What's stopping you?
1185 Words
Caleb
"Aren't you going to visit your parents?" Uncle Chuck asked.
The table became silent. We didn't really discuss our parents. It was better to keep quiet about it. It was a very sensitive topic for us, especially for Callum. He didn't want to talk about it. We wanted to move on from the reality. Bringing them up would just hurt us.
Nevertheless, I continued eating before answering my uncle. "I will. Probably after our dinner." I smiled at him.
He nodded his head. "Oh, okay."
Good thing, they didn't bring it up anymore. When I looked at Callum, I saw that he seemed so quiet. He was still affected and hurt. It was obvious.
Daniela was the one who broke the uncomfortable silence. "So, your uncle and I together with Ana and Anne are planning to have a summer vacation somewhere. Do you want to come? I promise it will be fun."
I took a sip of my soft drink before answering. "If that's okay with Callum, of course we'll go. Callum?"
Callum looked at me and smiled. "Of course, I want to come."
"Great. I can't wait." Anna seemed so excited.
"Me too. But, we need to buy bikinis first." Anne told her twin sister.
"Of course. We'll go bikini shopping."
"Indonesia sounds good?" It came from Uncle Chuck.
That made me turn my head to look at him. "Overseas?"
"Don't worry, Caleb. Tickets are on us."
"But, Uncle Chuck-"
"No, it's fine. It's my graduation gift for you. You make me so proud, son."
I couldn't do anything, but just be very grateful for my uncle. "Thank you so much. I promise I'll give back to you."
"You don't need to, Caleb. I consider you as my own son. My brother would also be so proud of you."
"I know. I really owe you a lot."
"I just want to keep the promise." He paused to look at the table where every plate was empty. "So, are you all done?"
"Yeah." We all said simultaneously.
Uncle Chuck was the first to get up from the seat. "I'll go talk to Brett and pay for our bill. Honey, girls, wait for me here. Caleb, Callum, take care."
"We will. Thank you so much, Uncle and Daniela." I hugged both of them.
I went to the twins and kissed their foreheads. "I love you."
"Love you too, bro." They chorused. They hugged Callum. "Love you, Cal."
"Love you too, sis. We'll go now."
"Okay. Take care."
We waved at them as we exited the restaurant. While we were walking to the truck, I could sense that Callum was off. He actually was at dinner.
We got into the truck. Before turning the ignition on, I asked my brother. "You are so quiet. Are you alright?"
He put his seatbelt on and gave a lopsided smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just sad."
I ruffled his hair. "It's okay. We'll be fine."
"I hope so."
I started the car and drove to our parents. The ride was so silent, but it was not an uncomfortable silence. It was a solemn one. Callum had his head leaned on the window as he looked outside.
It wasn't like we didn't care anymore. There was still part of us that couldn't accept the fact or what happened. We wanted to move on, but not to forget.
The ride to our parents was quite long. We arrived at around nine in the evening. We walked out of the truck and walked into the cemetery. The whole place was not that dark. There were actually lights that illuminated the place.
I held my brother by his shoulder as we walked to our parents. When we reached their grave, we sat on the ground and just stared at them.
LILLIAN JANE ANDERSON
Born: 9th March 1972
Died: 24th September 2007
CHARLES ROGERS ANDERSON
Born: 11th June 1969
Died: 24th September 2007
Their graves lay side by side in front of us. That was when we noticed something. Something bizarre.
"Why are there flowers here?" Callum asked. I thought he wouldn't notice that too.
"That's what I was going to ask you too. And the answer is, I don't know."
"Did Uncle Chuck, Daniela, and the twins visit here yesterday?"
"I don't know. If they had, they would've mentioned it to us."
"Then, who bought flowers here?"
I stated at the tulips and roses in a bouquet above my parents' names. It seemed like they were just put yesterday because they were still fresh and healthy.
Who came here?
"It's strange." Callum said.
"Yeah, I know." I thought for a while. "Maybe, they're from Vina." I was referring to Mom's best friend and officemate before.
"Maybe. We don't know."
"Sshh. Let's not think about it." I smiled as I stared at my parents' graveyard. "Hey, Mom and Dad. We missed you. We're here to let you know that I finally made it. Dad, your dream will come true soon. Anderson Wheels is coming. Callum will also graduate this Monday. I promise I'll take care of him. I'll never fail you, ever." I paused. I was talking to the most important persons in my life who couldn't hear me anymore.
"Mommy, Daddy. Don't worry, Caleb is taking care of me and I am being a good boy to him."
I smiled at my brother's words.
"He's grown so much and tall, Mom. He gets Dad's height. He likes to play basketball too."
"Yeah, and football."
I traced their names with my fingers. "We just want to let you know that we miss you and we love you so much."
"We'll be going home now, Mom and Dad. Until next time."
We hated goodbyes. And we knew we would be back.
Standing up from the ground, we dusted our pants and smiled at our parents. "Till next time." I whispered.
Side by side, we walked out of the cemetery and to the truck. The night was starting to get so chilly, so we walked faster. We got in the truck and drove home.
As I drove, Callum suddenly asked. "Why don't you have a girlfriend?"
I almost stepped on the brakes at that sudden question.
"What made you ask that?"
"I'm just wondering why? You're getting old and I want a sister."
"You have sisters. There's Anne and Anna."
"But, it will feel so different when you have a girlfriend who I'll treat as a big sister because she's my brother's future wife."
I shook my head. I found it funny though. "It's not in mind yet, Cal."
Lie.
"You're lying. You want to have one. What's stopping you?"
"I need to focus on you. Besides, I still have to find a job and save more so I can build my own business soon."
"Oh."
"Yeah. So, please stop pressuring me to have a girlfriend. I promise I'll have one soon. I'll even make sure you'll love her."
"Good. Don't pick a b*tch."
"Hey, watch your mouth."
He rolled his eyes and laughed. "Sorry."
I shook my head, smiling.
I'll never ever forget this day.
- Writer
