I chose the most cowardly way to get rid of Alexander by leaving home and I did it on the day that my father was scheduled to return home. My get up was nothing fancy and Aunt Suzy believed that I would only check on Coffee Time.

I walked a block away from home before I hailed for a taxi to take me to Robinsons Galleria. The mall has banks and less crowded since it’s new, so I could buy my travel essentials there.

At Robinsons, I went straight to the department store and picked up a duffel bag where I could put my cash. Once I had my duffel bag, I went to the lower ground floor where the bank was located. I requested to speak to the manager since I had a special request to make and there was no room for errors!

“How much?” She was shocked to hear the numbers and asked me to confirm the exact amount that I’d like to withdraw from my account.

“I need ten million, all in one thousand peso bills,” I replied confidently.

“It’s risky to carry large bulk of cash, Miss Montenegro. You have our atm card and it’s acceptable anywhere,” she suggested that I should opt for a card instead of cash.

I smiled at the middle-aged woman and replied, “I know but I’m going to share it with less fortunate people and cash would be appreciated.”

“Is that so? Okay, I’ll prepare the cash, please wait for a moment.” She said and signed the withdrawal form that I filled up.

A sigh of relief escaped from my lips when the manager signed my withdrawal form and processed it. It didn’t her a long time to prepare the total amount as I requested.

While waiting, I suspected that Alexander has got home already and discovered my disappearance. He would check my emails then he would try to follow me to the airport. I grinned while imagining the scene that he would make later. He would be furious!

Fifteen minutes later, I carried the bag with my cash and searched for the nearest powder room. I liked my outfit, it’s a white t-shirt and blue denim short, a very casual one, but I had to throw it and changed my outfit into something more ordinary and comfortable.

With a cap on my head and a ray-ban to cover my eyes, I exited from the mall as if nothing happened. I took off in one of the taxis and instructed the driver to take me to the RORO port in Cordova. The port that I mentioned was for pump boats going to the nearby islands or for the island hopping activities that were common for tourists, and also, it has a boat that would take people to the Province of Bohol. Alexander wouldn’t find anything on my computer about the roro unless he’s an IT expert.

“How much for one person?” I asked the guy who issued the ticket to passengers.

“One hundred seventy pesos, Ma’am.” He replied.

“Okay, hold on.” I took out a crisp one thousand peso bill from my wallet and gave it to him. He smiled, wrote something in the ticket, and handed it to me together with my change.

“There’s a terminal fee of two pesos over there,” he pointed a chubby, middle-aged man, who manned a table beside the road.

“Okay, thank you,” I said, and carried my bag towards the man, and handed him some coins. He gave me a small piece of paper and I pocketed it together with my boat ticket.

Few passengers were already inside the boat when I get in, and everyone was busy. Some fed their babies with milk on bottles, some ate their lunch, and some others watched a movie. I chose one of the seats in the center, and put my bag under it. The boat was scheduled to leave at eleven, so by twelve-thirty, I would be in Bohol.

We docked at the port of Getafe. Several large boats were in the area, and my eyes widen in surprise when I saw a fast craft coming in. I had no idea that there’s an Oceanjet trip from Cebu to Getafe or maybe the blogger which I followed for directions traveled to Bohol way before the fast craft was introduced.

I endured the heat and walked at least two hundred meters towards the parking area for motorcycles and tricycles for hire. I paid for a motorcycle that would take me to the bus stop and he asked for only twenty pesos. I gave him fifty and he gave me a big smile.

It wasn’t a peak season for tourist so I didn’t bother to reserve a hotel online and asked the tricycle driver I hired from Dao Terminal to take me to the nearest hotel and he took me to Kew Hotel, just a few steps from Island Central Mall, and the said mall was located in front of the terminal.

I turned on my phone and saw the several missed calls from Alexander, and before I could turn it off, his number appeared on the screen. I was almost tempted to accept the call…

Cold shivers ran throughout my body when I dreamed of him mocking our intense lovemaking, accusing me of being a slut, and more. He was furious, and I woke up drenched with sweat even when the air conditioning unit worked just fine.

