Hatin' Hue: A JOKEN AU

HH 10

"Iuwi mo na si Caleb!" Caleb persisted, yelling and appearing to be having a tantrum as Han continued to brush off his suggestion. To keep him out of trouble, Han cupped him by the mouth.

"Hindi nga pwede! Wag kang sumigaw, ihahatid na kita sa inyo," Han answered, covering his lips and tipping to Caleb's ears from behind.

However, Caleb chuckled, "Nakikiliti si Caleb," and started to struggle to get free from his grip.

Caleb bit Han's hand because Han refused to release his grip. "Aray ko!" exclaimed Han.

Caleb shrieked, "Aray mo? Asan aray? Bakit aray ang bebi?" and instantly began to caress Han's hand as though he wasn't the cause it hurt.

Caleb wept, rubbing Han's hand against his cheek and saying, "Ayaw ko sakit, hon. Sorry na si Caleb."

Han burst out laughing, unable to contain his laughter any longer. "Ayos lang si hon, hon," he whispered, planting a kiss on his sore hand. Caleb kissed the same hand immediately after, causing Han's lips to softly curl into a sincere smile.

"Cal? Have you seen Cal?" Han went back to his senses, hearing a man's voice looking for Caleb.

Han met Crimson's eyes, saw how Crimson looked down at their entwined hands with such rapidity. "Yare, pangalawa na 'to," he thought.

However, this time, Han didn't let go of Caleb's hand. Instead, he further tightened their hold.

"If my assumption is correct, you must be the bodyguard," Crimson stated, coming up to them and extending his hand to him.

Han didn't hesitate to extend his other hand, which mirrored the extending hand of Crimson, not letting go of Caleb's hand on the other.

Crimson smirked and slightly shook his head as he accepted Han's hand with his other hand. Han returned the sly smile, showing that both of them currently harbor a great deal of self-conceit—making the heat in between them grow bigger.

"Crimson!" Silver called, running towards them before they could even get into a fight.

Gold asked, astonished to see Han around, "Han?" He enquired, "What's going on here?"

"A-ano, nice meeting you, pre," Han said to Crimson. He went on, "Inaalalayan ko lang 'to, patulog na kasi."

"I'm here to get him back," Crimson said as he pulled Caleb to his arms, making Han and Caleb's interlocked hands parted.

"Ganon? Nagpapauwi na siya sakin eh," Han shot out, attempting to maintain his composure as he pulled Caleb back.

"I can handle it," Crimson said right away, pulling Caleb once more.

Gold interrupted, "Let's go, Han. I'll drive you and Silver home."

Silver dragged Han along when he noticed that Han was reluctant to leave Caleb with Crimson. "Tara na habang nasa mood pa 'tong isang kapit natin," he whispered.

Walking past Caleb and Crimson, Han glanced back at Caleb, who was staring at him and frowning.

Han murmured back to Silver, "Sure ka, par? Iiwan natin si Cal?" but Silver simply shrugged it off.

"LQ kayo ni Cream 'no?" Han asked, breaking the silence from the shotgun on their way home, where Gold was driving.

"It's Crimson for now," Gold responded.

"Sabi na eh," Han replied, chuckling.

Silently, Silver was listening to the ex-fake couple talking to each other in front of him from the backseat.

Before, Gold and Silver had never gotten along; Gold was always trying to keep him away from his friend. However, the younger has changed. Rather, Silver observed how Gold took every precaution to keep Han away from Caleb. "Fishy," he thought.

"I can't believe siya yung tinataguan mong ex mo. Tapos ngayon nakipagbalikan ka pala," Han stated, still chuckling about Gold's pettiness.

"Hey! I'm not that petty. Hindi ako nakipagbalikan. And I still try to keep distance, especially now na malapit na ang engagement public proposal," Gold replied in a furious voice. A tiny bit of pain surfaced.

Confused, Han shot back, "Tuloy na pala 'yon? Ano namang mali? Mahal mo naman siya, unless hindi ikaw ang mahal niya."

Silver started coughing uncontrollably, drawing Han's attention. "Par, okay ka lang? Tubig?"

Suddenly shaking his head, Silver said, "Okay na." He went on, "Gold, dito na ako. Lakarin ko na lang papasok."

"Ingat, par! Kita-kits bukas," Han said, bidding Silver goodbye.

Gold said nothing the whole way to Han's house. Han questioned, "Kape?" after observing the shift in his aura.

"Hangout," Gold responded.

Han woke up in someone else's bed, startled by his alarm. Gold spoke to him, "Good morning! Classes?"

"Training," Han said while continuing to massage his eyes. "Damit ko?" he inquired, and the younger pointed to the ground in response. "Thanks."

"But I got you a different set of clothes. Para diretso ka na sa court, so you don't have to get home to change pa," Gold stated.

Han saw an envelope as he reached for the garments Gold had instructed him. "Ano 'to?" he inquired.

Gold responded, "Your hangout service fee," remained engrossed in his skincare regimen at the vanity.

"Hindi na 'to kailangan, wala na tayong contract," Han responded, handing it back to Gold.

"I figured out that it wasn't like before anymore na treatment for your eyes ang kapalit. So, there goes the cash. Keep it," Gold retorted.

"Hangout kwentuhan at swimming lang naman. Parang di tropa. Ayoko niyan," Han said, returning the envelope.

"I know friends shouldn't be bribed, but hey, you don't have a choice. Keep it or I'll throw that in the bin," Gold insisted.

"Seryoso?" Han asked, surprised, to which Gold nodded. "Sige, pero ngayon lang 'to. Walang bawian ah? Sabi mo friends tayo," he added, and Gold chuckled, nodding.

Following his shower, Han was hesitant to put on the clothing Gold had given him. Its bright colors were something he sensed Caleb wouldn't want him to wear. He spoke to himself in the mirror, "Eh ano naman sayo, Han? Bakit mo iniisip si Caleb?" before putting on the clothes.

Upon exiting the shower, he saw that Gold had already departed. He had just left Gold's room when he ran into Caleb, who had also just left his room.

Looking surprised to see Han leaving his brother's room, Caleb turned his back on him and hurriedly left without uttering a word.

"Caleb!" Han made an attempt to stop him.

Caleb shouted, "Stay away from me!"

To be continued...