Chapter 22 - Nothing Happened
Nothing happened that Sunday.
No client emergency.
No new business opportunity.
No acquisition.
No employee problem.
No surprise Celeste encounter.
No one confessed anything.
No one died.
Which, for me, apparently qualified as suspicious.
I woke up at eight.
Eight.
Not six.
Not five-thirty.
Not because of an alarm.
Not because a machine needed checking.
Not because a customer had sent—
urgent po
—at 6:12 AM.
I just woke up.
Lay there.
Looked at the ceiling.
Then checked the time again because eight felt irresponsible.
It wasn't.
Sunday.
Workspace closed.
Everyone knew.
I rolled over.
Stayed in bed for another twenty minutes.
Wild behavior.
When I finally went downstairs, Mama was already cooking.
Papa was drinking coffee.
Sofia was sitting at the table with her phone.
Papa looked at me.
"Ngayon ka lang nagising?"
"Yes."
"Okay."
That was it.
No congratulations.
No applause.
My personal revolution went unrecognized.
Mama looked over.
"Kape?"
"Yes."
"Make your own."
There.
Reality restored.
I made coffee.
Sat.
Sofia looked at me.
"May gala?"
"No."
"Work?"
"No."
She slowly lowered her phone.
"What are you doing today?"
I stared.
"Nothing."
She looked genuinely concerned.
"Are you okay?"
I laughed.
"Yes."
"Sure?"
"Why does everyone react like this?"
"Historical data."
Again.
I hated statistics when applied correctly.
Around nine-thirty, Ate Bianca arrived.
No warning.
She walked in carrying a small bag and said—
"Ma, may food?"
Mama shouted from the kitchen—
"Meron."
Of course.
Ate Bianca saw me on the sofa.
"Wala kang work?"
"No."
"May sakit ka?"
I stared.
"Can everyone stop?"
She laughed and sat beside me.
"Rare sighting."
"I'm here every night."
"Mentally?"
Rude.
Accurate enough.
Twenty minutes later, Kuya Nathan and Ate Vivian arrived too.
Apparently no one in this family knew how to spend Sunday inside their own homes.
Kuya Nathan carried drinks.
Ate Vivian carried pastries.
Papa looked around the living room.
"Meeting?"
"No," Mama said immediately.
Everyone laughed.
No business.
Mama had spoken.
We ate.
That was basically the first half of the day.
Coffee.
Bread.
Leftover food.
Something Mama fried because apparently existing food was not enough.
Ate Bianca complained about one customer.
Mama reminded her—
"No business."
Ate Bianca corrected herself.
"Not business. Chismis."
Approved.
Kuya Nathan and Ate Vivian argued about whether one of their neighbors had actually bought a new car or was just borrowing it.
Sofia showed us a video from school.
Papa watched something on TV.
Mama kept moving between kitchen and sala while refusing help.
Normal.
Very normal.
I sat there.
No need to contribute.
No need to solve anything.
At one point, everyone was talking at the same time.
I couldn't even follow the conversation.
Ate Bianca was telling Sofia something.
Kuya Nathan interrupted.
Ate Vivian corrected him.
Mama shouted from the kitchen.
Papa laughed.
And I—
just listened.
My phone buzzed.
Abigail.
I looked.
Ma'am sorry sunday, reminder lang po delivery tomorrow 9am. No need reply.
I smiled.
No need reply.
Good employee.
I reacted with a thumbs-up anyway.
Then locked the phone.
Ate Vivian noticed.
"Work?"
"Reminder."
"You checking?"
"No."
"Wow."
I pointed.
"Don't."
She laughed.
Apparently everyone had joined the growth committee.
Around noon, Mama asked—
"Lia, bili ka nga yelo."
I stared.
"What?"
"Yelo."
Simple.
No strategy.
No spreadsheet.
No optimization.
Just ice.
"Okay."
Sofia stood.
"Sama ako."
We walked to the nearby store.
No car.
No reason to make it complicated.
She bought chips.
