After The Credits

Chapter 18 After the Party Karl's POV

The birthday party was now over, leaving Karl alone in the kitchen, wiping the dining table clean. Not much later, he heard knocking on the door and stopped what he was doing to open it.

    "I'm back!" Vlad smiled from the other side of the door, now wearing pajamas and carrying a backpack on one shoulder and his orca plush in hand.

    "Bagal mo naman, ang tagal ko nang naghihintay dito." Karl said.

    "Na-miss mo na ako? Sweet mo naman." Vlad replied, moving in for a hug.

    Karl felt the warmth of Vlad's embrace for the first time in what felt like forever.

    Ang yakap mo talaga, Vlad, ang tunay kong tahanan.

    "'Di kita na-miss. Kailangan ko lang ng tulong para linisin ang unit. Para sa'yo kaya yung party kanina." Karl joked.

    Vlad rolled his eyes and smiled at Karl.

    "In fairness, na-miss ko nang maghugas ng pinggan dito." Vlad replied before heading to the kitchen.

    Karl and Vlad stood next to each other at the kitchen counter. The kitchen had two sinks, so they both washed dishes to get the job over with more quickly. As they worked, a blissful silence fell over them. They didn't need to speak to enjoy each other's presence. Karl would steal quick glances at Vlad and he would glance back, filling Karl's stomach with butterflies. Vlad rested his head on Karl's shoulder and Karl would let his head lean on Vlad in return.

    After a while, once the dishes were done, Karl led Vlad upstairs and they sat across from each other on the bed.

    "Karl, dahil 'di ko na magagamit ang Arki nickname mo, pwede bang Almasexy na lang?" Vlad laughed.

    "Ikaw talaga, kung ano anong iniisip mo..." Karl replied, laughing.

    "Luh bakit naman? Of course I think you're sexy. Ano ba namang klaseng boyfriend ako kung hindi?" Vlad teased.

    "Hay, sira ulo talaga ang boyfriend ko. At ayaw mo ba sa original nickname mo sa'kin, Pancake?" Karl said.

    "Ha? Sira ulo yung ano mo?" Vlad asked, leaning closer to Karl.

    Karl rolled his eyes and smiled before answering.

    "Boyfriend. Ayan, happy ka na?"

    "Oo. And okay, Pancake it is then." Vlad replied with a bright smile.

    A few minutes later, Karl jumped up, realizing he forgot something. He got off the bed and headed for the stairs.

    "Vlad, 'di ko pa pala binigay sa'yo yung regalo mo! Wait lang, ha!"

    Karl went down the stairs to grab a shopping bag from the closet. He was about to head upstairs to give it to Vlad, but he turned around to see that Vlad had followed him down.

    "Happy birthday." Karl said, handing the bag to Vlad, who opened it immediately.

    "Oh my god, Karl. I love it!" He said, taking a yellow shirt with a Pikachu on it out of the bag.

    "Naalala ko na may Pikachu toy ka, so naisip kong bilhin to para sa'yo." Karl said.

    "First of all, Karl, hindi siya toy. That's a figurine." Vlad corrected him.

    "...But thanks, Pancake."

    "May gift 'din ako sa'yo. Close your eyes." Vlad said.

    "Luh, birthday ko ba?" Karl asked.