Chapter 1

• "Are you certain about your decision, Sarah?" For the hundredth time, Sarah's mother has asked the same question, and she has the same answer.
• She heaved a deep sigh before she faced her mother and caressed her face. "Yes, Mom. I am sure about this. Mom, I needed this. I need this for myself, I need to be alone. I want to start again all over again, I want to go back to being the old Sarah. The old Sarah is happy, brave and does not care about what other people say. I want to be the old me again. The old me before I met Jason."
• Clarissa, her mother, smiled sadly and touched her daughter's cheeks with her hand. "You have the opportunity to start a new life here, darling. You don’t need to go to Greece. Your father and I will assist you in dealing with those who would mock and hurt you. You know that we are always here for you.”
• Her mother's words made her smile bitterly. "Mom, we both know that many investors left our company following the scandal in which I was involved. And, Mom, this is my problem. I don't want you and Dad to be involved in anything else. I can handle it if it's just me, but I can't stand it if you and Dad are also affected. So, please allow me to do this. Let me go." She explained, hoping to make her mother understand.
• When her scandal and imprisonment became public, more than half of their company's investors fled, causing it to nearly go bankrupt. It's a good thing her father was able to intervene and save it. Because if they lose their business as a result of her actions, she will be even more unable to forgive herself.
• More than a year has passed, and she still can't forgive herself for what she did to Jason and Isabel.
• Jason has been her boyfriend for three years, but she only discovered he was cheating on her with her best friend, Isabel, about a year ago. After discovering that Jason and Isabel had duped her, she stormed into Isabel's apartment, confronted her until she was unable to help herself but physically hurt Isabel, and even attempted to set fire to her apartment, resulting in her arrest and imprisonment. Her confinement, however, did not last long due to her parents' power, wealth, and connections. Isabel also withdrew the lawsuit she had filed against her. And because their family is well-known in the business, what she did become a huge scandal that affected not only her but also her family.
• Even though she is now free, the guilt, remorse, and sadness she feels in her heart remain. If she had been understanding and if she had accepted that she was no longer the one Jason loved, if she had just listened to his pleas a few times, it wouldn't have ended like this.
• But she let her emotions be controlled by her anger, and in her great love for Jason, she did heinous things that she still regrets to this day. And all she could do right now is bemoan the fact that no matter what she did, she would never be able to change the past. What happened has already happened, and no matter how much she regrets what she did or how much she apologizes to Isabel, nothing will change the fact that it happened. Nobody can change the fact that she turned into a madwoman and a criminal.
• She wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled at her mom who was staring at her intently. "I'm sorry, Mom. I'm sorry for all the wrong things that I've done. I'm sorry if you and Dad were affected by my wrong decisions. I'm sorry if I embarrassed our family. I'm sorry if I defiled what you care about the most. Our last name and our company. I'm sorry, Mom. I am sorry." She sincerely said and let her tears flow.
• Her mother hugged her and gently stroked her back as if to calm her down. "Hush now, darling. How many times do we have to tell you that it's okay now? It's time for you to move on." Her mom said then let go of their hug and faced her, her warm palms on her cheeks. "Yes, you made a terrible mistake but you already regret it, don't you? I know how much you loved Jason. We've witnessed how you treasured him, adore him, love him unconditionally, and give him everything that you could offer. So we can understand why you did all of that. I am not saying that what you did is right and that they deserve that but I understand where you are coming from, darling. Isabel and Jason had already forgiven you so please, forgive yourself as well. It's time for you to move on."
• If only it were that easy. If only when she says that she would move on then she would immediately forget everything but it's not. Because every time she goes out and she sees how people look at her, how they are giving her a judgmental look, the self-esteem that she tries so hard to build slowly diminishes.
• She can tell by the way they look at her that they regard her as a hideous person. And she can't blame them because that's the truth: she's a hideous and awful person, and even if she's already regretted it, nothing can be undone. Until she is here in the Philippines, she will not be able to move on. She knew what she was doing was a cowardly act, but it was the last thing she knew she could do to have some peace in her heart.
• She just smiled at her mother and then kissed her on the cheek. "I need to be somewhere, Mom. I'll be back." She said but even before she could leave her room, her mother spoke again.
• "Don't tell me you're going to see them again. Just leave them alone, Sarah, and forget your love for that man. He's already happy with Isabel." Her mother said.
