Truth Untold

YSABELL'S POV

His eyes turns into balls the moment he saw me peeking him. He struggles to stop himself from panting, he's still exhausted and he needs to catch his breath.

He forces a smile. "H-hey," saad niya sa pagitan ng kaniyang mga paghingal na pilit niyang itinatago. He even waved his hand, but that just strengthen my suspicion. His hands are shaking.

"Are you okay?" I ask as I stride towards him. My feet feels like they're carrying a load of stones, I can hardly move them. Still, I remain calm and unbothered.

He steps aback. "Y-yeah of- of course," he answers while stuttering. He still can't normalize his breath.

"Where did you go?" I abruptly ask to end this conversation briefly. They say that if you want to catch a criminal, ask them the bullseye question at the time they least expected.

His brows furrow, tiny beads of sweat slide down from his forehead. "W-what?" his face is bewildered.

I blink twice. "I asked where did you go?" pag-uulit ko gamit ang mariing tono.

His confusion thrives. "W-where am I s-supposed t-to go?" he cocks his head, he demands for an answer.

I got caught off guard. I didn't expect that he will ask me that. A question suddenly pops out of my head. Why would he go in our room? I'm so stupid for not thinking thoroughly before asking.

But the clues are saying that it was him.

"Oh, just- just forget about it," I declare and I shift my gaze to the swing. I'm in front of the door, across from him.

The wind blows, causing my hair sway and at the same time, giving chills through my spine. The wind chimes created a noise that I usually hear from horror movies.

I close my eyes then I lower my head. "What's wrong?" I ask while rubbing my feet with each other.

He didn't respond, so I lift my head to see him. He's now sobbing.

"H-hey, you okay?" I ask, even if I know that the otherwise is his answer. I just don't know what to say. I run towards him and touch his shoulders. "Hey, hey, what happened?" I ask when his sobs turned into a loud cry.

I felt his arms wrapping around my waist. He rests his head to my gut while weeping. I didn't resist his swift motion. His snivel makes me worry about him, and I slowly disregarded the business I had to clear. He needs me. Right now.

I caress his hair because he told me that this will make him calm whenever he's upset or sad.

"Shhh, it's okay," bulong ko habang pilit siyang pinapatahan. Mas lalong lumakas ang paghagulgol niya at humigpit ang kaniyang mga yakap. Nararamdaman kong basang-basa na ang damit na suot ko dahil sa luha't pawis niya pero hindi ako nagsalita. Hinayaan ko lang siyang umiyak habang nakayakap siya sa 'kin.

When his sobs lowered, he lets go of me.

I saw his face, his eyes are swollen- just like mine. His nose is red and still sniffing. Lips are trembling, and his hair is now soaked with his sweat. Maging ang kaniyang mga pilikmata ay kumikintab na nang dahil sa mga luha niya.

I run my palms through his forehead to wipe the sweat. His temperature is frosting.

"I-I'm sorry." he scratches his nose and he sneezes.

"Let's sit?" I offer while looking at the metal swings. The icy breeze is still making the chimes produce cacophony.

Tumango siya, and I help him sit down with one of the swings because his knees are also shuddering. Naupo ako sa tabi niya at tiningnan ang kaniyang likuran at napansin kong walang humpay ang pagpapawis nito nang malala.

"Hey." I jerk to get his attention. His lips are so red that they even look like they're bleeding.

"Hmm?" he answers while sniffing.

"What happened?" bulong ko nang may pag-aalala.

He sighs, then he looks down. "C-can we- not, n-not t-talk about it?" he hesitantly asks.

I nod. Even if I am bothered with millions of questions, let's leave them unanswered for a while. Maybe now's not the time to ask where he went and what's upsetting him, even if I think he's just slipping away from something that might get revealed if we dig deeper into this topic.

He seizes my hands but it made me flinch. Not that it's cold, I'm just doubtful. Hindi ko sinasadyang nahila ito palayo sa kaniya.

"Oh, I'm - I'm s-sorry." he apologetically mutters.

I suddenly felt guilty for what I did, but his touch gives shiver down my spine.

Iniangat niya ang tingin niya sa akin. "H-how about you? W-what happened t-to y-your eyes?" he worriedly asks with a sniff and he tried to check my swollen eyes, but I take a step back from him, allowing the swing to create a creaking sound.

