Chapter-365

The Key

Jay-Jay's POV

I couldn't get in. The
Doctor still didn't give us the go signal . My situation got worse because Keigan choked me . But unlike
yesterday, I can at least say words. The neck brace has also been removed because it doesn't hurt that much
when I move my neck. There's a little pain in my throat and my voice is very hoarse but it's okay. I'll get better
too. I can also sing, like Sarah G. "W-Water," I weakly requested from Kuya. Kuya looked at the Doctor to ask
or permission. "Doc, can he drink water?" "It's not even 24 hours, just a touch of water is fine." I was so thirsty.
Kuya took a cotton ball and soaked it in water and touched it to my lips. I just felt annoyed by what he did. It
didn't even reach my mouth. I wish the dextrose had been stuck in my throat. Who could have survived on the
touch of water? The Doctor and his Nurse left after checking on Keiren. Keifer wasn't there but I heard Kuya
and I arguing this morning. My cousin was trying to get him into school. It seemed like Kuya Angelo won
because the King probably wasn't here. That's why he was with us in the room, doing nothing but looking at
his iPad and papers. I wanted to eat. I was so hungry and so thirsty. I didn't want to feel like this. It felt like my
soul was going to run out. Then my imagination would come up with food. Maybe I couldn't help myself and
just eat myself because I was hungry. What do I taste like? Maybe it's salty because I didn't take a bath. I
looked at the door when it opened. Keigan slowly entered while bowing. He greeted Kuya and said goodbye to
his youngest brother. "How are you feeling?" Kuya asked him. "I'm a bit okay, I guess?" he forced an answer.
My cousin just nodded in acceptance of his answer. He immediately approached his brother to kiss his
orehead but Keiren immediately wiped it away. Keigan forced a smile and started talking to him. I chose not
to listen to them and just closed my eyes to sleep. But how could I sleep when all I could see was fried
chicken, flying liempo, swimming lechon and flowing noodles? There were still crackling puto on top of the
bloody water. Sisig would accompany it, dancing chicks on top. I wanted to cry but I had to endure it. It was
supposed to be for my own good. Who would be better off not drinking water? I didn't die from Keigan's sticky
glue and choking, I would die of thirst. I still wanted water. WATER!!!!! I opened my eyes to call Kuya but
Keigan's face was the one that caught my eye. I screamed in shock and fear. I sounded old because of my
hoarse voice. Also because of the way I shouted, Kuya Angelo seemed surprised. He let go of my grip when I
shouted. "What's wrong?" he asked after standing up and was about to approach me. I looked at Keigan who
was also looking at Kuya. I couldn't help but be scared of him. I still remembered what he did yesterday. Here
in the same room and right next to his brother. My neck was still marked. "W-Nothing. Just surprised." I
answered, clearing my throat. Kuya and I just looked at each other before picking up what had fallen and
returning to his place. I faced Keigan who was now facing me again. He came a little closer so I backed away.
I looked at Kuya a few times. I couldn't help it. Even if he was here, I couldn't say that he wouldn't choke me
again. What if he just thought of stabbing me? Wait! My stomach was empty! What if that's the case? Did I
spit out my insides? Because I haven't eaten anything yet, my intestines are dry when I come out. Can he stab
me later? I'll eat me first. I'll stuff my intestines first. It's ugly to look at, like a wolf without air, my intestines
will look like. "Hey. . ." he called to me and I smiled awkwardly, making my face look even more grimacing. He
came closer so I was leaning against the headboard of the hospital bed. "I just want to say sorry, about
yesterday." he said gently. I almost passed out then I apologized. I wanted to hit him hard. He didn't just try to
stab me once. That was twice! The first one wasn't successful so he had a second round. But because I'm
kindâ€"I know it's not just obvious.I'll listen to his explanation for what he did to me or to his brother and me.
