Spook

Chapter 5
Making Contact

AS CHARLIE had predicted, Danny insisted on sleeping beside him again. And then again the night after that... and after that...

He didn't dare tell Danny that he really had nothing to worry about because, for some reason, whenever they were together, Charlie couldn't feel the boy's presence. He thought that sleeping beside Danny was probably the closest he'd ever be with him, so he'd just enjoy it as much as he could.

He hadn't seen the boy for the rest of the week because he was with Danny for most of the time he spent in the dorm. And partly because he was swamped with homework that he chose to ignore it even when he was feeling the boy's presence during the few times that he was alone in the room.

Friday afternoon, he knew that Danny was going home to his sister's for the weekend. He was sad that Danny was leaving him alone in their room, but he was also quite anxious to be alone. He knew that he would probably see the boy again during the weekend and he had a lot of questions he wanted to ask him.

"Listen," Danny said as he was getting his dirty clothes packed in his bag. He was going to wash them at his sister's. "You could come home with me this weekend."

"I'll be fine," Charlie said. "Go and enjoy your weekend. Besides, how long has it been since you last saw your girlfriend?" He felt a pang of jealousy as the words spilled from his mouth.

Danny smiled. "She wouldn't mind. She's quite busy with school and everything, too. Besides, I wouldn't enjoy the weekend much if I keep on worrying about you, would I?"

Charlie was hearing wedding bells as he felt himself smiling. But he quickly wiped the silly smile off his face and said, "Really, I'll be fine. I don't wanna be a burden to your sister."

Danny looked at him intently and then picked up his cellphone and dialed his sister's number without saying a word to Charlie.

"Hey," Danny said. "I wanted to bring my roommate back home this weekend but he's being a dick and saying that he didn't wanna burden you."

Danny paused for a while listening to his sister over the phone.

"That's what I said!" Danny said after a while then paused again. "Okay," he said after listening to his sister. Then, he handed the phone to Charlie and said, "She wants to talk to you."

Charlie was horrified. "What?" he exclaimed as Danny was putting the phone in his hands.

He tried to stare defiantly at Danny. But Danny just gave him a look that told him to just take the phone. So he did.

"H-hello," he said quite apprehensively.

"Hi Charlie! This is Danny's sister, Angela."

"Uh... hi Angela," he said.

"Pack your bags and go with Danny," ordered Angela. "I'm making a wonderful dinner for both of you. Danny's told us so much about you that I feel I already know you even if we have yet to meet. I think it's time I meet you in person. Don't worry, it's just me and my little son here. You're no trouble at all... especially compared to the little devil," Angela laughed softly.

"Thanks," said Charlie gratefully. "But what about your husband?"

Angela laughed some more. "I guess Danny hasn't told you much about me. I'm not married. I probably never will, from the looks of it. I'll tell you all about it when you get here."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry," Charlie said.

"Don't apologize. It's not your fault I fell in love with an ass," Angela said, still laughing softly. "Just get your butt in here so we could get to know more of each other. And if you're half of what Danny has been telling me and my son, I know we'll be such good friends."

Charlie couldn't help but smile. "Okay. Thank you so much."

"Don't mention it. I'll see you in a bit. And tell Danny he'd better bring something for Tyler."

He handed the phone back to Danny who was smiling triumphantly at him. "She said bring something for Tyler," he smiled back.

"Okay, I'll run and get something from the Shopping Center real quick," said Danny as he zipped his bag. "You pack your stuff and meet me outside in, say, 15 minutes?"

Charlie nodded, got his bag, walked to his closet and began stuffing some clothes in the bag.

Danny carried his bag and headed out of the room. Before he got out, he put his arm on Charlie's shoulders and said, "See you in a bit." He smiled so sweetly that Charlie felt his knees shake. Charlie managed to smile back.

As Charlie was zipping up his bag, he felt the presence again. He chose to ignore it.

As he was going out the door, he distinctly heard someone say, "Don't leave..."

It sounded like someone just whispered the words in his ears, but it also sounded like it came from afar. The words didn't come from a single direction; it sounded like they were coming from everywhere. But he also felt like the words were meant for his ears only.

He quickly turned around and looked by the window. He could clearly see the boy's pleading face, but the rest of his body was almost transparent. He looked at the boy straight in the eye. He thought he saw a tear forming on the boy's sad, beautiful eyes.

"I, uh...," he stuttered. "I'll be back... I promise."

He closed the door as the boy began to fade away. "I used to just feel his presence. Then, I began seeing him. And now, I'm hearing him?" Charlie thought as he was walking out of the dorm, still feeling the presence following him.