His face is startled by my sudden jolt. He takes his fingers down. I'm doomed. "D-did I, d-do something t-that, ahm, m-made you angry?" he asks and I can sense pain through his voice. His eyes glimmers with water.

Did he?

I blink unconsciously while shaking my head. "No," I answer, but it came out like a question.

His brows knitter. "Ohh." his voice is full of shame and he drops his head. Bigla akong nahiya dahil sa inasta ko.

"W-what's wrong?" he asks, but his head is still facing his feet. He doesn't try to touch me anymore because he knows I'll only flinch if he does that.

I think I should tell him the truth.

I take a deep breath to gather braveness. "Did you go to our room?" I ask while facing him, but his head is still facing downward.

He gulps. "Are, are y-you sus-suspecting me?" he asks, stuttering.

Am I?

"Y-yes," I answer firmly. There's no point of lying. It will just make the situation worse. Besides, he does already know that I'm suspecting him, he just wants to hear it from my mouth.

"W-why? Did s-someone go t-there?" he asks, his head is still downcast that's why I can't see his reaction.

I nod, but I know he won't see me.

We remained silent for a minute or two, then he moves his head upward. Our eyes met and I quiver, but I lock my eyes through his. I don't want to miss any hints that his eyes might expose. The more I dig in for the truth to his eyes, the more I'm drowning.

He sarcastically laugh, even so, pain is visible through his voice. "Y-ysabell, w-why would I d-do that? S-sneak into y-your r-room?" magkahalong tawa at pagtataka ang namayani sa boses niya.

Napakurap ako nang ilang beses bago ko napagtanto ang sinabi ni Noah. He's right. Why would he enter our room secretly? We knew each other for years, so there's no reason for him to sneak into ours. Unless he needed to get something and he knows that I- or maybe Danielle, won't give that something to him.

If it's really not him, then who was that person wearing a violet jacket?

But I don't let my suspicion go far.

Not again.

Because I don't understand myself, either. Maybe I'm just hallucinating things, that what I saw... is just one of the side effects of my illness that tried to swallow me a while ago. I loathe myself because I even tried to involve innocent people just to get over with my dirty past.

How ironic. I'm trying to find what he's hiding when in fact, it's me who hides many things from him.

I give out a guilty smile. "I'm sorry." I mean it. I really do.

"It's, o-okay," sagot niya ngunit pumiyok ang boses niya. Sobrang nagsisisi na ako sa kung paano ko siya tinrato kanina. Noah is different from any other guy. He's a weak person, a soft-hearted one. There are some stuff that seem to be simple for me but big deal to him.

He hesitates to hold my hand kaya kusang gumalaw ang mga kamay ko upang hawakan siya. I entwine our fingers and smack them. "I'm really sorry," I whisper to his pinkish hand.

I can perceive that he smiles. "Hmm. J-just please... s-stop d-doubting me," he answers with his usual stuttering tone.

I look at him while our hands are still lock with each other. "I promise." I give him a reassuring smile and he smiles back.

I despise myself for doubting and being suspicious all over again. We're not in a mystery novel so I should settle down and disregard all the things that seem suspicious to me, even though the truth is they are all meaningless.

I'm just making things up. I always do, and did.

If I do another stupid thing within this vacation, I promise that I'm gonna slap my face hard. May mga tao na akong nadadamay dahil sa katangahan ko at kailangan nang matigil 'to.

He kicks his left leg to the floor of the terrace and it made his swing in motion. I also did the same and we face the side of the house. Trees are everywhere. The sound of the chimes and the tweets of the birds are calming my mind.

I close my eyes and I continue to sway the metal chair where I'm sitting in. Huminga ako nang malalim at dinama ang malamig na simoy ng hangin.

Noah lets out a sigh. "D-do you s-still remember, w-where we, w-we first m-met?" he asks while he's busy tearing a fallen dry leaf.

I nod. "Mm, of course I do," I proclaim.

We did first met each other in a cemetery near the park. That was the third death anniversary of my lola. Coincidentally, it was Noah's birthday. I came to visit her, alone. Because my Dad is busy with his work that day, and he said we can visit lola the next day, but I insisted. I know she'd be expecting us on that day, and I don't wanna hurt lola's feelings by not paying her a visit on her death day.

Kaya binisita ko siya nang mag-isa. I stole Dad's money- borrow. Because I'm hardheaded. It's easy to get there, tho. I just entered a random tricycle that I saw on the street and I told him the cemetery, and luckily, the driver knew where it is.

