Ten Years Unsaid

Chapter Four

May mga umaga na parang normal lang.

At may mga umaga na kahit wala namang nangyayari,

pakiramdam mo may kulang.

This was one of those mornings.

Kael woke up earlier than usual—not because he had to, but because his body refused to rest. He stared at the ceiling for a long time, unmoving, listening to the faint hum of the electric fan and the distant noise of the city waking up.

Everything felt… off.

He frowned slightly, shifting to his side.

“Ang aga ko naman magising,” he muttered, voice still thick with sleep.

But he didn’t try to go back to sleep.

Instead, he reached for his phone.

The screen lit up.

No messages.

No missed calls.

Nothing.

Kael stared at it for a few seconds longer than necessary.

Then scoffed softly, locking it again.

“Arte mo,” he whispered to himself.

Pero kahit anong pilit niya may kakaiba talaga.

He sat up, running a hand through his hair, then stood and walked toward the window. The sunlight was soft, barely peeking through the buildings, painting everything in a quiet gold.

Usually, he liked mornings like this.

Peaceful.

Simple.

But today it felt empty.

“Uy.”

Napalingon siya.

North stood by the doorway, dalawang kape ang hawak, already dressed like he’d been up for hours.

“Para sa taong mukhang hindi natulog,” he said, tossing one cup to Kael.

Kael caught it easily. “Salamat.”

He took a sip.

Warm.

Bitter.

Real.

North didn’t leave.

Instead, he leaned against the wall, watching him.

Observing.

“Hindi ka pa rin okay,” he said.

Kael frowned. “Grabe ka naman. Okay lang ako.”

“Kael.”

There it was.

That tone again.

Hindi siya makalusot.

Kael sighed, shoulders dropping slightly.

“…Hindi ko alam.”

North stayed quiet, letting him continue.

Kael looked down at his coffee, watching the steam fade.

“Ang weird lang,” he said slowly. “Sanay naman ako na nawawala si Johan bigla-bigla.”

He paused.

“…Pero ngayon, parang iba.”

North tilted his head slightly. “How?”

Kael struggled to find the right words.

“Parang…” he hesitated, frowning. “Parang mas tahimik.”

North almost smiled—but there was no humor in it.

“Mas tahimik?” he repeated.

Kael nodded.

“Oo. Parang—” he exhaled, frustrated. “Parang may nawala kahit wala naman talaga.”

Silence settled between them.

Because there was something missing.

Johan.

But Kael wasn’t ready to admit that yet.

“Na-try mo na ba siyang tawagan?” North asked.

Kael let out a small laugh. “Johan? Sumagot ng tawag? Mas rare pa ‘yun sa eclipse.”

“Still.”

Kael hesitated.

Then slowly—

he picked up his phone again.

Johan’s name stared back at him.

For a moment, he didn’t press anything.

Just stared.

Then.

Call.

The ringing felt louder than it should.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Kael’s fingers tightened slightly around the phone.

Then.

Voicemail.

He pulled it away slowly.

“…See?” he said, forcing a grin. “Sabi ko sa’yo—”

“Try again later,” North said.

Kael nodded.

But his chest felt heavier.

—

The day moved on.

Classes. Work. Conversations.

Everything went as it should.

Kael laughed at jokes ,answered questions ,talked like normal moved like normal but in between moments he checked his phone again and again still nothing.

“Pre, okay ka lang?”

Napatingin siya sa kausap niya.

“Ha? Oo naman.”

“Kanina ka pa distracted.”

Kael scratched the back of his neck, chuckling lightly.

“Wala ‘to. Kulang lang sa tulog.”

They accepted that answer.

But Kael didn’t.

—

By evening, the feeling hadn’t gone away.

It grew.

Quiet.

Persistent

Like something knocking at the back of his mind.

Kael stood by the window again.

Same place.

Same view.

Same city.

But it didn’t feel the same.

“Ang ingay,” he murmured.

Cars passed.

People laughed.

Music played somewhere far.

But tonight it didn’t feel alive.

It felt… distant.

Parang may hinihintay.

Parang may kulang.

His phone rested in his hand.

Still silent.

“…Johan,” he whispered.

The name felt different.

Softer.

Careful.

Like something fragile.

Kael frowned, confused.

“…Bakit parang—”

He stopped.

Because for a second something unfamiliar stirred in his chest.

Not irritation.

Not curiosity.

Something deeper.

Something that made him uneasy.

“…Ewan,” he muttered, shaking his head.

He leaned his forehead lightly against the glass.

“Magparamdam ka na kasi.”

His voice was quieter now.

Almost a plea.

Almost something he didn’t understand yet.

Somewhere else in the same city

the world was much quieter.

Too quiet.

Johan lay still on a hospital bed.

Bandages wrapped tightly around his side.

Machines hummed softly beside him, steady and indifferent.

Each beep marking time slow.

Measured.

Unforgiving.

His face was pale.

Unmoving.

Like he was just… resting.

But the tension in the room said otherwise.

Outside the door, men stood guard.

Silent.

Rigid.

Watching.

“Condition?” one of them asked in a low voice.

“Critical,” another replied.

A pause.

“…Does anyone else know?”

The man shook his head.

“No one.”

Then, after a second

“…and it stays that way.”

Inside the room—

Johan didn’t move.

Didn’t speak.

Didn’t wake.

Back at the window Kael closed his eyes.

“…Ang kulit mo,” he murmured softly, a faint smile appearing.

“Pag hindi ka pa nagparamdam bukas…”

He exhaled.

“…ako na pupunta sa’yo.”

A simple decision.

A simple promise.

But sometimes

the smallest choices

lead to the biggest changes.

Because tomorrow

Kael wouldn’t just find Johan.

He would find the truth.

And once you see something like that

there’s no going back.