Pinatay ni John ang makina ng kaniyang motor. Kinuha niya ang susi sa bulsa at binuksan ang gate at itinulak papasok ang motorsiklo na may sling bag pa ng GrabFood.

Tinignan niya ang oras sa wall clock nang makapasok sa bahay. Alas otso pa lang ng gabi, may isang oras pa siya. Naupo muna siya sa sofa at sumandal para makapagpahinga bago maligo ulit.

Naapura si John dahil sa sunud-sunod na pag doorbell sa gate nila, mabuti na lang at tapos na siyang maligo at nakabihis na rin. Nilabas niya si Bean at pinagbuksan.

"Pupunta ka kina Faron?" gulantang na tanong ni Eddie. Naka-open mic sila habang naglalaro ng ML.

"Balak ko siyang kausapin tungkol sa mga magulang niya. Magtatanong na rin ako kung ano'ng ginawa niya pagkatapos makalayo kina Andra, I wanna know how he's coping up," aniya ni John na abala sa paglalaro, nasa base na sila ng kalaban.

"Why bother going there, anyway? You two can talk through chat or phone call, or just like what we're doing now," Eddie suggested.

Pagkatapos ng napanaginipan ni John, he became somewhat conscious with talking through the phone. Feeling niya ay hindi safe, baka may mag screenshot ng conversation o kaya naman mag record ng phone call. He's not fond of social media to begin with. His accounts merely exist for school purposes, and Theo, Bean, Eddie and Rove prefer online chat than SMS because they can send videos, memes, and such.

"I think I can explain better in person," sagot ni John kahit na ba kakaiyak niya lang noong nakaraan habang nagkukuwento.

"John, pa'no kung nando'n si Andra?"

Natigilan si John sa tanong ni Rove. Ang alam nila ay hindi naging matagumpay ang proyekto ng squad nina Faron para parusahan si Andra. He assumed that Andra escaped after breaking through the game. Pero paano kung nanatili ito sa bahay nina Faron o kaya naman ay sundan siya kung mabalitaan na pupunta siya roon? Biglang inulan ng mga tanong ang isipan ni John pero hindi gaya rati, tingin niya ay kaya niya nang harapin si Andra ngayon.

He closed his eyes and smiled. "Kaya ko na. Isa pa, siya naman ang may kasalanan sa'kin kaya kung may dapat mailang, hindi ako 'yon."

"Naiinis lang ako," habol ni John.

"Isama mo kaya si Tita Roberta," suhestiyon ni Theo at nagsitawanan ang apat.

"Gagana 'yung acting no'n," komento pa ni Bean.

Kilala ni John ang Tita Roberta niya, iniisip niya pa lang ay nahihiya na siya. "Parang ayoko," walang emosyong aniya habang naglalaro.

"Bakit?" Tumawa sina Rove at Eddie.

Naalala ni John ang malamig na ekspresyon ni Faron. "I doubt Faron and his squad could take Tita Roberta's jokes," pag-amin niya. And he doesn't want Tita Roberta to see him breaking down, if ever.

Nagsitawanan sina Rove, Eddie, Bean at Theo dahil sa hindi malimutang alaala.

"Kailan ka ba pupunta?" tanong ni Eddie.

"Mamaya," John answered nonchalantly.

The four gasped. "Hala! Nakapag-OT ako mamaya," nag-aalalang sabi ni Theo.

"Ako, wala akong gig ngayong gabi," anunsyo ni Bean.

"Ako rin." Rove.

"Me too." Eddie.

"Wala rin kayong gig?" sarkastikong tanong ni Bean.

"Nag overtime ako sa trabaho ngayon," Eddie said flatly.

"Same," Rove said playfully.

"Hala!" Si Bean naman ngayon ang nabahala.

"Alam na," pang-aasar ni Theo.

"Goodluck, Bean," sabay na aniya nina Eddie at Rove.

"Hoy, mga taksil! Maka-overtime 'kala mo may mga asawa't anak na binubuhay."

"John, motor gagamitin na'tin?" nangangatog na tanong ni Bean. Napatingin si John sa kaniya at nadatnan siyang yakap ang sarili at nanginginig.

"Huwag mo 'kong iwan!" Nabitin ang kamay ni Bean sa ere nang pumasok ulit si John sa loob ng bahay. Nakanguso niya na lang pinagmasdan ang motorsiklo ni John.

"Oh." Bean turned his head and saw a jacket.

"John, kotse na lang gamitin please! Please! Please!" pangungulit ni Bean habang sinusuot ang jacket na inabot ni John.

"Mas mabilis tayo makakarating kapag motor," aniya ni John na sumakay na pero hinila ni Bean ang damit niya dahilan para mapababa siya sa motorsiklo.