"Stay with me..." he heard it again. He chose to ignore its pleas.

"How could this be possible?" he thought as he got out of the building. Once he was out, he felt it go. He was still deep in thought as Danny's car parked in front of him.

"You ready to go?" said Danny as he opened the car for Charlie. Charlie slipped in on the passenger's seat, still lost in his thoughts.

They had driven out of the Campus for a few minutes in complete silence when Danny finally had had enough of it.

"I know I'm probably gonna regret asking, but what the hell happened after I'd left?" he asked Charlie.

Charlie finally snapped out of his trance and tried his best to smile at Danny. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it," he said.

"You know I'm not gonna believe that it's nothing," Danny said. "So give."

Charlie sighed and said, "He asked me not to leave."

"The ghost?" asked Danny. "You could hear him now?"

"Yeah," Charlie said as he looked at Danny. He looked on the road and sighed. "I dunno but... I feel like he's connected to me somehow... like he's drawn to me. And that connection seems to get stronger everyday."

Danny didn't say another word and just looked sternly on the road. They drove in silence for quite a while before Danny took a deep breath and said, "Would you rather go back and talk to him?"

Charlie looked at him. Danny was still looking straight ahead. He had that look that told Charlie he was pissed.

"Of course not," Charlie said. "I'd much rather spend the weekend with you."

Danny's face softened and eventually broke into a smile. He looked at Charlie for a second with that beautiful smile. Charlie couldn't help but smile back.

Angela was staying in a condominium building along EDSA¹. Danny parked his car in the building's parking area and they waited for the elevator to take them to the 20th floor where Angela's unit was.

Danny had his own keys so they didn't have to knock. When they got in, Angela greeted them with a warm smile similar to Danny's. She hugged Danny tightly and said "I missed you so much."

"I'm sure you have," said Danny. "Nobody cooks good food for you anymore," he teased.

Angela let go of Danny and defensively said, "Hey! I can cook, too, you know," which made Danny laugh out even more.

The sibling war was suddenly stopped when Tyler came running and threw himself towards Danny.

"Uncle Danny!" he said as he threw his small arms around Danny. Danny picked him up and hugged him tightly as well.

"I missed you, too, champ," Danny said. "Hey, I have something for you."

"What is it?" Tyler said excitedly.

"Whatever it is, it'll have to wait until after dinner," said Angela, to which Tyler scowled. Danny laughed when he saw his nephew's face. He put Tyler down and looked at Charlie with a smile that told Charlie he was really happy to be home.

"By the way guys, this is my friend, Charlie," said Danny.

"Hi!" Charlie said smiling at both Angela and Tyler. "Thanks again for inviting me."

"I told you, don't even mention it," said Angela as she gave him a hug.

"Didja bring something for me, too?" asked Tyler.

"Of course he did," said Danny winking at Charlie. Charlie smiled at Danny and nodded at Tyler.

Tyler jumped with joy and ran back to the living room still shouting excitedly.

"Okay, you two," Angela said to Danny and Charlie. "Dump your stuff in Danny's room and dinner will be ready when you're done." She looked at Danny with a teasing smile and said, "I assume you're sleeping in your own room this time?" She then looked at Charlie and said, "He's a big guy but he can't sleep alone in a room, you know. Tyler had to kick him out of the room several times before."

Danny looked at Charlie with mock exasperation and said, "After all this time, she still always picks on me."

"Well, at least now I know who to ask for any dirt on you," Charlie laughed heartily.

Angela laughed with Charlie and then gave him a mischievous wink when Danny told her, "Don't you dare!"

After they settled all their stuff in Danny's room, they went out to the dining room and had a sumptuous home-cooked dinner that they had both been missing in the dorm. The table was filled with laughter as both Tyler and Angela coughed out stories after stories about Danny that Charlie found both hilarious and wonderful. It was so clear to Charlie how much Danny was adored by both Angela and Tyler. And Danny seemed to reciprocate the feeling towards his sister and nephew.

"Let me tell you," Angela said laughing. "My ex was twice as big as Danny, but he was able to beat him up to a pulp when the bastard tried to kidnap Tyler. But when it comes to ghosts and monsters, this little tyke has to protect his uncle."

"Yeah," Tyler said proudly. "Uncle Danny is afraid of the shadows in his bedroom so he usually comes to sleep in my bedroom so I could protect him."

After dinner, Charlie and Danny offered to wash the dishes as Angela got Tyler ready for bed. They were already done with the dishes and just sitting on the couch talking about some girl on the show that was on TV when Angela came out of Tyler's room.

"He wants you to read him a story," she said to Danny. Danny smiled and excused himself before walking to Tyler's room.