I'm ready to understand him because I know he's going through something too. "I will not explain myself to
justify my actions." Ampowta. I blinked before understanding what he said. I think he's the only one I know
who didn't explain after apologizing. In fact, his older brother was even worse during the times we were still
fighting. He didn't want to apologize, he didn't want to explain. I suddenly missed the old days. When I could
still freely curse at him without kissing him. Let's go back to Keigan. "What?" I asked hoarsely. I really had so
many questions but that was all that came out of my mouth.
It's still hard to speak. Because water! I need water.
"Listen." he sat down next to me even though I didn't say anything. "There is a
lot of thing going on inside my head. You will never understand no
matter how hard I try to explain."
I just nodded even though the truth is I would rather he explained.
I also want to know why he's so angry with me and what
I did to him.
But I can't do anything if he really doesn't want to.
"I swear, I'm not a bad person." he whispered while bending down and
looking at his hands.
I hope it's not really. I hope you're not really a bad person. I hope
it was just a mistake you made. And I hope it won't happen again. But
it's impossible not to. Keifer was the one who said that it was hard to predict
his next move.
He sighed before looking at his brother on the other
bed. Keiren was also just looking at me and listening. Keigan took something
out of his pocket. He looked at it for a moment before facing me
again.
"In case something bad happens to me. Please give this to my
brother Keifer," he said and handed me what he was holding.
A key.
I stared at it before looking back at him.
"In my room just under my bed you'll find the key hole. The answer
to his questions are in there," he explained.
It's intriguing. Why is there a key? What's in it and why
does it need to be hidden? But it seems important and a big deal because
I only have to give it to him when something bad happens to him. If
the answer is already there, why didn't he give it to Keifer now.
To help him with whatever he's going through?
"H-Hold on â€" " I didn't finish what I was going to say when he stood up and
approached Keiren.
He hugged his brother tightly and whispered 'I love you'.
I don't know but his actions made me nervous. I felt like he was going
to do something bad and this time, to himself.
"Keigan." I tried to call him but because of the difficulty in speaking,
I didn't even know how to talk to him.
He let go of his brother and smiled at me shyly. "I'm going back to
my room now. Take care of my brother please."
He turned to walk away. He said goodbye to Kuya and
thanked him. My cousin stood up to take him to
his room. I would prefer if he stayed there so I could keep an eye on Keigan.
I looked at the key again. It looked like a drawer key but it was a bit
old. The teeth or the groove on the end were big.
I faced Keiren who was also looking at what I was holding. I was about to hand it
to him but he lay down and turned his back on me. He clearly didn't want to talk.
"He always scared me but I still want him to be okay," he said without
looking at me.
I couldn't help but feel sad for their siblings.
They were growing up without parents and with something threatening their lives. Keifer
with the burden of being the eldest and a responsibility that he shouldn't
be doing. Keigan with a disease like me. And Keiren who couldn't
experience the life of a child. He's still young but
he needs to understand what's happening around him.
They may be rich but the price they pay for their lives is huge.
Maybe money isn't the answer to all problems.
Sometimes food. Let's go with food.
I put the key aside before going to bed again to continue my planned
rest. Maybe my thoughts will lessen when I go to sleep.
I just hope I don't drown my thirst in my dreams. Brother
Angelo came back and sat in his place from earlier. I tried to sleep again and
luckily this time, I actually fell asleep.
I knew I had slept for a long time because of the weight of my body.
I woke up to the noise inside the room as if there were a lot of
people and the sound of a cellphone game right in front of my face. Before I
could open my eyes, I was holding my forehead because of the pain
in my head. I stretched then and then I realized that I wasn't alone
.
My arm had bumped into someone. I immediately opened my eyes and the light from my
cellphone was the first thing I noticed. I looked closely at who was
next to me.
A young Kumag.
He turned to me. "Jay-Jay," he said and smiled broadly.
"Ci," I greeted him hoarsely.
He immediately covered his nose. "Oh, your breath stinks."
He quickly got up to leave my side. I tried to
grab him but he was already gone.
"Jay-Jay's breath stinks," he said as if announcing
to the people.
I just woke up! Wow!
I immediately noticed who was in the room. I was right that
there were a lot of people here and they were the only ones I could hear making noise. But not just
any person.