"Binigay na ba nila Faron 'yung route pa'no makapunta sa kanila?"

"Hindi." Nanlaki ang mga mata ni Bean sa sagot ni John.

"Kaya nga kotse na gamitin natin para protected pa rin tayo kahit papa'no. Kaysa motor na baka habang nagmamaneho ka wala na pala 'ko sa likod mo," iyak ni Bean at kung anu-ano pang dinahilan nito.

Sa huli, wala rin nagawa si John kundi pagbigyan ang kaibigan. Alam naman nina Bean ang trick sa Patid Road pero natatakot pa rin ito. John felt that it would be more comfortable to use his sedan than his motorcycle for a night road trip kaya minabuti na nilang umalis gamit ito.

***

After a one hour drive, narating na ng dalawa ang Patid Road. Nagsimula silang mag countdown. Ang kaninang tahimik na si Bean na nagmamasid lang sa labas ng bintana sa passenger's seat ay nakatingin na sa harap. Imbes na takot ay nakangisi ito dahil sa excitement na hindi niya rin inaasahan.

When the four of them first got here, the thrill, the uncertainty, it's all coming back to Bean.

"One," John uttered, finished with the countdown. Tumingin si John kay Bean at tumango, smiling determinedly.

Pinaandar ni John ang sasakyan at unti-unting nagbago ang paligid na tila sinasalubong ang pag-usad nila. Ilang minuto ang nakalipas ay iniluwa ng hamog ang kanilang sasakyan sa isang tahimik na kalsada.

Patag at malinis ang kalsada na maliwanag sa ilalim ng buwan. Kinabig ni John ang manibela pakanan at binagalan ang pagpapatakbo ng sasakyan nang nasa tapat na sila ng isang mataas na gate na unti-unting bumubukas. As they entered, the clear pathway surrounded by a healthy lawn welcomed them.

Napangiwi si John nang makita ang spot kung saan siya pinukpok sa ulo ni Johnson at nawalan ng malay. John parked the car smoothly in one of the parking spaces of the vacation house. Nang makababa silang dalawa ay pinagmasdan nila mula sa labas ang bahay.

'Walang pinagbago.' John thought.

"Wala ba silang customer ngayon?" pukaw ni Bean.

"Huh?"

"Ouch!" Umaktong nasasaktan si Bean at kumapit sa dibdib "Huwag mo 'kong ma-huh huh diyan. I mean, wala ba silang guest ngayon na nagbabakasyon?"

"Ah. Ikaw," wika ni John sa malalim na boses at madilim na mukha.

Napaatras si Bean dahil hindi mukhang nagbibiro si John. "Huy!" Sinulyapan niya ang kotse ni John. "Shit!" Kumaripas siya ng takbo palapit doon. He was aiming to open the door and get inside before John could follow him. Mabilis niyang tinignan si John pero naroon pa rin ito sa parehong pwesto at nakatanaw sa bahay.

Pinagmamasdan pa lang ni John ang bahay ay bumabalik na sa isipan niya ang mga nangyari, mula sa paggising niya sa madilim na silid, sa pagtatago nila mula sa killer. It was fun for him instead of traumatic, maybe because he's not really the subject of the project.

"Tara, Bean."

***

"Good evening po," bati ni John nang si Mang Franco ang unang madatnan sa living room.

"Good evening din!"

"Welcome, John! Ulit," pagsingit ni Johnson. Nang lingunin ito ni John ay nakita niyang nakangisi ito sa kaniya. Bahagya na lamang napakunot ang noo niya dahil sa ginawa nito noon.

Mang Franco asked John and Bean to take a seat. "Bababa na 'yon si Faron," Mang Franco informed the two of them as he served them some drinks and snacks.

Maya-maya ay bigla na lang nagsalita si Bean. "Karina? Uy si Karinang malandi!" Sumenyas si John kay Bean na tumigil lalo na't malakas pa ang boses nito.

Nilingon ni John ang direksyon kung saan nakabaling si Bean. And indeed, it was Karina, Ran's friend and a member of Lillian's squad. Nakasukbit ang braso nito sa braso ni Faron.

"What the hell, an'layo ng narating ng kalandian mo ah," bati ni Bean nang makalapit ang dalawa sa sala.

"I'm done playing, sana ikaw rin." Karina smiled smugly.

Habang nagbabangayan ang dalawa ay inilibot ni John ang paningin at wala nga si Andra gaya ng sabi ni Faron. Kaninang umaga ay tinanong niya si Faron sa text kung sinu-sino sila sa bahay ngayon kaya alam na rin ni John na nandito si Karina.

"So you have trust issues now."

