"Solen is my girlfriend . . . for real."
Idinagdag ni Hunt ang huling dalawang salita sapagkat hindi natinag ang mga pinsan niya. Ni wala silang reaksiyon. Ani ko, siguro ay iniisip nila na peke pa rin ang relasyon namin. Ngunit mukhang mayroong ibang dahilan.
They quietly turned their faces to Franco, their eldest. Sa dulo ng lamesa ay tahimik na kumakain ang lalaki.
"What?" nagtatakang tanong ni Hunt. "Why?"
No one dared to answer. Hindi ko rin alam kung bakit dito nagtipon ang mga señor sa Dolce Casa at mukhang hindi maganda ang araw ng panganay nila.
Franco sighed. "Thank you for the food. I'm leaving."
Nakabibingi ang katahimikan sa loob. Walang umimik sapagkat lahat ay nanood sa paglisan ng lalaki, kahit si abuela ay tila napipi. Nang makaalis na ang kotse ni Franco, limang lalaki ang sabay-sabay na bumuntong-hininga.
"Walang susunod do'n?" si Chase. "Kapag 'yon sinadyang magpabangga, patay tayong lahat."
"I'm dead too." Yuri ate his chip halfheartedly.
"Elias, Evo, Yuri, hindi niyo talaga susundan?"
"He wants time alone," said, Evo.
"How would I solve the problem? We need to wait," ani Elias.
"I can't take the lead this early. Franco must not leave the position. I don't want to be stressed. My stitches will reopen," si Yuri.
Apat silang tumingin sa pinakabatang pinsan. Humihikbi pa rin si Kai habang kumakain ng spaghetti.
"What?" He cried more. "I don't even want to go home because Mom will nag about my tres." He's a first year college student.
"Dude, you're be dead," ani pa ni Yuri.
Sinakop ng palad ni Evo ang mukha ng Hapon na pinsan at tinapik si Kai. "Finish your food first. Worry about that later."
Elias chuckled. "Gusto mo ba ng kapatid, Evo? Sa 'yo na lang."
"Kuya!" bulalas ni Kai sa kapatid.
"Wala talaga kayong awa. Hiniwalayan na nga ng fiancee 'yung tao. Ako na nga." Tumayo si Chase at sumunod na umalis.
Ako, si Hunt, at abuela ang walang alam sa mga nangyayari. Bakit kaya bahay ni Hunt ang tambayan ng mga ito? At bakit sabay-sabay silang nagpunta ngayon?
Hindi na nakapagtimpi si Hunt. "Hey, ratatouilles." Nilakasan niya ang boses para nakawin ang atensiyon nilang lahat. "Tell me what's happening before I throw all of you."
"Kuya Franco and his fiancée are . . ." Kai made a letter X with his arms.
"They parted?"
"The mother—" si Elias na mabilis naputol ng kapatid.
"No. Not yet. But Georgina Legazpi said in an interview that her daughter would be backing out."
"Didn't Franco get engaged for a reason?" Tumaas ang kilay ni Hunt.
"Well, Franco—" si Yuri.
"Kuya Franco got scolded because Tito Julian said he let Ms. Era win against him. Plus, he said he was so stupid to fall in the trap that Ms. Era and her mother have set. Then he warned him about his position and possessions. He said he didn't think he raised a foolish son."
Nanikip yata ang dibdib ko sa bibigat ng mga salitang sinambit ni Kai. Napatango na lamang ang nga Kuya niya.
"Also, there's a rally going on at Dolce Casa. Kuya Hunt, you seems really busy not to watch news. Dolce Casa is at the verge of losing its clean image now because of the issue resurfacing," Kai added.
YOU ARE READING
Been Hunting Home | Suarez III
Romance[SLOW EDIT] Soliesse Adelina is a sophisticated woman from a private family of de Andrades. For the last five years, she was caged at their mansion which most may call a dream-perhaps a home. She knew she was missing a lot about life and she wanted...
