Stay Awake (ORIGINAL DRAFT)

Chapter Seven: Exhausted

Chapter Seven: Exhausted

My little brother is missing.

Pakiramdam ko pwede akong himatayin anumang oras dahil sa sobrang kaba. My mind is struggling to process the fact that my fucking brother is gone and I don't know if he got up by himself or was taken by someone else.

My knees buckle, and I slide down to the floor. I can't handle this by myself. I need someone to help me.

Tiningnan ko ang mga nagkalat na gamit nina Mom and Dad sa sahig. Nandito pa rin 'yung mga laptops at smartphones nila. Kahit 'yung wallet ni Dad na naglalaman ng mga ATMs ay hindi nawala. Hindi lang ito isang normal na pagnanakaw. I know, deep in my mind, that my brother was abducted.

What am I going to do now?

I'm so close to breaking down, but that's the last thing that I need. I should keep my mind sane in order to think about who did this, and what's their reason behind this. My Mom is a high school teacher, and my Dad's a doctor. Wala akong natatandaan na may kaaway sila.

And if my little brother was indeed abducted, that can only mean one thing....

There are others who are awake.

Right. That's the only explanation.

Mabilis akong nagpunta sa kwarto ko. I boot up my laptop, and I log in on Facebook. Katatapos pa lang mag-load ng profile ko, dumating na kaagad 'yung mga messages na galing sa groupchat namin. I didn't bother to read them. Instead, I send a videocall request.

"Guys, may problema ako," bungad ko nang sagutin nila 'yung tawag.

"Where have you been, Jared? Kanina ka pa namin hinihintay," Holly says, her eyes wide with panic.

"It doesn't matter," I answer. "I need to tell you something."

"Nawawala rin ba 'yung kapatid mo?" biglang singit ni Felicity bago pa ulit ako makapagsalita. Her eyes look red and puffy, and her facial features aren't quite right. She seems worried.

I nod. "Yes. Hindi ko alam kung nawala siya habang naliligo ako o kanina pa, habang kasama ko kayo sa Oblivion." I pause, realizing something. "How did you know?"

She looks at me through the computer screen. "All of the kids in our neighborhood is gone."

I suck in a breath sharply.

"My little sister is missing, too," Holly states. Her voice is steady, her expression neutral. Out of all of us, she and Ian are the only ones who seem unaffected by all of this. "I found out as soon as got home."

I suddenly feel guilty. I was too happy celebrating my victory against the rabid dog earlier that I forgot to check if my family's okay. Anong klase akong tao?

"You know what this means, right?" Holly asks us. "There are others like us who are awake."

"We have to find them, then," singit ni Andre. "Kung may iba pang gising, siguradong matutulungan nila tayo sa sitwasyon natin ngayon."

Ian scoffs. "Yeah, right. Siguradong tutulungan nila tayo," he says sarcastically. "They took your brothers and sisters. Obviously, hindi mabuti 'yung intensyon nila."

Biglang nanlamig 'yung buong katawan ko. Paano kung tama si Ian? Paano kung may kumuha nga sa mga kapatid namin, at masama ang balak nila? Hindi ko kakayanin kung may mangyaring masama kay Timothy. Hindi ko mapapatawad ang sarili ko.

"Wait, guys," Felicity perks up, suddenly hopeful. She wipes the tears from her eyes before speaking again. "Paano kung nagising lang 'yung mga kapatid n'yo tapos naging disoriented lang sila kaya umalis sila ng bahay? Hindi naman imposible iyon, diba?"