Clarina glanced at his son; his eyes were filled with sharpness and anger. “Are you sure you’re good to go?” she asked. Silas kept his sight direct to the road they will take. “If I say no, will you leave me behind?” he asked back.
“You have no choice but to come with me, Israel. Look at that girl; looks like you broke her. Even if you never brought a girl home, I can sense that you two are into something” she said while starting the engine.
“Don’t talk about it” Silas said and leaned back. He had his arms crossed while watching in the side mirror how far they’re going. He still sees Stella who is forcibly held by Xavier. He faced the road again and closed his eyes. His mother broke the silence, “Make sure you got everything you need. I already packed your things from our apartment; I bought a permanent house near
the hospital” she said.
Silas raised his palm and shook it off, signaling that he doesn’t need anything more. He opened his eyes when the sunlight struck his eyelids. He saw how the sun go deep, leaving the darkness rein the sky again. Another day is spent again but this time, it’s not the happy well-ended day he used to have.
Stella insisted on going near to Silas but he failed. Her body is nothing compared to Xavier’s manly force that makes her immobilized physically. When she saw their car already going away, she gave up and sat on the ground like a child forbidden to play her toys. Xavier sat at the ground also. Stella looked at him with disbelief, “I can’t believe you managed to destroy us both. With your words, you made two worlds collapse. It’s like you’re not a seminarian; you talk too harsh” she said.
Xavier sighed; he patted his sister’s shoulder. “I did it because I know that your relationship can’t work in my eyes, in our mom’s eyes, in the eyes of the people around us, and in the eyes of God” he answered.
Stella chuckled, “Didn’t you say before that we only have one God? Then why would He create things like this? Why would He create a lot of religions that can make barriers to people like me and Silas?” she asked and started crying again.
Xavier’s eyes widened, “Stella, don’t you dare question God. You see, these religions were based on the people’s beliefs. Everything comes from an origin; who knows? Maybe in the future your religions will match” he said.
Stella leaned his head on Xavier’s shoulder. “I’m sure Mom and Dad knows about this. You’re talkative; I know you” she said.
Xavier smirked; he really exposed the two’s relationship to her parents. Stella is still thinking blank, still absorbing the events one by one.
Silas woke up with a seatbelt securing him in his place. His mom is currently driving; he looked at the clock and it’s been one hour since they left the ministry. He glanced at the side mirror once again; Stella is nowhere to be seen.
“Are you hungry? It’s almost dinnertime” his mother said. Silas answered, “I’m not. You can take a meal first; I’ll stay here inside” he answered.
His mother drove to a Japanese restaurant; she knows that this kind of food is Silas’ favorite. She unbuckled her seatbelt and unlocked the door. She got off and turned to the other side of the car to fetch her son. Silas looked up and asked, “Didn’t I say that I don’t want to eat?”. With no words uttering, she grabbed Silas’ wrist and pulled him out of the car. She answered, “Do you think I’ll obey your
nasty command, young man?” she asked too.
Silas scoffed, feeling disobeyed. He stepped out and followed his mom who’s still pulling his wrist. They went inside but to his surprise, his mother didn’t give him a copy of the menu. Instead, she ordered for them two. When the waiter left, he asked, “You want me to eat with
you choosing the food?”. Clarina looked at him, “From now on, you can’t eat like how you eat normally. You know what’s not good for you while I know that you’re disobedient and stubborn. So, to cut things short, I’ll
decide what food I will feed you” she said.
“I can’t stand sticking to you even if you’re my mom” he answered. She looked at him and answered, “If you’re trying to diss me, well no thanks. I won’t invest a single glance to anything except for you”. “That was cheesy” Silas answered. His mother answered back, “You know the most blockbuster lines were the cheesy ones” she said with a smirk on her face. Silas looked away; he knows that he can’t win to his mom. In fact, he got it from her.
The food came; from a glance, Silas knew that he doesn’t like to eat those but it will be a waste if he won’t eat. His mother ordered a lot. He looked at her mom who’s busy stuffing food in his plate.
“You’re not letting me go, aren’t you?” he asked. His mother shrugged, “Haven’t I told you that I will stick with you like a gecko?”
Silas shrugged and started picking his chopsticks. “This is not what I like” he said while holding in his chopsticks a piece of Takoyaki.
“I know. How can I know; I haven’t asked you earlier” she said. Silas was about to bite the piece when his nose bleed again. His mom was delirious all of a
sudden while he, managed to do things on his own.
He looked at her. He saw worries in her eyes. “Cut it out. Your blood pressure might rise again”he said and started wiping his nose.
His mother calmly talked after a bunch of words out of nervousness. “If you’re done, finish your
food” she said and continued eating their dinner.
On the other hand, Stella stepped inside their house. Her eyes were swollen from crying a river. She got surprised when she saw both of her parents having a talk with each other. Seems like
her mom is not in the good mood when she saw her.
Her mother got nearer and nearer then suddenly, she felt her mom’s hand in her arm. “We can
talk about this here. We knew this just last night through Xavier” she said.
Stella hugged her mother tight. She’s thankful because what she expected is not the reality. The two sat down and started telling stories.
Her mom commented, “Stella, you should not take everything seriously. You’re a fool out of love. How could you initiate something with that boy? Do you even know his background, his family, or where he came from?”
Stella said no. Her parents were surprised. Her father sat down and patted her shoulder, “Stella from that point where you don’t know a single thing about the guy, you should’ve left him. Look at you now; you’re suffering after knowing that he can’t do what he promised on your first
day” he said.
Stella’s mother added, “If that’s the case maybe he’s hiding from something or something
triggered him to become cautious socially. What he said that he’ll fight his battle first is the sign that he’s hiding something. Read between the lines, Stella. You’ll understand it in no time”
Stella nodded; her parents taught her how to manage love but it’s too late. She already lost Silas in an unexpected way. She opened her phone and proceeded to her social media accounts. She saw Silas’ accounts were deleted. She refreshed and found nothing – even his phone number.
She sat down in her terrace, it’s a cold windy night and it’s comfortable to cuddle someone. She used to have Silas and his hoodie but now, she only has Silas’ old hoodie hanged on her window. The cloth danced with the wind; she gently touched and smelled the cloth; it still has
Silas’ scent.
She faced the mirror to see her face. It is all red and her eyes were too swollen. She looked down and saw Silas’ necklace still shining from her chest. She carefully removed the accessory and the hoodie. She placed it in a box and slid it under her bed.
“I’ll keep this until I get tired of them” she said and tucked herself in her thick blankets.