I bought ice.
Then she looked at a rack of random hair clips.
"Cute."
"Buy it."
She looked at me.
"That easy?"
"Yes."
"No cost-benefit analysis?"
"I hate all of you."
She laughed.
She bought two.
On the way home, she asked—
"Ate."
"Hm?"
"Happy ka ba?"
I looked at her.
Dangerous question for a walk carrying melting ice.
"Yes."
She nodded.
Then—
"More than before?"
I thought about it.
"Maybe."
She didn't ask what before meant.
Good.
I adjusted the plastic bag.
"Why?"
"Wala."
"That word again."
She smiled.
"You're just home more."
Ah.
There.
Not happier.
Not better.
Just—
home more.
I looked ahead.
"Good?"
"Yeah."
Then—
"Annoying sometimes."
"Perfect."
Back at the house, lunch became bigger than necessary.
Rice.
Chicken.
Kuya Nathan's food.
Something Ate Vivian brought.
Something Ate Bianca ordered because she said what we had was "kulang sa excitement."
Mama complained but ate it anyway.
Papa approved everything.
Naturally.
After lunch, Kuya Nathan fell asleep on the sofa.
Ate Vivian took a picture.
Ate Bianca wanted to post it.
Ate Vivian said no.
Sofia wanted the photo anyway.
I watched this argument for five full minutes.
Original Life me would have been answering messages.
Or checking numbers.
Or thinking about Monday.
Current me was watching my siblings argue about whether Kuya Nathan's sleeping face belonged online.
Good use of time.
Excellent, actually.
At two, Jane messaged.
alive
I replied—
yes
what are you doing
I looked around.
Kuya Nathan asleep.
Papa watching TV.
Mama cleaning something that was already clean.
Ate Bianca and Ate Vivian talking.
Sofia eating chips.
nothing
Jane:
wow
I stared.
WHY DOES EVERYONE SAY WOW
because you doing nothing is news
Fair.
Then—
want coffee later?
I looked at the house.
No reason not to.
maybe around 4
game
Simple.
No calendar.
No coordination meeting.
No fifteen-message logistics chain.
Chloe appeared in the group chat five minutes later.
coffee?
Jane:
4
Chloe:
game
There.
Apparently I had plans now.
Still normal.
At three-thirty, Ate Bianca saw me getting ready.
"Saan ka?"
"Coffee."
"Kala?"
"Jane and Chloe."
She nodded.
No teasing.
No interrogation.
Thank you.
Ate Vivian looked up.
"Enjoy."
Kuya Nathan was awake now.
"Pasalubong."
"No."
"Family."
"No."
He looked betrayed.
Good.
We met nearby.
Not far.
No mall marathon.
No beach.
Just coffee.
Jane was already seated.
Chloe arrived after me.
Late by nine minutes.
Which she considered acceptable.
Jane looked at me.
"So."
I stared.
"No."
She laughed.
"I didn't say anything."
"You were about to."
"Maybe."
Chloe sat.
"What happened?"
"Nothing."
She looked at me.
Then at Jane.
"Interesting."
I pointed.
"You don't get to use that without context."
"I can use it anywhere."
Unfortunately true.
We ordered.
Talked.
No major topic.
Chloe complained about one cousin.
Jane complained about work.
I complained about being repeatedly accused of being incapable of rest.
Jane:
"Because you are."
"I rested today."
"For how long?"
"Hours."
Chloe looked impressed.
"Documented?"
I stared.
"Do you want timestamps?"
"Yes."
"No."
Then Jane looked at me.
"Celeste?"
I closed my eyes.
Why.
"What about her?"
"Not flirting today?"
Chloe almost spilled her drink.
I stared at Jane.
"You told her?"
Jane looked innocent.
"She was in the chat."
"That is not an explanation."
Chloe looked delighted.
"Not flirting today?"
"Apparently that is now a compliance status."
Jane laughed.
"Very responsible."
I hated them.
My phone buzzed.
Of course.
Celeste.
