Chapter 10: Second
"Knock, knock!" a voice said from behind the door.
The bedroom door was ajar. Sander stepped into the room, surveying the newly cleaned place. Archie and I were done keeping things in order again in the room. It looked brand new again. All his toys were packed in the box again, and all his books were neatly arranged on the shelf. He also gave me a hand in putting all the folded clothes in our closet.
"Hi, Tito Sander," Archie greeted my brother and walked straight to him, giving him a hug.
"What are you doing, little boy?" Sander returned the hug.
"We cleaned the room. I colored the pigs again. I need to take a bath because mom and I are going out."
"Out? Where?" Sander, looking surprised, asked me.
He walked into the room with Archie on his arm.
"I'm going to meet a friend."
"You have a friend who lives here?" he asked, I nodded.
I hadn't mentioned Ashley to him. He wasn't asking me for the friends I had been meeting out, and I didn't think Sander was that interested in getting to know my friends.
"Can you cancel that plan? My friend's going to come over with his sister. That's the girl I like, Isabel. I can't say no to that."
"You have a girlfriend, Tito?"
"That's a secret, Archie. Don't tell anyone."
"Okay. I will keep my mouth shut," Archie zipped his mouth with an imaginary zipper. "Can I have a burger and coke?" my son whispered but enough for me to hear it.
Sander responded in a whisper, too. "Sure, but we need to keep it a secret. Your mom will get angry at us."
They thought that I wasn't hearing the entire conversation, but Sander was too good to deceive Archie that it was the other way around.
Archie nodded. Sander put down Archie and he looked at me. "Tell your friend to cancel your plans for today. Stay here with me."
"I can't do that. Everything's settled."
"Oh, I forgot to drink my milk!" Archie exclaimed. He hurriedly went out of the room, footsteps were heard that he was going down to the kitchen. "I'll be back, mommy!" I heard him shouting while running to get his milk.
Sander sat on the bed. "Who's from your friends is this?" he asked.
"A friend is a friend, Sander. You don't know all of my friends."
"You don't have a lot, you know."
"She's a girl, Sander. I haven't had guy friends since Archie came into my life. You don't have to remind me what to do and what I don't need to do, okay?"
He nodded. "Okay."
He stayed in the room, not saying anything to me. He was just watching as I picked Archie's clothes for today's lunch with Ashley. "Wait. Don't tell me you're bringing Archie with you?"
"Yeah, what's wrong with that?"
"You can leave Archie with me. My friend loves to play with kids, and if his sister will come along, I think Archie would like to play with her."
"Sander, that's your idea of fun for Archie. Let the kid meet my friends. He also wants to be out of this house," I said. "I'm not saying that your house is boring or what. He wants to see what is outside."
"Fine," he said, rising to his feet. "Let me know what time you are going out. I'll give you a ride."
"Sure, thanks. You da best!"
He laughed. "Why, I'm your only brother. We can't do anything about that."
I mimicked the way he laughed at me. Sander could act like a kid and care for me like a father. He was just exactly what Archie and I needed to pull through.
He walked out of the room, leaving me with choosing the clothes I would wear and the best pair for my son. "Hey, wait." Sander went back, standing by the door.
"I prepared breakfast. We can eat together," he said. "Archie's waiting at the dining table."
"Give me a minute," I replied.
Who would need a husband when my brother can also do the things that James was supposed to do for me? Sander was not young, and he needed to find the right girl who would want to spend her life with my brother. Sadly, he hadn't found the right match for him.
I scanned the room for the backpack. He owned a white teddy bear-shaped backpack from my mom. He loved to use it whenever we had to go somewhere. He had books and toy cars inside. Archie's longing for a playmate. During the car ride, he would bring out the toys and play with himself. He couldn't find a playmate that he could invite over to Sander's house this summer.
I was packing the toiletries and extra t-shirts for my kid when my phone rang. Ashley's name was popping on the screen.
"Hey, Isabel, sorry to call you again," she started. "I'm afraid we need to cancel our plans for today."
There was a hint of disappointment in Ashley's voice. "It's fine, Ashley. I understand. We can reschedule it for next time."
"I'd love that! Sorry again, Isabel. Something came up and I need to deal with it."
"It's really okay. Let's keep in touch so we can talk about the new date for our lunch," I suggested.
Ashley agreed, said her apologies for the third time, and hung up.
Now, I need to put back all the things that I had prepared for Archie. The kid came back holding an apple; there was a bite in it already. "Hi, mom. I'm back. Are we going to go now? Should I take a bath?"
Joy was reflected on his face. I sat in front of him on one knee. I touched his hair and explained the situation to him.
"Archie, you can take a bath but we're not going out today. My friend just called and canceled the plan. She has an urgent task to do. We can stay here with Tito Sander."
"Archie's sad," he said. "I will tell Tito Sander that he should play with me because I am not going anywhere today."
"Tito Sander will like your idea."
Archie didn't seem to be happy about staying in the house with Sander again as his playmate. "Mom," he said in a low voice. "I really need a new playmate aside from your brother. Can I just have a brother or sister?"
I wanted to hug my son and tell him that it wasn't easy to grant his wish. Instead of doing that, I ruffled his hair and gave him a smile. "When you are old enough, Archie. Maybe you can have a little brother or sister. Not in the next three years."
He frowned. "Mom, I will be nine at that time."
"What's wrong with that? You can be his or her big brother. You will protect your sibling and take care of him as a brother."
He smiled, biting on the apple. "Okay. I think that's a good idea, mom. I'll go down and talk to Tito Sander."
"I'll go with you. It's time for breakfast," I said, rising to my feet.
"Yes! Breakfast here we come!" he marched out of the room like a soldier.
This kid was always full of energy.
ʘ
I told Sander about the cancellation of the lunch date today and he was glad about it. He kept on smiling like he had won a prestigious award and would be the next big thing in Hollywood.
"You look like you won the lottery," I commented.
"I feel good today."
"Because his crush will be here in a while. Tito Sander is kilig," Archie chimed in, happily eating his food.
My son was sitting next to Sander and I was across from them. They both gave each other a high five. These two guys were indeed close to each other. If people would look at them, they could win the best son and dad picture of the year.
While looking at them, I couldn't help but compare my brother to James. How did he treat Archie when they were left together? Could he make this kid smile like the way he did whenever Sander was around? The gleam on Archie's face was incomparable.
"Sander, you keep on teaching Archie things that only you should know."
"What's wrong with that? I'm keeping him updated, right boy?"
Archie nodded in agreement. "I think we should take a bath together, Tito," he suggested. "Playmates are going to be here in a short while, right? You need to smell nice in front of the girl you like. I'm going to pick your shirt today."
I chewed my food while letting them talk about the things they should do while waiting for Sander's friends to arrive. What about me? I asked myself. If I don't go out today, should I just stay in my room all day? I was not in the mood to talk and entertain Sander's friends. Archie could do that for me.
While the boys decided to take a bath and get ready before the visitors arrived, I stayed in the kitchen to clean up the things that we used. I little time reading would be my alternative for today's postponed hangout time with Ashley. I would also make our room spick and span while Archie was out. In that way, I wouldn't have a hard time cleaning up the mess again.
I heard their voices inside Sander's room. I made my way to our room and sat at the end of the bed. My phone started to ring.
I stood up and picked up the phone from the bedside table.
When I caught a glimpse of the caller ID, I felt a little nervous.
James was calling.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone