Hoax (VBoys Series #1)

005

EUNICE

"You can go in. Susunod ako." paalam sa'kin ni Jaiden nang makarating kami sa bahay, smiling.

I nodded at him before heading inside. As soon as I stepped into the house, kaba kaagad ang naramdaman ko. I don't remember the last time I was this nervous. Parang hindi na ako makahinga.

A lot of things occured to me. Mga bagay na sa tingin ko'y pakay ni Kuya kaya kami mag-uusap. Was he finally going to admit it to us that he knew about our father's affair? Or was there something worse than that?

"Eunice,"

Natigilan ako. I stopped at my tracks as I heard my brother's cold voice call out my name. Sa itsura niya pa lang, halatang stressed na siya. His face screamed stress and his hair was messy, like he just awoke from his sleep. Hindi ko naman maitatangging ma-appeal pa rin ang kuya ko kahit ganito.

"Si Mama?" I asked immediately.

"Inside," tipid niyang sagot. He looked behind me, then raised a brow as his gaze returned to my eyes. "Ikaw lang? Si Jaiden?"

Napalingon din ako sa likuran ko. Then I realized Jaiden still wasn't here. Ano bang ginawa niya? Akala ko, nakasunod na siya sa'kin. I didn't think he took this long doing whatever he is doing right now.

"Nasa labas pa. I'll go get him." paalam ko kay Kuya bago muling lumabas ng bahay.

I took slow and small steps towards our house's gate. Napayakap ako sa sarili dahil sa lamig ng simoy ng hangin. It almost matched the feeling I had tonight. Chilly.

"Where were you the other night, Mom?"

My forehead immediately creased. That was Jaiden's voice. Mukhang may kausap siya. Pero wala naman akong marinig na ibang boses. Was he talking on the phone? Probably, with his... mom.

Dahil nagtataka ay sumilip na ako sa labas ng gate namin para makita siya. He was still busy and didn't even notice me. I saw how his brows furrowed, siguro dahil pinapakinggan niya ang kausap.

Ayaw ko namang maging bastos at tawagin siya habang may kausap, so instead of calling him, I reached for his hand. Nakita kong saglit pa siyang nagulat nang mahawakan ko. I gave him a small smile, mentally telling him to come with me already.

"I'll... call you next time," he told his mom, on the phone. "Goodnight, Mom."

As the call ended, he pocketed his phone. Bigla niya akong hinila papalapit sa kaniya. He hugged me tight and gave me a kiss on my temple. I could almost feel his frustration when he heaved a sigh while hugging me. Hindi ko nga lang mawari kung bakit siya ganoon.

"Tara na. Hinahanap ka na ni Kuya." I informed him, looking up dahil masyado siyang matangkad at masyado akong malapit sa kaniya.

He nodded at me and let me go. Hinawakan ko ulit ang kamay niya at hinila siya papasok ng gate, but a few steps later, natigilan ako sa paghila dahil tumigil siya sa paglalakad. He was way stronger than me kaya hindi na siya nadala ng mga hila ko.

I looked back at him habang magkasalubong ang mga kilay ko. His eyes was glued on his phone again, reading something. Kunot ang noo niya habang nakatutok sa screen. Was it a text? It seemed like he was  reading a serious message, dahil maski ang mukha niya'y nagseryoso.

"Love," I softly called, but he didn't budge. Napabuntong-hininga ako. "Jaiden, tara na—"

"Shush," he shushed me in an instant, which took me back.