Hookup ✓ [MikhAiah] [Book #3]

33

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MIKI's POV

I throw my keys on the table, letting the weight of the moment settle in as my luggage thuds softly on the couch. The silence in the apartment feels heavier than usual, and I sigh, walking towards the fridge. The ache in my head is growing, the kind that comes when I've been too hard on myself, or someone else—when I've said things I don't mean. It's the kind of headache that comes from unresolved feelings.

I open the fridge, grabbing a bottle of water, but it doesn't help much. I hate this. I hate it when we fight, or when things go wrong between us. Chase and I have been through so much, and yet, there's this tension between us now. She's like a sibling to me—no, she was—but now... now I can't see her with Aira. My mind drifts to Aira again. Her eyes were red earlier from crying. The first time I'd ever seen her cry. It feels like a punch to the gut every time I think about it.

I let out another deep sigh, walking towards my room. My gaze lands on the picture frame sitting on the bedside drawer. It's one of those old, faded photos from high school, a snapshot of me and Chase—two young girls smiling, caught in the simplicity of youth. I sit on the edge of the bed, picking it up and running my fingers along the glass.

I totally understand where Chase is coming from. Aria disappeared on us so long ago, but I wasn't there to see her for the last time because I was too sick. My body was too fragile back then. Mom didn't want me out of bed, and neither did I, to be honest. 

But we didn't know that day would be the last time we'd see her.

Aria was like an angel to us back then, pure and innocent, her smile too bright for anyone to forget. It never made sense that she would just ghost us, especially when we were the only ones she was close to. I remember her mom taking pictures of us all the time. It felt like everything was fine, like it would always be fine.

If Aira is Aria—if she's really our Aria—she would remember us, wouldn't she?

I place the photo back on the drawer, letting my hands linger there for a moment, before I hear the ping of my phone vibrating on the nightstand. I reach for it, expecting a notification, but it's the group chat. My heart skips a beat as I open it.

"Have you guys seen Aira?" the message from our manager reads.

What's going on? I frown, my fingers hovering over the screen as I try to make sense of it.

Gale's message follows quickly: "Nagpadrop-off agad siya sa house nila ah."

I click my tongue in frustration, about to type a reply, when the manager types again: "Her father said naglayas daw bigla si Aira."

What? I feel my stomach drop. Naglayas? We just saw her together with Chase earlier today. I type in disbelief: "Naglayas? We just saw her kanina ni Chase."

The manager's reply comes fast: "Where?"

I blink. Where? Chase had said she was just getting her car. I'm about to type when I see her message pop up: "She went to get her car kanina sa building but it seems like she wasn't in the mood to talk kanina so we let her be."

I pause, staring at it, then reply: "What happened ba?"

The manager types back: "Hindi ko rin alam, something personal ata according kay Boss din."