Rico Dela Cruz, 29 years old, is a native of Leyte — a former civil engineer, known for being hardworking, kind, and loving towards his mother. But after the pandemic, the company he worked for closed down, and he lost his job. He was buried in debt, while his mother suddenly suffered from chronic kidney failure and needed continuous dialysis that they couldn’t afford.
In the midst of despair, an acquaintance from Manila approached him, offering an “opportunity to get back on his feet.”
According to the acquaintance, there was an elderly woman — Doña Hilaria Ramos, 70 years old, a wealthy widow living in a mansion in Makati — who was looking for a young and healthy man to be her “legal husband.”
Not for love, but only for formal documents and agreements.
The exchange?
After the wedding, Rico would receive ₱2,000,000 (2 million pesos) and Doña Hilaria would cover all expenses for his mother’s medical treatment.
Rico pondered it for two days. He wasn’t materialistic, but when he saw his mother lying in the Tacloban hospital, weak and barely able to speak, and heard her weakly ask:
“Son… when will I be transferred to a better hospital?”
That’s when he realized — he had no other choice.
Only one week passed, and the wedding took place.
No guests, no band, no decorations — only a few photos to complete the paperwork.
After the wedding, he moved into Doña Hilaria’s house. Everything seemed fine. Doña Hilaria didn’t force him into anything. The old woman’s only request was: “Just accompany me for meals, and don’t leave me alone.”
Ten days passed, and Rico thought everything was over — that he had fulfilled his part of the agreement.
But one night, while handing water to the old woman’s room, he noticed a light on in the old room at the end of the hallway.
There he saw an old photograph on the table — a picture of a young man who looked exactly like him… and a land title document with his name on it.
And at that moment, fear began to creep into his heart.
The agreement he thought was a simple favor… was actually a terrifying part of a plan he never expected.
The Secret in the Old Room
It was the night of their 10th day together. A light rain was falling outside the mansion. As Rico was mixing coffee in the kitchen, he noticed a light on in the oldest room at the end of the hallway — a room that was supposedly “forbidden to enter.”
He approached, carrying the cup of coffee, and gently pushed the door open. The smell of old wood and the old woman’s perfume greeted him. In the middle of the room, there was a wardrobe with a mirror, and on top of it lay old photographs.
He picked one up — it was a picture of a young man who looked exactly like him.
Something was written on the back:
“For my son left in Leyte, 1995.”
Rico’s hand trembled. He didn’t know what it meant.
Just then, Doña Hilaria entered, silent but clearly surprised.
“Why did you open that?” she asked, her voice shaking.
“Who is the man in the picture?” Rico countered, almost disbelieving.
Doña Hilaria sat on the bed, letting out a heavy sigh.
“Rico… I don’t know how to tell you this. But your father — Roberto Dela Cruz — was my former husband.”
Rico felt like he’d been struck by lightning. He couldn’t speak.
“What… do you mean?”
“We separated a long time before you were born. He left me, and that’s where he started living with another woman — your mother. I don’t know if I have long to live, so I wanted to see his son… before I pass away.”
Doña Hilaria’s tears fell as she held the young man’s hand.
“Our marriage, Rico… I didn’t mean to trick you. I just wanted you to have the right to everything Roberto left behind when the day comes that I’m gone — and for me to be able to help your mother.”
Rico was devastated.
The two million pesos was not a bribe after all — but an inheritance from the man he had long hated for abandoning their family.
After that night, he couldn’t sleep.
The next day, a call came from the hospital — Doña Hilaria was hospitalized after suffering a heart attack.
In the old woman’s final moments, she held Rico’s hand and softly said:
“Son… don’t be like your father. Wealth can be lost. But the chance to love truly — it only comes once.”
After that, Doña Hilaria finally closed her eyes.
A few weeks passed, and Rico received the document stating that all the old woman’s properties had been transferred to him.
But more than the money, what Doña Hilaria left was something that no amount could pay for: the truth about his origins, and the chance for forgiveness.
The Son of Two Worlds
Three months after Doña Hilaria Ramos’ burial, the course of Rico Dela Cruz’s life gradually changed.
He wasn’t used to a luxurious lifestyle — but for the first time, he felt he no longer had to borrow money to treat his mother. He paid off all their hospital debts and brought his mother to a private dialysis center in Tacloban City, where she received proper care.
But that was not the end of everything.
One night, while sitting on the balcony of the mansion in Makati, Rico opened the old box Doña Hilaria had left behind. Inside were the documents of the Ramos family businesses — and a letter dated 1998:
“If you ever find this, Rico, remember that I didn’t leave you to hurt you. I only did everything to save your father from the people who wanted to destroy him. If I have any remaining guilt, I hope you can forgive me. – H.”
That night, Rico cried for the first time — not as a son of poverty, but as a person who saw light in the midst of the falsehoods of fate.
The Return to Leyte
After a few weeks, he went home to their village.
No one knew the whole story; the neighbors only knew that “Rico suddenly became rich.”
But he didn’t change.
He bought the old, dilapidated school and turned it into the “Hilaria Learning Center” — a free school for underprivileged children.
Rico became an inspiration to the entire town.
From the man who was once hopeless, he became the “Son of Destiny” — a person who accepted a lie but returned with a greater truth.
Final Letter
On the first anniversary of Doña Hilaria’s death, Rico visited her grave.
He carried flowers and a letter:
“Ma, if you can hear me, thank you. You never claimed me, but you gave me a greater treasure — hope. I don’t know if this was destined or if fate just played with us, but I promise… as long as I breathe, I will fulfill your last wish. I will no longer live for money, but for people.”
And there, as the acacia leaves fell, Rico looked up at the sky.
Amidst the quiet breeze, he seemed to hear the old woman’s voice:
“Son… I am proud of you.”
👑 The End
(From a fake marriage — to real love.)