Aftermath

2.| Thirdy

"Whoah! What was that?" Garvo broke the silence.

"Grabe si Tita. She dropped the bomb without warning. Di ba uso heads up nung time nila? Hahaha." Suzy said as she tries to lighten the mood and somehow change the topic.

"Bro, paano yan? She's back na pala. Ano plano mo? Excited kana bang makita siya? Siguro ang ganda parin ni Mika no? Tuloy ba yung balak mo?" Baser bombarded him with questions.

"Ay pucha." -Alfred
"Wooooow! Idol talaga. Haha." -Alyssa
"Sige bro. Itanong mo pa. Chill ka muna din kasi." -Garvo
"Iniiba ko na nga ang usapan, ibabalik mo pa! Di kapa na satisfy, dinamihan mo pa ang tanong mo. Hahahaha. Iba ka, Baser!" -Suzy
They joke in sequence, followed by awkward laughters.

That's when Josh decided to end their meeting, "Okay, Guys! Tama na ang jokes. Iiyak na si Kiefer! Hahaha. Biro lang, Kief. Anyway, let's go na? Magsasara na yung store. Para maka-uwi din ng maaga ang ating staffs."

We fixed our things and went out of the restaurant. We're at the parking lot saying our goodbyes before we go when...

"Ano, Kief? Gusto mong lumabas muna? Coffee?" Suzy asked.

For the first time after Mom left, i asserted "Guys! Chill lang. I'm okay. Medyo nagulat lang siguro ako. Pero okay ako. Nakakatawa, we should all be excited kasi opening na natin next next week. No need to feel any sort of negativity." I laugh.

They heaved a sigh of relief and laughed with my comment.

"Iba talaga pag Phenom eh no? Sige guys, una na ako. See you soon. Chat nalang later sa group." And Garvo bid his goodbye.

We're saying our goodbyes when Aly went to me for a goodbye hug, "Bye, Kief. Just text me if you need someone to talk to." I nod as i hug her. "And please, do it right this time, for the both of you." She whispered that only us can hear. I let go from the hug and said my goodbye to Alfred who's right behind Aly.

Thirdy insisted on driving and by the looks of it, i can't say no. We're both quiet on our way home. Kanina ko pa napansin na hindi din siya gaanong nagsasalita, after he stated his observation regarding Mika's social media accounts. "Thirds, you okay? Bakit ikaw yata ang affected?" I tried to joke.

"Baliw! Haha. Ikaw Manong, okay ka lang?" He threw the same question back. "Siguro? Hindi ko alam ang nafi-feel ko. Ang weird natin, Thirds! Nakakabakla! Hahahaha." Natawa nalang kami sa pinag-uusapan namin. Pagkatapos, pareho ulit kaming natahimik. Ewan kung ano talaga ang nangyayari. You just got back pero yung pinaparamdam mo samin iba! Ni hindi ka pa namin nakikita, pero ang lakas na ng hatak mo sa emosyon namin. Only you can cast this kind of spell to everyone you meet, Mika.

Out of nowhere Thirdy broke the silence, "Kuya..." I looked at him. He called me Kuya, what he has to say must really be important. "Hmm?" I whispered.

"Kuya kasi Miks is back diba? I don't know. I feel guilty for all the things i did. I mean, yes, bro code and all pero ang tagal ko ng iniisip to. The things i did to her? I don't have the rights to any of those. You are the one who's in a relationship with her, pero i did hurt her too. Me, the Thirdy he treated as a brother. She cared for me like a real sister would. Aside from you, she became my bestfriend too. Pero look what i did to her? The going gets though between the two of you and I'm out of her life, I blocked her from our life in that instant. Do you get me, Kuya?"

I can't look at him, my eyes were glued on the road, "Yes, Thirds. I do and I'm sorry you have to choose between the two of us."

"It's not your fault. It was mine. Wala naman nagsabi na kailangan kitang piliin o kailangan kong pumanig sa kanya. Ang mali ko, pinakinggan kita pero inalis ko yung karapatan na yon sakanya. From the very start, she's nothing but the kind and loving lady that she is. Nag fa-fanboy palang ako sakanya, she would reply to my tweets. Mag hi lang ako sakanya, kahit hindi pa niya ako kilala, she would always smile and say hi too. You're courting her palang that time pero kapatid na ang turing niya samin ni Dani. Nung naging kayo, you would always look after her, serve her and give her everything. While you're doing that, she's looking out not just for you but me and Dani, too. She was the sister Dani & I never had, pero look what i have done? Nung siya yung may kailangan sakin, i shut her out. She offered nothing but love and care for the family pero look what she got in return? The feeling of pain & betrayal."