Chapter 52
Tshabina
I’d lost count of how many times I’d pressed the doorbell, yet the tenant inside still hadn’t opened the door. I knew that Chatterbox was a heavy sleeper, but this was ridiculous.
It had taken me quite an effort to convince Zioh to drop me off here instead of driving me all the way home. After almost half an hour of negotiations and coaxing, he finally agreed, though he hated every second of it—his face made that clear.
When I woke up this morning, my whole body felt warm, spotless, and fresh. I wasn’t sure if Zioh had slept at all, but the moment I opened my eyes, he was already sitting on one of the sofas in our room, offering me breakfast and handing me a change of clothes.
While we ate together, he busied himself massaging my ankle and thigh as I sipped the hot chocolate he’d given me.
Everything felt peaceful, as though it had calmed the storm we’d been weathering lately.
But as Zioh started to drive me home earlier, unease crept in. I hadn’t replied to a single message since last night, and by the time I woke up, my phone was full of missed calls from Tsabinu.
I couldn’t face him alone. That was why I told Zioh I had plans with Andi—a lie, of course. What I needed from my best friend this morning was his support in facing Tsabinu.
I’d been here for several minutes, standing outside Andi’s apartment, but there was still no response.
Was he alright?
When the bell didn’t work, I began banging on the door. “Andi!” I called, raising my voice but keeping it at a half-whisper, afraid of disturbing the neighbors. “Ndi!” I repeated.
Finally, after what felt like ages, the door pin clicked as it was pressed. Relief rushed through me as the door opened, and I was ready to unleash a tirade, but the words died in my throat.
“Are you hibernating, or—”
My sentence cut off when the person who came out of the door wasn’t Andi. In fact, it wasn’t a man at all.
It was a woman.
A tall, stunning woman who left me too stunned to speak.
The woman was breathtaking. Tall, with damp hair wrapped in a towel atop her head, her skin was porcelain-pale, her nose defined, and her eyes gleamed as though they held their own light. It was dazzling when she smiled at me—awkward yet radiant, dimples surfacing, and her eyes mirroring the smile.
Absolutely gorgeous.
My awe instantly soured into a wave of embarrassment.
Crap. Damn you, Andi.
All the scenarios spinning in my head sent heat to my cheeks, and I forced a crooked smile.
Poor girl. A woman this divine surely didn’t belong with a weirdo like Andi.
Just a week ago, I saw his pics partying and dancing with foreign girls at some club.
And now this? He had a girlfriend, or maybe a fwb, this stunning?
Typical shameless asshole.
The woman tightened the belt of her bathrobe. Brilliant. I’d interrupted her at the worst possible time.
“Ex–excuse me… May I help you?” she asked, her accent betraying that she wasn’t used to speaking the language here, or perhaps the accent just felt awkward.
“Ah, sorry,” I stammered, shaking my head and lifting my gaze to her. Was she a model? She was so tall and slim. “I’m looking for my friend… Andi.”
Her smile softened. “Ah… Andi’s friend?” Her delicate tone reminded me of Tsabinu’s gentle way of speaking. She pointed at me, and I nodded, flashing a sheepish grin.
“Yes… I’m so sorry for disturbing you,” I muttered, guilt curling in my chest. I couldn’t help noticing her damp frame, and I shifted in a small motion.
Curse every ounce of this shame. It felt as though she could read the awkward mess of my thoughts; she studied me, then let out a graceful little laugh.
“Ah, no… Allow me to introduce myself.” She extended her hand.
“I’m his Ce—” She shook her head, then tried again with a gentler voice.
Her tone was soothing, the sort of voice that wrapped around you like a warm blanket.
“I’m Andi’s sister. My name is Ladie Yang. ”
And damn my filthy imagination to the pits.
My cheeks blazed hotter, mortification spreading through me. Hurriedly, I clasped her hand, caught between shock and shame, and I forced a wobbly smile. “S-sorry… Ci—” I stammered, fumbling for the right honorific. “Mbak… Mrs—”
Huh…
Communication Studies, my ass.
Ladie laughed again. “Just call me Ladie,” she offered.
I forced myself to keep smiling when a knot tightened in my chest.
First, I had no idea Andi even had a sister.
He was always so private, never even inviting us over to his house.
