｡˚⛓˚｡⋆. PRADA

Our secrets were on the line.

I watched how our friends looked at Hades with so much shock nang i-confess niya that he did not truly escorted me to Hermés' home. There and then... I knew, they were already suspecting him.

At first, I was glad that he chose the question instead of the dare. Baka anong ipagawa kay Hades! But, the question was also as deadly as a dare. Paano ba kasi nalaman ni Crow ang mga ito?!

"Let's start our next game!" Crow announced as yumuko ako. "I will now pick the next person."

"Would you rather break Hermés' back using a baseball bat or send yourself to the elimination round?"

"Paano ba 'yan, Hermés?" Apollo smirked at Hermés. Ano ba kasi ang nangyari sa kanilang dalawa? At bakit the dare is like that? It would kill Hermés!

"Shut up, traitor." I was left so confused when Hermés said that. They really saw something yesterday on each other's rooms, huh. But the question is, how did Apollo betray him?

I felt kaba when the Crow Watcher exited the room and returned with a baseball bat in his hand. Fuck, Apollo, don't do it! He's your best friend, for Pete's sake! I was hearing Ares and Hades screaming at him to not do it.

Apollo's restraints were removed as he walked over to Hermés. Katabi ko lang si Hermés as I watched them look at each other. They were staring at the other with so much hatred and anger.

Fuck... Apollo's going to do it.

I did not know how what to do or how to act at the moment. But, na-conclude ko na Hermés found out about something kaya galit na galit siya ngayon. Apollo, too, found out something about Hermés kaya he was mad.

But, why couldn't they tell us? Apollo and Hermés seemed mad at each other since the chess game. Lagi na silang nag-away noon.

The screen showed a '1 minute' word which represents the timer. Ang tagal nito! Hermés can literally die!

"Apollo..." Dior muttered. But, there was something different in her eyes. Dior and Apollo were looking at each other with so much love. It was not the lust or playfulness I was used to see them do on other people. It was like their eyes were meant to find each other.ㅤ

Tumingin ako sa gawi ni Hermés who was looking at them with so much hatred and betrayal. So... ito ang traitor na sinasabi niya. All these time, Hermés was trying to send Apollo off the bridge kaya ganoon ang actions niya.

He did not want to help us in the investigation... he just wanted to take revenge.

At, pinaniwalaan ko siya sa mga claims niya. I even sided with him!

"Huwag kang mag-alala, baby," Apollo reassured as I sighed in relief. He was still the kind Apollo we know. "Hindi ko gagawin."

"Just do it, you dipshit," Hermés hissed, making Apollo roll his eyes.

"Manahimik ka nalang," Apollo fired. I looked at our friends who were shocked... probably by the call sign of Dior and Apollo.

"Tangina, magjowa kayo?!" Hades exclaimed. I had to laugh since his face screamed confusion and surprise. Isa kasi siya sa mga nag-ship kina Hermés and Dior. I wonder how Apollo felt about that.

"And, I thought I was the only one surprised." Umirap si Hermés habang tumango lang si Apollo. Dior was... proud and I think she felt relieved that they no longer had to hide.

Though, I can't help but to feel pity for Hermés. Lalo na that it was she was dating his best friend all along.

"Gawin mo na, Apollo!" Hermés screamed as I watched Apollo hang on to his thin string of patience. I smiled... after all these time, kahit galit siya, he still cared for his best friend.

"Galit ka sa akin, 'di ba?!" Hermés shouted again, making Apollo throw the baseball bat away. Natawa nga ako nang matamaan si Crow Watcher. "Do it, you coward!"

"Putangina, manahimik ka!" It was Apollo's turn to yell at his once friend. I looked at Dior who was trying her best not to cry. Alam ko na she was worried since Apollo will be up for elimination.

"Time's up!" Crow announced. "Mr. Apollo, you have failed the dare. You are up for elimination."

Apollo gave a bitter smile and eyed Hermés who was looking away from them. Alam ko na alam ni Ares ang dahilan bakit ganito ang pakikitungo nila sa isa't isa. What were they planning? Bakit hindi pwedeng sabihin sa amin ang mga alam nila?

"Tangina mo, mabuhay ka, please?" Dior plead with tears on her eyes as her boyfriend immediately went to her. Apollo nodded and planted a kiss on her forehead.

"Pangako," he said as he wiped her tears away. Shocks, ano ba 'yan?

Umiyak din naman ako pero walang nagwipe ng tears ko.

Afterwards, Apollo sat down on his chair and his restraints were returned by the Crow Watcher. Hermés looked at him with so much guilt and confusion. It was like his anger is dying down.

"Hindi ako traydor, Hermés. Ikaw 'yon." Mas lalo lang akong nawindang because of what Apollo said.

