Last Hope (Completed)

Chapter 24

"Uuwi ka, Russ?" Remy's mother, Rita, said to Remy's youngest brother, Russell, back in California. "Of course, ma. Aren't you?" Russell asked as he frowned. "You know I can't do that," Rita replied. "Unbelievable," Russell said in disbelief as he tightened his jaw in anger. "What do you expect, Russell? Kinabuhayan natin will be put at stake if we come home," Rita said. "Really mom? Yan pa rin talaga iniisip mo ngayon? Your daughter just survived a fucking plane crash and you're still worrying about money?" Russell said angrily. "Watch your tone, Russell, o masasampal kita," Richard, Remy's father, warned. "You guys are--you know what? Whatever. It shouldn't even come as a surprise anymore. What else could I expect from both of you?" Russell said. He was furious. "Be careful what you say, Russell, your future is also at stake here," Rita reminded him. "I don't care! Uuwi at uuwi ako. I can't believe naiisip nyo pa yan habang yung anak nyo nag-aagaw buhay doon sa Pilipinas, ALL BY HERSELF," Russell yelled. "You want to go home?" Remy's other brother, Ryder, asked. Then he turned his attention to their mom. "Let him, mom. Hayaan mong di yan makabalik dito. Daming satsat. Umalis ka na lang," Ryder said. Russell shook his head. "Talagang tinakwil nyo na si ate Remy ano?" He asked. His eyes were filled with tears. "It's not like that, Russ. You know our situation here. Anong mangyayari sating lahat if we all decided to go home? I'm sure your ate Remy would understand. Alam naman nya nangyayari dito eh," Rita tried to explain. Russell swallowed. Then he took a deep breath. "Of course. Yun naman talaga lagi eh. Lagi nya kayo iniintindi. Laging sya ang umiintindi sating lahat. So I guess I'll see you all when I see you," he said to them. "Mag-ingat ka dun," Richard said to him. Russell shook his head. "Yeah, dad. As if you guys give a fuck kung may mangyari samin ni ate Remy," he said while he gathered his stuff together. When he turned around to leave, he was met with Ryder's hard punch on the face. "Ryder!" Their parents yelled as they got up to stop him. "Angas neto eh. Kala mo kung makasalita meron ng pagmamayabang," Ryder said angrily. Russell wiped the blood by the side of his mouth. "I'm so glad I get to leave this family behind," he said then he looked at all of them one last time before he got all of his stuff and left the house.

"Okay ka lang?" Camila asked while she helped Russell put his luggage on the trunk of her car. "Okay lang, ate. Ano pa nga bang bago?" He answered without looking at her. "Ano sabi nila tita?" Camila asked again. "Nothing. Of course hindi sila uuwi. Let's just go before pa nila tayo maabutan dito," he said to her. "Hay, ano ba yang pamilya mo, Russ," she said as the two of them got inside her car. "I know right. It doesn't matter. Ate Remy has me, I have her, that's all that matters," he said while he stared straight ahead. On the way to the airport, the two of them were silent for more than fifteen minutes. "Oh my gosh," Camila finally said. "What? Did you forget something?" Russell asked. "No, I didn't. I just realized something," she said. "What?" Russell asked. "You know, the day na pinalayas ng mama mo yung ate mo, papunta sana kami sa meet and greet ni Sarah nun. She and I never got to go kasi nga pinagtatapon ng magaling nyong nanay yung mga gamit nya dun sa labas. We had no choice but to go back and get them. So hindi na kami natuloy. Pinapa-punta nya nga ako eh. Ano naman klase akong kaibigan kung iiwanan ko sya to gather her stuff all by herself without a place to go? So I insisted na samahan na lang sya. Tapos she was insisting din na I should go nga daw, nag-ask na lang ng autograph ni Sarah G. pero hindi nga ako pumayag," she explained to him. "And?" Russell asked, struggling to see the connection. "Well, if you don't know already, she's such a huge fan of Sarah Geronimo," she said. Russell shook his head. "I'm not finding the relevance, ate," he admitted. "Ano ka ba? Don't you see? Fan na fan yung ate mo ni Sarah. She didn't get to go to that meet and greet and concert, but they got to be on the same flight. They both survived the plane crash, and they were both found on that same island. Meaning, may kasama yung ate mo sa island at hindi lang basta basta yung taong kasama nya," Camila explained. Then she paused so that Russell could put the pieces together. It took him a while, but when he finally realized it, he nodded. "Oo nga noh? Wow. Nakasama nya yung idol nya for that long on that island," he said. The thought gave him comfort knowing that his sister wasn't alone on the island trying to survive. It made him smile even more to know that Remy had the chance to be with the person she admired the most. "That's crazy, I bet she has lots of great stories to tell us when we see her," Russell said with a smile. "I know. Inggit ako ah. I hope tight na sila ngayon para makuha man lang nya ako ng autograph," Camila joked. Russell laughed a little. "Maybe she can even get you more than that. Baka makapagpa-picture pa kayo ni Sarah G. I think they're in the same hospital eh, from what I understood," he informed her. "Oh my gosh, imagine kung makakapagpa-picture ako. Or di kaya makasama natin si Sarah sa isang dinner like a thanksgiving dinner. Oh my gosh, Russ. I can't right now," Camila said excitedly. Russell laughed in response. "But I bet matagal pa yun because it'll probably take months for them to recover," he said. "I don't care. I'm willing to wait. Worth the wait yun kung magka-taon," Camila said. Then she got all giddy and it made Russell laugh again.