I had my breakfast delivered to my room because I was afraid to accidentally meet someone whom my father knew in the business. I had no worries about Alexander’s acquaintances because the man came from a poor family. Aside from the fact that he’s poor, we were never seen together as lovers.

Since I didn’t have access to my phone and into the internet, I needed to ask someone about an apartment for rent and the safest person to ask was the lady at the front desk. “Good morning, Miss Alma.” I read the name from the badge on her uniform, and she smiled back at me.

“Yes Maam, how may I help you?” She asked.

“Do you know an apartment for rent near here? You know it’s cheaper to rent an apartment for a long-term stay than in hotels,” I explained why I needed an apartment.

“Hmmm, hold on. My colleague mentioned about an apartment for rent owned by her aunt,” she informed me, and I waited at the nearby lounge while she called for her colleague.

Ten minutes later, bubbly and young hotel staff came to the lobby, and Alma pointed me to her. “Hi, Alma told me that you know of an apartment for rent near here.” By dropping the word Miss, I sounded casual, and the newcomer felt comfortable.

“Ah yeah, it belongs to my aunt, and she asked me yesterday to post it on my social media.” She said.

“Do you have pictures that I can look at?” I inquired, and she retrieved the phone from her pocket and showed me several photos taken in an out of the apartment, and I loved it! “I’ll get it. Can you take me to this place after work?” I asked and when she nodded, I gave her my room number before I returned to my room.

I almost missed the elevator but a man’s hand stopped it from closing. “Thank you,” I told him while inside the lift, and he only smiled at me. So maybe he was mute. “You’re handsome,” I tested him if he would respond to it, and when he didn’t, I never mind and forget about his cold treatment. The lift stopped on the fourth floor and he prepared to leave.

“Thank you,” he said before stepping out from the elevator, and I was aghast to discover that he wasn’t mute at all! What a freak!

The apartment has two bedrooms, small dining, and living rooms, and it has a balcony too! Centralized cooling system, hot and cold showers, all for twenty thousand pesos per month. It was a bargain, I supposed.

Living alone, I wished that I learned some cooking skills from school or Aunt Suzy because food deliveries bored me after a week. Unless I would dine out, I couldn’t eat healthy food since deliveries were limited to chicken, pizza, and street food.

During the first week, traveling by foot or by tricycles excited me, but in the long run, I wanted a car. Buying a brand new car wasn’t my first option but when I did the Math, long term renting of cars would cost me more. I settled for a small car, and the car dealer was surprised when I handed him my payment worth of six hundred thousand in one thousand peso bills.

On my way home, I drove the red Picanto, and several plans ran through my head. The blogger whom I followed online was also a solo-traveler and he inspired me. I realized that I needed a camera and some other things but I couldn’t shop without a list, so I had to return home and worked on my travel itinerary before shopping for essentials.

Amongst the name of beautiful places to discover in Bohol, visiting Anda was my top priority. I called Old Castle and reserved a room for the weekend because it was the closest accommodation to Quinale Beach, and highly recommended by the blogger itself.

On Friday evening, my bags were packed, and I was ready to leave. In bed, I tossed and turn because I couldn’t sleep, and I believed that it was because of my excitement. I’ve never explored a place on my own. My previous life entitled me with several escorts and bodyguards whenever I wanted to go beach hopping or to party.

It was always a group, and I was never alone!

I parked my car in front of Old Castle before checking in and made sure that it was locked since the money was in there. The bank manager was right that carrying a huge amount in cash would take its toll on me because I had to keep it safe so it wouldn’t be stolen!

I took my DSLR camera to Quinale Beach, my first destination after checking in at the hotel. The sun hasn’t risen yet and there was no one on the beach except me. I’ve watched and captured the beauty of Quinale in the morning, and then I waited for the sunrise. I sat on the sand and looked around, and then someone was caught in the corner of my eyes.

From my location, a man ran towards the water in his board short, and his upper body was exposed. Wow, I admired his excellent form from a distance and adjusted my camera to capture him. After I took his photo, I checked it in the gallery and noticed that his features were a little bit familiar to me. His feet played with the ocean when a woman called him, and when he turned to face that woman, his side view resembled someone I know – Alexander Demakis.