To The Moon And Back

Chapter 68

I stretched and warmed up for a while in order to get my body ready.
I moaned and smile before started jogging.
I smiled when Taylor Swift's song which is titled "Crazier" played.
I hummed in a faint manner as I jog.
"... let it take me where it wants to go,
Till you opened the door,
There's so much more,
I've never seen it before,"
I threw my gaze on the other side of the road and waved at someone I am familiar with.
"Hey, I see that you are back," She said while jogging backward.
I chuckled. "Yup! Talk to you later!" I replied before turning my back and jogged a bit faster than my pace earlier.
I hummed along with the song again with a smile on my lips.
I stopped jogging and sat on the bench at the park to take a rest for a minute. I gulped some water. I wiped the sides of my mouth before resuming my today's goal.
I walked around the park at a fast pace while looking up at the sky as it gets painted with different shades of pink, blue, and orange. It is so beautiful.
I opened my phone to check the time then sighed.
"Six-thirty, huh? More than two hours," I muttered under my breath.
Maybe that's enough for today. I don't want to jog back home when the sun is already causing too much heat.
I have witnessed how the whole neighborhood opened their doors to start the day while holding a cup of coffee or a cup of hot chocolate.
This neighborhood is indeed friendly but sometimes, I sense that they're intimidated by my presence because they're really polite towards me.
I pouted after waving at the lady sitting on the wooden chair outside her house and she politely smiled and bowed her head a little as a response.
People sure sometimes assume that Vistas are snobs and terror. It's probably because of dad's famous cold expression and our sharp features are kind of included.
It is already quarter to eight when I arrived home. Dad is sitting on his usual spot, reading a newspaper and my brother is probably inside reading some reports.
I kissed Dad on his cheeks. "Good morning, dad."
"Good morning to you too, Assia," He replied. "So you went out for a walk again, huh? I thought you're still inside your room and enjoying your peaceful slumber," He kidded.
I chuckled. "Nuh-uh, I have slept for a quite long while."
"Yeah, you even missed the dinner last night. Too bad, I cooked some pasta," He said like it's nothing.
While I, on the other hand, am sulking at the corner. Pouting. "You guys should have woken me up. I wanted to taste your pasta, dad. I missed the taste of the foods you cooked."
He roared in laughter. "Well, we tried to wake you up but you just turned and rolled on the other side of your bed. You even covered your head and told us not to bother you."
My mouth agape open and stamped my feet. "How stupid of me to do that."
He stood up and placed the newspapers on the table. Dad gave me a pat on the head. "Don't worry about it, little girl. Your brother made sure that there's something left for you. He put it in the refrigerator. Just heat it when you want to eat."
I felt my eyes sparkle the moment I heard what he just said. "Really? He did that?"
"Though, don't expect that there's a lot left for you. Go and check it," He said.
I squealed and ran inside. I immediately headed to the kitchen. I opened the fridge and scanned everything in there.
I took the square Tupperware and opened it.
"Oh my gosh! I love you, bother," I mumbled.
I am sure that he said that they should leave more because I have a stomach of a dragon because of what dad said but I don't mind at all. What's important for now is, he was the reason why I'll get to taste dad's carbonara.
I heated it in the oven and waited until it made a sound which indicates that it is ready.
I was in the middle of eating when Kuya River entered the kitchen, rubbing his eyes while yawning.
I waved at him and smiled widely. "Good morning, Kuya!" I greeted in a cheerful tone.
He prepared a glass of called water for himself and gulped in. He sat on the seat opposite to mine and looked at the food I am eating.
He chuckled then shook his head. "Good morning, little Emerald. I was right. You really can finish that."
I nodded then took a sip of my milk. "Yep, thank you for your kindness, Kuya. You really thought of saving some for me."
"Some? That's a lot, little sis. You are just taking care of a dragon in your stomach," He replied with overflowing sarcasm but in a teasing manner.
"Whatever you, Kuya. Still, thank you for this."
"Now I wonder why you're not gaining weight. You really eat a lot."
I chuckled. "It is because I am working and I exercise sometimes too," I shrugged my shoulders and winked at him.
"Anyway, where is dad?"
"Oh, he's sitting at the terrace when I got home. I don't know if he's still there."
He nodded and whispered the word "Okay."
He was about to head out of the kitchen when I called him.
"I am going out later," I said while chewing the last of the carbonara.
His forehead crease. "You're meeting up with a client again? Or are you going to deal with some matters again?" He asked.
"No, not at all," I hesitated. "But maybe it is some sort of a small matter."
He raised his eyebrow as he waits for what I am going to tell him.
I tucked my lips in then smiled a little. "I am going to meet with Exiquel later," I said, followed by a short laugh.
He pulled a chair and sat down again.
"What do you mean?"
"Uh, well," I averted my gaze and smiled a little. "I am meeting with him."
"For what? That is what I wanted to know, little sis."
I bit my tongue. "Because there is a reason to do so?"
"Assia Emeraude, answer me properly," He demanded.
"Fine. I am still not done playing, Kuya."
"You still haven't let that go? Are you still up for that thing, little sis? Don't you want to stay in peace that you want to ruin it because of them?" He asked in disbelief.
"I am not ruining my peace, Kuya. I am not trying to ruin anything. I just want something to be done in my own way before letting go," I smiled weakly.
"What if you plan backfires, huh? Assia? What will you do?"
"It won't. I am sure it won't, kuya. Trust me. Time won't stop for me so I'll be the one to stop for the time. I won't let it pass, Kuya."
"Assia, we don't have to make things complicated. Why don't we just go straight to the point instead of doing what you're planning to do?" He tried to mask his concerns with a strict tone.
"And what? Give them a way to get away with it? Kuya, this is the only way I see. This is what I want to happen. I know very well how their mind works. Being straightforward is a bore to them and they would just get away with it in just a snap."
"So, you're really going to do it, huh? You're really doing that whatever it takes," He shook his head.
"They are all obsessed with games so why not play with them, right? But this time, I will be the one to make the rules and they will have no choice but to follow it."
"You do not realize that you've been playing around since you were a kid, do you?" He teased.
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" I violently asked.
He chuckled. "I know what you did before when you were just ten, little sis." He said then winked at me.
"Oh, about that. I just find it fun so I did it," I reasoned out and averted my gaze the moment he responded with a teasing laugh.
"But you fell while playing. What if you fall again in the middle of playing despite being the game creator, little sis?"
I flashed a faint smile. "If I did, then I probably lose the battle between Quel and me. But that doesn't mean that I failed to do what I am supposed to do. Nevertheless, I will still move away once it is all done. So, whether I lose or not, I have already decided what path I will take. I won't let it change even if I fall stupidly in love again. I won't ever do what I did back then."
He sighed. "I don't want to see you in pain, little sis. So whatever happens, take care of yourself while I am taking care of you too," He kissed the top of my head. "I have to go, for now, little Emerald. I'll just run some errands."
"Sure, Kuya. I'll go upstairs, then. I still have to prepare for later."
I kissed him on his cheeks then started running upstairs.
I went into my bathroom immediately because I felt so sticky. It is probably because my sweats dried on my body.
I was tying my bathrobe when my phone rang. My eyebrows furrowed. I let go of the ribbon of my bathrobe, letting it rest on lose.
I rolled my eyes and answered Exiquel's call.
I gasped inaudibly when I realized that it was not an audio call. I just realized that it is a video call when I saw myself on the upper right side of my phone.