Beyond Constellations

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"Open the gates!" I hissed at my phone.

"Paano kung ayoko?" I will punch you in the face, Tain!

"I will paint your motor, I'm telling you. I'm not joking!" Sagot ko pabalik. Tumawa pa ang kapatid ko. Akala yata ay hindi ako seryoso sa sinasabi. Kapag ako, napagalitan na naman ni Mommy, sisiguraduhin kong wala na siyang magagamit na motor bukas. Asshole!

"Scary..." He chuckled.

"Tain!" I hissed again, "Bilisan mo na bago magdinner! Five minutes na lang!"

"Ito na!" He said.

Like the usual, Tain, my twin brother, opened the door for me. I immediately entered the house habang nasa kusina pa si Mommy at Daddy at busy sa pagluluto. I removed my shoes and left it beside the gate. Nasira na naman kasi ang converse ko dahil sa mob kanina. Ang mahal mahal ng converse pero ang daling masira!

I am quietly climbing the stairs when... okay, not your lucky day, Tanya. Ang gagong si Tain, hindi sinabing nasa taas si Dad!

"Saan ka galing?" Daddy asked me, raising a brow and looking at my clothes, "My goodness, Tanya... your clothes..."

I bit my lowerlip, "Diyan lang..."

He sighed, "Go upstairs and take a bath immediately. Mom will call for dinner in a bit. You stink! Bilisan mo!"

Lumawak ang ngiti ko. He's in the mood to keep a secret tonight. Lumagpas na si Daddy sa akin pababa sa hagdan pero agad akong yumakap sa kanya at ngumiti. He hissed because I stink, he said. Ito talagang carbon copy ko. Alam ko naman na kahit mabaho ako, gusto niyang niyayakap ko siya.

"Take a bath!" He said.

"Love you, Dad," I kissed his cheek, "I'll tell you a story later!"

"Oo na. Oo na! Maligo ka na!"

I'm a Daddy's girl. I don't know. I just admire my father so much. He's my hero. My role model. My bestfriend. Siya talaga ang laging nakakaintindi sa akin. He will always hold me accountable for my mistakes too but most of the time, kakampi ko siya. But that doesn't make me love my mother less. I love them equally. Si Tain naman ang mas close kay Mommy.

Agad akong naligo at nag-ayos ng sarili, lalo nang tawagin na ako ng kasambahay namin. I wore casual clothes and immediately went down. Nandoon na silang tatlo at ako na lang ang hinihintay. Tain is busy on his phone, probably texting some girls. Daddy is reading the newspaper and Mommy is doing something on her iPad.

What a busy family we have here.

"Ang taas ni Villanueva sa surveys," Daddy told Mom, "This is not good."

"Kaya nga—"

"Totoo, Dad!" Sabi ko, "It's because of disinformation! They are spending all their money to spread fake news online. Ang dami kong kabatch na naniniwala tapos kapag sinita mo, sila pa ang galit! Mga galit sa katotohanan!"

"Talk to them nicely. You explain once. Sa susunod, sila na ang bahala kung paano nila ihahandale ang impormasyon na ibinigay mo sa kanila." He told me.

"I talk to them nicely." Sabi ko, "I have patience for them dahil bandang huli, kahit gaano sila ka-misinformed, kasama pa rin sila sa ipinaglalaban..."