It was five in the morning when Marcus awoke, the gray light of dawn still stitched with silence. He stumbled toward the front door, groggy but hopeful, as if something had stirred him awake without reason. The moment the latch clicked, the door swung open, and his eyes widened. There, on the porch steps dusted with dew, stood his sister.
"Sera!" he shouted, startling the birds nesting in the awning. His arms locked around her, loud with joy, chin buried briefly in her shoulder. "You're here—you're really here! How are you? Malik? Riven? Dad?"
Sera blinked against the sudden noise, too stunned to smile. Faking excitement. "Marcus?" Her voice cracked slightly. "When did you come back?"
"A week ago," he said, laughing through the answer. "I didn't want to make a big thing of it. It was—well, you know how barrio work goes. The medical team flew out and stayed for nearly four years. No signal most days. I've got stories you wouldn't believe." He gestured animatedly, Marcus pulling her.
Sera's hand touched his sleeve, as if grounding herself. "That was long, well, did you find a doctor sister-in-law for us?"
"NO!"
Marcus loudly answered, then softly added, "I was waiting for Cindy, you know."
Sera smiled bitterly, "Marcus, Cindy got married last month."
"Really?"
She nodded. Wanting not to disturb Callum, she pulled her brother, and they sat outside, beside Jonas.
"While doing a checkpoint at Linambayan, I met her and her husband. They pulled off and we chatted for a while. Her husband is Mayor Magsalin."
Marcus listened. Sera's voice was soft, but he can her words rang loud and clear. And a tear wanted to fall from his eyes, but a bitter smile showed instead.
"It's fine. But is she happy?"
Sera looked at him; her stare meant yes, her gaze meant comfort. Her brother knows and understands. Thus, he smiled, and his iris tried to palpitate calmly with the intent of deceiving her that he was fine. It took him a couple of minutes to gather his energy, and he happily spoke.
"Same team, same country, 200 barrios. Our recent visit was to clinics in coastal villages, with the majority of cases involving post-disaster injuries. One of the kids I treated, a boy, had stitched his sister's leg himself with fishing wire."
His voice, annoyingly loud and echoing through the hallway, roused Callum. The bed creaked as he stirred under the sheets, heart hammering as Sera's voice drifted in.
Sera was back.
One year. Ten days. That was how long she had been gone—long enough for Callum to memorize the gap she left behind. Long enough for him to rehearse what he'd say if she returned. Yet now, with her voice filtering through the door, soft and unsure, all words vanished. Panic settled in his chest like wet cement.
The knob turned.
In an instant, he shut his eyes and turned his head toward the wall, willing his breath to slow.
The door creaked open. Marcus was still mid-story, hands painting the air as he told Sera about a foreign nurse who'd tried to court him. "She even asked me to extend my stay," he said with mock exasperation, "but her idea of romance was giving me fruit and weird soup. I didn't know how to tell her I just wanted bandages and silence."
Sera chuckled under her breath, but her gaze landed on Callum. The slant of morning light caught his brow, and something tender unraveled in her chest.
She walked over, gently beside him.
"Callum," she whispered.
Marcus halted his story as she placed a hand on the edge of the mattress. "What happened?" she asked, voice tilting with concern.
Marcus replied with a shrug. "They got caught in the storm, joined with an earthquake while preparing for Silvas' opening."
A knot formed in Sera's chest.
Sera's expression flickered. "He was alone with Dahlia?"
What if he and Dahlia had grown closer—closer than she'd allowed herself to hope for? She hadn't been here. She hadn't made her presence remarkable yet. The thought of him looking at someone whom he used to treasure the most made her throat tighten.
Marcus seemed to read something in her silence. "Hey," he said, leaning against the doorframe, "you know Callum. He's not the kind to get swept away by his emotions. That guy's wise. Almost stubborn about his principles and was willing to betray his heart."
Sera nodded, but her lips didn't lift. The guilt gnawed deeper now, worse than the jealousy. She'd destroyed his fairy tale and now, tortured him with the burden of their vows. She wanted to let go, but her desire to stay longer with him outweighed her guilt.
The room held its breath.
Callum's fingers twitched under the blanket. He couldn't feign sleep any longer. Slowly, he opened his eyes, which immediately found her, close enough to touch.
She looked older. Or maybe just quieter. Her features were drawn, brows softened by some prolonged sadness she hadn't worn before.
He wanted to speak. To say everything at once. But his chest tightened, and only one word made it out, fragile and hoarse:
"Sera…"
She turned, eyes wide, and for a moment neither of them moved. Marcus and Jonas seemed to understand and slipped out, murmuring something about giving them space.
And so, the door closed.