• She gave a bitter smile. "Mom, I'm not bothering them, am I? And I have no intention of doing those things again. I know he's happy now. I just wanted to see him before I left so I could settle down and relax. So don't worry, Mom; I won't make the same stupid mistake twice. I will not do anything that will jeopardize our future." She told her mother without looking at her and then exited the room.
• She noticed the two as soon as she arrived at Jason's house. Jason was having a pleasant conversation with Isabel about her pregnancy. And because the gate surrounding the house was low, she could freely observe and look at the two. She hid in the plants to avoid being seen.
• This isn't the first time she's done something like this. She's been doing this once a week since she was released, and she realizes she's acting like a stalker.
• During her months of being in prison, she thought of nothing but Jason. She wondered how he is if he's doing fine, if he’s eating well since he has a habit of not eating at the right time or if he's still taking care of himself. So when she was released, she immediately asked her mother for Jason’s address and all her questions were answered when she saw him with Isabel and until now that is still what she sees. His face is radiant. He’s glowing and he looks happy and content. She sees in his handsome face the joy and contentment of being with Isabel.
• She continued just staring at them. They looked happy. Isabel was sitting on the grass while Jason was hugging her from the back. Jason was whispering something to Isabel and Isabel seems to be fascinated by whatever he said.
• They looked so perfect together. A loving couple who was about to start a family of their own.
• She thought.
• She wiped away her tears and smiled bitterly.
• Maybe this is the right thing to do. She thought again. She has to go and fix herself and her broken heart.
• She looked at them again and let herself stare again at Jason's handsome face and the happy smile that was posted on his lips because this might be the last time that she would see it.
• "Goodbye, Jason." She whispered and let her tears fall again then turned around and left.
• "Can't we really call you?" Her dad asked.
• They are now at the airport and it will be her flight in just less than 30 minutes.
• She smiled at her parents. "We already talked about this, didn't we? The reason why I didn't bring my phone is that I don't want anyone to contact me while I'm in Greece."
• "But how are we going to know that you are well if we can't contact you." Her mother said. She could see the sadness on her face.
• She held her mother's hand and gently squeezed it. "Mom, Dad, I already told you. I am going to take care of myself so please stop worrying. I won't do things that could hurt me again."
• "We know that but you also can't tell us not to worry. You don't even want us to contact you. That will only make us even more worried because we don't know what is happening to you." Her mom said again.
• "I already promised, remember? I will be careful so you don't have to worry about me, Mom. And once I move on, once I fully heal myself, I will come back and stay here for good." She said with a smile.
• "Okay. If you say so. But if ever, just in case you get into trouble, do not hesitate to let us know, call us, okay? You remember our telephone number, don't you?"
• She nodded as an answer.
• A smile appeared on her mother's face but there was still a streak of sadness in her eyes.
• Her mother was about to say something more when her father tapped her mother's shoulder. Her mother's attention turned to her father but her father's eyes were on her.
• "I am also worried, Sarah, and honestly, I still don't want to let you go all alone by yourself. But I know that you needed this. So I will trust you. I will hold on to your promise that you will come back to us, safe and sound." Gentleness can be heard in her father's voice, warming her heart and making her emotional. But she kept her tears at bay. She must appear strong in her parents' eyes, or else she will make them even more concerned.
• When she felt her heart pounding, she let out a deep sigh. Her lips are already trembling, and she knows she won't be able to hold back her tears for long. So she put on a fake smile while staring at her parents and stood up.
• "I'm just going to use the restroom." She says, and after her parents’ nod, she walks towards the restroom, still trying not to cry.
• When she reached the restroom, she immediately went inside a cubicle, locked the door, and there, she let her tears finally fall.
• She cried and cried.
• This will be the first time that she will be leaving her parents for so long. She's already twenty-six but she has never been apart from her parents. The only time she was apart from her parents is when she went on a vacation with Jason to celebrate their first anniversary and it's only for one week but she has badly missed her parents already. What more now that she will be going out of the country and not sure when she will be coming back? But no matter how much she'll miss her parents, she won't change her decision. She needs this to redeem herself.
• After minutes of crying, she went out of the cubicle and fixed herself. She fixed her make-up, making sure that her parents wouldn't notice that she just cried.
• She took a final look at herself in the mirror first before she made her way towards the door. She was about to reach the doorknob when the door suddenly opened, almost hitting her in the face. Gladly, her reflexes were fast and she was able to dodge it.
• She can hear her heart beating so fast.
• That scared the shit out of her!
• She was about to yell at the person who opened the door when that person suddenly grabbed her body towards him and before she knew it, something painful was already injected into her neck making her lose consciousness.