Chapter 1
1439 Words
062925
Kabana One
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WHY are girls so obsessed with TDH?
Tall?
✓
Dark?
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Handsome?
Or should I say… a heartbreaker.
Like my cousin, Dilan.
In the hallway, I usually end up being the bridge girls use just to get close to my cousin.
Just like now—I was heading home since our last period had just ended.
Which I’m already used to. It happens about three times a week.
But who knows, Rance, maybe today’s different from the usual, I told myself.
“Hi? You’re Rance Molina, right?” one of them asked. There were actually three girls. One of them was holding onto another girl who was struggling, like she wanted to leave—probably embarrassed.
“You’re Kuya Dilan’s cousin?”
Why does she call Dilan “kuya” but not me? We’re the same age.
“Yumi, stop! This is embarrassing!!”
“Shut up, McReece, or I’ll pull your hair!”
“Go, Ashley! I’m holding her so she can’t run,” said the smallest girl. I even felt a little bad—she looked like she was having trouble breathing.
“Yes, that’s me. What do you need?” I scratched my eyebrow slightly. Judging by their looks, they were probably in Grade 7.
Before anything could continue, someone suddenly showed up again. Oh my God!!!
“Kyaaaah!!! It is him! You’re Dilan’s cousin, right?!?!”
“Oh, there he is—get lost!!!” shouted an irritated girl with slanted eyes, obviously with Chinese or Japanese blood. The other girls backed off, probably intimidated by her.
“Now speak!” they ordered the girl.
“Gu—gu—
Gu-gu-gusto—
I like—”
“You like me?!” I asked in shock. I mean, hey, I do look decent—even if I’m moreno.
“No!!! I like your cousin. Just give this to him,” she said quickly, handing me a paper bag before running away.
Her friends chased after her.
“Tsk. I knew it.”
I might as well go home.
How many times have I been in this situation? Ten? Twenty? Fifty? I’ve lost count—with how many girls go crazy over my cousin.
Yes, I’m just the cousin.
In this school, I’m not known as Rance Jallen Molina, but as “Dilan Lazaro’s cousin.”
Basically, I’m the shadow—the tail—of Dylan Luis Lazaro, the ultimate campus crush.
Well, I can’t really blame them. Aside from being handsome, he’s smart and talented too. What more could you ask for? He’s my cousin, after all.
Honestly, if I charged ₱50 per hug and ₱100 per kiss with my cousin, I’d probably own a house and lot by now. But I’d definitely be disowned by him.
Still, no matter how many girls like him, there’s really only one girl he dreams of.
…and the same girl I dream of too.
Yes, we’re both aware that we like the same girl. The difference is—my cousin doesn’t know how crazy I am about Trina.
Trina—or Katrina Dominguez. If she were the female version of my cousin, that would be her. Every guy has a crush on her because she’s perfect: beautiful, smart, talented, rich—and incredibly sexy. As a bonus, she’s also extremely kind.
That’s why when my cousin joined the campus dance troupe, I joined the singing troupe. I couldn’t join dancing anyway—my body’s too stiff. I’m nowhere near as good as him.
I even gave up my spot on the soccer team just to join her socio club—just to be closer to her.
Yes, even though I’m admittedly shy and hate attention, I’ll do anything to get closer to her.
After fifteen minutes, I arrived home and found Mom cooking.
“Ma, what’s for dinner?” I asked, kissing her on the cheek.
“Sisig. Deo asked me to cook it—he said he was craving it. But Janice and the others aren’t here,” she said while chopping the meat.
“Ah, okay. I’ll go get him.”
Whenever Deo has something cooked, he automatically eats here, so he’s probably in my room.
When I opened the door—
“Damn, I shut my eyes.”
There was Deo—naked—watching something on the monitor.
Holy crap!
“s**t! What is that?!”
“Porn? I found it in Dad’s collection,” he said casually, still… doing what he was doing.
“Turn that off!! Mom’s just downstairs!!” I snapped. Good thing he listened. They really do all sorts of things in my room. At least learn how to lock the door.
“Killjoy. Like you don’t do that.”
“Argh! You’re loud!” someone complained, so I turned to the bed.
There was my cousin, half-asleep, eyes barely open.
“What’s that?” Deo asked, already holding the paper bag. So damn nosy.
“I don’t know, it was given—”
I didn’t even finish because he already ripped the paper bag.
“Why did you rip it? And that’s for our cousin!”
But when I looked at my cousin—he was asleep again.
“Oh. Aren’t you supposed to rip it for suspense?”
“i***t, no! You’re always messing around.”
“So what is it?” I asked.
“A picture frame?” he said, shaking it. That’s his bad habit—even when he knows what it is, he still shakes it.
I grabbed it from him.
Inside was a colored pencil portrait of my cousin, with the words I Love You D! written on it. There were also little Doraemon drawings with tiny hearts.
You see, my cousin has been a huge Doraemon fan since we were kids. His room is literally full of stuffed toys.
“Wow, it’s beautiful. I’ll take it,” he said, grabbing the frame. We fought over it—then it broke.
“Argggggh!!! What the hell! Someone’s sleeping here!!” my cousin snapped.
“It’s your fault!” Deo said.
“It’s your fault!” I shot back.
“Rance, what is that?!?! Are you playing with my figurines again?!”
“Ma, no!!! hmmgshaj—” I froze when someone shoved a pair of briefs into my mouth.
“I said don’t be noisy!!!”
Meanwhile, Deo was laughing like he was about to die.
So I threw the briefs at his face.
“That stinks!!!” he complained.
“i***t! That’s yours!!!”
“Oh, mine? Heh, smells good then.”
“By the way, is it true you gave Kuya Lucas your spot on the soccer team?” he asked.
I looked at him and nodded slightly. Lucas is a few years older than us—actually, he’s in Trina’s batch. He’s had it out for me for a long time. It only got worse when I qualified for the national soccer team while he’d been trying for years.
“Yeah. He needs it more,” I said.
“But he’s always been targeting you. You even almost ended up critical in the hospital after he beat you up—and you’re just giving away the spot you worked so hard for?”
“I have my reasons,” I said, lying down on the tiles. My eyes drifted to the huge poster of Trina on the wall. Yes, I had it made. That’s how crazy I am about her.
“Tsk. So you could join Trina’s club?”
“Damn it! You traded your chance to study in international schools for that minor club?!?!?!”
“Ow?!?!”
Dilan threw a pillow at him.
“Shut up! Let me sleep!!”
“Rance, don’t you have coffee? Splash him with something so he’ll stop sleeping.”
“Let him be. He didn’t sleep earlier because Tito came home last night,” I said, leaning against the wall.
Their house was noisy at dawn, so for sure Tito and Tita had World War Three again.
It’s almost always like that when Tito comes home—that’s why my cousin practically lives here.
I was in that position when my phone beeped—a sign I got a text.
From: Unknown Number
Hey, it’s me, Trina. I just wanted to ask if you’re available tomorrow? We have a play tomorrow and one of the actors had an emergency. Since you’re an understudy, maybe you could fill in for him. Please!!
I don’t know why I suddenly smiled.
Damn—I’m thrilled.
Imagine that… my crush texted me!!
- Writer