The Snakes, vow!
"Jay-Jay is awake!" Eren shouted and
our classmates approached.
"Don't come too close. His breath stinks!" The Young
Kumag stopped them.
I immediately felt embarrassed. Esushme! First of all, I didn't want
my breath to stink. Second, my stomach is empty even with water. Third, I haven't brushed my teeth since
yesterday. So my breath
must really stink and there's no need to announce it. That's an animal! He's better at reporting than radio and
journalists. Maybe he wants to get tarpaulined. It's embarrassing. "You're crazy," Drew replied with a laugh.
When they got close to me, they immediately moved away while covering their noses. Is my breath that bad?
"Jay, it stinks," Felix said. I suddenly felt ashamed. I wanted to cry because of the shame. I simply brought my
hand to my mouth to breathe it in and smell it. That's all I could do to confirm that it did stink . It was like I
suddenly felt dizzy. I didn't die yesterday at Keigan's hands, but I'm going to die today at my own breath. I
covered my mouth with a blanket. How can I send them home? They're not welcome here anymore. The
Kumag Ulopong. Wait a minute! What time is it and they're already here? I looked at the wall of the room,
wondering if there was a wall clock here. I wasn't disappointed because the clock on the opposite wall was
big. It was only 3PM. I hadn't gone home yet. I looked at my classmates one by one. Maybe some of them
could read minds and answer my question. But of course, since they were all so stupid, no one would notice
what I wanted to say. I looked at Keiren's bed. He wasn't there anymore and it looked like his bed had been
made. I tried to get up because I was hungry, but because I did it so suddenly, I immediately felt dizzy. "Hey,
Jay!" they stopped me. David, who was near me, helped me sit up properly. "Hey... Maybe you can't stand up
yet," he said, but I ignored him. I pointed to Keiren's bed. "W-Where is he?" "He was sent home. He said he was
just being observed at home," he replied. "That's why you don't have your labidabs, because his siblings were
taken first ," Felix said and I quickly got angry. What labidabs? Why does it sound like a dog? I heard Drew and
his friends laughing softly. "I guess they didn't like your name." They noticed my anger at Felix's words. "That's
not what they call you." Ci-N interjected. "They say husband and wife." The lintiks quickly got angry. It seemed
like I just wanted to go back to sleep and there was no way I would wake up. They just came to visit me when I
woke up. "That's sweet!" "Tangina. They called you before the label." "That's right. As long as they take a while."
"Shame on the one there, there's a label but only for a while." "It doesn't seem like you're talking about Eren."
And it ended up with Eren being scolded. And of course he wouldn't allow himself to be singled out, which is
why the lintiks ended up fighting. Eman quickly intervened between them. Luckily the door opened so that
caught all of our attention. Brother Angelo entered followed by Sir Alvin. They both looked at the Ulopongs.
Please pull them out Sir. "Sir! Don't go near Jay-Jay, his breath stinks," Ci-N said which Sir Alvin laughed at.
Just kidding. Why do I need to announce my breath? It's not poisonous to the lungs. You thought it was deadly
and needed a warning before coming near me. David was the one who stayed by my side. I looked at him and
saw him scratch his nose a few times . I couldn't help but think that maybe it smelled really bad like Ci-N said.
The second time I put my palm close to my mouth and nose before inhaling loudly. Son of seventy white
sheep. I felt like I wanted to vomit. My breath really stinks. I think I need oxygen, a tank. I can't breathe on my
own. This is Brother Angelo's fault. If he had just given me water , my breath wouldn't have smelled so bad.
Speaking of the devil who looked like an angel, he walked over to me so David immediately left my side and
moved to Keiren's bed. "Do you feel better now?" he asked. "Water," I said loudly and I knew he could smell my
breath because of the way he sniffed before using his finger to cover his nose. "Damn, your breath can kill," he
commented and I literally gasped. That was just his breath. Is my breath on the same level as poison gas?
