HOUSEWIFE

Second Son

There's empty pot of dirt near the fence. When Mother was here, she used it to pray every morning. I remember how she always lit up three sticks of incense and prayed. She would whisper some gibberish before she sticked them into the pot. The gesture was simple, but I found it fascinating.

'Who are you praying to, Mummy?' I was only as tall as her thigh when I asked her.

'Mummy is praying to the house.' She patted my head lovingly. 

'What are you praying for?'

'For our protection, happiness, and so on.'

'Why do we pray to the house? Didn't we pray to God?'

'Because God is everywhere. It's swaying along the grasses, humming with the birds, swimming through the see, watching over people at work, at school, at home, everywhere.' She looked up at the house. Her gaze was soft. She was smiling. 'The house has protected us from the sun, wind, and rain for many years. I am grateful with that, and I hope that she will continue protecting us.'

There was a tall tin container near the coat rack. As I open the lid, I can smell the sweet floral scent of the incense stick. I pulled out three sticks and lit them up. I stood in the driveway, wondering what I should say. Mom usually said something in another language, her mother tongue. She never told us anything about it, so I hoped praying in English was acceptable.

People might think that Mother's reason to pray was ridiculous, but I believe her. I had my own reasons. First, we never have any threatening incidents at home. Second, the house told me that Father had murdered Mother. Yes, the house told me that Mother was murdered. It happened one night before I went to sleep. That night, I could hear a small whisper in my head. It was as if someone had talked directly to my brain.

'He killed her...'

The voice was soft, like a girl's. It's different than my usual thoughts. The whisper echoed in my mind whenever Father was in the room. When I thought about it, it made sense. Lately, Father seemed to be so irritated with Mother. He always scolded her. No matter how hard Mother worked, he always managed to find something to be unhappy about. Then, there's the day she died. Father was the last person who saw her. 

'Orion.' One time, after Grandma had come to live with us. I happened to meet him on the way home. 'I think Mother was killed by Father.'

'What?' He gave me a weird look.

'Father was the last one who see...-'

'What the...what are you talking about?' He stopped and looked me in disbelief. 'Listen! Mother fell to her death! There's no murder, so don't you dare bring that up again!'  

Orion was no good. I thought he would understand, but he was probably too busy with his basketball practice. Justin was still too young, so I didn't want to get him involved. Obviously, I wouldn't ask father. Grandma was my last hope, or so I thought. Grandma turned out to be a lot worse. She hated Mother. She never said it out loud, but even I could see it clearly.

'They can't even clean their own rooms?! How the hell is she raising them?' She often mumbled.

Grandma hated the house. No, that didn't sound right. It's more like mother's lingering presence in the house seemed to irritate her. She didn't like how Mother decorated the house, or the wallpapers, or the burning incense near the gate. She would move things around, saying it shouldn't be there. She cleaned a bit extensively, as if she was scrubbing some stain from a white shirt. I didn't like it. 

As I expected, the house didn't like it either. Grandma seemed very tired this days. Father and Orion probably didn't realized this because they always came home late, but Justin and I did. I didn't understand the details, but Grandma told me that her work seemed to increase, like how laundry stains are harder to wash, or the dust was getting thick so quickly. It was weird. In the end, she told us to clean our own rooms and we did. However, she kept insisting that we didn't. She thanked for being the only one who cleaned their rooms though, but she kept saying how I should do a better job.

'Boys! This is Bella, our new temporary maid.'

Finally, Grandma decided to hire someone. She hired her friend's granddaughter, a teenager, probably older than Orion. She seemed like a good person. I mean, how many people wake up super early, before their work hours, just to make some lunch? Plus I liked her tuna sandwich, the creaminess was always perfect. However, I have a feeling that the house didn't like her that much.

'Stranger....' Just like with Father, a whisper appeared whenever she was around. 

Although the house might not like her, I still thought that everything would be fine, and it did. Grandma complained less, the house is sparkling. Life in the house was great, except for Dennis. He seemed to cry more. Feeling concerned, Justin and I tried to see him more, especially afterschool. Slowly, we were rebuilding our normal routine, until the incident happen. 

It was a breezy afternoon when Justin and I came home. Since our schools are near, I usually picked him up. Unlike Orion and Justin, I never had any extra activities after school, so I didn't really mind. We were casually walking home from the bus stop, chatting. Right before we reached the fence, someone came out. 

'Are you going home, Bella?' Justin was the first one to speak.

'Yea...' Her voice was weak. That was when I first noticed that she looked pale and tired. 'Sorry guys, I'm a little under the weather today.' 

'You should hurry home and rest then.' I exclaimed. 'Do you need us to walk you home?'

'Nah....it's just across the street. See you soon, guys'

We said our goodbyes. As we entered the house, Grandma was carrying Dennis. We greeted her and went to each of our rooms. I heard Orion was having his first match today. He seemed so excited this morning that I prayed for his victory with the incense sticks. Honestly, I wanted to see it, but since it was on a Thursday, I had to go to school. I couldn't wait for him to come home, I hoped he won. Along with that thought, I fell asleep.

'what the -'

A small sound echoes in my dream.

'DENNIS!'

I could hear Orion shouting. My head was still foggy from the nap, but I forced myself to get up. I grabbed my glasses, got up and went to the door. When I opened the door, although everything seemed blurry, I was sure that Dennis was standing on top of the stairs with Bella, which was weird. I was sure that she had gone home earlier. As I rubbed my eyes, they both turned and looked at me.

'I'm older...I should protect...little brothers'

A chill run down my spine. Suddenly, I was wide awake. I wore my glasses, but all I see was Justin, standing alone. By the time I rushed to the top of the stairs, he was already walking away. I looked down and saw the scariest thing I'd ever seen. Grandma was lying on the floor with her limbs sprawled everywhere. Her eyes were open and empty. Under her head, I could see a puddle of red liquid oozing onto the floor. I didn't remember anything afterwards, all I couldn't seem to forget was the scared expression on my older brother's face.

That is how I end up sitting in front two open caskets, one big and one small. I can't believe that I would attend a funeral so soon. The funeral is a bit different than Mother's, mostly because the ones who were crying in front of the big casket are my uncles and aunts, along with Father. Afraid that we will bother Father, we sit near the small casket, which is only a bit bigger than our toy box. 

The incident really shakes me, but Orion seems to have it worse. He's quiet, too quiet. I don't think I've heard his voice these past few days. He's just there, eyes widen, spacing out. Taking care of Justin turns into my and Bella's responsibility. Bella does most of the things though. Despite her own regret, she's still there, supporting our family.

'Leon?' She asks me, as she is looking straight at Dennis' casket. 'Your mother...what was she like?'

'She's.....kind.'  My mind goes back to when she was listening to my story, smiling. 'She always listen to me....and praises me.' 

'She sounds like a great Mom.'

'Yea...' A single tear escapes my eyes. How could I not cry? She's talking about Mother!

'Do you think....she might be killed?'