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"Grabe 'no? My cousin is your sister's best friend. Small world."

Nakaupo sa tabi ni Synn si Seven. He had his chin rested on the back of his hand with his elbow propped at the sofa's arm while his legs were crossed as they both watched Mavi play in his pen. Siya naman ay nasa kabilang dulo, legs on the sofa while resting on her side.

"Nakakagulat nga," sagot niya wile flipping through her book. "My sister's quite the girly type. At base sa obserbasyon ko ay may pagka-boyish ata 'tong si Cole."

"Pansin ko din nga," anito. "Pero sabi nga nila, best tandem daw talaga yung mga polar opposites. I mean, you should know right? Iyong mga cliché novel storylines like 'opposites attract'?"

Napabaling agad siya sa lalaki at tinaasan ito ng kilay.

"Are you insinuating that there's something going on with your cousin and my sister? You are aware that they're both girls, right?"

"Grabe ka naman," saad agad nito. "Ang sabi ko, best tandem. Walang malisya. Wala ako iniinsinuate na kung ano."

She rolled her eyes before getting back at her book. May dinugtong nanaman ito sa sinabi.

"But I mean, if that's what they are, who am I to judge, right?" Kunot-noo siyang napabaling muli dito. "Kung gusto man nila ang isa't-isa kahit pareho silang babae, then so be it."

Napatingin siya dito. So he has that kind of mindset, huh.

"So you won't go against it?"

Agad itong umiling. "She's my cousin. My family. Bakit ko kakalabanin yung taong dapat ay pino-protektahan ko?"

She was left dumbfounded at the maturity of Seven's words. Though most of the people are more accepting towards same-sex relationships these days, bihira pa rin ang mga lalaking tulad nitong vocal at mukhang sinsero sa mga pinagsasabi. She can clearly see how much he loved his cousin. Ano na lang kaya sa sarili nitong anak?

"Ikaw ba," biglang balik sa kanya ng lalaki. "Will you accept your sister if she comes out as someone who's into girls?"

Hindi siya agad nakasagot. Bumalik ang isip niya noong bumisita ito at ang matalik na kaibigan. Honestly speaking, hindi niya alam kung ano ba ang isasagot kay Seven. Siguro dahil hindi iyon kailanman sumagi sa isipan niya liban na lamang nung nakaraan. But she brushed the thought off immediately.

Ngunit, paano? Paano nga kung nasa ga'nong sitwasyon ang kapatid niya?

"I... I don't know what to answer," pag-amin niya dito. "Don't get me wrong, ha. I accept all types of gender identities and orientation. Or preference. Kaya lang..."

She bet her lip. Noon niya lang kasi naisip that she wasn't fully accepting when it comes to the LGBTQ+ community. Though she does not have anything against them but, she just can't see the possibility of her sis being part of it. Ayaw niya actually isipin. And she felt guilty about it.

"Kapatid mo ang pinaguusapan, tama ba?" saad nito.

It wasn't even a question. Napakagat siya sa ibabang labi. Guilt washed over her.

"Ano ba naman 'tong topic na'tin," asik niya. "It's making me feel like I'm a bad person."

Ngumiti ito at ihinilig ang ulo sa backrest ng sofa. Maya-maya ay bumaling ito sa kanya.

"Hindi ka naman masama kung hindi mo kayang tanggapin ang kapatid mo kung saka-sakali," paliwanag nito. "But, you should stay by her side, if ever. Be there for her. Protect her. That's enough."

"She's my sister," aniya. "Of course, I would. Kahit pa kay Winter mangyari 'yan, I would never leave their side. Poprotektahan ko sila. I would always protect them laban kahit kanino. Kahit pa kay—"

Agad niyang pinigilan ang sarili sa muntik nang masabi. As far as she's aware, hometown niya lang ang alam nito. Hindi nito alam ang totoong background niya't koneksyon sa mga Cortez sa larangan ng politika.

"That's good enough," he said before winking at her. Napasinghap siya. "Hypothetical lang naman 'yon so don't stress yourself about it."

Tumayo ito mula sa pagkakaupo at dumiretso sa kusina. Kumuha ito ng baso at nagsalin ng tubig doon.

"Here." Inabot nito sa kanya ang tubig bago muling naupo. "Baka nauuhaw ka na."

Ibinalik ni Seven ang atensyon sa pagbabantay kay Mavi at dumausdos pa mula sa sofa pababa ng carpet. Mula sa labas ng playpen ay nilaru-laro nito ang pamangkin.

Pinagmasdan niya ng maigi si Seven. All this time, she just saw him as this young prankster who can't take anything seriously. Madalas kasi noong nasa college pa lang sila ay puro pagpapacute at banat ang pinaggagagawa nito. How could she take him seriously?

Wala sa sariling natawag niya ito. For some reason, she wanted to find out what he'd say about her current situation with her parents and the twins. Gusto niyang malaman kung anong masasabi nito tungkol sa ginawa niya pagpoprotekta sa mga kapatid.

"Hmm?" agad itong bumaling sa kanya. She bit her lip again.

