Almost Maybes

Chapter 10

Rex and I were having a great deal of talk about his scheduled doctor's appointment when Rachel and Perry came in along with my brother, Eliseo. Kuya Ely and Rex talked until the nurse informed us that it was time for Rex to consult with the doctor. Perry and Kuya Ely volunteered to go with him. Rachel gladly agreed with the idea, and when the three of them had gone away, she confessed to me about being so worried about her son.

She looked like she had not slept for days. "How did you find out?" she asked.

"Perry phoned me last night," I said. "I thought it was a dream, a very bad dream."

She held my hand; her eyes began to moisten. "I don't know what to do if you guys were not here."

"This must have been a tough time for you, but don't worry, Rachel, Rex can survive all this. We just have to believe."

"It's hard for him to do that, since Jessie died of leukemia too, his very own dad."

"I'm sorry about your husband."

She smiled, still holding my hand. "Are you sure we're not causing you trouble? Don't you have to work?"

"I resigned," I said, too ashamed to look her in the eyes, "things at work didn't work out fine with me. I'm exploring new possibilities."

"Take all your time to discover the things you're good at. It's better to work passionately than not work at all, besides you're still young. A lot of new doors will open just for you, Ivy."

"Thank you, Rachel."

"We're not at a job interview here. Talk to me like I'm your best friend or mom. I prefer the latter. I missed having you in the house."

The whole time we chatted, she was holding my hand. When she finally relaxed a bit, she began sharing stuff about Rex when he was still young. Rachel's innate ability to capture the heart of her listener was one thing I admired about her. We talked like we were high school best friends.

She told me stories of Rex when he was seven. How he used to steal cookies in a jar, on top of the refrigerator, at midnight. He wasn't allowed to eat too much sweets that time and sneaking out late had given him the pleasure of eating cookies as much as he wanted.

"He believed we were not aware of it," said Rachel. "But Jessie knew it all. Rex is the only one in our family who loves to eat cookies."

Rachel also shared how Rex rejoiced when Ayala was born. Perry and Rex didn't get along quite well when they were kids. For Perry was the antithesis of Rex, Rachel said.

"He will just talk to us when he needs something," said Rachel.

"We thought he had speaking problems." She was smiling while talking about her sons, "We just accepted that our sons are both different persons."

Rex hated his brother for being taciturn. As a child, Rex was fond of playing, meanwhile his brother, Perry, was reserved since childhood. Rex grew up inviting his classmates to come to their house and play, until his younger sister was born.

"When Ayala was born, Rex stopped inviting friends over. His sister received all the fond attention a little brother could give."

"They seem to be very close."

"Ayala likes you a lot," Rachel paused. "In fact, we all do like you, Ivy. I'd already pictured you growing old with my son."

"I usually daydream in my leisure time," she joked.

"We fight like cats and dogs, a lot. Sorry, Rachel, he surely knows how to break my fuse."

"There's no doubt about that. Perry would agree with you."