I looked at the preview.
not flirting
I froze.
Jane saw my face.
"What?"
I slowly turned the phone toward them.
Chloe read it.
Then started laughing.
Jane nearly folded over the table.
"This is harassment."
Jane wiped her eyes.
"Reply."
"No."
"Responsible communication."
"Stop."
Chloe:
"Ask if temporary."
I stared at her.
"You're worse."
"Understandable."
No.
Absolutely not.
I finally replied—
thank you for the update
Celeste:
you're welcome
Then—
11 students still. grace did well
There.
Business.
Safe.
I smiled.
good. don't expand too fast
lia i said 11 not 110
Fair.
Then—
also
I waited.
new photo later
I locked my phone.
Immediately.
Jane saw.
"What did she say?"
"Nothing."
Chloe smiled.
"Interesting."
I hated Sundays now.
We stayed maybe two hours.
No attractive stranger incident.
No very nice legs.
No excellent nose.
Peace.
Almost.
When we stood to leave, Jane looked at someone passing behind me.
Then at me.
I saw the urge.
"Don't."
She smiled.
"I wasn't going to say anything."
"Good."
Pause.
Then—
"Pretty?"
"JANE."
Chloe laughed all the way outside.
Of course.
I got home before dinner.
Ate Bianca had already left.
Kuya Nathan and Ate Vivian were leaving.
I did mano to neither because siblings, obviously, but Kuya Nathan still held out the pastry box.
"Take."
"For?"
"Tomorrow."
I took it.
"Thanks."
Ate Vivian smiled.
"See you."
"Bye, Ate."
Then—
"Bye, Kuya."
"Pasalubong?"
"No."
He laughed and left.
Dinner was just Mama, Papa, Sofia, and me.
Again.
No occasion.
No celebration.
No milestone.
Papa talked about something that happened at work.
Mama complained about grocery prices.
Sofia complained about one professor.
I listened.
Sometimes answered.
Sometimes laughed.
Nothing happened.
After dinner, Papa asked me to hold a flashlight while he checked something under the sink.
I sat on the floor.
Held the light.
He adjusted something.
"Diyan."
"Here?"
"Konti sa kanan."
I moved it.
"Yan."
That was my contribution.
No leadership.
No strategy.
No business judgment.
Just flashlight.
For ten minutes.
Perfect.
Later, Mama handed me folded clothes.
"Dalhin mo sa taas."
"Yes."
Sofia shouted from the table—
"CEO duties."
I stared.
"Do you want your clothes thrown outside?"
She laughed.
Upstairs, I put the clothes away.
Then sat on my bed.
Phone.
Gallery.
Messages.
Nothing urgent.
Tomorrow had orders.
Evelyn's delivery.
Isabella's stock.
Ella's training.
Abigail's new responsibilities.
Things waiting.
But not tonight.
I thought about the day.
Woke late.
Coffee.
Ate Bianca.
Kuya Nathan.
Ate Vivian.
Sofia.
Mama.
Papa.
Ice.
Lunch.
Someone sleeping on the sofa.
Coffee with Jane and Chloe.
Flashlight under the sink.
Laundry.
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing happened.
And I remembered all of it.
That was the strange part.
Original Life had contained years I could summarize in revenue.
Expansion.
Branches.
Hiring.
Deals.
Growth.
But ask me what Mama cooked on one random Sunday when I was twenty-four?
Nothing.
What Papa fixed?
Nothing.
What Sofia bought from the store?
Nothing.
Which sibling fell asleep on the sofa?
Nothing.
Those days had disappeared because I had barely been inside them.
This one—
I had been there.
All day.
No achievement.
No milestone.
No measurable return.
Just a day.
Maybe that was enough.
My phone buzzed.
Jane.
home?
yes
good
Then—
very nice legs
I stared.
No context.
Nothing.
I laughed anyway.
GOODNIGHT JANE
it's 9pm
GOODNIGHT
I put the phone down.
Nothing happened today.
I hoped I got more days like that.