Angela sat next to Charlie and said, "How is he doing, really?"

Charlie looked at her concerned face and smiled. "He's doing really well. He was only late in one of his classes once, but that was my fault, really. I kinda spooked him too much the night before and he overslept," he laughed.

Angela smiled. "That's what I'm really worried about. He's always been a good student, so I'm not worried about his grades or anything about school at all. He's also a tough guy, you know. When he was in the sixth grade, he beat up three of his classmates when they tried to jump him. He has blackbelts in both Aikido and Judo, so I know he could protect himself and those he loves when it comes down to it."

Then she became serious. "But when it comes to the supernatural, he's a total wimp. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I hope you could be patient with him. He gets spooked easily and I hope you won't give him a hard time about it."

Charlie gave her a reassuring smile. "The first time we got to hang out, he told me about it and I must admit I was kind of a jerk for teasing him a lot that night. But I had realized since then that this was really not something I should joke about. Truth is, I want him to get over his fears. But at the same time, I wanna protect him from all the things he's afraid of."

Angela smiled at him. "I knew you were a good guy," she said. "So, does that mean you don't think he's weird or something?"

He chuckled. "Oh, he's weird alright. But in a good way. I like him a lot," he admitted.

"And you do believe him when he says there are ghosts?" Angela said smiling.

"Believe it?" he said smiling. "I know it."

Angela smiled back appreciatively. Then she said, "Okay, enough about the wimp. Tell me something about you. How's your family?"

Charlie and Angela talked about his family and himself for a while until Danny came out of Tyler's room.

"He's asleep," said Danny.

"Great!" said Angela. "Now, I'll leave you boys alone. Goodnight," she smiled as she got up to leave for her bedroom. "We'll talk some more tomorrow, Charlie. It's so nice to finally meet you."

"Likewise. Goodnight," Charlie smiled back at her.

After Angela closed the door to her bedroom, Danny turned to Charlie and said, "I'm so sorry. She could be quite pushy sometimes."

"She's great!" Charlie said. "I like her a lot."

Danny smiled sweetly but then turned serious all of a sudden. "So, why do you think you and the ghost have a connection?"

Charlie shook his head smiling. "No more ghost talk. Let's leave that in the dorm."

Danny laughed softly and jeered, "But what else are we gonna talk about?"

"Lots of things," said Charlie. "You never told me you have blackbelts in Judo and Aikido. We could've sparred some. I'm into martial arts as well. I have blackbelts in Taekwondo and Kickboxing, as well as a brownbelt in Aikido. I like to mix them up sometimes. And I do wanna learn some Judo as well."

"Well, beating your ass up isn't exactly my idea of a good time," said Danny smirking.

Charlie laughed, "Who said I was the one who's gonna get beat up?"

They talked some more before they admitted that they were both beat and decided to snooze. Danny had only one bed in his room, but since they'd been sharing a bed since they met and Danny's bed was much bigger than the beds in the dorm, they had no problem sleeping next to each other.

ANGELA felt relieved and exhilarated when she finally met and had a talk with Charlie. She wanted to talk to him some more, but she knew she had to leave him and her brother alone. "Their bond is already so strong in such a short time," she thought. "But it's gotta get stronger. Danny has got to stop holding back."

She sighed. Her brother had always been stubborn. She knew he would have a hard time figuring things out on his own without her help. She always had to point him in the right direction.

"If he would just go with his instincts, he would do great things. And it would be much easier for all of us," she thought. "But he always has to resist it... always has to overthink everything."

Angela was the exact opposite of Danny in this regard. She always went with her instincts. It hadn't always led her to the easy path, but she knew she was always where she had to be.

Take her ex-boyfriend, Robert, for instance. She fell in love with him so hard. Her instincts told her he would break her heart, but he would leave her with the most precious gift. And he did.

The bastard got her pregnant on her final year in college, and when she told him about it, he freaked out and denied any responsibility. He put all the blame on her. She cried a lot, but she knew Robert's role in her life was done. She was having a baby, and that was the most precious gift that she had ever received.

It hadn't been easy for her after that. When she told her parents about it, her father was naturally enraged. He tracked down Robert's parents and told them that if their son didn't marry her, he would hunt the bastard down.

Of course, Robert's parents agreed. But it was Angela who refused to marry him. Her father was furious. He couldn't understand why Angela would prefer to be an unwed mother rather than have a "complete" family. He threatened to cut her off completely, but she didn't budge. Her gut told her that marrying Robert was the wrong decision. And she knew she was right.

