TOBE

^13. The Home Tutor^

"So you can talk like this"

Wait...this voice, don't tell me.

"Jolomi!!!" I yell into the phone. How could he? Ugghh, that best friend's brother to a moron of a SpongeBob head.

"Hey baby, long time"

I scoff at his response. Which one na 'baby'.

Suddenly I start chuckling, soon it turned into laughter and before you know it, I start coughing.

"What," he asked.

"E_e... E say na baby... Haa, my stomach... E say na baby" it feels like my stomach is about to explode. I can't take it...

"I love hearing you laugh so much, they're like music to my ears"

That one sentence just killed it, it solidified my laughter, destroyed the coughs, lessened the explosion in my stomach, it just took the vibe away. And now, im rolling my eyes as if I know that they would eventually get stuck behind my head.

"Why did you sto-.."

I caught the call like my life depended on the 'end call' button.

Simi's brother was never like this. Since I was young, I always dreamt of him to be like my husband when I grow up, I always admired him, adored him. But now... I wish I never met him at alllllll. I know he's my best friend's brother... But, he.. Just suddenly.....suddenly....changed.

Since that day I went to simi's house to read, everything changed.

But like what can I do...

Nothing.

~~~~~~~

Three years ago...

"No, I want a purple one!"  simi shouts to the top of her voice. She has always admired the color 'purple'. If she craved for something, it must be the color purple. we all know that pink is similar to purple but just a lighter shade. In other words, let me say simi would never choose a pink even if there wasn't a purple. she would take the whole day just to look for that purple if its the last thing she'd do.

"But there's no purple." rume tries to convince her but simi still disagrees.

Just around the neighborhood, the two young girls were strolling with nnena to receive fresh breeze. They weren't quarreling until they spotted an ice cream shop by the edge of the road. 

Rume always wondered why simi never accepted the fact neither did she accept she was wrong. she wondered why simi always behaved so unfairly.

"No, I want an icecream colored purple" Simi starts crying as tears beaded at the corners of her eyes. Her lips hardened and she ground her teeth together, soon enough, she cried loudly, loud enough so that the full neighborhood could hear.

"shhhhh, its ok, we'll buy you the purple one tomorrow, shhh" Nnena tried to console simi to calm down but it only got worse. 

Nnena picked simi to her arms patting her on her back, doing everything just to console her but she still cried like she was never gonna stop. Nnena always wondered why simi acted like a four-year-old at the age of 10.

"I'll tell my brother for you(I'll report you to my brother)" simi yelled leaving nnena and rume with shocked faces. They never knew simi had a brother which made them very curious about what he looked like.

"You have a brother" Confused rume asked staring at simi's teary face.

"Yes, I have a brother and I'm going to tell him for you...mmehhh...ntonyii(I'm gonna report you to him...hmph)" simi ticks her tongue childishly at them.