The sun was beginning to set along the horizon, over the fields nestled by the road to Divinagracia from San Ignacio. Staring at the farmlands he called home, Iñigo thought back to how fun the day turned out to be. With all the memories he made, he hoped to treasure them in his heart forever. 

But throughout the excursion, Iñigo was taken aback at how willingly Javier paid for everything. Sure, he knew that Javier was rich, but even then, there was a limit on how much he could spend. Even as Iñigo tried to offer to pay for even a small amount, Javier wouldn’t have it, leaving Iñigo stupefied.

However, the more he thought about the trip that afternoon, the more Iñigo thought about Kenji and how he was faring. He really wished he could have brought Kenji along, but even if Kenji were free, he knew convincing Kenji to come was next-to-impossible. 

Lately, Iñigo couldn’t ignore the animosity his partner had toward Javier, though he never understood why. To Iñigo, Javier was a kind and generous older brother figure who always doted on him, and he figured that Kenji would at least recognize that. 

There must have been some misunderstanding between the two, Iñigo thought, and that all he needed to do was to get them to understand each other. After all, he wished from the bottom of his heart that they all would remain close even twenty years later.

Having been deep in his thoughts, Iñigo lost track of time, until the car drove into an estate on the outskirts of Divinagracia. As the driver continued down the road, Iñigo couldn’t help but gape in awe at the beauty of the roadsides, all lined with palm trees and tropical flowers. At the end of the road stood a villa, overlooking the entirety of the town of Divinagracia.

Iñigo wondered what it would be like to live with a vast amount of wealth like this. But he knew that it wasn’t in the cards for his future which, as he saw it, was by Kenji’s side.

After a couple of minutes, the car made a sharp turn into their driveway, and soon after, the driver got out and opened the door for them. The trio made their way out of the car, and was greeted by one of their helpers, a middle-aged woman who was accompanied by a younger one, who appeared no older than Iñigo. Javier rolled his eyes when he saw the younger one sneak in some glances over in Iñigo’s direction. But before he could go over and do something about it, Javier saw Esther grab Iñigo by the hand and walk him into the house, and he quickly followed the pair inside.

After a lavish dinner with Esther and Javier, Iñigo found himself sitting next to Esther on her bed, admiring the blue and white corduroy jacket that he had picked out for Kenji earlier that day. Esther caught herself staring at him from time to time, fixating enviously as he droned on about how he couldn’t wait to see Kenji wear something he had picked out.

Esther had to admit, the jacket suited Kenji perfectly; with the numerous sequins embroidered on the hem, it was as gaudy as Kenji was. Though she never held Kenji in such disdain as her older brother did, ever since she came back from her studies in Fraser City, she grew unsettled at how close Kenji and Iñigo became. 

There was a part of her that wondered whether she could have taken Kenji’s place in Iñigo’s heart before moving abroad, before she ever got together with the person she dated over in Fraser City. Maybe if she did, she could have avoided a certain mess being with that man had created.

Over her loose nightgown, she placed her hand over her stomach and sighed.

As if awoken from a stupor, Esther turned to Iñigo and asked him, “Why Kenji?”

Iñigo looked at Esther, who turned her head toward the window overlooking the moonlit skies surrounding her estate. He heaved a sigh in resignation before resting his head over her shoulder.

“Do I need a reason?” he said, so calmly that not even he knew how he felt about it; whether to feel offended or pessimistic. 

“But why?” Esther interjected, her voice raised, and Iñigo fell silent. “Why does it have to be him?”

“Esther, hold on…” Iñigo tried to interrupt, but Esther’s frustrations continued to grow louder.

“Why does it have to be a guy?”

“Why, when there are many girls around you?”

“Why can’t you live the normal life everyone in town expects of you?”

These questions, Iñigo could tolerate; he had dealt with his own family’s disapproval when they found out he liked men. If he could deal with the shame and disgust his family gave him, and the indignation he felt that drove him to run away with Kenji, he could deal with this too.

But as he continued to listen to Esther’s rants, he could only sit there in silence as she muttered, her shoulders slumped, “It’s too late now, but I liked you once before. I wished it had been me instead of Kenji, but it’s too late now.”

Iñigo struggled to find the words to say, as Esther stood in front of him, unable to stop herself from crying until her face became wet, her breath hitched.

“I’m sorry…” Esther muttered, turning back around to sit on her bed. Refusing to look into his gaze, she continued to stare out into the sky. “I don’t know what I’m saying when I can no longer have you, but…”

But then, she felt Iñigo’s embrace from behind, his broad figure resting atop her back, his arms holding her tightly.

“You’re dear to me, Esther,” Iñigo reassured. “Even if things were to turn out differently, you’re still dear to me…”

And that was enough for her.

As the night continued on, the two friends fell asleep next to each other, their shoulders barely touching, as if they felt safe by each other’s side. As if they needed nothing more than the openness and trust they had for one another.

Later on, Javier, who had walked into his sister’s room to check in on the two, felt a pang of jealousy. He already knew of Esther’s feelings, but he did not expect his little sister to get so close to Iñigo. But Javier knew that he couldn’t antagonize her, she’s family after all. 

And even so, he could deal with Esther later. If Iñigo were to spend the night in Esther’s room, to Javier, that was fine for all he cared. Kenji was the bigger threat in his eyes. If Kenji were to arrive home to nobody, then great. Iñigo could be Esther’s for just this night, just long enough to use her as a way to break Iñigo and Kenji up.

Javier took out his phone and snapped a picture of the two sleeping next to each other, before leaving the room without a word. 

Javier walked over to the living room and poured himself a bottle of whisky from a nearby bottle, allowing himself to drink. Setting the glass next to the phone, he contemplated for a moment. 

He should tell Kenji about Esther’s little tryst with Iñigo. He should stir the pot. He felt almost cheerful as he sent the photo to Kenji:

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Javier Samson: Knocked out already haha. Miss you bro :)