Alejandro's Hombre

Ch.47: The Downfall of an Empire

"empires inevitably fall. and when they do, history judges them for the legacy they leave behind."
----Noah Feldman

"He who prides himself in wealth and honor hastens his own downfall."
---LAOZI
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"I'm glad that we are able to talk today. with all these things happening, hindi ko na alam ang uunahing sabihin."

Chandler said, looking so tired and burned out. kakatapos lang ng sunod-sunod nilang surgeries, at magulo pa ang buong ospital dahil sa nangyari. Xander also feels the same. He's so drained, he just wants to go home and cuddle with Jordan and Gabriel.

"that fucking bastard. He's so goddamn desperate, he wants the whole hospital to go down with him." Chandler said indignantly, slamming his fist on the table. Xander remained quiet, but he's in rage. what his rotten brother did jeopardize the hospital security, threatening it. "I'm going to have my whole fist make a dent on his face if I see him again. manghihiram sya ng mukha sa palaka kapag nakaharap ko sya ulit."

He found out later on that his Father did not just kicked Carlos out of the household, he disowned him too---and   revealed the secret his family has been keeping from him for so long.

"do you really have no idea... that Carlos was adopted? hindi talaga nila sinabi sa 'yo, Xands?"

Xander shake his head and deeply sighed.

"that's worst. all your life you thought that loser is of your kin. kaya pala wala man lang resemblance sa inyo ang gagong yun. mula hitsura hanggang sa utak, wala syang nakuha kina Tito Teodorico at Tita Leticia." Chandler said, clicking his tongue. "you, for example. You're like the exact replica of your Mom. from the face, complexion, attitude and personality. and you inherited Tito Teodorico's photographic memory and sharp intellect. pero ang inutil at talunang yun, wala man lang napapatunayan sa buhay. in fact, if not for our clan's influence in the HGU Medical School, hindi naman makaka-graduate ang animal na yun. and now, he even had the audacity to steal confidential records. bwiset talaga, mawala nawa sya ng tuloyan sa mundong ito."

Xander didn't said anything, for he's still trying to sink everything in. until now, he's still stunned when he found out the nasty truth his Father has been hiding. even his late mother didn't tell him anything at all.

"I have no freaking idea that he wasn't really of my kin, Chan. I grew up believing that we're real siblings, that he really is my brother. My parents didn't said any single word, and I didn't suspected anything. ofcourse, how could I suspect anything? I was just a kid. a kid that would just bow his head down and obey whatever his parents tells him to do."

He vaguely recalled anything that'd give him a clue that he and Carlos are not blood related. He was five years old when he saw his mother carrying a baby on her arms, telling him that the tiny human being is his new brother. He was happy and very excited, ofcourse. having a brother means having someone whom he can play with, since it bores him to live in such a very huge house all alone. He never questioned as to why his mother had a baby when he didn't even saw her belly grew due to pregnancy. In fact, she was away for a year because of her charity job. but does it matter? he has a brother now. that's what matters more.

He saw Carlos grew up---and they used to be best buddies. Xander was the big brother Carlos looks up to, and Carlos was the younger brother Xander would carry on his back playing superman. nagkaroon lang naman ng lamat ang pagiging magkapatid nila nung lumalaki na sila---that time of their lives when Carlos starts to compete with him in everything. lahat ng ginagawa nya, tinatapatan nito na lahat din, palpak. Carlos always ended up losing to him, and blames him afterwards. inunawa nya ito sa abot ng makakaya nya, pero wala itong balak magbago.