Since middle school, I’d probably visited his house fewer than ten times, and it was only because we had to work on our assignment there, where there were animals or objects we could use for it.
And his place had been eerily quiet; he’d always claimed his parents were too busy.
Second, I’d never once seen a photo of this stunning woman. Not on the walls, not on the shelves. Nothing.
Third, it was only after we’d started working that he invited me over more often, once he’d moved into this apartment to live independently.
Chatterbox though he was, he was tight-lipped about his family. He’d never shared a thing about them. All I knew was that his parents were businesspeople.
I returned Ladie’s kind smile with a nod, waiting as she spoke again. “But Andi didn’t tell you?” she asked with a hesitant tone.
I cleared my throat and shook my head, watching her closely. “My brother hasn’t lived here for almost a year now.” Her words fell, careful and slow. “He moved back in with our parents.”
Wow, that was fourth.
Each revelation made me feel dumber by the second, especially when she shared their address.
My eyes widened.
Of course. That was five.
Andi’s new family house was right next to Danudara’s—my old house.
? ── * ── ?
In the end, I decided to go home. Alone.
After leaving Andi’s apartment, I walked in circles inside my own thoughts. I wanted to call him to demand an explanation, but something about it gnawed at me. My lack of knowledge about the people around me struck like a physical blow.
They always seemed to keep their doors barred, never letting me truly see them.
Andi knew everything about me. He probably even knew the names of my great-grandparents. That was the kind of friend he was. Yet he couldn’t even bother to tell me he’d moved house.
Ladie’s words pulled me back to reality. Everyone had a secret vault, and somehow, I was always the last to be trusted with the code.
I had lived under the illusion that the people around me and I were special, that we were close and shared everything. But it turned out, we… didn’t.
Someone they couldn’t trust, couldn’t rely on, not even to listen. No wonder they never opened up.
Maybe because I was weaker than the people around me.
I stared ahead until my eyes hurt, my fingers tightening around the fabric of my pants.
After exiting the taxi, I stood outside my gate for a long time.
My head spun, and my heart raced. During the ride, I called Mbak Mayang, and what she told me made the unease worse: Tsabinu had been sitting at the dining table since dawn, waiting for me.
“I’m sorry, Mas…” I whispered under my breath. “I just don’t know how to explain all of this…”
Tsabinu was gentle. Rarely raised his voice, even seldom spoke at all. His patience ran deeper than the ocean, but not when he couldn’t take it anymore. Not when he was under pressure, cornered, or deceived.
Ever since our mother died, and our father fell ill, there’d been a quiet frost in him.
A lump of bitterness he’d been carrying for years, swelling until it could burst at any time.
He could hide it from the world, fool everyone else, but not me.
I knew it was there, waiting for the right moment to explode.
That was why I’d always been careful, never daring to push him too far.
But it seemed my sense had abandoned me lately, or ever since Zioh came back into my life.
It felt so heavy for keeping it a secret about how Zioh and I had grown close again, that sometimes I went to his penthouse and Zioh and I spent time together, when for years, Tsabinu and I had only had each other, been each other’s foundation. But everything twisted in my head.
My brother’s silence made me doubt. I didn’t even know why, all these years, he’d been pulling me away from our second family… From the people we once called home.
How could I be sure of anything when all of them kept shutting my eyes to the truth?
I exhaled one last time before pushing open the gate. My hesitant gaze lingered on the front door as I strolled towards it.
I tried not to creep, but every step down the hallway towards the dining room felt like trespassing. I planned to sneak up the stairs, unseen, but the moment my foot touched the second step, a voice froze me.
“Tshabina.”
I turned my head, and there he was: Tsabinu staring at me from behind his glasses, his gaze cold, powerful enough to lock my body in place and make the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
“Where have you been, Dek?” His voice cut through the air. “What have you been doing?”
Oh no.
I gaped for a moment, my mouth dry. “Mas, I—”
“To the point.” His tone grew sharper, his steps bringing him closer. “Where were you?” His jaw tightened as his eyes locked onto mine. “You stayed the night with Zioh, didn’t you?”
The fury and the chill radiated from him, but worst of all, the disappointment. Oh, no, no, no. I blinked hard, willing the burning in my eyes not to betray me.
My lips parted. “Mas, listen to me first—”