I'm sitting on my grandmother's grave when someone bumps on my back, making me kiss the grassy ground. I spit on the turf that I literally swallowed and I started to cry.

That's what children should do at those moments, don't judge me.

"Hey, are you, y-you okay?" he stutter. A young boy, probably at my age, is standing behind me. He's holding a melted ice cream on his left hand and he's currently licking the splattered vanilla on his lips.

"Do I look okay? You just made me eat grass," I annoyingly spit while standing.

Pinagpagan ko ang sarili ko then I crossed my arms to him. I'm getting pissed because my ponytail got sloppy. My unicorn hair clip became a horse dahil naputol ang sungay nito sa biglaan kong pagbagsak sa lupa.

He steps towards me, and he uses his other hand to wipe my tears. "S-sorry," he utters while wiping my face. "D-don't, don't c-cry," maamo niyang usal.

A smile automatically plaster on my lips. He's cute when he's stuttering, so I cried even harder to make him worry more.

"H-hey, what, what's ha-happening?" he seizes me using his both hands and the sticky and cold food touches my shoulders.

"Hey!"

"I'm, I'm s-sorry. I'm, I'm j-just worried." he takes step aback.

"You're worried?" I ask while lifting my left eyebrow at him.

He nods with a half smile. "Y-yeah. Y-you look awful."

And that's where we started. He told me that he's busy running away from his bodyguard so he didn't notice that I was lying on the ground.

I was scolded by Dad when I got home, but for me, it's okay. Because if I didn't sneak that day and waited for tomorrow, I would not have seen the boy with an ice cream. I wouldn't meet Noah if I didn't prevail in my stubbornness.

The latter follows, and here we are now, currently in a relationship.

He beams, then he holds my hands. I tighten my grip on him. I feel sorry for doubting him.

"Hey, lovebirds." someone appears from the door, Gia.

"Hey, idiot," I respond.

She rolls her eyes. "Get in. Maglalaro tayo," saad niya saka sumandal sa pinto.

"What game?" asks Noah.

Gia grins. "Bahay-bahayan? Rawr," she exclaims with a laugh.

I raise my brow at her, waiting for a serious answer.

"Spin the bottle," she says when she noticed that none of us are moving. Our hands still entwined with each other.

"And what's the consequence?"

"Seriously, Ysabell? Are you even a human?" she spits sarcastically.

"Why?"

She lets out a distress sigh. "Truth or dare. You know that? Or should I explain it to you? If you pick truth, you have to-"

I cut her off with a chuckle. I stand up and let go of Noah's grasp. I walk towards her while beaming because I know that it will annoy her. She just rolls her eyes, then she peers at Noah.

"We came here eight, I hope we won't be nine when we come back home, okay?" she sounds like a mother.

Noah blushes, but I didn't. I'm getting use to Gia's foul words. It doesn't affect me anymore. Except that I wanted to strangle her with her curly hair.

When I enter the room, all of them are sitting on the carpet with an indian sit position, except for Leighton who's nowhere and I can't see Danielle, either.

I sit next to Agnes. We exchange smiles.

Noah and Gia enters at narinig ko ang pagsara ng pinto.

Danielle appears from the first room, she's forcing Leighton to come out pero nagpupumiglas si Leighton sa kaniya.

"Hoy, bading, upo na. Dami mong ganap," sita ni Gia sa kaniya while she's chewing some peanuts.

He grimaces. "Shut up."

"Don't force him," I utter. Leighton looks at Danielle with a triumphant grin, his eyes are ordering her to let go of his clothes.

Danielle looks at me. "We have to, he's being a dick," she utters while dragging Leighton towards us.

"Well, we all hate people when we have our menstruations, right?" I utter while crossing my arms, giving Leighton a mocking grin.

Gia and Danielle laughs. And Leighton's face is crumpled. "I thought you were an ally."

Marahas niyang tinanggal ang pagkakahawak ni Danielle sa kaniya. "I can walk," he spits annoyingly.

Finally, we're all sitting on the circled carpet. The chandelier above us gives glow to the green bottle lying on our crossed thighs.

Nasa kaliwang banda ko si Agnes. Next to her is Ylise, then Danielle. Leighton is grumpily sitting next to Gia which is next to Clay, and Noah is beside me.

Danielle spins the bottle, and it stops at Leighton. I chuckle when I saw his reaction.

"Great. You are so bias," he admonishes the bottle that points him.

"Okay, truth or dare?" I ask.

"None," he answers.

"Leigh!"

"Fine. Truth."

"Are you gay?" Danielle asks rapidly.

"If your definition of gay is not talking to ignorant people like you, Danielle, well yeah, I am," he says with calmness.

Danielle frowns. "He's really a dick," she utters while crossing her arms.

The next bottle stops at Agnes.

"Truth or dare?" Leighton asks since he's the one who spinned the bottle.

I notice that she blushes. "Dare," she shyly answers.

"Kiss the person you like," Danielle orders, again.

Agnes' eyes expand. "I- I can't," sagot niya saka marahang napayuko.

"Why can't yo-" Danielle was cut off by Leighton.

"Just do it." he blurts.

Agnes' face becomes red. She's not a showy person. She didn't even admitted that she likes Leighton and now someone is ordering her to kiss him.

Agnes sighs of defeat.

She slowly lifts her body with hesitance. In a matter of seconds, she was able to kiss Leighton's forehead.

Leighton's face is puzzled, but he blushes.

Muling naupo si Agnes saka niya iniyuko ang kaniyang ulo habang itinatago ang ngiti at pagkahiya sa kaniyang mukha. Danielle and Gia are teasing them.

Leighton looks at me then he mouthed, "Does she?"

I give him an unbelievable look and I utter, "She does, idiot."

Everyone knows that Agnes like him. But he doesn't. He's really stupid.

Agnes shakily spins the bottle, then it drops at Noah.

"Truth or dare?" she asks, but her head is still facing downward.

"Truth," sagot ni Noah saka siya nag-ayos ng pagkakaupo.

"How much do you like our sweet Ysabell?" Gia blurts out. I expect Danielle to interrupt again but she didn't, she just remains silent with an uneasy expression on her face.

I peek at Noah. Ngumiti ito bago nagsalita, "A lot. I like her a lot," maikling sagot niya pero sapat na 'yon upang magwala sa pagkabog ang dibdib ko.

"Ohh," usal ni Gia sa mapang-asar na tono.

Napansin ko ang biglaang pagbabago ng reaksyon ni Danielle at Clay.

The next bottle stops at Noah, again.

"Truth or... Dare?" he asks himself, then he lets out a chuckle.

"Can I pick truth twice?" he asks, Gia nods.

"Whatever suits you, lover boy."

"Okay, truth."

"Who did you like more? Ysabell or Danielle?" Leighton blurts out.

Everyone's eyes widen. No one is expecting that question from him. Gia's face is filled with uncertainty and Danielle is now facing downward.

Me? Puzzled.

"Did they... have a past?" I ask, dumbfounded.

Unti-unting nabuo ang mga katanungan sa aking utak. I never knew that they had shared something in the past. Noah didn't tell me. None of them did.

"Everyone knew about that," Leighton exclaims.

I stare at him. "So, I guess I'm not part of that everyone?" the last words I said turned out into a squeak.

Gia looks up at me. "No, babe. Of course you are!" she defends, but her words are like air passing through my ears.

I examine them. They all have the guilty expression. They knew about it. And I'm the only idiot here who thinks that there's no connection between Danielle and Noah. Great. Just great.

Nagsimulang sumakit ng ulo ko, but I didn't react. I'm starting to feel numb with the thought of how stupid I am for not realizing things between the two of them.

Noah holds my hand, but I divert it from him strenuously.

I glance at him, "Answer Leighton's question," I order. I tried to remain calm, but my voice shudders.

He looks at my eyes. "You. I- I like you more than her-" his voice tried to convince me but I cut him off.

I snicker, then I pull out my gaze from him. I stare at Danielle who's now looking at me weakly, as if she's the victim. "Am I supposed to believe that?" I hiss in a bitter tone.

"Ysabell, I'm, I'm n-not lying!"

"Sure you're not. You're not just telling me things between you and her, but that doesn't mean you're lying, right?" I fake a smile, but I didn't bother to meet his eyes. Hindi ko alam kung bakit ginagawa kong big deal ang bagay na matagal nang natapos pero hindi ko mapigilan ang sarili ko. The fact that they made me look stupid is an enough reason to feel rage right now.

"Spin the bottle," I spit furiously.

No one dared to talk. I can't even hear their breathings. Maingat na hinawakan ni Noah ang bote at pinaikot ito, just like how they tricked me into a circle on their palms.

I feel so betrayed right now.

It stops at Ylise.

