VALERIE

Chapter 32: The Disclosed Reality

Note: UNEDITED because lazy witch. Sorry in advance for grammatical errors. No need to prepare a box of tissue. This isn’t going to be dramatic. Bwahahaha xxD

 

Copyright © zylgnagnaba 2013

 

Tan skin, shiny black hair, black irises, two inches shorter than me despite being a year older—there was no doubt Vitaly, my big brother, was adopted. He was four month-old when our parents got him from an orphanage while they were on a business trip in the Philippines. Regardless, my parents and I did not treat him like one, we loved him dearly. Both our parents treat Vitaly and me equally, though more attention was granted to him after losing his ability to hear before he turned five.

Despite our obvious differences—both physical and personality—Vitaly and I created the strongest bond compared to most biological siblings, at the start. We may not have the same blood running through our veins, but we had this strong connection that cannot be put into words and only the two of us understood.

He knew every meaning behind my movements and mannerisms. To think, I thought maybe we had this telepathic ability that by just looking at each other, we nod and do anything we agreed doing through our minds.

Everything around him is silent. He couldn’t hear what I hear and he couldn’t enjoy the music that I enjoyed. However, he was a great listener. He always understood me. Being deaf at a young age also triggered him to gradually lose his ability to speak. But I became his voice when he wanted to speak, the one who used sign language to interpret the words he couldn’t hear. I loved Vitaly. I loved my brother.

I remember when I was seven and he was eight. Our nanny, Reese who was only eighteen by that time, took us to the park to play with other children around our age. I cried so hard non-stop because I was envious of other kids eating cotton candy and Reese didn’t allow me to. My mom strictly reminded her to rid me of eating sweets because of the cavities that had formed in my four front teeth, causing them to appear black—and well, I always ended up crying each night for having pitiless toothaches.

So I threw a tantrum, ran and hid under the slope slide so Reese would give me what I wanted. I was continuously sobbing as I sat on the ground, hugging my knees against my chest while I buried my face on them. Moments later, a nudge in my arm made my head snap and I see Vitaly handing me a pink cotton candy while putting his index finger at the middle of his lips so I’d keep quiet. A wide grin almost instantly appeared on my face as I wipe the tears that have stained my face using the back of my hands, drooling as I grab the candy from my brother. We ended up sharing the candy while hiding from Reese, or else we would have been in a big trouble.

He’d also ask me to play the piano for him although he wouldn’t be able to hear the music, but I’d grant his request anyway and the two of us would sit next to each other by the piano, swaying our heads together simultaneously from side to side. He’d always say—sign—that he admires how my soft and flexible fingers stroked the keys. So it wasn’t really about the music. He just loved to see me enjoying myself while playing the instrument.

Vitaly would cover up for me when I end up coming home with bruises and gashes after defending him from his bullies. He wasn’t entirely happy about me ending up in a fight, especially that he had to lie to our parents. He’d always advise me to just ignore everyone teasing and laughing at him due to his disability. But I just couldn’t let it go.

One time when we’re on our way home from the grocery store, group of three menacing boys called him names and laughed at him. He knew they were making fun of him but he ignored them. It was easy for him because he couldn’t hear them, but it was rather hard for me. Just when he thought that I was following him as he walked, Vitaly turned around and gasped when he saw me on the ground with one of the boys.