The Devil Who Danced At Midnight

thisbe

"Tide life, tide death;
I come without delay."

- Thisbe, A Midsummer's Night Dream, Act 5 Scene 1

He received the email five months ago, and he only replied back... a week before. Caius Arragon, now eighteen and was expected to move away for college, decided to take a detour. From Florida, he was supposed to go to New York.

Instead, he flew over to the Philippines.

The flight had been full of thoughts; the blurry kind of thoughts. What was he expected to do now? Hindi nya alam kung paano nya haharapin ang ama. He didn't even know how the man found him or his contacts.

His mother didn't bother hiding the truth from him. He knew that his Tito Ezekiel was there, even in his early years. Ito na talaga ang nakalakhan nyang ama, although the man still refuses to be called Papa. Sya na lang talaga itong nag-insist na tawagin nyang Paps, paminsan-minsan kapag nadudulas sya. He was so, so grateful with the man's presence in their lives. He's been everything to his mom for the past years of being together. Caius even thought his mom wouldn't make it, if not for Ezekiel.

You won't survive overseas with a young kid trailing behind you.

He also knew of his father, Richard Faulkerson Jr.

She told him stories; how he inherited his father's brains, looks, and... this weird hatred towards orange-colored food. Hanggang ngayon kasi ay hindi pa rin sya kumakain ng kahit anong kulay kahel. Tatawanan lang sya ng mga magulang nya kapag naghain ang mga ito ng Filipino food at ihihiwalay nya iyong carrots.

If he had someone he loves dearly, it's his mom. He knew of her sacrifices; Ezekiel would tell him in secret. Although Maine tried to provide the happy parts of the fairytale, the man hoped he'd be aware of what his mom did for him and for his father. Ezekiel tried informing Caius of the presence of the villains in the story, although they weren't... villains to start with.

In short, he was fully aware of the Unlovely Tale of the Earth and the Moon. He even bought a published copy online. Takot na lang nya na makita iyon ng Nanay nya sa kuwarto nya, ano.

And although he loved his mom dearly... he preferred keeping secrets from her. Hindi nito alam na alam nyang may mga kapatid sya sa ama at hindi rin nito alam na... his father sent him an email five months ago, asking him if they could meet.

Gulat na gulat sya noong natanggap nya 'yon, kasabay ng pagpasa nya sa scholarship program of one of the most prestigious universities. Ezekiel was the first one to know; he even tapped the young man's back, saying, Wala eh. Your mom and your dad's brain cells are deadly, if combined together.

His mom just hugged him tightly and thanked him for being such a kind and gifted son. Caius hugged her back and thanked her more for raising him that way.

When he first received the email, medyo, wala sa isip nyang pumunta. The mail was simple. It says the recipient's Richard Faulkerson Jr., asking if they could meet. Sagot daw ang pamasahe, at lahat ng expenses. He was even slightly insulted, but shrugged it off. Bahala na kung oo ang isagot.

It was the sudden yes that made him do it. Isinabay nya sa pag-alis nya dapat papuntang New York so his mother wouldn't know, and wouldn't be worried. He wasn't dumb to understand why his 'father' only contacted him, and not his mother. He wasn't a deadly combination, as Ezekiel says, if it wasn't for his brain cells.

Someone just fetched him from the airport. Nabawasan tuloy ang kaba nya. His mother told him this repeatedly when she's mad at him: Kamukha mo ang Tatay mo. Then she'll snort. Ang sarap-sarap mong sabunin.