Kabanata 8

Nagniningning ang mga mata ko nang makapasok kami sa arcade. I immediately went to the area where I can play basketball.

"Ares! Let's play basketball!" Pag-aaya ko sa kaniya. "Whoever loses will do a dare! Deal?" Paghahamon ko sa kaniya. Tinaas-taas ko pa ang kilay ko habang sinasabi iyon.

"No, thanks. I’m afraid you’ll cry because you’ll lose," mayabang na sambit niya na hindi ko inasahan.

At talagang he looked at me from head to toe ha! Ano naman ngayon kung medyo maliit ako kumpara sa kaniya? Matangkad naman ako basta hindi lang siya ang katabi ko, dahil nagmumukha akong maliit sa tabi niya.

"Ang yabang, ha!" Ngumuso ako.

He chuckled at my remark. Umabot sa mga mata niya ang ngiti niya kaya hindi ko na rin naiwasang mapangiti.

Nakakahawa.

"Whatever. I won't let you win this game, though." I playfully winked at him and flipped my hair.

Bahagya siyang natigilan pero maya-maya rin ay mahina siyang natawa sa ginawa ko.

"Okay, then."

Pinauna ko siyang maglaro. He's damn good at playing basketball! And given that height? It's impossible for him to not to be able to have a high score!

Masyado niya namang sineryoso itong laro namin. Huh.

The time's already over and I was so shocked when he had a high score! Isang beses lang siyang hindi nakapag-shoot ng bola sa ring!

"Damn, what are you? Are you an athlete?" I asked with curiosity.

He nodded, "Way back in high school and freshman year in college, I was a part of the basketball varsity team in my school."

Wow!

Tumango-tango ako pero hindi ako nagpatinag. Alam kong makakaya ko siyang talunin, dahil hindi ako magpapatalo.

"Whatever, I'll make sure I'll score higher than you." I said with conviction.

"Nah. With that height of yours? I bet you can't even shoot one ball into the ring." He teased and smirked.

Halos hambalusin ko siya ng bola dahil sa sinabi niya. Pinagtawanan niya lang ang reaksyon ko. Damn you, Ares!

"Don't underestimate me, pare." I rolled my eyes at him and he just chuckled.

I took deep breaths and calmed myself. You can do it, Athena. You're good at this.

Nang masiguro kong ayos na ako ay agad kong ni-swipe ang card sa hotshot arcade machine at nagsimula na ang laro.

I was too focused on playing ball that I almost forgot I was with Ares and we're in an arcade.

Halos magtatalon ako sa tuwa nang sunod-sunod ang pag-shoot ko ng bola sa ring, walang palya. Sinulyapan ko timer at nakitang malapit nang matapos ang oras. Mas nag-focus ako sa paglalaro at napapadyak sa inis nang hindi ko nai-shoot yung bola at saktong tumunog ang timer, hudyat na naubos na ang oras ko.

"Ano ba 'yan!" Naaasar na bulyaw ko at napapadyak sa inis.

Narinig ko ang mahinang paghalakhak ni Ares kaya mabilis pa sa alas cuatro akong napalingon sa kaniya at binigyan siya ng nakakamatay na tingin.

He held both of his arms up, like he's surrendering.

"Chill, Athena," he said, he can't even contain his low chuckles!

Tuwang-tuwa ang isang 'to sa akin, ah? So ano, happy pill niya na ba ako nito?

"Whatever. We're tie, though." Nasabi ko na lang saka siya inirapan.

"Should we have a tie-breaker, then?"

Mabilis akong umiling. Ayaw ko na, ‘no!

"Huwag na! Tanggapin na lang nating dalawa na pareho tayong talo. We'll both have our fair share of dare since we both lost the game and had a tie score. Fair and square." Ngumisi ako sa naiisip na ideya.

He stared at me for seconds but then sighed afterwards.

"Hmm. Okay. Deal." He said and smirked. "So what's my dare?" He raised a brow.

"Uh.." I trailed off.

Actually, wala pa akong maisip na dare para sa kanya. I mentally slapped myself.

