Love Encounter

Chapter IX

It is 11:50pm midnight. We are gathered around the dining table. The table is filled with different dishes that we are all eager to feast in. My nephew, my brother's 3-year old son Milo, started dipping his fingers on one of the dishes. I carried the little boy to keep him from finishing the meals before we even have the chance to taste them. Time flew by as we chat. And as the clock struck 12 am, I freed Milo from my grasp and we all started to dig in.

"Merry Christmas!" We all greeted.

We sat around the table, eating, passing dishes, and talking. I am seated beside Ethan who still seemed to be shy and not picking anything. I noticed his quietness so I took a bowl of rice and served him.

"Is this enough?" I asked and he nodded. "What else do you want? Don't be shy."

I noticed that everyone became silent and looked at us. I slowly put the bowl down.

"How did the two of you meet?" My mother asked. "He looked too young to be a house helper."

Ethan's eyes and mime met as if we're asking one another who should answer. I felt that Ethan is still shy so I went on to answer my mother's question.

"I met him on a street." I started. "He was homeless. I thought of taking him in and now reside in my house as a helper."

"Don't you have a family?" My father asked.

There was a brief silence after that.

"Drew is my family." Ethan answered.

I was shocked about his answer. My family seemed surprised as well. I took a napkin and wiped off the dirt on my mouth.

"What he was trying to say is that he didn't have a mother nor a father when he grew up. He thought of me as a brother, a father, and his family." I explained.

My family seemed satisfied with my explanation.

"How about you, Drew. How are you doing? How is your work?"

"I am fine. My work is fine as well, the same as usual."

"That's great."

There was a moment of silence where we just ate. Ethan seemed to have adapted and started to eat as well.

"How are you and Mary?" My sister, Dianne, asked.

I stopped eating. She was pertaining to my past girlfriend, Mary. Although that was a long time ago, I did not have the time to tell them we broke up already. I broke up with her for a certain reason. And I don't want to talk about her.

"We broke up a long time ago." I answered, "Let's just eat."

We continued eating. After some minutes, we are all stuffed of delicious meals. Denis and his wife,
Maine went upstairs to ready Milo for his bed time. My father and Donny also went upstairs to rest. Ethan and I also pursuaded for my mother and sister to go upstairs. We would like to clean the dishes since we did nothing earlier but rest. It was hard to convince them but they did anyway. Mrs. Fe and Ms. Teressa will not stay overnight but will come back tomorrow. They are currently with their family celebrating Christmas Eve. The second floor already seemed quiet. Ethan and I are alone downstairs.

Ethan took over the cleaning of the dishes while I was responsible for cleaning the table. We talked, laughed, and played a little in the midst of doing our chores. After finishing our tasks, we went upstairs and laid on the bed.

"So, who is Mary?" Ethan suddenly asked. I was shocked, but in all honesty, she really does not affect that much anymore. Maybe I was just shocked due to his sudden question.

"Is she your girlfriend?" He added.

"My EX-girlfriend." I emphasized on the 'ex' part.

"Okay. Then why did the two of you broke up?"

I gave out a big sigh.

"There are people who you came into your life but are not fated to stay." I answered. "And that was her. She came, but we are not meant for each other."

Ethan moved a bit closer.

"Why? Did she do anything bad to you?"

"No. She did not."

"Then why did it not work out for the both of you?"

I was not able to answer immediately. There was a brief moment of silence after he let out that question.

"I don't know." I answered without showing any emotion.

He stopped asking questions. I bet he noticed that I don't feel comfortable talking about her.

"Let's go to sleep." He said. "Do you want anything before going to sleep?"

I shook my head. He turned off the lights. I shift my position to make myself feel comfortable and faced the opposite way from Ethan. The main reason as to why I broke up with Mary is still complicated. It's not that she did something wrong nor did I do something wrong. There was no conflict between us. But, I always feel like there is something missing between us. I felt like I was not truly happy with her. So, for both our sakes, I broke up with her. I don't want to fool myself of loving her nor do I want to fool her that I am happy with her. I thought that it would be better if we end it already.

"Drew." Ethan suddenl called. "Someday you'll find the right person for you."

In this pitch black room, I stared still into nothingness. I hope you're wrong Ethan. I hope I already found that person.

~~~

"Bye!"

I waved my arms at my family behind the open window of my car. A week had passed and we are already on our way back to my home in Ortigas City. We celebrated New Year here. New year here is as colorful as usual. I also took the chance to show him around my hometown. It's unfortunate that I have to go back already. It's January 1 2019, 10am in the morning. The cool air of early morning is being replaced by warm air brought by the rising of the sun.

Ethan backed off and with one last goodbye to my family, we drove off. It will be another hour or two until we arrive back home.