บท 15: Family
"Did I cry so much? Why won't they stop swelling?" Fil muttered in distress, looking at her eyes in the rearview mirror. "I've been putting ice packs over it to stop it from swelling."
She sniffed hard, closing her eyes as she gently dabbed the ice pack over her eyes. Letting go of her anger and pain in her grandfather's graveyard had lessened the heaviness in her heart. However, her eyes were now swollen, as if she was beaten up badly. Although the ice pack helped, it was still noticeable.
"Should I forget to visit them?" she wondered, reopening her eyes as she gazed at the nearby home in the slightly developed suburbs. "But I'm already here."
A shallow breath slipped past her lips, jolting when a sudden knock came from her window. Fil clasped her chest in surprise, turning her head to the side of her window.
"Huh?" she hummed, manually rolling down the window for the other person standing outside.
"What are you doing here?" a young man who was around sixteen lowered his head. "Sis, what are you doing out here… are you crying?"
"Huh?"
The young man blinked and blinked, and then he frowned. "Did someone bully you again? Tell me who is it. I'm going to beat the hell out of them."
"Eli…" Fil breathed out awkwardly, forcing a smile. "I'm not bullied, okay?"
"Then why are your eyes swelling as if you just sob your soul out?"
"Well." Fil cleared her throat. "How do I say it?"
Elijah, Fil's little brother, pressed his lips into a thin line and sighed. He just watched his sister ponder on what sort of lame excuse she would come up with. As if she was that talented in lying.
"If you don't want to tell me, then I won't ask," he conceded, huffing his frustration to lessen his irritation. "Mom and Dad won't ask either, so don't run away."
"Huh? I'm not trying to run away."
She did.
"I'm just saying that in case you need to hear it. Mom and Dad will be disappointed if you don't drop by."
Fil stared at the young man outside the window, and after a second, she nodded. "Fine," she said. "Who told you I'm running away? Why would I drive here and then just leave? Goodness."
Elijah just shrugged, letting her believe he was biting into her lie. If there was anyone he knew in the world the most, that would be his big sister. To make sure she wouldn't just drive away, Elijah jogged around and hitched in the front passenger seat.
"Isn't your boyfriend rich?" was the first thing he said as soon as he got in the truck. "Can't he buy you a better car?"
Fil scrunched up her nose at her little brother. "He's my boyfriend, not my sugar daddy."
"At this point, I wish he was. This truck is old and I'm worried it might break down anytime. Doesn't he feel responsible for his future wife?"
"Eli, this truck won't break down." Fil clicked her tongue as she refocused her attention on the gears and steering wheel. "I keep a regular maintenance on it."
Elijah cast his sister a quick look before he looked away. Fil was parked just a few blocks from their home. Therefore, it didn't take a long time for them to reach a small bungalow surrounded by acres of land where a barn was also in sight.
"Are you okay?" he asked when they reached home and the vehicle stopped.
"Of course."
"Are you sure?"
Fil slowly set her attention to her little brother and smiled. Although she kept in touch with them, it had been months since she visited them due to her hectic schedule.
"Did you grow taller again?" she asked, diverting the topic. "The last time I visited, we were already at the same height. But now, it seems you're taller."
"Don't change the topic."
"Eli, I'm fine. I'll be." Fil nodded at him reassuringly. "It's just… maybe I'm a little tired, and I missed you guys a lot. Grandpa too."
Elijah's expression softened, still assessing his big sister's expression. "If that is what you say."
"Don't worry. Let's get in," Fil chuckled, jumping out of her truck skillfully.
As soon as she did, she heard a faint call from somewhere. When she turned her head, her smile stretched as her mother and father rushed outside the house as soon as they noticed her truck.
"Filly!" her mother called in excitement while her father jogged down the porch to them. Elijah, on the other hand, glanced at his sister over the hood of the car. But he said nothing.
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