Ang lakas kong mag-aya! Wala naman pala akong plano!

"I'll think about it. Okay, so what's mine?" I asked as I raised a brow at him.

I got to stare at those blue eyes for a while. Hindi ko maiwasang mahugot ang hininga dahil pakiramdam ko ay malulunod ako habang nakatitig sa mala-dagat niyang mga mata.

Nag-iwas siya ng tingin, "Hmm," namewang siya at sandaling tumingala.

Napalunok ako sa nakikita. Fucking Adam's apple waving hello at me.

Kitang-kita ko mula rito sa pwesto ko ang paraan ng paggalaw ng Adam’s apple niya. Tuwing gumagalaw iyon ay napapalunok rin ako.

Why do I notice every bit of him? Simpleng actions niya lang ay napapansin ko na.

Jusmiyo.

"Let's try to date for a month."

Nalaglag ang panga ko sa sinabi niya, hindi makapaniwala sa mga salitang binitawan niya.

Nakita niya ang pagkagulat ko kaya ay mabilis siyang umiling. "Just kidding.. Your boyfriend would probably be mad. Uh.." He trailed off.

"Boyfriend? I don't even have one." Nangunot ang noo ko dahil hindi ko maintindihan ang pinagsasabi niya.

"Huh? How about Harry?" He looked at me with his curious and innocent set of blue eyes.

"Hardin Rye? Nah, he's just a friend. He's like a big brother to me." I chuckled heartily. "Apollo would even get jealous at our closeness. Lagi siyang nagdadrama tuwing sinasabi ko na parang kapatid ko na si Harry. He even said he regret setting up our date." I chuckled when I remembered Apollo's cute sad face whenever he sees me with Harry.

"You guys... dated?" He licked his lower lip and crossed his arms.

"Yep. Apollo set up our date but we both decided to call it a friendly date since we're both not interested to each other. He's also way older than me and he dislikes young girls. Or.. maybe not." Natawa ako nang maalala ang ibinulong niya sa akin kanina.

He said he dislikes young girls but here he is, crushing over my bestfriend who's the same as my age! Palibhasa, he's already in his mid-twenties and Mags and I are still twenty-one!

Ares slowly nodded his head. "You're that close to know each other's interests and such?" He asked, eyes with mixed emotions I couldn't fathom.

Tumango ako, "He's a good friend."

Nakita ko na naman ang bahagyang pag taas-baba ng Adam's apple niya.

"Kung.." Napabuntong-hininga siya. "Kung i-set up ba tayo ni Apollo ng date, papayag ka ba?" He murmured and tore his eyes off me.

Hindi ko narinig iyong tanong niya dahil mahina iyon at sobrang ingay sa loob ng arcade kaya ipinagkibit balikat ko na lang iyon. Maya-maya'y naramdaman ko na lang ang pagpitik niya sa noo ko.

"Hey!" I hissed and touched the part where he hit it. I irritatedly gave him a death glare. Masakit ‘yun ah!

"By the way, you really, really pissed me off. Yesterday, I told you that I'll drive you home, right? But before I could even, you immediately left!" Pinitik niyang muli ang noo ko kaya’t hinampas ko na ang kamay niya.

“Abala ‘yun!”

“You will never be a burden to me, Athena. Now, let me drive you home. I'll walk my way home since it's just a walking distance." He said with finality.

Late na nang makauwi kami. Ihinatid niya nga ako pero sa ospital niya ako hinatid, dahil iyon ang sabi ko. Siya na ang nagmaneho ng sasakyan ko, he insisted. Then, I booked him a cab to bring him home na hindi niya mahindian.

Pagkarating ko sa loob ng ospital ay nagtungo kaagad ako sa nurse station.

"Hello, Nurse Jean. Andito pa ba si Mama?" Tanong ko sa isang nurse na nakita ko.

"Opo, Miss Athena. Medyo marami siyang inaasikasong pasyente ngayon kaya hindi muna siguro siya makakauwi." Pahayag ng nurse.