"What if... what if you caught someone you love the most cheating? Ano ang gagawin mo?"

Nangunot agad ang noo ng lalaki. Bigla ring nandilim ang mga mata nito.

"Leave," seryosong sambit nito. "I'd leave immediately because I know what I deserve and I do not deserve to be treated like shit."

Naikuyom niya ang kanyang mga kamao. He's right. Nobody deserves to be treated that way. Naramdaman niya ang unti-unting pamumuo ng mga luha sa kanyang mata.

"Synn," pukaw sa kanya ni Seven. Naglayo agad siya ng tingin dito. Nahuhulaan na niya kasi ang susunod nitong itatanong. "Are you cheating on me?"

Tutulo na sana ang mga luha niya ngunit iba sa iniisip niyang sasabihin nito ang narinig niya. Tuloy ay tiningnan niya ito ng masama.

"You honestly think I'd have time to see anyone else when you got me locked up here?!" bulalas niya. Pakiramdam niya tuloy ay umurong bigla yung luha niya. "Plus, we're not even together, dumbass!"

Ang sarap batukan talaga nitong si Severino. Andun na eh. Maiiyak na sana siya. Mag-o-open up na sana siya ng bagay na napakagagal na niyang kinikimkim. But he just had to ruin it.

"Sorry naman!" paghing agad nito ng tawad.  Napakamot pa ito sa batok. "Yung tanong mo kasi eh! Akala ko tuloy dinadahan-dahan mo 'ko."

She can't help but roll her eyes at this guy.

"Any normal friend would've asked whether I got cheated on or what. Hindi 'yung ako yung tinatanong mo kung nangangaliwa."

May switch ba ito at parang ang dali mag-flip from serious to being a big ass clown.

"Ewan ko sa'yo. Matutulog na nga lang ako—"

He stopped her from leaving. Hinawakan siya nito sa may pala-pulsuhan at maingat na hinila pabalik sa tabi nito.

"You got cheated on?" nagtatakang tanong nito. "I thought you never had any boyfriends? 'Yon ang sabi ni kuya Inno."

He said that? Napaka-tabil talaga ng Inosencio na 'yon. So much for for boys being secretive or whatever. Hindi niya na lang itatanggi o kukumpirmahin ang bagay na 'yon sa lalaki at napagdesisyonang umalis na lang ng tuluyan.

Ngunit mukhang hindi basta-bastang papayag itong si Severino na makawala. Kung gaano siya ka-desididong umalis ay ganoon rin ito sa nabuksang uspan. Hinila siya nitong muli nang madakip ang pala-pulsuhan kaya't nawalan siya ng balanse't napaupo.

Not beside him like the last time but on his lap. She felt a blush creep to her cheeks and tried to stand again but Seven's arms were already snaked around her waist. In short, wala na talaga siyang kawala dito.

"You're not getting away that easily," anito. "Baka ikaw talaga 'yon, ah. Marunong ako mag-neck chop saka sumipa. Lagot sa'kin yung kabit mong 'yon. O kung sinuman 'yong tarantadong ex mo na gumawa 'non sa'yo."

"I told you, it wasn't me!" medyo nataranta siya sa sinabi ng lalaki lalo pa't hindi niya minsan sigurado kung kailan ba ito nagbibiro sa hindi.

She tried her best to wring away from Seven's grasp but all her efforts were put into waste as Seven tightened his hold on her. Ngumisi pa ang loko dahil halos nakayapos na ito sa katawan niya. He had this teasing grin on paired with meaningful eyes.

"Hindi nga kasi ako 'yon," giit niya. "Tusukin ko 'yang mata mo eh!"

"Eh bakit mo nasabi 'yon?" pangungulit pa nito. "Magha-hire ako ng private investigator. Papahanap ko 'yung lalaki mo. O yung mga ex mo. Walang pwede manakit sa babaeng mahal ko--"

"Then be my guest!" bulalas niya nang sa wakas ay maputol ang kahuli-hulihang pisi ng kanyang pasensya. "As if kaya mong makalusot sa security ni dad--"

The smirk on Seven's face slowly vanished. Noon niya lang din narealize ang nasabing impormasyon dito nang mapansin ang biglang pag-iba ng ekspresyon nito. Napa-kagat siya sa kanyang pang-ibabang labi at agarang nilayo ang tingin.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

Hindi na niya napigilan ang biglang pagbuhos ng kanyang mga luha. She's often seen as this cold-hearted bitch. Suplada. Maldita. Totoo naman 'yon pero, kapag pamilya na niya ang pinaguusapan ay nanlalambot talaga siya.

"Synn..." Naramdaman niya ang masuyong paghaplos ni seyen sa kanyang baywang habang sinisilip ang kanyang mukha. Sinundan pa iyon ng isang halik sa kanyang ulo. "Kung hindi mo pa kayang pag-usapan, okay lang. But it does help when you tell someone about your problems. And I'm always here ready to listen."

Dahan-dahan siyang napatingin dito. Medyo nanunuyo ang kanyang lalamunan kaya't napalunok siya bago pa man magtama ang kanilang mga mata.

