my father that night? Are you trying to make me go insane?”
“Ace_”
“I can remember every goddamn thing that happened that day and being with my father isn’t part of it. Are you trying to say I have a messed up memory?” He questioned, venom trailed in his voice.
“Ace, I’m sorry, okay? I know you have every right be mad at_”
“I don’t need your fu-cking permission on that. If you are tired of this investigation then do yourself a favor by getting the shit away from me.” He grabbed his car keys and stormed off of the building.
Paulo just sat there, staring right at the spot Ace had been sitting down on. Damn, what has he done? Why did he have to say those words to him? He knows about his anger issue and should have maintained his lane but no, he just went on to say those shit.
He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. No, he wasn’t frustrated because of the investigation, he was rather frustrated because of his friend short-tempered issue.
He stood up to his feet, grabbed his briefcase and the files containing Mr Anthony’s information when his gaze fell on the docu-ment Ace had brou-ght. The same docu-ment his mother had singlehandedly given him.
He grabbed the docu-ment, just when he was about to open it, his phone started ringing, interrupting him. He pulled down the docu-ment and answered the call.
“Yes?” He asked.
“You have to come to the police station now. You have a case to handle.”
“Oh.” Paulo picked up his bag and left the Cafe in a hurry.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
?ACE?
He pressed his foot against the speed pedal, driving off to the one destination that refuse to leave his head.
*What if the man lying down helplessly on the ground is your father, you are the child and the last man is the killer, the ringleader of this investigation.*
Paulo’s words played in his head over and over again. And for the first time ever he seem to ask himself a question; ‘What if Paulo was right?’
He came to a stop and got out of the car, walking down to the beach, he sighed as he came to a stop in front of the waters. He stuffed his hands into his pan-ts pocket, looking ahead of the waters.
His gaze slowly moved over to a particular direction, there she was again… why do they seem to be meeting Everytime? She wasn’t dancing this time around, she wasn’t crying, she was rather mad over something. Her face were in a de-ep frown. She keeps clenching and unclenching her fist as her eyes were also on the waters. She was holding a stick in front of herself.
Ah, she was blind. How can he forget?
She started walking towards his direction, she wasn’t smiling, her face were emotionless. This was the first time for him to see her face clearly and that’s because it wasn’t nighttime but daytime.
She was getting closer and just when she was about to walk pas-shim, she stri-pped and was almost falling when his hands shot out to her falling form and pulled her up against his ch-est.
??.
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#To Be Continued…