I sighed as I tap my fingers on the counter. Mama's probably stressed right now. I just can't jusy leave her here with a lot of workload to do.

Nagpaalam na ako kay Nurse Jean bago napagpasiyahang magtungo sa top floor ng ospital kung saan naroon ang office ni Mama na nagmistulang isang sosyal na hotel VIP suite. Or maybe more than that. The interior design of her office made it look like a VIP suite or a penthouse rather than an actual office! Architect Razini, my cousin, surely spoiled my Mama so much. Even her sister, Engineer Gazini, did some wonders in Mama's office, too!

My thoughts were interrupted when my phone rang for Apollo's call. Hindi na ako nagdalawang-isip pa at mabilis na sinagot ang tawag niya.

"He-" Bago pa man ako matapos sa pagsasalita ay pinutol niya na ako.

"POTANGINANG SHET SAAN NA KAYO NAPADPAD NI ARES HA?! HOY ANO NASAAN KA NA!? SINASABI KO SA'YO ATHEEVA NARELLE ALESSANDRIA HA! HUWAG MO MUNANG BIBIGYAN NG APO SI MAMA!"

Napapitlag ako sa bungad na sigaw ni Apollo. Parang tanga naman ang isang 'to.

T’saka ano ba ‘tong pinagsasabi niya? Napaka-dirty minded ng lalaking ‘to, ah!

"Can you please calm down bro or I'm gonna throw your toy car collections away."

"Sabi ko nga manatiling kalmado upang koleksiyon ay hindi itapon sa malayo."

Napabuntong-hininga na lang ako sa kakulitan niya. Mon Dieu, kanino ba nagmana ang kapatid kong ‘to?

"Can't come home today. I'll look after Mama."

"Why?" Sumeryoso na ang boses ng kapatid ko sa kabilang linya. Kapag si Mama na talaga ang usapan, nagkakasundo kaming dalawa dahil magmamature bigla itong si Apollo.

"She's got a workload to do and I'll figure if I could help. I don't want her to be stressed." Paliwanag ko sa kaniya at bahagyang hinilot-hilot ang sentido ko.

Pagod ako pero mas pagod si Mama. Hindi biro ang trabaho niyang halos wala nang tulugan o kahit sandaling pahinga man lang.

"Alright. I'm going there. Wait for me." He said as he hurriedly hung up the call.

Unti-unting sumilay ang isang munting ngiti sa aking mga labi.

When it comes to Mama, nagkakasundo talaga kami kaagad ni Apollo. We both agreed to do everything for our mother who's working hard for our future.

We promised to each other that we'll help Mama no matter what. Siya na lang ang natitirang magulang namin at ayaw naming may malagas pang muli mula sa pamilya namin.

"Napakatagal mo naman. Pagong ka ba?" Nakahalukipkip kong singhal sa kapatid kong halos trenta minuto akong pinaghintay sa may elevator.

Nagkamot siya ng batok at alanganing ngumiti sa akin. His brown doe eyes had a hint of guilt and a little bit of innocence, very opposite to my annoyed expression that is visible in my also brown doe eyes.

"Alam mo naman, sis.. pahirapan sa pagpapaalam sa mga kaibigan natin. Tapos ano.. sinilip ko rin saglit si Ares sa bahay nila.. hehehe,” mahinang sambit niya habang hindi makatingin ng diretso sa mga mata ko.

I massaged the bridge of my nose. Pinipigilan kong mairita dahil paniguradong sasakit lang ng husto ang ulo ko.

"Tara na nga." Aya ko pagkatapos ay pinindot ang open button ng elevator.

“Uy.. sorry na,” kalabit sa akin ni Apollo nang makapasok kami sa loob ng elevator pero hindi ko siya pinansin at nanatiling diretso lamang ang tingin ko.

“Ih,” I can already imagine him pouting his lips. I smiled inwardly. Sarap niya ring asarin, ha.

Lumabas na kami sa elevator pagkatunog nito, hudyat na nasa tamang floor na kami. Hindi na ako kinulit pa ni Apollo at tahimik lang siyang nakasunod sa akin habang binabaybay namin ang opisina ni Mama.

