I
"Very good, Leighton..." Iyon ang bukambibig ni Morris sa pagpasok nito ng sasakyan kung nasaan dinala nina Crane si Leighton.
"Very good for what? I just did what you told me. Spit on Dad's coffin? No big deal," emotionless namang sagot ni Leighton habang nakatingin ito sa kawalan.
"Do you hate our father that much?"
Tinitigan ni Leighton ang nakatatandang kapatid sa mga mata nito. "I don't— I never hated Dad. Pero gusto kong makalayo kay Mama... kung tutupad ka sa pinangako mo."
Ngumiti si Morris. "Of course... of course... A very obedient little brother deserves a reward."
"Eight? Eight? Nandito na tayo. Hindi ka pa bababa?"
Marahang niyugyog ni Kay ang balikat niya. That's when he returned to his senses. He stared at Kay.
"Bakit ganyan ka makatingin?" Takang tanong ni Kay.
"Wala naman." Leighton said as he collected his things. Bubuksan na sana niya ang pinto ng kotse ngunit natigilan siya. He faced Kay again.
"There's something I've been thinking."
"What about it?"
It was a long pause before Leighton answered. "I don't know how to put it... mag-iingat ka sa dalawa kong kapatid."
Kay was dumbfounded. "W-What? Why? I don't even know them."
"I have four half-brothers. We all have different moms. You don't have to worry about the second and third so I won't talk about them. The eldest—Morris Acosta has a very corrupted mind when it comes to business. I've learned he had some growing interest to you. The fourth— Juno Acosta is an in-denial hacker. But he was one of the main information brokers of Morris."
Tumango-tango si Kay. "Okay..."
"That doesn't make sense to you now, right? But please take it seriously. I don't want to see you get involved in Morris' business or the hell he was up to in the future."
Tumungo si Kay. "You don't really want your family to know about me... I understand that."
Sunud-sunod ang pag-iling ni Leighton. "It's not like that—You see, I am like a puppet to Morris. I am tied to his strings. Parang ganoon ko nakikita ang sarili ko. Madalas ginagawa ko ang mga gusto niya nang hindi niya ako napipilit. It's like he's creating the situation for me to act on."
"I certainly don't want to live like that," Kay said.
Leighton touched Kay's cheek. "I'll keep you away from him."
"And you? I somehow admire your strong personality. I never thought you'd confess that you can't stand against your older brother."
Leighton's brows furrowed. "Hindi ako takot sa kanya. Anyway, I used to think I wanted to be like him so I followed everything he said. Dahil doon, nakilala niya ako nang husto. Alam niya ang mga bagay na gusto ko at ayaw ko. He knows my temper. He can blackmail me in a wave of his hand. Wala naman akong pakialam dati dahil wala namang mawawala sa akin kung susundin ko siya. Pero iba na ang sitwasyon ngayon."
"Paanong nagbago?"
"I have you now, right?"
Kay realized he smiled at what he heard. Leighton held his hand and kissed the back of its palm before going out of the car and hurried on this first class.
