Chapter 17

Several years passed by.

A man is seen walking out of a building, it seems like he is finally going home after some days of staying in the said building. Fatigue and sleepiness are taking over his body both mentally and physically.

Loosening the tie of his necktie, he quickly sat inside his car and immediately drove off.

Once he arrived at his apartment, he immediately lies down on his sofa and relaxes for a good amount of minutes. Lying down like this on his sofa is a once in a blue moon moment for him because staying late in his office and doing work until midnight is a common routine for him to do after becoming a lawyer.

Well, it's also his fault for choosing this career so I think it's a given for him to feel this way.

Relaxing his body didn't take too long as he has a scheduled appointment that needs to be attended to.

Taking a bath and getting ready didn't take him long, it's the perfume that he wants to wear that took him so long to choose. This moment is important for him so he wants to look and smell presentable, even though they always meet.

Finally, after a 5-minute moment of choosing what perfume he should wear, he decided to wear his go-to perfume.

Checking himself in the mirror to see if what he is wearing looks good or not. He then finally decided to go and meet them. Driving there didn't take him that long, the traffic was bearable and not as heavy as how it is. So, he arrived quite early. Parking his car outside, he went and quickly press the doorbell to indicate that he has arrived.

"Claude, you've arrived early" Tanya said, Nicole's mother.

"Tita, good evening" he smiled.

"Yes, good evening Claude, come inside" she replied.

The said man went inside Nicole's family house. Claude has been visiting her family and eating dinner with them occasionally. He didn't want them to feel that just because Nicole is gone doesn't mean that he will not visit them anymore. It was painful at first but all of them know that Nicole doesn't want them to feel sad for so long, so they needed to move on and keep on smiling, for her sake too.

"Oh, Claude you're here" Ian said, Nicole's father, once he saw Claude inside their house.

"Good evening, Tito" he greeted.

Ian smiled and motioned for him to sit down, which he does. Looking around the place, he noticed that Kane is still not home.

"Is Kane still on his job?" he asked.

"Yes, that child, I told him last time to quit and just focus on his study" Nicole's father replied.

Claude laughed at his statement and replied "It can't be helped, he loves his job so much that's why he can't leave it"

"I know, but sometimes I just think that he is pushing himself too much"

"Don't worry too much, Kane knows what his doing"

"Also I brought you guy's ice cream, let's eat it after dinner" he added.

While the two of them are talking, Tanya, Nicole's mother, is preparing for dinner. Cooking Claude's and Kane's favorite food. Claude may not be their child but both of them treasure him truly. Witnessing how the said man loved and cared for their daughter is enough to know how he really loves Nicole.

"I'm home" said the newly arrived Kane.

"Welcome back, Kane" Claude replied and smiled at him.

Kane just nod at him and signaled that he is going to shower first.

These past few years, Kane grew distant to Claude. Although Kane knew it was not Claude's fault, he can't accept the fact that his sister is gone. Claude understands him and is giving him the space and time he needed without asking any questions regarding his change of attitude towards him.

At first, it surprised him. The two of them were so close before Nicole passed away. So it really surprised him how much Kane's treatment towards him changed. Even Ian and Tanya, Kane's parents we're surprised by this but they understand where he is coming from.

Claude continued chatting with Nicole's father, not until they were called to help prepare the table for dinner.

When everything is done and ready, Kane came out of his room, dressed in neatly and presentable clothes. Praying before eating, is a tradition all of them are used to.

"Claude, how is your job?" Tanya asked.

"It's nice and tiring at the same time but manageable" he replied.

"That's great but do take care of your health. We don't want you getting sick after all"

Claude nodded and smiled.

"Kane, how is your job?" Claude asked.

"It's good" Kane replied shortly and continued eating.

The couple noticed the heavy atmosphere after that conversation and decided to continue chatting to ease what they are feeling.

"How about you invite your family here next time, Claude?" Ian asked.

"Sure, if it is okay with you" he replied.

"Of course it is, we're no strangers, to begin with" Kane's mother joked and laughed.

This eases the heavy atmosphere they are feeling and all of them happily enjoyed eating their dinner.

Right after finishing eating dinner, Claude went to get the ice cream he brought with him.

"Here" he said while giving Kane a popsicle.

"Thanks" he replied.

He then proceeded in giving the couple ice cream too.

Eating their ice creams didn't took them too long. It was now time to clean and wash the dishes. Claude volunteered to do so and Tanya urged Kane to help Claude. Which Kane couldn't reject.

"If you have something to do you can just leave me and do it. I'm sorry for the inconvenience" Claude said.

"I don't have anything to do so I will help you. Also don't apologize" Kane replied.

Claude washes the dishes while Kane is drying them. They both did it without making any conversation with each other. This reminds Claude of how they treated each other after meeting for the first time. Nicole had to force them to talk to each other which ended as a failure as both of them don't know what to say to each other. This made Claude chuckle a little, which Kane noticed.

"Why are laughing?" he asked.

"Oh, I just remembered that this is how we are when we first met. It was hilarious, both of us are awkward and shy with each other" Claude replied while a small smile can be seen on his face.

Kane was taken aback by Claude's reply. He didn't expect him to remember that moment as he knows that Claude is a little forgetful about things.

After finishing cleaning and washing the dishes, Kane called Claude outside their house for some fresh air. His parents are now in their living room watching some show, so they didn't know that both of them are outside.

"Why did you call me?" Claude immediately asked after he stepped out of the house.

"Why are you not asking?" Kane asked.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Why are you not asking about my attitude towards you?" Kane asked again.

"Oh"

"We were so close back then but I suddenly acted cold towards you. Doesn't that make you feel awful? It's like I'm throwing everything that we had spent on" he blurted out. "Do you not care? That's why you're not asking?" he added.

"It's not like I don't care in fact I care, that's why I'm not asking" he replied.

"Huh?" This time it was now Kane's turn to be confused. Before he can react and say something else Claude suddenly spoke.

"I understand where you are coming from, I know that what happened cannot change whatsoever. I understand that you were hurt by it. I was giving you your much-needed space and time. To recover and heal because I know you can and will heal from it. After all, you are Nicole's one and only little brother"

Kane couldn't stop his tears anymore. What Claude said hit him. It hit him so hard that tears are coming out of his eyes.

"Why are you like that? Saying something so cool. This makes me pathetic, you know?" he said while bawling his eyes.

Claude just laughed at him and offered to hug him. Which Kane accepted.

While the two of them are having their moment, the couple inside the house is looking at them thru the window and is smiling.

"They finally made up" Tanya said.

"They didn't need to make up because in the first place they were not fighting at all" Ian replied.

"You're right" she replied and smiled.

"I hope Nicole can see this whenever she is" she added.

"Of course, she can see this. She's now their guardian angel" he replied.

A/N: Tita and Tito are the Filipino (specifically Tagalog) words for Aunt and Uncle. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry, it took me so long to update. I've been busy with school and other stuff so writing one chapter has been hard for me. Anyway, please have a great time reading this.