｡˚⛓˚｡⋆. GUCCI

Naiinis na ako. I wanted to shout at them. Harap-harapang pinapakita sa amin na they do not trust us with what they know.

Bakit kasi hindi nalang nila sabihin ang alam nila? So, we can finish this bullshit and get the fuck out of here! Can they be impulsive... just this once?

Ang dami nang nawala sa amin! Ate Chanel, Zeus, and ate Tiffany! Gusto ba nila na maubos kami before they share what they know?! But... reality hit me nang mapagtanto ko na I am just like them.

I do not want to say what I know too.

"On to our third game!" Crow announced na para bang dapat bang ma-excite ako. "I'll pick Ares!"

Kumunot ang noo ko nang maestatwa siya sa pwesto niya. These days... I noticed him acting very weird. There was something extremely not right with him but I could not point it out.

"Would you rather tell who really smuggled the university funds or cut Dior's finger?"

"Kilala mo?"

Napapapikit nang mariin si kuya Ares while ate Dior's face screamed so much betrayal. Matalim ang tingin ni kuya Apollo kay kuya Ares. It looked like they were just convincing themselves na mali itong mga naririnig nila.

"Baka naman si Hermés ang nagnakaw," pampalubag-loob ni kuya Apollo na para bang may magagawa 'yon. "Tutal baka siya rin ang killer."

"Apollo, I'm not a killer but..." kuya Hermés spat. "I will always choose to kill you."

On the other hand, my eyes landed on ate Prada who was only smirking. So, this was what she found out in his room. Pero, still! Wala pang sinasabi si kuya Ares so I should not conclude anything.

"Ares," nanahimik ang lahat when ate Dior called again. "Sagutin mo 'yang putanginang tanong sa'yo."

Her eyes screamed so much fury. She looked like she could kill someone at any moment. Sa kabilang banda, hindi makatingin sa kanya si kuya Ares. He was even avoiding kuya Apollo's eyes too. He was lost.

"Putangina, sagutin mo!" We all flinched when ate Dior shouted. "Putangina, Ares! Give me my fucking peace of mind!"

"I was the one who stole it!" Kuya Ares cried.

No.

Hindi magagawa ni kuya Ares 'yon!

He was not that type of person! Mali 'yan! I refuse to believe that bullshit! I knew my friend. He would never do that. God, no. We were crumbling like dominos.

Napagtanto ko that the secret was true when I saw kuya Ares' tears flowing out from his eyes. Only his sniffles were heard across the room. No one dared to talk or make a move.

I then darted my eyes to ate Dior whose face was grim but her expression screamed betrayal and disappointment. Nanlaki ang mga mata ko nang maalala how that incident affected ate Dior.

"Dior, I'm sorry," Kuya Ares pleaded so hard as he repeatedly apologized to ate Dior. The girl, on the other hand, stared as her eyes turned a shade darker. Kuya Apollo looked like he was ready to punch him, if not for our restraints.

"Sorry?" Ate Dior scoffed, tears brimming in her eyes. "Putangina? Namatay ang mga magulang ko tapos sorry lang ibibigay mo?"

You fucked up so hard, kuya Ares.

You were even there when ate Dior found out about the news. Ate Dior saved up her money to pay for their family's lawyer who will be taking the case of her parents. Hindi na nga niya nabayaran, her parents were also beaten to death by their fellow inmates when they found out that ate Dior was accused of stealing.

Ate Dior suffered so much... sa kanya sinisi ang lahat. We watched how people gave her disgusting faces, called her names, and branded her a criminal. While kuya Ares... just watched.

"N-namatay ang mga magulang ko, Ares." Ate Dior's voice cracked as her cries went louder. I saw ate Prada and kuya Hades looking at Dior with pity. She was carrying the weight of the whole murder.

"Tangina!" I flinched at ate Dior's scream. "Pinag-ipunan ko 'yon para makalabas sila sa kulungan tapos ipangbabayad ko lang pala 'yon ng kasalanan mo?!"

Ate Dior did not only lost her parents, but her scholarship as well. She was also fired from her other jobs. But, she never asked for help from us kahit gusto namin siyang tulungan.

Nakita kong kumuyom ang kamao ni kuya Apollo who was trying hard not to look at them. I know his patience... and ngayon, alam kong punong puno na siya. He might kill kuya Ares at this moment.

"Ares, pasalamat ka nakatali tayo." Kuya Apollo said through his gritted teeth. "Kasi, baka makapatay nga ako.

Wala nang nagawa si kuya Ares kundi umiyak at humingi ng kapatawaran repeatedly. Ate Dior was also crying while kuya Apollo couldn't calm her down kasi he himself cannot keep his composure.

