24 Chapter 23

Ding dong…

"That must be dad."

Manny ran to the door, his forehead tensed, footsteps hurried.

Right behind him, Jay and Daru skipped their steps, their faces split like devil horns.

"Sigh, what am I gonna do with them?" Gloria said, arms wide. Her eyes, though, twinkled as she Dumbledorely followed them.

Javier pulled onto his body to stand, resting his side on the wall.

"I swear I will kill you if I ever see you again."

Unaware, Javier waited for the heavy elephant steps to reach the door and let him in.

Soon, the sound of clicks came. Javier held a wince back as he leaned out off the support, smiling in wait.

"Dad! Dad! Are you okay?" Manny said, shoulders raised as he reached out his hand slowly all over Javier.

"Huh, it's nothing. I hardly got a bruise, but you should have seen the othe…"

click click click

Sounds of continuous clicking pulled Javier to look towards the other three people who reached the door.

Jay, his future benefactor, was holding a camera and had the shutter like he wanted to make a flipbook with all the clicked photos.

And next to him…

Was…

Him…

Gulp

Javier had to pull all his willpower to keep his lips still arched into a smile.

He opened and closed his mouth; he seemed to say something but kept forgetting, like a goldfish.

Click

Jay, as if he had just witnessed the destruction of the Nazis, kept clicking to store this occasion in a timeless sheet.

Gloria didn't carry the same resigned expression but was clutching her stomach with her arms crossed, nose ever so slightly flared.

Daru, though, held it all in him, for he showed Javier the face of death, as if he had no flesh, but bones, no eyes, just holes.

"What happened, Dad? Come on in, you have to rest."

"Ahh…" a groan escaped Javier's mouth as Manny pulled on him a bit tight.

"Did I pull too hard? I'm sorry." [AN: Damn, I am feeling sorry for the kid now. It almost makes me regret what I have planned for him, almost. But chances are that I might not just ignore him.]

'Yes, you did, you little shit.'

"Nah, it's alright, champ…"

"Then come in."

Javier looked past his shoulder, to Jay's sneer, Gloria's disgust, and Daru's pain.

"I actually have to go urgently," before Manny could cut him off, he hurried, "I just wanted to come and warn you that the area around is dangerous, and you should be careful."

"No, please stay…" [AN: almost…]

"Kid, you know how it is. Your dad has to be there for the business."

Javier pats Manny's shoulder, turning then he leaves, his limbs twitching as he escaped.

"Manny, come on in. He might be busy." Gloria said, going past Daru and Jay to caress his back.

"Why did you not stop him?" Red eyes Manny looked at Gloria, "It's because of you that he feels uncomfortable staying with me."

Shoving Gloria to the side before she could even say anything, Manny rolled to his room.

Daru clenched his jaw, holding his balled fists to his back.

Jay walked away like this was none of his business.

He walked up to Gloria as she stood there looking at her hand.

"Gloria…"

"It's alright. Come on, you might not have had dinner, right? Let me…"

"No, I had my dinner. You go and rest."

"Haa… alright." Gloria smiled and walked away as the light wind carried her to her room.

 -

The next day, Daru found himself once again at the Dunphy estate continuing his three-day morning routine. As with the previous mornings, the Dunphy girls were already brimming with enthusiasm before he even arrived.

The routine kicked off with the usual , inapproriate signals, touching, thigh, hips, feeling up his biceps— the usual. 

 a routine they had all grown accustomed to. Daru was becoming a familiar presence in their daily activities.

However, today held a subtle shift. Today daru encountered Phil, who unlike the previous days had not rushed way early in the morning.

 He appeared unusually rushed despite having concluded a business deal. Phil's movements were mechanical, phill walked like he had been hoisted by strings.

 The family, though concerned, seemed unsurprised by his demeanor.

"Is something the matter?" Daru inquired, scanning his memory for any missed details but finding none.

"Daru, you stay and have some breakfast. I need to go with Luke to his college," Claire said, dressed in her Karen attire, shooting a stern glance at Luke as she mentioned his name. 

 Alex too left for her college.

 with phill, luke, claire, alex went out leaving only haley and daru in the house.

"Feel comfortable and stay for as long as you want. I'll be here all day," Haley suggested with a long, leisurely stretch.

Daru couldn't help but be amused. "Still so young and naive," he thought to himself.

"Hey, I want to ask a question. I hope it's not too personal," Daru said as he moved the sofa back to its place. 

"You can ask me anything."

"Cliché," Daru thought.

"What's up with Phil?" he finally asked.

"Huh?"

"He looked too stressed just to have finished a deal, and he didn't seem particularly happy."

Haley sighed, "Oh, that. There's a bit of an issue with the people he's working with."

Daru recalled some prior information about Phil facing problems at the company he helped build. 'Ah, I remember there was something about Phil being kicked out of the company in the show.'

"Are you really going to ask me about my dad when we're alone?" Haley shot him a heavy-lidded look.

She had been practically broadcasting signals, but Daru hadn't reciprocated or shown much interest. Daru looked at Haley with a slight squint and an easy smile.

"What else am I to do?