Cold World

Birthdays and Bad Blood

Aria's grandmother handed her the phone, cutting through the discordant chorus of coughs and sneezes from people with seemingly endless malicious thoughts. With a melodious voice, Aria greeted, "Happy Birthday! Tumatanda ka na ah!"

On the other end, Stephen launched into a rant about his father. "He's making my day as if it's not special enough to celebrate," he fumed. Aria listened intently, feeling the depth of his words resonate in her heart.

"I can't stand him!" Stephen continued, his voice rising with each word. "He comments on every move, from waking up to taking a bath. Vente dos na raw ako! He says I have to act my age!"

"Uh-huh, u-huh," was all Aria could muster, still groggy from sleep. The world seemed to swirl beneath her feet, as if she were trapped in a waking dream.

As Stephen's words washed over her, Aria's mind slowly began to clear. She blinked, suddenly realizing where she was. The familiar sight of lush green mountains peeking through her window, the distant sound of roosters crowing, and the unmistakable musty scent of the old house hit her senses all at once. She was back in the mountainous area of Rizal, in the Monster House.

The realization brought a mix of comfort and unease. This place held so many memories, both good and bad. The Monster House, with its creaking floorboards and walls that seemed to whisper secrets, had been both a sanctuary and a prison during her tumultuous teenage years.

"I mean, he doesn't even have the right to fly here in the first place!" Stephen's voice cracked with emotion, pulling Aria back to the conversation.

Aria felt a surge of empathy, patiently listening as Stephen poured out his frustrations. "Am I wrong?" he demanded. "Come on! Has he ever been to my graduation?"

There it was - the long-awaited volcanic eruption, the son's grudge firing through the phone line. Aria knew it was true; Stephen had been wandering with friends, companions, and acquaintances, trying to numb the pain of his situation.

She remembered how Stephen's grandmother had stitched together the missing pieces of his life, acting as the foundation and light of the house that shaped his character. He had succumbed to the misery of a made-up reality, where the family structure held both the ferocious mama bear and the strong papa bear in one. Somehow, he had grown accustomed to it.

Stephen had accepted that his father was merely a plain photograph and his mother, a telephone - images on a wall while Lola Lola toiled to instill wisdom, values, toughness, and pride.

Aria recalled a moment at the hospital when Stephen, sipping a Pilsen, had mused, "Pride, like yin and yang, is balanced - angelic and evil. The good definition to follow is reliving one's self-worth that blooms respect. But when you doze on too much pride, arrogance flows, furthering you to boast."

"For how long do you plan to hog that phone?" Jobe's irritated voice cut through Aria's reverie, reminding her that she was indeed back in the Monster House, surrounded by family and all the complications that came with it.

With blazing wrath, Aria clutched the phone tightly and whispered to Stephen, "Talk to you later? Erkay?" She heaved a deep sigh, which Jobe mistakenly assumed was directed at him.

"Do you know where you live?" Jobe bellowed, his face contorted with anger.

"I'm sorry?" Aria fumed, her own temper rising to match his.

"I thought you were studying in that high-standard school of yours? In fact, it doesn't show," Jobe sneered.

"Kuya Jobe, I was sleepy," Aria explained, rubbing her eyes in frustration.

"Excuses! The expertise of you and your tinamaan na magaling na pamilya," he spat.

"That is way out of line!" Aria retorted, her voice rising.

"I can say whatever I want to say," Jobe declared, pointing a finger at her.

"You can say whatever you want to say? Fine, I'll say something too... here it is," Aria said, lifting her middle finger in defiance.

Victoria, their aunt, quickly stepped between them, acting as a human barrier to prevent further escalation.

"Go to sleep, Aria," she said softly, trying to diffuse the tension.

"I won't! That devil has already alarmed me," Aria protested, her eyes flashing with anger.

As the argument died down, Aria retreated to her room, her mind a whirlwind of emotions. She collapsed onto her bed, staring at the familiar cracks in the ceiling of the Monster House. The weight of Stephen's birthday, his family drama, and her own conflicts with Jobe pressed down on her.

She thought about Stephen's words, about being twenty-two and the expectations that came with it. Perhaps that was the crux of it all - the pressure to have everything figured out when the world still felt so confusing and overwhelming.

Aria rolled over, burying her face in her pillow. She wanted to scream, to let out all the frustration and uncertainty that had been building up. Instead, she reached for her guitar, her fingers finding the strings in the darkness.

As she softly strummed, careful not to wake anyone, she began to hum a melody. It was something new, born from the turmoil of the day. The lyrics came to her in fragments:

"Twenty-two, they say it's the time of your life,

But all I feel is pressure and strife,

In this cold world, where do I belong?

Is this where I'm supposed to be strong?"

She played until her fingers ached and her eyelids grew heavy. As sleep finally began to claim her, Aria couldn't help but think that twenty-two indeed felt like the worst idea she'd ever had.

But as she drifted off, the last notes of her impromptu song lingering in the air, a small part of her held onto hope. Hope that tomorrow would bring clarity, understanding, and perhaps a little less drama. Hope that someday, the cold world would feel a little warmer, and that she'd find her place in it.

In her dreams that night, Aria saw herself on a stage, Stephen cheering her on from the front row, her family - even Jobe - smiling proudly. It was a vision of a future where everything had fallen into place, where twenty-two wasn't so bad after all.

As the first light of dawn crept through her window, Aria stirred, the ghost of a smile on her lips. Another day in the Monster House awaited, but for the first time in a while, she felt ready to face it. The challenges of being twenty-two, of finding her place in the world, of navigating complex relationships - they were all still there. But so was her music, her dreams, and the unshakeable feeling that somehow, someday, it would all make sense.

With a deep breath, Aria sat up, ready to face whatever the new day might bring. Twenty-two might be challenging, but it was also full of possibilities. And in the Monster House, surrounded by the chaos of family and the echoes of her own aspirations, Aria was determined to make the most of it.