ENTANGLED ECSTASY

LARA let out a deep sigh as she stared at the tombstone of her late mother, Edna.

It's been more than a year since she passed away due to cardiac arrest and until now Lara still can't accept the fact that she's gone.

She never met her father. According to Edna's story when she was still alive she used to be a waitress in a bar. There she met her father who was one of her customers.

Lara asked her mother what her father's name was but the only answer she got was that, given the number of customers Edna had, she couldn't know which of them was her father.

Despite all of that, Lara did not harbor any resentment against her mother.

She did not hide anything like that in her heart because the truth is that, she loves Edna very much and she can tell that up to this day, her mother is still the reason for all her efforts.

Lara was already two years old and her mother stayed at the nightclub to work.

Edna did not leave because she thought her father would return there. But something else happened.

Instead, her mother met her stepfather Rodolfo or better known in their area by the nickname Ompong. He has his own taxi for his livelihood and has his own house that he inherited from his parents.

In other words, her mother and her Papa Ompong started to live together. Her father was kind and treated her like a child of his own.

But as the saying goes, no one is perfect and neither is his father.

Because he likes gambling, that's his vice. That also includes cigarettes and alcohol. And in recent months, since the death of her mother, Lara has also noticed a gradual change in her father's behavior.

He became hot-tempered and often angry and scolded her.

"I-I don't know what I'm going to do with Papa, Ma, he feels so bad about losing you that he probably spends all his time and attention on gambling," she said, unable to stop herself from expressing her resentment.

That's true, Lara loves her acclaimed father very much. And it hurts her when she sees that he seems to be losing hope in life.

"I hope there is a way for me to help him get up from his fall," she continued. "I need to leave Ma, I still have work to do," she said before finally leaving the place.

*****

“COME ON, we rarely do this. One more thing it's free because Boss will pay for everything!” Lara could notice the thrill of extreme excitement that was traced to the tone of her fellow sales clerk Cynthia.

“Thanks but no thanks. I don't want to leave Papa alone at home especially at night. You know he hasn't completely forgotten the loss of Mama that's why he's always sad. I feel sorry for him, I don't even know what to do,” Lara said, stopping her from applying lipstick and then sighed.

“Oh my gosh, that's it, you have to stop thinking about problems. It's better if you would come, but if you can't, maybe Boss Randy will understand that,” Cynthia said sympathetically and then smiled at her.

Lara just nodded and continued fixing herself in front of the mirror.

She works as a saleslady in that boutique. Lara has been with the company for quite some time and is lucky to be a regular employee so she also considers herself a lucky person.

Why not, in the hardships of life and the hardship of finding a job today, she is really lucky and she has become a permanent employee even though in fact she did not finish her Business Management course.

That was also because of her mother's illness. She had to work right away so that she could help her father to provide for Edna's regular medicines.

“But I also admire your father, he is very loyal to his love for your mother. It's a pity that they separated early, it would have been better if they grew old together,” said Cynthia again which in turn caused sadness in her heart.

“Hey, don't make me sad anymore, come on. Miss Monet is probably waiting for us,” she said.