RAINDROPS FALL

CHAPTER SIX

From: Alliah Clarrise Joven

Hi! I arrived safely. Sana ikaw din. G'nyt :)

I smiled after receiving a text message from Lia. I also replied to her with "good night and sweet dreams" before turning off my phone and dozing off to sleep.

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I felt like my body was moving very harshly from side to side because somebody was literally waking me up in a very bad way.

"Atee,wake up! Mom said we're going to church today! I'm going to buy myself some toys!" 

Pabulong na kwento ni Aino sa mismong tenga ko. Umusog ako at humarap sakanya. My eyes were still half closed. 

"Do you have any money to buy toys for yourself? Hindi ka hihingi kay nila Mommy and Daddy? Sure ka na dyan?" Pang-aasar ko pero umiling lang siya at pinakita ang dalawang maliit niyang kamay sa akin na parang nanghihingi. Natawa ako. Bumangon na ako at hinalikan siya sa pisngi.

"Punta ka na sa labas,Aino. Maliligo lang muna si Ate. Tell Mom and Dad na sasama ako,okay?" Tumango siya at agad tumakbo. Sinigawan ko pa ito na tigilan ang kakatakbo pero hindi naman nakinig. Napailing nalang ako at pumasok na C.R ng kwarto ko.

Pagkatapos ko maligo ay pumili na ako ng susuotin kong damit. My mom always told me to wear dresses just like other girls do, but I always said no, so she ended up getting mad at me. Gets ko naman kung bakit siya nagagalit eh, I have a lot of dresses in my closet, but I choose to wear some shirts over and over again, as if that is all I had.

Well,you can't blame me. They're my fave.

I just chose a pink sheath dress since it caught my eyes and I just love how simple it is to me. For sure, Mom would be proud of me.

Bumaba na ako at sinabayan sila para kumain. Pansin ko ang kakaibang titig sa akin ng mga magulang ko. Kr@zi pepol!

"Stop staring at me, Mom and Dad!" Saway ko sakanila dahil hindi ko malunok ng maayos yung bacon dahil sa titig nila. I heard them laugh at me. Kahit si Aino ay nakitawa na din pero busy pa din naman sa paglamon. He will be good at multi-tasking in the near future. I swear.

"Time flies really fast. Imagine Hon, Astral was just our little princess before, but someday she will be someone else's queen. That would really break my heart." My dad said, which made my mom teary-eyed. I felt the sincerity in my Dad's word, and honestly, that would also break my heart, knowing that I wouldn't be their princess forever.

"Ang advance niyo naman Dad mag-isip! Hindi pa nga po ako nag-dedebut and don't worry, I swear to God, I have no boyfriend!"

Natawa lang sila. "Pero may nagpapapuyat?" Makahulugang tanong ni Mommy pero hindi ko nalang pinansin. I felt my cheeks heating up, so I immediately drank water.

"Let's go!!!"

Dali-dali naming tinapos ang aming pagkain dahil sa nagmamadali kong kapatid. Sabik na sabik na makalabas ng bahay at bumili ng bago niyang mga laruan. Just thinking of Aino getting so many toys again made me sick. I was always the one who cleaned, fixed, and put his toys back in their righteous places!

Kakatapos lang ng misa at hinihintay namin ni Aino sina Mom and Dad sa harapan ng aming kotse. Ayaw niya kasing pumasok sa loob hanggang hindi namin kasama ang mga magulang namin na parang anytime ay maglalaho nalang sila ng parang bula. He left me with no choice but to wait outside, despite the fact that the sun was shining directly on us, and since I am the older of us, I had to shield myself so he wouldn't burn his skin because of the sun. Talk about the best sister. I surely win.

I was busy scrolling through my phone when Aino called me. Pinalapit niya ako sakanya na parang may ibubulong kaya ginawa ko naman ang pinapagawa niya.

"That guy keeps on looking at you. He even waved his hand at me and pointed you out, as if he was telling me to call you for him." Tiningnan ko ang tinutukoy ng kapatid ko at laking gulat ko nang makita ko si Xavier. It was so good to see him not wearing our usual school uniform. He looked so manly in a light blue polo shirt and denim jeans paired with casual everyday shoes.

Kinawayan niya ako habang abot-tenga ang ngiti. Kumaway din naman ako sakanya. He's with his family, I guess. Hindi ko pa naman nakikita ang mga magulang niya but I heard he has an older and little sister at the same time. I wonder how it feels to be the only boy in his family besides his Dad.

"He's my classmate, Aino. You want to meet him? I heard he has a little sister. You can be friends with her!" I excitedly said. Ayokong lumaki si Aino ng walang masyadong kaibigang kagaya ko. That would be too lonely for him because it was for me.

To my surprise, he happily agreed. Siguro ay matatagalan pa naman ang parents namin sa loob ng church.

Nang makarating kami ay agad na lumapit sa akin si Xave and lightly patted my head. I tried to smile at him pero ngumiwi lang siya.

"Ang panget mong ngumiti"

I rolled my eyes. I am being nice to him, but he was just out of this world!

I held Aino's hand so he looked at me. "This is Xavier Dreian H. Vinares but you can call him Kuya Xave." Sabay turo ko kay Xave na nakatingin sa akin. Hindi ko ito pinansin at humarap ulit sa kapatid ko. "Your turn naman. Introduce yourself, love!"

Nawala ang ngiti ko nang umiling-iling siya. Napabuntong-hininga ako. "What do you want, Aino?" I asked him.

He looked at me with pleasing eyes. "I want playmate, Ate." He softly said which made my heart flutters in happiness. Tumango ako sakanya at bahangyang ginulo ang kanyang buhok.

"Dreianna, come here!", rinig kong sigaw ni Xave. I don't know who Dreianna is but I guess, she must be his little sister.

I saw a little girl with a high ponytail, dressed in a pink sheath dress like mine. She was so cute! The Barbie Doll, I believe, exists because of her.

Agad na tumakbo si Aino at sinalubong si Dreianna. They both laughed, just by running. Kids and their unexplainable laughters. I smiled when Xave's sister held my brothers hand as they both run back and forth. It's been a while since I last heard my little brother laugh like this.

"I guess I'm seeing our future so early today."

Xave said, out of the blue.

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