Mama’s office occupied the whole floor so it's quite big. No one else can get inside using the elevator unless they know the passcode of the floor or they have their biometrics logged in. All the De Bonnevies has access to this floor since this has a lot of rooms for people who wants to stay at the hospital. Lalo na kung mayroong na ospital na kapamilya o kakilala tapos ay bawal mag stay doon sa kwarto ng pasyente. Atleast they have a room to stay here.

Separate room ang office ni Mama at nasa corner. Kumatok ako bago binuksan ang pinto.

There we found our mother sleeping soundly on the couch. Nilibot ko ang paningin ko sa buong opisina para maghanap ng kumot para kay Mama.

"I know some medical things. I ain't a licensed doctor so iyong mga hindi masyadong importanteng papeles lang 'yung gagalawin ko. Ikaw na sa kumpanya ni Aunt Belinda." Tumango ako kay Apollo na pumunta sa table ni Mama na maraming nakatambak na papeles.

Sandali akong nagtungo sa ibang kwarto para kumuha ng kumot at nang makahanap ay aga akong bumalik sa opisina at kinumutan si Mama.

Besides being a doctor, she handles another business. Well, hindi talaga sa kaniya iyon. It's her sister, Aunt Belinda's, business. But Aunt Belle’s on leave kasi manganganak ang anak niya. Mama then presented to take care of the business 'cause she's sure their other siblings can't do so.

Kagaya ng De Bonnevie clan, bigatin rin ang Gutierrez clan. They handle a lot of businesses, too. They're rich but not as rich as the De Bonnevies. Mama is the youngest among the Gutierrez siblings and they all think she's got no busy sched since she's the youngest, kaya kay Mama napupunta iyong mga business na hinahandle nila kapag wala sila.

Like hell, a doctor got a busier sched then any of them.

I checked the other paperworks on her table. Binasa ko lahat ng iyon at nagsulat sa malaking notepad, doon ko isinusulat ang kailangang gawin ni Mama na hindi namin pwedeng gawin ni Apollo. All we could to is proofread what's written on the papers and write some notes about it so Mama wouldn't be stressed doing it all.

• Dra. Benitez's proposal is good. It's all about building a new building for the expansion of the hospital. If you agree with her proposal, just look for the folder with a red paper clip and sign it for your approval. Then if you approve, we can contact Engr. and Architect De Bonnevie's secretary and set up an appointment. From there, we'll ask if they can work for the expansion. If they agree, then we'll set a meeting including the board members to talk about the plans for the said expansion.

That's what I wrote on another bullet of my notes for Mama. Nilingon ko si Apollo na nasa lapag at nakasquat. The papers he's reading are on the coffee table. Nakasabunot siya sa buhok niya at nakapatongang siko sa lamesa habang binabasa ang kung anong nakasulat sa papeles.

Tumigil ako sa ginagawa ko rito sa table ni Mama at tinawag ang kapatid ko.

"Apollo, you can rest. I know you're tired. Ako na ang bahala sa iba." I suggested to my brother who's obviously trying to help but tiredness is etched on his handsome face.

He shook his head without looking at me.

"There's no freaking way in hell I'm gonna let you do this alone, Atheeva Narelle Alessandria Gutierrez de Bonnevie."

I rolled my eyes at his remark. Damn, why would he call me by my full name? Hindi ba siya nayayamot sa haba ng pangalan ko?!

"Whatever you say, Apollinaire Lozaro Alessandrio."

Sa huli ay pareho kami ni Apollo na nakatulugan ang ginagawa. We woke up around midnight when Mama woke us up and told us to go to our respective rooms and take a rest. Dala na rin ng pagod, hindi na kami umangal at sumunod sa inuutos niya ng walang pagaalinlangan.

The next day, lumabas ako ng silid ko dahil sa ingay na nagaganap sa sala. There I saw my cousins doing shits so my expression immediately turned sour upon seeing them.

"The heck are you boys doing here?" I hissed at them.