The thing about Seven is that, even though you have no idea whether he's serious or not, you can always see sincerity in his eyes. Mula pa noong binubuhos niya ang inis sa away nila ni Yoon, noong nalaman niyang buntis siya, noong muntik na siyang makunan, at pati ngayon. He is consitent. So it wouldn't be too bad to tell him, right? Problems shared do tend to be lighter.

She took a deep breath.

"Six year ago," simula niya sabay kuyom ng nanginginig niyang kamay. "I... I found out dad was cheating on mom with multiple women."

Muli niyang nakagat ang labi sabagy pikit. Memories of the first time she saw her father kissing another woman came flooding inside her head.

"I was a freshman in college," she explained. "Galing ako ng Maynila at umuwi lang to spend the weekend with my family. Close kasi talaga kami. We never had any issues within the family at pinalaki akong top priority dapat parati ang pamilya."

Seven must've noticed her hand shaking kaya't inabot nito ang mga iyon at pinagsakop ang kanilang mga kamay. He smiled at her reassuringly and urged her to continue.

"But that weekend, I wanted to surprise them kasi nagkataong anniversary din ng mga magulang ko. Nag-commute ako 'non kahit medyo delikado dahil politiko si dad. Imagine my surprise 'nong pagbaba ko sa bus nakita ko yung sasakyan ng tatay ko. Ang buong akala ko ay nabuko na 'ko but to my surprise, may ibang babae na pumasok sa kotse."

"I'm assuming that you knew the girl?" tanong ni Seven na tinugon niya agad ng tango.

"Kilala ko siya dahil pareho kami ng high school na pinanggalingan," paliwanag niya. "But at first, hindi ko nilagyan ng malisya 'yon. Baka kako kamag-anak lang ng driver ni dad at sinundo lang. Kaya dumiretso na lang ako 'non sa mga tricycle na nakaabang. Still, that weird feeling inside my gut would not leave me alone."

"You know what they say about gut feels," side-comment ng lalaki. "It's either right or you're just hungry--aray!"

"Do you want me to continue or not?" asik niya dito. Parang maamong tupa naman itong napahalukipkip at itinikom ang bibig. "So, I followed dad's car. Hindi man kami close nung babae but I did have group projects with her before. Kaya alam ko ang daanan papunta sa bahay niya--"

"Let me guess," singit nanaman nito. "Hindi sa bahay nila dumiretso 'yung kotse ng tatay mo?"

Umiling siya agad para kumpirmahin ang hinuha nito. Bumitiw sa pagkakahawak sa kanya si Seven at eksaheradong pinalakpak ng isang beses ang mga kamay.

"I knew it!"

"But that's not the worst part," aniya at muling naluha. "I thought my dad wasn't in the car. I prayed na wala siya doon at hinahatid lang siya ng kung sinong tauhan ni dad. But, fuck! Lumabas mula sa backseat si dad kasabay ng paglabas din nung babae!"

She cupped her face and cried. Hindi niya na rin naisatinig ang nakitang ginawa ng dalawa pagkatapos pumasok sa gate ng bahay na iyon sa isang liblib na lokasyon. As she was trying her best to justify and deny the fact that her father just went inside her batchmate's house, nakita niyang naghalikan ang dalawa. One the lips! It was indeed a painful and disturbing confirmation that her dad was indeed having an affair. At sa halos ka-edad niya pa! She felt disgust more than anger.

"And as if that wasn't enough torture for me, I just had to dig into dad's affair even more," patuloy niya. "Nalaman ko tuloy na hindi lang isa ang kabit ni dad. He had four! He even had kids with those... those..."

She felt a lump in her throat. Whores.

"Did you... did you tell your mom?"

"I... can't." It was so out of her character pero humahagulhol na siya. "My mom... my mom's heart grew weaker as she had Winter and Snow. And he loves my dad so much. First love and all that. Tapos they had this 'Romeo and Juliet before the poison' type of romance. Kaya hindi niya kakayanin kapag nalaman niyang matagal na pala siyang niloloko ni dad."

"Ang mga kapatid mo?" sunod nitong tanong. "Do they know anything about your dad's affairs?"

Umiling din siya. "I had to protect them. Ayokong maramdaman nila yung sakit na naramdaman ko nang malaman ko ang bagay na 'yon, Seven. It literally broke me. I lost all confidence in my father. I lost all confidence in men. And the worst of it all, I lost confidence in love."

"So you've been carrying all of the pain by yourself?" Tumango siya. "Synn... mga kapatid mo sila. At times like this, they're the only ones you got. Kayong tatlo ang dapat na nagdadamayan. You three should be in this together, not against each other."

"But I can't let them get hurt--"

Seven tucked the loose strands of her hair behind her ear and slightly raised her chin. Napatingin siya dito kaya't nagtama ang kanilang mga mata.

"Baby, you're very brave for protecting your brother and sister from all of that. But have confidence in them too." Then he lightly kissed her lips. "I've seen how strong you are, Synn. Sure akong mana sila sa'yo."

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