𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚍 // 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚗 𝚍𝚎 𝚍𝚒𝚘𝚜

vi. cousin's advice

“Tita Mylene, Tito Jun… Hello po,” Kiera smiled shyly and approached them, giving them the big tight hug she usually gives to everyone's parents. She's like a daughter to our parents, and she's too lovable that they all want her to be a part of the family.

“Ang laki-laki mo na, ija. Sana naman ngayon mag-stay ka na muna ng matagal-tagal dito sa Pilipinas.” Tita Mylene said as they drew away from the hug, almost crying.

“Justin, hindi mo man lang kami sasalubungin?” Tito Jun joked, causing both women to turn to face me. I smiled at them and did the same as Kiera, and as we pulled away, Tita's next words surprised me.

“Bakit hindi niyo naman sinabi na kayo na pala? Tagal na namin gustong marinig 'yon e. Tara na sa loob at makapag-lunch na.”

Kiera and I seemed to freeze in place when we realized what Tita Mylene had just said about us. Ano raw? Kami na ni Kiera? I turned to the woman who happened to be my friend and the same woman I li—lo—No way, not that part.

“Tayo na pala, Kie?” I joked in a teasing voice she's all too familiar with, casually wrapping my arms around her shoulder.

She looked up at me, shrugging my arm away from her, but I didn't move it. “Hoy po! Kanina ka pa ha, Justin. So, tayo na nga? Tayo na't pumasok na sa loob, oo, gutom na ako!”

I laughed and let her lead me inside the hacienda, with our friends following shortly after. Except for Kiera, who is still dressed the way she was before we all parted ways to do our tasks, all of us have obviously gone strawberry picking. Hindi man lang ako tinulungan pero 'di na ako magrereklamo basta siya naman.

“Kiera oh, tikman mo,” Stell called out, causing Kiera to let go of my hand and walk over to him, only to eat the strawberry cupcake Tita Mylene had brought us.

I'm going to be honest, I'm quite jealous of them sometimes, even though I shouldn't because they're like siblings to each other, but their closeness is incomparable to mine and Kiera's, even though we always hung out together in college. That's why I blurted out to her earlier that I wished I were Stell, but I knew she was thinking about something else when I saw her hurt expression.

“Oh, magsiligo muna kayo bago kayo kumain,” Tita Mylene reminded us as she proceeded to the kitchen.

We wanted to help set the table, but they wouldn't let us. So, we all went back to our rooms to take a bath and change clothes before returning downstairs. Everyone was looking at their phones as soon as I walked downstairs, except for her.

“Hey, you want some?” Kiera approached me cheerfully and offered me the new cupcake she was holding, as I looked down at it then back to her face. A freaking déjà vu.

“I thought the point of coming here was for everyone to do something other than scroll through their phones?” I joked as I glanced at our friends before biting into the cupcake in her hand, which made her smile slightly.

“Sweet niyo naman, kayo na ba?” Stell said quietly as he walked past us on his way to the kitchen, stuffing his phone inside his pocket, then stopping for a moment to smirk at me before continuing on his way.

“Hoy, Justin ha, pinsan ko 'yan ha,” I heard Josh call out from upstairs. His voice was lighthearted, but his expression was solemn.

“Hoy po!” Kiera and I both yelled at the same time.

“Anong meron bakit lahat kayo ganyan ang tanong?” she asked. “Tigilan niyo pang-aasar baka maissue tayo, bad 'yon.”

She's right. Kapag nagka-issue alam kong siya ang maaapektuhan at 'di ako papayag na mangyari 'yon. However, what's going on between us since two years ago has been confusing me every time we're together, but neither of us deny what our friends or people who know us think of us—that we're dating and we're just keeping it a secret. Kahit pala i-deny naman hindi rin effective.