Gia claps her hands, pretending that no fuss had happened. She lets out a nervous snort.

"So... Ylise, narinig ko ang tungkol kay Earl noong lumipat ako rito. Sino siya? Your ex boyfriend?" she playfully asks, but it's not enough to change the atmosphere in the Casa. It's so warm that I'm getting burned by the chandelier's light.

Ylise exhales. "He was my friend," she answers shortly.

"Was? Your friendship ended?" tanong ni Gia. Her laugh is full of regrets because she realized that she just opened another wound while trying to close the first one.

"He died," Ylise utters, and based on her voice, I know she's in pain.

"Kailan siya namatay? Where was he buried?" tanong muli nito.

Ylise looks at her with tears. "I... never saw his grave. I only came at his funeral, but after that, he and his family disappeared," she mumbles then tears starts flowing down on her eyes. I see how much she loves her friend because she's weeping hardly.

"Or maybe no one really cared about him and just let him rot," bulalas ni Leighton na dahilan para mapasinghap si Gia at Danielle.

Ylise glances at him with an agony on her face. "How could you say that? You were the-"

"Hey, hey! Stop it!" pag-awat ni Gia sa dalawa dahil puno nang hinanakit at galit ang mga mata ni Ylise.

Agnes rubs her back because I can't. I'm still occupied with the things that I just found out and thinking other's issues right now is on my least of concerns.

After a minute of whimpers, Ylise spins the bottle. And it stopped at Leighton.

Clay's voice flinch me. I never foresaw that he will ask Leighton a question.

"Truth or dare?" tanong niya habang nakayuko.

Leighton cackles with despise. "Truth," he answers in a firm tone.

Clay takes a deep breath. "Is it that hard for you to forgive me?" he asks and his voice is now cracking.

I guess spin the bottle isn't the best choice when a group of people that hides bunch of secrets were bored.

Leighton looks at Clay's lowered head. "It's not hard. It's impossible," he spits out with disgust.

Narinig ko ang pagbuntong hininga ni Clay. "Why can't you just forget the past?" he utters with tears streaming down on his eyes. Gia pats his back and tried to stop him from talking pero hindi siya tumigil.

Mariin siyang tumingin kay Leighton. The veins in his head are apparent at nagsisimula nang magpawis ang mukha niya.

Leighton stands up precipitously. "Are you forcing me to do things that I don't want to do?! You're so good at manipulation, aren't you?!" sigaw niya sa ngayo'y napayukong si Clay. Leighton's eyes are now full of fury.

"Leighton, tama na," pang-aawat ni Gia habang inaalo ang ngayo'y humahagulgol na si Clay.

"No! Why is he forcing me?!" he squats to meet Clay's face. "How dare you dictate me what to do? You once controlled me like a robot. And that won't happen again." his eyes, voice, and the grip of his palm to Clay's cheeks is different.

It's not the Leighton that I know. Right now, I know that whatever happened between them in the past... I'm sure that it's really a big matter.

"Hey, hey, hey. Take it easy." pumagitna sa kanilang tatlo si Noah kaya napaurong ako nang bahagya.

"Clay, kumuha na muna kayo ng kahoy ni Noah," saad ni Gia habang pilit na pinapatahan ang nobyo. She nods at Noah and he gets her signal.

"Yeah, so we can relax for what had happened," he glances at me but I alter my gaze to Leighton. "Let's make a campfire later."

How rubbish. Suggesting a campfire after everything that almost ruined our relationship with each other?

Tinulungang tumayo ni Noah at Gia si Clay at inalalayan ito palabas ng pinto. Gia walks inside, then she forces a smile at me before she went to the kitchen.

"There are no axe in here," she yells.

"It's fine. We can ask for some at the caretakers," sigaw ni Noah pabalik kaya naglakad na palabas si Gia.

Agnes helps the weeping Ylise to enter their room. And Leighton, on the other side, is still sitting here in front of me. His head is sunk, and I know he's crying because his shoulders are moving.

Danielle speaks out, "Ahm, Ysabell-"

I stand up without glancing at her. She flinches with my sudden movement. "Leigh, let's talk," I exclaim while avoiding Danielle's eyes, then I grab Leighton's arm. He didn't argue because he's still sobbing.

We walk towards the door habang naiwan namang tulala si Danielle sa living room. Gia is sitting on one of the swings and I didn't see Noah and Clay. They already left to get some woods for our so-called campfire later.