With all my resentment towards Kuya Angelo, now I can say that he's a bad person. I said that he really is
pretending to be an angel. "Water." I repeated. He turned around and approached the table where the water in
the pitcher was. He took a glass and poured it. There wasn't any yet but my throat was already very thirsty. But
that's all I could do to stop sniffing when I saw how much water he had poured. "Here. This is all you can
have," he said as he handed the glass over to me. It made me cry. The water wouldn't even reach my throat. It
was just too little. Only a child would drink that much. Do I look like a child? I wanted to complain but I had no
choice, I just drank it . It just made me thirstier. I handed the glass back to Kuya. I want more! Hwateer! I
looked at the Ulopongs and Sir Alvin who were talking to them. I wanted to ask why they were here so early,
they hadn't even gone home from school yet. But Sir was here, maybe there was no class. Maybe the school
had a meeting so they were sent home early. "I've already asked your lessons from your other teacher, study
this later," Sir said and handed some papers to my classmates. David also handed them to me. I read it and
noticed that the subjects were supposed to be for the afternoon. I looked at them in surprise. "They insisted
on not going in and just coming here," David explained. He quickly understood my hesitation, his social
inst
incts were different. These Ulopongs are really crazy but I smiled. They didn't come in the afternoon just to
isit me. Sometimes these little guys really worry differently. "Hey, it's really boring to have classes in the
afternoon," Mayo said and lay down on Keiren's bed. Eh? "Let's just stay here, the air conditioning is on," Drew
said and raised his hand to catch the air from the air conditioner. What? "Can we go now? I have a date," Eren
said goodbye but Kit stopped him. Whut? "I'm hungry. Treat me," Rory ordered Edrix but his friend only gave
him a middle finger in response. Why do I feel like they really just want to leave school and just used me as an
excuse? I know these guys, I know they're worried about me but their antics won't stop either. "It's okay Jay-
Jay, let's go!" Blaster said and was about to walk towards the door but it suddenly opened and Percy walked
in. "Why are you so scared?" he started and the idiots immediately answered him . "You idiot!" "That's really
rom you!" "We're so ashamed of you." He just walked on as if he hadn't heard anything. He came over to me
and showed me the paper bags and plastic bags full of fruit and food he was holding. "Food. The monster in
your stomach is probably losing its mind," he said and lowered his hand to the table. The monster was really
bad. He faced me again but he hadn't even gotten close to me before he started making a mess at the table.
The cobras on the table looked like tigers snatching meat. Sir Alvin and Kuya Angelo moved away slightly due
to the shock. "Hey! You starving people, that's not for you!" Percy shouted at them angrily. "Thank you for the
avor," Felix said teasingly while holding a donut. I like that too. "It's like you're not fed at home," Percy said
annoyed before kicking his brother. I looked at Batang Ulopong when I noticed he was holding fries and a
burger. He smiled at me as if he was very happy with what he got. "This is so skinny." I thought they were
going to start fighting again. It's a good thing Ci ignored him. He was busy eating. But if they were happy, I
would be very annoyed. Those foods should be mine but they're fighting over them. I accept that they're also
starving but I would accept it more if they left me some food for me. They're not the only ones who benefit.
I'm pissed. "You're welcome. I'll just buy you another one," my step-brother said as he sat down next to me.
"Are you feeling okay?" "A little," I replied. He turned his face away while holding his nose. "Sis, the smell is
deadly." That's it! He laughed a little when he saw my frown. "If you're feeling better, maybe you can talk to one
of our siblings." I stared at him in surprise. We don't have another sibling. "I'm referring to Aries," he clarified.
Wow. Talking to a sibling. I quickly shook my head. Whatever my decision was since I came back , my memory
of what I did to him is still the same until now. It would be better if we never met again. I'm also thinking about
planning to live far away after I graduate. I'll arrange to live on my island. I'll be there forever if there is one.
"Talk to me. He has a surprise," "What's that?" "You won the lottery. Three pesos," he replied and burst out
laughing. Doc, your patient is gone. But I can't help but be intrigued by what Aries wants to talk about. Maybe
he wants me to leave the house