We were all crumbling down.

｡˚⛓˚｡⋆. DIOR

Lahat ng nangyaring masama sa buhay ko... Akala ko ako ang dahilan.

I saw myself as the unlucky one. The black cat.

I try to do something good. Pero wala, it backfires at me. Ako ang nagdadala ng kamalasan sa amin, sa mga kaibigan ko, at sa mga magulang ko.

But, this time... it was not me.

Kanina pa humihingi ng kapatawaran si Ares sa akin but I was too wrecked to even answer. Hindi ko kayang magalit sa kanya... he became a big part of my life. If anything, I was more disappointed than angry.

Alam niya kung paano ako nagdusa sa mga akusasyon sa akin at sa pagkamatay ng mga magulang ko. He saw me grieving for my dead parents while trying to find another job. Bawal tumigil ang mundo ko.

"I did it to help Yves and Achilles..." Sambit niya that made me scoff. What he said after made me shocked. "Baon ang pamilya ko sa utang, Dior. I had no means to help them."

The Revaz family? That was impossible!

They were lawyers of many esteemed companies and hindi sila natatalo sa mga kaso so why the heck would they be deep in debt?! And the worst was... hindi ito sinabi sa amin ni Ares.

A feeling of guilt was gushing through my skin.

"Let us move on to the fourth game!" Anunsyo ni Crow. Seriously, ilang laro ba ito? Naiirita na ako. Gusto ko nalang matulog... I never had a normal sleep since we came here. Lagi nalang kaming pinapaamoy ng sleeping gas.

"I'll give Ms. Dior the liberty to choose the next player." Kumunot ang noo ko. Bakit sa akin nito ibibigay ang responsibilidad? "But, you can't choose yourself."

I wanted to be petty. I wanted to take revenge. Wala nang natitirang kapatawaran sa puso ko. I was only alive for the sake of breathing, but deep down, I was dead.

"Ares," sagot ko.

Ares took a deep breath before nodding. Hindi ako makatingin sa kanya... I was feeling guilty agad. But, fuck, when I saw the question... Sana hindi nalang ako nagpadala sa emosyon ko. Don't do this to him...

"Would you rather chop off Apollo's arm or send yourself to the elimination round?"

Nanigas sa pwesto si Apollo as everyone watched in shock. Nakita ko paano napalunok si Hades and looked worriedly at Apollo. Hades' restraints were removed at lumapit siya sa kaibigan.

My breathing was failing me as he took the bolo knife from the Crow Watcher. Pinagpapawisan ako at hindi ako makapagsalita. I was scared... and how I want to beg na sa akin nalang 'yon gawin.

"Baby..." I muttered and looked at Apollo whose face was so pale. He was scared too. My head was spinning out of stress and anxiety. He gave me a small smile to assure me that he was okay.

But, he was not.

"Ares, don't..." I managed to utter those words while my mind was spinning like a fucking roller coaster. I was catching my breath now. Kaunti nalang ay mahihimatay na ako rito.

"Bro..." Ares cried as he stood in front of Apollo. What made my heart ache was that Apollo was smiling at him. I know Apollo wanted Hades to continue with the dare.

It was better than being eliminated.

"Ayos lang ako, tanga!" Apollo managed to break out a laugh but his eyes screamed otherwise. "Huwag kayong malungkot! Malakas si daddy Apollo."

He doesn't get it.

It could kill him.

"Ares..." Hades called him as Ares looked in return. Para bang may gustong sabihin si Hades at napatango si Ares katapos. I watched Ares cry in front of Apollo who was pushing him to chop his arm.

My tears fell as I saw the look on Apollo's face. He was so ready to get hurt. No, please no... kinuha na ang lahat sa akin. Just let him stay with me. Kahit siya nalang, itira niyo na.

I never wanted someone for myself this much.

"Mauubusan na ng oras, Ares!" Apollo yelled as Ares only looked at him. Ares was... not planning to do the dare. I saw Ares look at me and gave me a smile. As if he was saying that he would not take Apollo away from me.

Thank you, Ares.

"Manahimik ka, tukmol," sabi ni Ares at ibinalik ang bolo knife kay Crow Watcher. "Sasamahan kita sa elimination."

"Tanga ka ba?!" Sigaw ni Apollo habang pinapanood si Ares na itali ulit sa upuan.

"Tanga raw sa'yo." Sumingit si Hades at kinindatan si Apollo na hindi na maipinta ang mukha ngayon. Ares just chuckled at them before looking at me.

"Thank you..." Bulong ko kay Ares as he flashed me a smile. Hindi ko masasabing mapapatawad ko na siya but I will forever thank him for this.

