Gods of Halcon 1: Davide Castillejo - COMPLETE

Chapter 2

"Are you drunk, Kuya?" Natatawa si Davide sa hitsura ng kapatid. Sa isang banda, bilib na bilib siya rito. Mahusay ito sa school, varsity player, may magandang girlfriend. He was not one of those nerd losers. He was the best at everything he did. He was probably having sex left and right. Sa palagay niya ay madami itong babae, base na rin sa dami ng mga babaeng tumatawag sa kanilang bahay, at sa cellphone nito, bukod pa sa mga babaeng nakikita niya sa social media.

"Shhh." Ngumiti ang lalaki. "You better not tell the folks that the golden son is wasted."

Palaging iyon ang ginagamit nitong term sa sarili, "The Golden Son." Palagi ring may resentment ang lalaki kapag sinasabi iyon. It was almost as if he didn't want to be the apple of their parents' eyes. Hindi niya iyon maintindihan dahil siya ang kabaligtaran noon at sa totoo lang, madalas niyang mahiling na sana siya ang unang ipinanganak. Maybe then, he would have gotten all the attention. Sana hindi siya parang reserba lang sa bahay na iyon.

Pero wala siyang makapang resentment para sa kapatid. Hindi nito kasalanan ang lahat, kundi kasalanan ng kanilang mga magulang. Did Davide hate his parents? Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, he would look at them as they make a fuss about his brother and think they were horrible parents. Dalawa ang anak ng mga ito pero parang isa lang. Naiintindihan niya na siguro, may mga pagkakataong mayroong favoritism ang mga magulang, kahit pa nga parang hindi iyon tama. Pero sa tahanan nila, hindi itinatago ang favoritism, kundi damang-dama niya. Not once did their parents even think that he felt bad that they did not care about him at all.

Ironic, hindi nakikita ng kapatid niya kung gaano ito kasuwerte. "Would you like some Gatordare?" tanong niya sa kapatid.

"Sure." Pumasok na ito sa kuwarto, pasuray-suray, ibinagsak ang katawan sa kama.

Kumuha si Davide ng Gatorade at dinala sa kapatid. "Here you go. Sleep that off."

Tumawa ito. "What the hell do you know about getting drunk, smartass?" pabirong sabi ng lalaki. Kung mayroong tao sa bahay na iyon na may concern sa kanya, iyon ay walang iba kundi ang kapatid.

"I bet I can win a drinking match against you," he smugly said.

"You're seventeen."

"Right."

"Whoever sold you alcohol?"

Tumawa na lang siya. Hindi na niya kailangang bumili pa dahil palaging mayroon sa kanilang bahay. Madalas na may naiimbitahang kaibigan ang kanyang ama at nag-iinuman ang mga ito. His mother also liked to drink though she drank wine. May wine cellar sila at doon nakalagay ang lahat ng alak. Hindi sila mauubusan kahit magunaw ang mundo. Their parents were collectors.

"It doesn't matter. What have you got going on, getting drunk this early on a Friday?" Naupo siya sa kama.

"Oh, nothing, just that your parents told me to break up with the love of my life."

"Chloe?" Iyon ang alam niyang pangalan ng latest girlfriend nito.

"She's the one."

"Oh, come on, Kuya." Hindi siya makapaniwala rito. "You're too young to get so serious."

"Says the minor."

"You know what I mean."

"No, I don't. No one is too young to fall in love. And I love this girl."

Bigla siyang natigilan dahil seryoso ang lalaki. "Then tell them. Tell Mom and Dad. They can't say no to you. Ikaw pa? I don't think there's anything that you can do that will make them like you less."

"Oh, but there is. You see, they've already planned my whole life, Dave." May mapaklang ngiting kumabit sa mga labi nito. "They've already chosen my wife for me."

"That's crazy." Natawa siya, hindi naniniwala.

"It's true. And that's why I needed to break up with Chloe."

"Are you serious? Who are you supposed to marry and why?"

"Janet Eusebio."

"Holy shit!" bulalas ni Davide. Kaeskuwela niya si Janet. Anak ito ng kaibigan ng kanyang mga magulang. Janet was a bombshell! That chick had a wonderful rack and an ass that made anyone salivate. "You lucky bastard!"

"Not so lucky, mate. I don't want to marry that kid. She's a kid."

"Well, you're not marrying her now, are you?"

"No. In ten years or so, I was told." Lasing na lasing na ito, hindi na naiisip na hindi na bata si Janet kapag magpapakasal na ang dalawa. "But I want to marry Chloe. I can marry her today."

"You're drunk."

Hinawakan nito ang kanyang balikat, pinisil. "You're lucky. You're free." Ibinagsak nito ang katawan sa kama at parang agad nang nakatulog.

"No, Kuya, you're the lucky one. You have something that I will not have—our parents' love. Hell, I'd marry Janet to have that."

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