Umangat ang tingin ni John, nasa kabilang side na ng center table si Faron at paupo sa kaharap na black armchair. Mukha siyang nakaupo sa trono niya.

Magsasalita na sana si John ngunit napansin niya ang mga pares ng mata. 'Really?'  Pag-uusapan nila ang mga personal na bagay nang may audience?

Faron glanced at his side. "Mang Franco, Johnson, Bean, go to the playroom for a while. But Karina will stay." He looked John in the eyes. "I hope you don't mind. I promise she won't tell anyone."

"Tara, Bean!" Parang bata na walang kahirap-hirap na hinatak ni Johnson si Bean paalis sa tabi ni John.

"Go to the playroom," panggangaya ni Bean. "Ano kami anak mo." Rinig nila ang reklamo nito habang naglalakad paalis sa living room kasama sila Mang Franco at Johnson.

Napalabi si John dahil pati si Bean ay pinaalis ni Faron pero hindi na siya nag protesta pa.

"First of all, I wanna apologize," simula ni John. "Andra said that she can give birth to your parents. Hindi ako naniniwala. But if there's really a chance your parents could live again in that way, I'm sorry. Hindi ko kaya," dire-diretsong wika ni John. It was obvious that he had mustered up all his courage, making eye contact with Faron and all.

"Yeah, I know that. That's why I left." Their eye contact became stronger.

"I was four years old when Andra lived with us. One day, someone knocked on our door. My parents were surprised when they saw a little girl. When they learned that she has no parents or guardians, they took her in. People call me dark and a loner, while she is outgoing and has a soothing presence. Tuwing pupunta kaming bayan, siya ang kumakausap sa mga tao ro'n. Other than being angelic, she also has a silver tongue. People tend to believe whatever she says because she seems reliable. Mabait din siya sa'kin, she became like my older sister. Until our parents found a religion. Marami nang sinubukang relihiyon ang mga magulang ko, it was trial and error for them. But they became so devoted to their newfound religion, of course, being their child, they tried to influence us. Sabay kaming nag bible study ni Andra. I was young back then and I just consider it as something similar to textbooks na aaralin at sasagutan mo ang mga nakahandang tanong. But suddenly, Andra accused me of being competent, she's also blaming me for lying to her para malamangan siya. I didn't make a big deal out of it, I thought it's normal for siblings to do that. Even when people say that I'm a loner, I still have my circle of friends. Andra told me to introduce her to them. Imbes na ako ang ilayo niya just like what other narcissists do, ang mga kaibigan ko ang inalayo niya mula sa'kin. I'm their friend but she managed to get them on her side, they believe her more than me because of her looks and because she seems nice. I admit I'm more of a candidate for a bad guy, I was angsty, and I also started to rebel back then or 'yon ang lumalabas. My parents' religion, what's written in the bible just didn't make sense to me. Hindi nila nagustuhan 'yon, I was labelled as the black sheep of the family, it got worse because gossip about me started to spread. Of course, my parents became favorable of Andra dahil siya ang masunuring anak. I heard our acquaintances and people whom I don't even know that I'm just jealous of Andra because I am being replaced, and that I'm sabotaging her para umalis siya sa amin." Faron sighed. 

"I caught them talking about something but the three of them kept me in the dark. Weeks later, my parents died. I left, hindi ko na inisip ang kahit na ano, it was funny na kumpyansa na 'ko dahil sa malaki-laking ipon ko, maybe it was my pride, but they don't even care about their son, their god matters the most. I was sixteen that time." Tumingin si Faron sa direksyon ng hagdanan. "Nakita ako ni Johnson sa palengke at ipinakilala kay Mang Franco. No, it's not human trafficking. He was a retired chef of a well-known restaurant at naghahanap siya ng pwedeng katulong sa bubuuin niyang sariling negosyo. Doon kami nagkakilala nina Hakan."

Nakanganga lang si John at nakatulala sa hangin. "Hey! God, I'm so tired of being a storyteller here." Faron cussed.

"May tanong lang ako." Tumunghay si John.

"What?" Faron slid his left foot forward.

"After punishing her in your own way... were you able to move on?" John asked, resting his elbows on his lap.

"No." Faron gestured. "The supposed punishment wasn't successful in the first place. I'm not happy with the result. But I got an interesting hypothesis..."

John sat up. "What is it?"

"At first, all I wanted was revenge but the project was pushed through because I don't want others to experience the same thing by the same person. I want Andra to learn and change, but what all of these taught me was, people like her won't change. No punishment from us will be enough and be deserving for her. Because her real punishment...is to continue living like that."

"Life full of pretensions, insecurities, getting people to be with her but she can't make them stay with her. Isn't that a wonderful way of suffering?" Faron grinned.

}