"Time is up!" Anunsyo ni Crow. "Mr. Ares failed to do the dare so he is also up for elimination!"

"Ready yourselves for our last game!" Dagdag niya at nagpakawala ng mala-demonyong halakhak.

｡˚⛓˚｡⋆. HERMÉS

I was starting to feel guilty.

Oo, galit ako and I was letting my anger consume me for me to do my best. I was one step ahead of them all. Pero, sa mga nalalaman ko ngayon, I realized that I was just on the same footing as them.

Baka nga mas behind pa ako.

I was not surprised about what Ares did. At first, alam ko namang hindi niya kaya tumanggi kina Yves and Achilles. There is no 'no' in his dictionary. But, because he was too kind, he hurt somebody.

"Let's move on to our last game!" Hay, salamat. I wanted to pat myself at the back for coming this far. Noong una, aaminin ko na natakot ako na mamatay rito. But now, I was confident in surviving.

One thing's for sure... aalis kami rito nang hiwalay.

Our secrets were too deadly for our friendship to remain intact. It would be hard for all of us... but that's life. Maybe, we were not meant to last long. Our mistakes were the downfall of our friendship.

I will be back to having no friends. Back to zero. Just myself. And, just the way I was supposed to live my life.

"I pick... Prada!"

How could Prada even answer the question when she could not even talk? This Crow was just fucking with us. Tangina niya.

"Would you rather tell who killed Yves or send yourself to the elimination round?"

Nanlaki ang mata ni Prada and that was when I raised my suspicions towards her. I knew it... Each one of us had a part to play. Additionally, there would always be someone who knew the truth.

But damn, I was too impulsive today.

"Just tell who killed Yves," I suggested. "Alam naman nating lahat na si Apollo 'yon."

I was wrong. He was the one who killed Achilles. I just wanted to start the conversation about this... I wanted to expose him. Kailangan niyang mabulok sa impyerno for what he did. He's a fucking demon.

"Huwag kang magmalinis, punyeta ka," mariin na sabi sa akin ni Apollo. "Alam ko kung anong klaseng tao ka."

I smirked, Apollo was literally assuming things. Wala naman talaga siyang pruweba na maihahain. He was making baseless assumptions and Ares was a fool to believe him.

"And I know that you're a killer," ganti ko.

"Kulit mo?" Apollo sounded irritated. "Tingnan natin, sige. Crow, ako ang pumatay kay Achilles!"

Matalim ang tingin ko sa kanya habang nag-aabang kami ng sasabihin ni Crow. Oh, I was so sure that Apollo killed Achilles. Napaawang ang labi ko nang walang marinig na salita from Crow.

No, may mali!

Fuck!

I stared at Apollo coldly while a smug smile was plastered on his face. Ang sarap talagang suntukin. Malaman ko lang kung sino ang killer ni Yves, I would use that advantage to get the fuck out of here and leave Apollo in this place.

Nakita ko paano nakahinga ng malalim si Prada sa narinig. Hades slowly released his hand which was balled into a fist earlier. Huwag sila maniniwala kay Crow and Apollo!

As if on cue, the Crow watcher went back to the room carrying a pen and paper. Ayon ata ang gagamiting communication with Prada lalo na hindi siya makapagsalita.

When I saw what she wrote, I felt every bit of regret.

She did not answer the question... But her answer was... Too shocking to even process. After all these time, ngayon niya ito ni-reveal. It had been months since Achilles died.

"I suffered a miscarriage with Achilles' baby."

She was keeping all of these to herself all these time.

"P-prada..." Nagulat si Ares sa nakita at tumingin kay Prada na umiiyak. Hades was whispering comforting words to his best friend while Dior looked at her in pity.

"Ate, I'm sorry, hindi namin alam," Gucci cried as she stared at her older friend. "Dapat mas nangialam pa kami sa'yo. I'm sorry, ate."

"Prada..." Hindi makapagsalita si Apollo. Guilt must have been haunting him, huh? "I-I'm sorry."

"Prada, forgive me." Tumingin ako sa kanya na para bang may magagawa pa ako. I was a fool to not know. We were friends, after all. "I'm sorry for your loss."

"Wala naman kayong kasalanan." Hades flashed a small smile at us. "Alam kong ayun ang gustong sabihin ni Prada sa inyo."

"Mahal ka namin, Prada." Dior sniffed. "Pupunan namin ang mga nawala sa'yo. We will take care of you better."

"Nandito lang kami para sa'yo," Ares said. "We will help you recover."

"Ms. Prada will be up for elimination!" Kumuyom ang kamao ko when Crow said that. "See you in the elimination round!"

This time, I wished the crows just kissed Crow's death.