That Summer Night of August

Kabanata 40

December 30th.

"Aurelius Dee!" Lolo's voice echoed through the whole house as he stepped inside the kitchen.

Galit na galit na pumasok si Lolo sa loob ng bahay ni Dad. Agad naman siyang hinarangan ni Kuya Robert na galing sa storage room. We're eating breakfast right now, kaya't napabuntong hininga nalang si Dad saka tumayo. After knowing what Lolo did in the, I just didn't know how to react. I don't know anymore. But still, I'm scared what Lolo would do. He's always been worse.

"Get off your filthy hands on me!" Lolo yelled, trying to shove away Kuya Robert. Agad namang binitawan ni Kuya Robert si Lolo.

"Tim, bring Terence to his bedroom." Seryosong sabi ni Tiffany. Her sweet aura was gone, replaced by sharp and serious tone.

"Mom, he's going to hurt Kuya," sabi ni Timothy na magsasalita pa sana pero agad na nag salita ulit si Tita Tiffany.

"Timothy, upstairs, now," Tita Tiffany remained her tone.

Timothy hesitated, but he eventually sighed in defeat and guided Terence upstairs. I could see the fear and confusion on Terry's eyes, pero may binulong si Tim sa bunso naming kapatid habang paakyat sila sa kwarto.

"This is not the right time for this, pa," Dad started, his voice surprisingly calm. "We're having breakfast. Whatever you need to say can wait. We already solved the issue, and that bastard is now at jail."

Lolo's eyes blazed with fury. "I will not be dismissed in my own son's house!"

Tita Tiffany stood up from my seat, my hands trembling slightly. "Pa, please. This isn't necessary. We can talk about this calmly."

"Shut up, Tiffany! You're not his mother so stay out of this discussion!" Lolo snapped at her, his voice was like filled with venom. Humarap siya sa akin saka itinuro ako, "You are just like your mother! A fucking slut! You're a disgrace under my name!"

A felt my heart torn into pieces. Natigilan ako, sinusubukan ang sarili na hindi matumba. Hindi deserve ni mama tawagin sa ganoong salita. Hindi ko na napigilan ang aking mga luha at hinayaan iyong tumulo. Palagi nalang akong umiiyak. Pagod na pagod na ako. I thought I was strong, I've always thought I was strong. Pero bakit ganito?

"Please don't say that to mama," I whispered.

I could feel my body trembling. Everything was just messed up. How could Lolo say that?

Dad stepped forward again, his patience clearly wearing thin. "Pa, that's enough. You have no right to bring her into this."

Lolo's eyes blazed with fury. "No right? She raised you alone until she died, leaving you a burden on our family! She couldn't handle the responsibility, and now I see her failures in you!"

"She didn't fail," Dad retorted, his voice shaking. "She did everything she could for Dee, and I took him in after she passed."

"Everything she could?" Lolo scoffed. "She wasn't even married to you! She was irresponsible, and her recklessness is written all over him!"

"Stop it!" I shouted, my voice cracking. "Stop talking about Mama like that!"

Lolo turned his fiery gaze on me. "You don't get to silence me, boy. You know nothing about the disgrace she brought upon our family!"

"Pa, if you don't leave now, I'll have to call someone to escort you out," Dad said, his voice dangerously low.

Lolo ignored him, his focus entirely on me. "Your mother was always running away from her problems, just like you. She couldn't face reality, and neither can you."