Umakyat ako sa tree house na nasa gilid ng Casa. It's not hard, tho. Maayos at pantay ang pagkakagawa ng mga hagdan kaya agad akong nakaakyat papasok dito.

Sumunod na umakyat si Leigh. He's still crying and I don't know how to console him. It's the first time that I see his weak side. I never saw him cry before.

On the other side, I'm right about the tree house. It really is filled with sparkling Christmas lights all around its corner. There are two sofas on both side and one bed in the center. May dalawang bintana rin ito. Mukha lang siyang maliit kung titingnan sa labas pero malawak ito sa loob. I think four people could fit inside of it.

"Actually, I- I have no business with you. I just, just don't wanna talk to Danielle yet," saad ko habang nakatingin sa nakayuko niyang ulo. "Not now, at least," I add.

He glances at me while sniffing, his eyes and nose are red. "I know that, stupid." he chuckles a bit. He's coming back from the old Leighton again.

I roll my eyes. "May mas tatanga pa ba sa 'yo? You were not even aware that Agnes likes you," I spit habang unti-unting sumisilay ang maliit na ngiti sa aking labi.

"Look who's talking. You're also not aware that Danielle and Noah had a romantic past," he cocks in a matter-of-fact tone. He didn't hesitate to tell me things that might hurt my feelings, but I adore him for that. It's better to be slapped by the truth than be kissed with a lie. Besides, I can't bear being a fool all my life just to save myself from pain.

"Then... we can say that we're both stupid." I chuckle to hide the pain inside me.

No one talks for a moment, so I did.

"Leigh."

"What?" he asks annoyingly that makes me laugh. Leighton's back.

"You look so ugly when you're crying."

"Really? You look ugly even when you're not crying," he answers.

"Oh shut up." I roll my eyes at him, but a cackle comes out from my mouth.

He yawns, and so do I.

So we decided to take a nap since none of us wants to come back to the Casa.

--

I can hear cries.

Screams.

Outside.

Someone is roaring out my name.

No, our names.

"Leighton! Ysabell!" someone's voice ehoes through my ears. I recognize that it's Danielle's.

I abruptly rise my body up, and my head hit the low ceiling. Napasapo ako sa noo ko at marahang hinimas ito. I notice that I'm still here in the tree house, and Leighton is sleeping beside me.

It's dark outside, but the Christmas lights are giving brightness to the small house we're in.

I examine the area, but I can't see anything. Danielle is still shrieking. What's wrong with her?

"Ysabell! Leighton! Where the hell are you?!" she shouts again, and that moment, I know that there's something wrong going on.

Her voice is trembling in fear.

I turn my head then I saw the Casa. The only light that's lit is the one in the living room, the door is also wide open and so is the glass covering.

Sisigaw na sana ako pabalik upang matigil na siya sa kasisigaw niya, but before I could utter a word, I hear some loud footsteps walking towards our direction. Bukod sa tunog ng mga yabag na lumulukot sa natuyong mga dahon ay may naririnig din akong kaluskos.

Someone... who's direction is towards us, is carrying something heavy.

No, he's dragging it.

I shiver, even if I'm still puzzled with whatever is happening. I fucking regret napping because I have no idea who is that, and why is Danielle freaking out.

Sumilip ako sa bintana at kita ko mula rito ang bukana ng Casa. Danielle stops calling out our names, then I saw her eyes widen. She's terrified with whoever she is seeing in front of the Casa.

"Ahhh!" she yells, then she hurriedly closes the door, making the place very dark.

Silence.

Nakabibinging katahimikan ang namayani sa loob ng mahigit sampung segundo bago ako nakarinig ng muling paggalaw ng mga paa.

I hear a creepy laugh.

Unti-unting tumaas ang mga balahibo sa aking katawan nang biglang umilaw ang paanan namin.

Someone. That fucking someone...

Is standing right behind our tree...

Sumilip ako upang makita ang mukha niya. My eyes widen nang maaninag ko ang hitsura ng taong ngayo'y marahang umaakyat sa tree house.

He's wearing a dirty-white rabbit mask and it's smiling eeriely. An inverted cross was also stitched on its forehead.

On his left hand is a torch lit in burning fire.

And on his right hand...

Is a bloody axe.

What he does next almost made my body collapse on the floor. I'm now terrified and I can't even move my body.

I'm starting to get paralyzed.

Because...

He starts humming an eerie tone... while climbing on the tree.