It is a bright sunny day, opposite Angel's feelings inside. She has been in this state for a week already.
The place is a hot mess while her phones and emails receive notifications non-stop!
“Hey, where are you? The chapter update is overdue!”
“Hi, Angel, James here. How are you? If you told me where you are, I would be glad to visit you.”
“Good day, we would like to remind you of your bill that is due on….”
On this tread of notification and messages, Angel did not once budge. She doesn’t have the appetite to eat. Angel is too sleepy, but she can’t sleep; she can’t even cry anymore. All her tears seemed to dry up.
Kyle has been trying to visit her for a while now, but she never opened the door, he kept on calling her, but she never answered.
Her doorbell rang.
Angel’s heartbeat went fast; she thought it might have been Kyle- maybe this is what she wanted, but she would not open the door whenever the person showed up.
A loud noise was heard, someone kicked the door- obviously, the person outside was not Kyle, Angel thought, and she also knew who it might be. Just like a dead zombie walking, Angel walked from her bed to the door, and she was right.
It is Linda.
“YEA! You died already?!” Linda shouted.
Angel did not take offense; she knew this was Linda’s way of showing she cared. She used to be the sweet girl next door type when she was younger, but now Linda is like the thug of the neighborhood.
“I miss you too,” Angel said to Linda with a smile as she opened the door and let her come in.
Linda is the only person that knows this place aside from Angel. This has been their hiding place before. It is a site full of their memories when both of them have nothing to lose and rely on each other. It is a girl’s hideout that even Kyle is not allowed in; after all, Kyle and Linda never clicked together, and Angel has yet to find out why.
When Angel moved out, Linda stayed in this place for some time. This is Angel’s apartment way before when she is still a struggling writer. The childless landowner admired Angel a lot because of how hard Angel worked and gave the apartment to her- Angel couldn’t become any happier that day because this was the first place she owned. It might not be the best. Still, for her eyes, at that moment, it is a piece of heaven that she is proud to have.
This small apartment has witnessed Angel’s struggles, late-night part-time gigs, and frustrations towards writing. The walls of this small, secluded place have heard all her cries, something they are hearing again after several years of not staying here.
Linda is the first person to ever break the walls of this house and become a visitor on the same day when her father was brought to prison, followed by her mother’s suicide. This humble place has also been Linda’s second home, sometimes her only home.
Linda stayed here even when Angel moved out of the city because of her budding success. At that time, Linda is very happy for Angel. Angel is her only friend, the only person she can rely on – the only shoulder she can lean on.
Those were the times when Linda would gladly take a bullet for Angel. It would have stayed the same if Linda didn’t find out.
If only Linda did not find out.
The first night that Angel transferred to her new house in the city, Linda cleaned the room where she and Angel usually sleep. Linda noticed that Angel had left a box of pictures. Linda smiled and messaged Angel that she would bring the box tomorrow. She is about to bring it back to where she found it when she got a little curious.
It would have been best if she did not get curious.
What you don’t know won't hurt you, as they say.
Linda opened the again while sitting on the half-cleaned bed she’s working on. She browsed on the pictures. She smiled as she saw Angel’s gleaming smile, but out of a couple of pictures, there was a piece of document that caught her eye. It is a document that Angel should have kept better.
A secret she never shared, though she didn’t mean to.
It is just that this piece of information seemed to be irrelevant for the both of them, or so Angel thought.
Linda’s bright smile was slowly erased as she read the paper's content. Her hands shook, her body went numb, and her eyes rushed in tears before she even realized it.
Linda put back the document at the same place where she found it, under the pile of pictures. She struggles to put the box back where she initially got it and when she is done, her head seems to blackout. What Linda read is still hard for her to digest.
Linda saw the document of Angel’s name changed from Angel Kim to Angel Brooks. The last name rings the bell. It is the last name that she will never forget. The surname of the man who ruined her happy home, the man who made his beloved father jailed, led to her mother’s suicide.
The sole culprit of her happy life, the monster she swore against.
At first, Linda is bargaining. She said it might just be the same last name, and they might not be related, but the attached birth certificate proved otherwise.
Father: Joseph Kim
Linda’s world shattered.
Her pure love and admiration for Angel have been turned into rage. From that day, she started looking at Angel as a person she would take revenge on. Linda never told Angel that she knew about her secret. The other person did not even have the slightest hint.
But on that cold night, the first night of Angel’s absence in the apartment is also the first night that she swore that she would never rest until she hadn’t seen Angel fall, just as how Linda’s father did.
Linda’s father made her believe that he was innocent and falsely accused. That is what Linda thought, until this day.
But something is odd.
Even if Linda hated Angel so much, she still wanted to see her.
Linda makes herself believe that she only wants to be around her because she is paid to do so. So she can see her downfall- but deep inside, whether she admits it or not. Deep down inside Linda’s core is a person who will never stop admiring the heart and kindness of Angel, whether or not that is her real name.