In His Kiss

Chapter 41

Chapter 41

Hiro Stanislaski's Point of View

"You are the worse, Hiro Stanislaski. Using someone else for your own benefit!" A loud voice startled me from behind. Hindi pa ito nakuntento at hinampas pa ako sa aking likod. Naibuga ko tuloy ang iniinom kong iced coffee. Her high-pitched voice echoed in the entire living room. Nakapamewang pa itong humarap sa akin.

"Seriously, Hiro? Don't you have an ambition? It seems like your life goal is to make as much trouble as you possibly can,"

"Give me a break, Victoria." I snickered. I bet she did far worse. But this isn't about who did most of the trouble in the Stanislaski Clan. I'll be a big asshole if I compare her life to mine. Hindi naman kami nagpaparamihan ng mga nagawang kasalanan dito. I admit that I was in the wrong. Isn't that enough? That's why I am here in my parents' house. To make them feel how sorry I was for deceiving them.

"Where is the Hiro that couldn't lie to his mother? Remember when we were kids and Cainn drove a car when he was fourteen so we could go to Kalev's house and steal his dad's liquor because of a damn dare. The car kept hitting the garbage can that's why it got scratches in front. Kahit ilang beses namin sinabi sa'yo na huwag mong sasabihin ang nangyari kahit kanino, hindi mo kami pinansin. Isang tanong lang ni Tita sa'yo at umamin ka kaagad." She pauses, giving me a look that she wasn't happy to see me at all.

"And we drove 20 kilometers per hour because it was Cainn's first time holding a steering wheel!" Nikos said while laughing. I hid a smile. Of course, I remember those good old days. We always do silly things when we used to be kids. My mom even punished us by helping to mow the lawn for one month.

"Hey, it was 40 kph!" Cainn snarled, stopping Nikos.

"Not now, you two. Both of you are not helping!" Sabi naman ni Tori at masamang tumingin sa amin. Napakamot na lang ako sa aking pisngi habang ibinaba ang kape na kanina ko pa hawak.

"You always have been the honest one in the family. The one I looked up to. Because you are the only family member who always keeps their promises. At kung sa pabaitan ay ikaw ang nasa top one. You keep on helping those people that are in need. You're like a fucking Saint, you know that?" She said, turning to me. I raised a brow. I am flattered. I didn't know that Tori thought highly of me.

"Calm down, Tori. Geez, why do you sound so upset?" She looked like she was ready to punch me in the face, but she was just simply trying not to succumb to her urge.

"Because you didn't even know that your mother cried! Duh! Of course, I'll be mad on her behalf! You just lied to the family. Masaya ka na ba?"

Lahat sila ay nakatingin na sa akin. Samantalang tumikhim lang ako at umiwas ng tingin. It's been ten days since the photo of Laure and I was uploaded to the company's website. I tried to pull every string to remove that photo from every platform. I wasn't kidding when I said I would file a complaint against the perpetrator.

When the Stanislaski Clan saw the image in the very same day, they bombarded me with their call. But then, I was with Laure the entire day since her little brother got into an accident. Ayaw ko pa sana na iwan si Laure sa hospital, pero alam ko sa sarili ko na kailangan ko na agad makabalik sa siyudad. I need to act quickly or else everything will be ruined.

The moment I came back to the city, I went directly to the IT Department and asked them to do whatever they could to make the photo stop existing. I stayed for three days inside that department— without sleep. I just want to ensure that everything will be fine once Laure decides to come back. Ayaw kong magalala pa siya sa bagay na ito. Imagine the trauma it had caused her—the harsh comments and insults. I could feel my jaw clenching when I was reminded of that. People online can really be scary. But then, all they can do is hide on their little screens.