Early in the morning when the five girls came home after their night work, Luz was awake. None of the five girls talked.
"Why are you all silent? You cannot believe that I am still alive?" Luz asked them. No one answered her but then suddenly Grace breakdown on tears.
"What did I say? Why you suddenly cry?" again Luz asked. She was surprised that Grace suddenly cried.
"Just keep your mouth shut! Go back to the Philippines, just close your mouth!" it was Carla who answered Luz. Carla was upset.
"What did I do?" Luz was surprised. She came to Grace and sat down on bed near Grace and asked. "Grace, why? What happened? Why you just suddenly cried, I did not say something wrong?
"I am so ashamed! I melted in shame from what I did this night!" Grace said tearfully.
"Why, what had you done?" Luz asked again.
"This night, we all danced topless!" Lorna was the one who answered Luz.
S I L E N C E
"That's what I'm telling you all!" it was Luz who broke the silence. "What happened this night was just a begin. Later, you are all sitting on the table entertaining men, and then surely will all become prosty, selling your honour!"
"You really will return to the Philippines?" Thelma asked Luz.
"A Greek came here and talked with me. He convinced me to work but I said I will not work anymore here, I want to go home, to come back to the Philippines. Later, he agreed. I can come back to the Philippines!" Luz answered Thelma. The girls were all eyes to Thelma when they heard what Thelma said.
"You all heard it, they agreed that I go back to the Philippines!" Luz exclaimed.
"It's good for you. If you and your family have no debt to the costs you made to work abroad then it's no problem at all!" Carla said.
"We have debts! My parents borrowed money and our house and lot was the collateral. But father will and can manage to pay it back. His brother is a rich man, he can wait when can father pays back his money. Important is, I will not shame the family. it would take long to pay back the money, but our family honour will not be damaged." Luz answered.
No one commented to Luz words. They all were silent, trying to sleep until they all did sleep in between of Grace's sniffing her nose as she silently crying in her bed.
Midday of the same day, everybody was awakened by Luz. They saw Luz, her suitcase packed, Luz wanted to bid goodbye to all of them.
"Sorry if I wake you all, but I just want to say goodbye!"
"Huh, you will already travel back to the Philippines?" Carla already suspected it but was still surprised when Luz confirmed that she will already travel back to the Philippines. They just arrived in Cyprus, and in the third day, Luz already decided not to stay.
"Yes, this kind of life is not for me! I realized I made a mistake about working abroad. I am sorry also about my offensive talks that hurts you all, I just or I am just opened about my thoughts and feelings. Sorry if it seemed that I encouraged you all to do what I am doing now. You all must knew that I only have simply good intentions for all of you!" Luz had tears when she said it to the five girls.
"It's okay, Luz, we understood!" Thelma said, also in the verged of tears. "Seemed the man waiting for you was already in a hurry!"
Luz hugged all the five girls before she went away. The five girls have also their tears. They all cried. They felt sad that Luz will be gone, because for the short time they were together and in one way or another they considered themselves as sisters. The other hand, they saw a kind of relieve in Luz face, relieved that she will coming home back to the Philippines.
When Luz closed the door behind her, the five heard that Luz asked the man that will bring her to the airport if possible, she could say goodbye also to the other girls in the other room.
Silence for a while between the remaining five girls, then it was Thelma who broke it when she asked, "Did we made a mistake of not coming back to the Philippines like Luz did?"
"You have to asked if Luz did the right thing! Like us, they were also poor! She dreamed and came abroad to work to lift her family from poverty. Her parents borrowed money for all the expenses she made, the training, the papers, the placement fee. Her parents made debt with an expectation of welfare! Me, I cannot do to my mother what Luz now was doing. It would be very painful to me to disappoint my mother's hope. No, I cannot do it!" Clara replied to Thelma.
"Well, we are already here in abroad. What will happen to us or what we will do, should we let our family knew about it?" Lorna said, behind her mind she knew already what is waiting for her to happened. She will work as a Hostess, a club entertainer liked what she had done in the Philippines.
"You are stupid if you will let your parents knew!" Grace said.
"Yes, imagine we went away and left to our parents a big problem. Besides, we came here abroad so that the problems of our family will be gone and that to fulfil the dreams and hopes of our love ones. If we come back, then it will create more problems!" Luisa said.
"My mother is just a dressmaker. She is a widow, she can remarry if she like but she did not, she sacrificed her happiness to us, her seven children. I promised to help her, and I will do it no matter what will happened." Clara said.
"I am very against to what we're happening to us now, but I will not come back to the Philippines until I have the money to take back the farmland of my father. It is my fault, because I wanted very much to work abroad, I let it my parents to borrowed money and the farmland was the collateral. What may come, it is up to GOD! I will only go back to the Philippines if I already has savings!" Grace spoke out her side.
"My father only drive a tri-sikad. (Tri-sikad a tricycle used for paid transportation without a machine, manual and the driver constant biking). I promised my father I will buy for him a tricycle with motor so that he will not use his foot anymore. I also promised I will pay the school of my brothers and sister. So, me too, what may come, it is up to GOD, I will only come back to the Philippines if I have the money!" Lorna said lying the truth about her father who did nothing but drink alcohol and same also about her previous work as a hostess entertainer of male customers. Her father promised her that he will stopped drinking and be a good husband and father. Lorna believed her father.
"Me too, I will only come back to the Philippines if I have the money. Nobody knew what will happen in the future. No family of us will knew about what we are doing here. But we must promise to each other that we helped each other. The problem of one will be the problem of us five. We must be a family." Thelma said.
The five girls hold hands together and brought it up high at the same time all together said, "Here we are sisters, what may come, it's up to GOD!"
What May Come, it is Up To GOD, became the group's motto.
In few months, the girls learned how to be an entertainer. They were told that in six months they have no salary because they must pay back all the expenses made for them. Either the like it or not, they must earn money from the men and these earnings they used for their food. Their problem, the money they promised to their parent that must come every month.
Grace was raped by Dimitri.
"What will you do?" Luisa asked. Grace only confided to her.
"I don't know. I am ashamed of myself. After he raped me, he gave me a lot of money." Grace cried. "And I accepted it!"
Luisa did not know what to say.
"I felt like a prostitute! I am a prostitute!" Grace cried painfully.
"Did the other girls knew? Did you tell them?" Luisa asked Grace. Luisa was very worried.
"No, I did not tell them." Grace answered Luisa.
"You have to tell them. We promised each other. Here we are sisters! The problem of one is a problem of five!" Luisa told Grace to tell the other girls what had Dimitri done to Grace.
"Luisa, I am confused! I am very confused!" ****to be continued****Remedios Dorio