Aldeheid

Chapter 10

Precious Gem
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"Has he broke a gear?" puna ni Callum pagkarating.

Harrison and his mate simultaneously shrugged before turning their back on Rios who had been staring at the ceiling for hours before Callum came. Walang pasubaling niya itong hinampas sa balikat upang mabalik sa huwisyo. Labis naman ang pagkagulat ni Rios nang makita ang busangot na mukha ng kaibigan.

Rios eyes fluttered for several times before he aggressively pointed his fingers at Callum, his nose flared, "You! Ikaw ang may kasalanan nito, eh! If only I didn't go to that wicked place, hindi sana ako makulam ng babaeng iyon!" panted afterwards.

Napahalukipkip si Callum rito, "Ano bang ginawa mo?" matabang niyang tanong.

"Ano pa ba yung pinagawa mo?! Edi, hinanap yung mambabarang!"

"And?" Callum and the couple asked in unison.

"And asked that weird witch where that Adelaide was!"

"Oh, tas?" ani Jarriet.

"At sabi niya na wala raw kaya sa susunod nalang ako babalik!" nanlalaki pa rin ang mga butas ng ilong nito.

"Where the hell is kulam there?" Harrison brows furrowed.

Sa pagkakataong ito ay napatayo na si Rios nang matandaan niya na naman ang babaeng iyon, "That witch was insane! Freaking insane! She got mad when I decided to stay, eh, siyempre ang layo ng pamamahay nila mula rito kaya sino ba ang may gustong bumalik ulit doon? So, the stubborn in me overwhelmed my body and when it did, I suddenly became still and breathless! And she started invading my privacy and chanted whatever was in my mind that time and in a snap of fingers, bigla ko nalang nakita ang sarili ko sa labas ng kinakalawang nilang gate!" and cursed repeatedly with conviction.

Napamaang nalang sila rito at kapagkuwan ay napailing. They immediately got an idea what was happening to their friend. Napatapik nalang si Callum sa balikat nito at may bahid na awa ang mukha.

"You're not cursed, bro. You're just smitten."

Agad na nanalisik ito, "Who the hell would be smitten for that witch?! Binastos na nga niya yung isipan ko, sinarhan pa ako ng gate! Imagine, Harley Rios being refused!"

"Wala ka sa Avrieda kaya huwag kang mayabang." gunita ni Jarriet na ngayo'y kumakain na.

"And we know how your brain works, Rios. Nahihiya ka lang dahil nabasa niya ang kahalayan mo nang makita siya." saad naman ng alpha.

Napakurap si Rios habang pinanindigan ang kaakuhan. He hated how his friends knew him so much that he immediately got caught lying, "Kahit na! Masama pa rin yung binabasa niya ang isipan ko!" iyak niya kaya nag-irap nalang ang tatlo.

"So, did you get what I asked?" seryoso na si Callum.

Doon naman bumalik sa pagkapormal si Rios, "It's actually the first thing that witch told me."

"Ano raw sabi?" singit ni Jarriet na ngayo'y nakasilip mula sa likuran ng asawa.

"It was really fast when she said that but I was able to comprehend it. Sabi niya hindi ka raw nakulam at hindi mo siya pares. May sinabi rin siya tungkol sa buwan at magnanakaw, aside from that, I also heard the terms unintentional and connection, and everything after that just doesn't make sense at all." kunot noo nitong paliwanag.

Napakapit si Callum sa likuran ng upuan, "Gaano ka walang kuwenta iyon?"

Rios shrugged, "Sabi niya kapag may isang mamamatay sa inyo, susunod yung isa."