"Ah, sinugod si Daddylo dito kanina dahil inatake na naman. Itong si Lander kasi, kung ano-anong kalokohan ang pinaggagagawa!" Pagpapahayag ni Lars.

Nagulat ako. Our grandfather was rushed here in the hospital? Hindi ko maiwasang mag-alala sa kalusugan ng lolo.

"Hoy, anong ako? Tangina mo, Larson! The prank was your crazy idea!" Lander looked at his brother unbelievably.

I rolled my eyes when both of them started their nonsense banters. Goodness gracious! Why do they have access here in the top floor?! Magkakalat lang ang mga gagong 'to, eh!

T’saka ang mga ‘to kung makaasta ay parang ayos lang na na-ospital si Dad ah?!

"Hi, Ate Athena!" Muntik na akong mapatalon sa gulat nang biglang may humalik sa pisngi ko.

It was Mari, our oldest cousin's younger sister.

Natutop ko ang bibig ko, "Goodness gracious, Amari! Nakauwi ka na pala?!" Naibulalas ko.

She chuckled at my shocked expression.

"Yes, Ate. You see, I got stressed while I was in South Korea! I mean, damn I love that country but their language freaking stressed me a lot! Also, Daddylo's birthday is today, I couldn't miss it! And good thing talaga I came home agad! He really had a heart attack on this birthday and was rushed in the hospital because of Lander's stupid pranks!" Mahabang litanya ng dalaga. She's so talkative and english speaking. Anyway, she's three years younger than me that's why she calls me ate.

"For your information lang, Mari. It was your crazy cousin, Lars’, stupid idea!" Lander's irritated voice filled the room. Pero hindi nagpatalo si Mari. She never does, anyway.

"Whatever, Lander! You and Kuya Lars are brothers so hindi na nakapagtataka na you both are crazy!" She rolled her eyes at our now annoyed cousin.

Nagpipigil na ng tawa ang iba sa mga pinsan namin dahil nagsisimula na ang World War 3000 featuring Lander and Amari de Bonnevie.

"Why don't you even call me kuya?! You call Lars kuya even when we're the same age! You also call Athena ate even when we're both years older than you!" Hindi makapaniwalang bulyaw ni Lander sa pinsan naking nakangisi lang kay Lander.

"Oh, shut it, Lander. Why are you so jealous of me?" Singit ko with matching irap sa kaniya.

"No, I am not! Argh! Bahala na nga kayo d'yan. Pinagtutulungan niyo akong lahat!" Padabog siyang naglakad paalis.

Nagtawanan kaming magpipinsan at kanya-kanya ang reaksyon sa pagdadrama ng isa pang pinsan.

Alright, I may hate Lander for breaking every girls' hearts but my love for him as a cousin will never fade away. He is still family no matter what. I just don't tolerate his wrongdoings. Like an excerpt from my favorite vampire television series, "We are capable of doing terrible things, but we are also capable of forgiveness." Said Rebekah Mikaelson, my favorite character among them all in the series.

Isa pa, nakakatuwa lang ring asarin si Lander dahil sa aming lahat, siya ang pinakamaloko pero mabilis siyang mapikon kapag siya na ang pinaglololoko. How ironic.

I know, De Bonnevie cousins are quite chaotic but trust me, there are a lot of things you'd like to know about us. Because behind that grandé surname that we bring with us each passing day lies the stories and secrets that each and one of us have kept hidden and were never shared to the public. Stories that only the family knows about.

Though most of the time, we never know of the struggles everyone faces everyday. Some of us.. kept them within ourselves. And I know that feeling. That's why I am trying my best to lighten up everyone's mood. A single cheer, joke, or motivation can bring light to a person who feels surrounded by darkness, afterall.

Darkness is the absence of light. And a single light can brighten up the darkness surrounding. A single light means there is still hope. Hope that their lives will not be totally eaten up by darkness.

***

"We are capable of doing terrible things, but we are also capable of forgiveness."

— Rebekah Mikaelson, The Originals (The Vampire Diaries spin-off)