Her father didn't want to have anything to do with her after that. She had to find a job to support herself during her pregnancy, while she was finishing her final year in college. Fortunately, she had a great talent in advertising and her great instincts were a huge advantage. She was accepted initially as an intern, and the firm officially hired her right after her graduation, which she wasn't able to attend because she gave birth a day before graduation day.

Her brother Conrad, who was so much like their father, had never talked to her since the incident. It pained her, but it wasn't like they were close in the first place. She and Conrad never got along even when they were kids.

Danny was different, though. Even under strict instructions from their father that they were not to contact Angela under any circumstances, Danny continued to send her emails and text messages. He even squeezed in a few calls whenever he could get away with it.

When Danny passed the entrance examination for the Philippine Science High School, their father almost didn't agree to let him go because he thought Danny would have to live with Angela. Their mother was only able to convince him when she said that Danny would be living in the school dormitory and not with Angela.

Sure, Danny lived in the dormitory. But he spent all the time he could spare with Angela and his newborn nephew. He was there helping Angela through the most difficult time in her life trying to balance her new career and her new baby.

She was also glad when Danny decided to live with her during the rest of his junior year in high school when he couldn't deal with his roommate anymore.

That was the same time when Robert's parents gave him an ultimatum. They told him that they would cut him off if he didn't start acting like a responsible adult. He took it to mean that he should start being a father to Tyler. So, when Angela refused to let him take Tyler to his parents in Baguio City, he decided to kidnap the baby.

She was so glad that Danny was with her when they intercepted Robert. Danny was so mad that by the time the police arrived, he had Robert in a heap of broken bones: 3 ribs and an arm.

She agreed to drop the kidnapping charges when Robert's parents negotiated that they would be sending him to Chicago to get a job there and he would be sending monthly child support checks for Tyler. She also relented that they could see Tyler when they come to visit in Quezon City.

She would have loved to let Danny live with her again when he started college, but her instincts told her that Danny needed to be in the dorm. Somehow, she felt that the solution to Danny's problems would be waiting for him at Kalayaan Residence Hall. And as soon as Danny called her that week, telling her all about his new roommate, she knew this was it. Charlie is the answer.

She was thrilled when Danny told her that he asked Charlie to stay with them for the weekend. And now that she had met Charlie, she knew she was right all along. My instincts have never failed me. Charlie is definitely special.

She strained her ears trying to listen to the conversation outside her room. The boys were still exchanging a few banters. But soon she could hear a few yawns. She heard them getting up from the couch and walking to Danny's room. As soon as she heard the door close, she smiled. This ought to be interesting.

She was still smiling when sleep finally overtook her thoughts.

CHARLIE woke up the next morning feeling Danny's arm and leg wrapped around him. He felt great being so close to Danny, especially since he was feeling Danny's boner poking his side.

Charlie felt his own dick twitch as it began to rise. He felt Danny move his leg up. Danny's thigh gently brushed against Charlie's erection. Charlie couldn't help but moan with pleasure.

Then, he heard Angela clearing her throat and saying, "Good morning, boys! I see you're both enjoying yourselves too much."

Charlie's and Danny's eyes flew open almost the same time. Their faces turned into different shades of red as their eyes met, realizing the condition that they were both in when Angela came into the room.

Charlie sat up immediately and said, "G-good morning... I uh... I need to uhm... I need to pee."

Angela laughed softly as Charlie stumbled out heading for the bathroom as he desperately tried to hide his morning wood.

"You're an asshole, you know that?" Charlie heard Danny say to Angela as he was going out of the room.

"What?" said Angela in her teasing tone. "I wasn't the one snuggling with the cute guy all night."

When Charlie got back from the bathroom, the family feud was nowhere near finished. He stopped right outside the door and listened to the sibling banter.

"Well, if it is a natural condition for guys in the morning, why are you blushing profusely?" said Angela, still with her mocking tone.

"Because you embarrassed the poor guy," countered Danny. "I don't care if you pick on me for the rest of my life, just spare Charlie, okay? He's a great guy and a very good friend. I like him a lot."

"Funny, that's exactly what he said about you last night," said Angela. "Maybe there is something between the two of you..."

"Aw, shut it," snapped Danny. Angela was obviously getting on his nerves. "He's not like that. And I have a girlfriend, as you very well know."

"Yeah, sure. You have a girlfriend you haven't even bothered to call or text for the past week."

"I've been busy."

"Busy with Charlie?"

"Jeesh! Will you cut it out! He's gonna be back any second."

"For all we know, he's already listening outside the door."

Charlie silently backed away from the door and headed to the kitchen. He decided to fix himself coffee and start preparing breakfast. He got the leftover rice from dinner and sprinkled some salt on it.

As he was chopping some onions and garlic, he saw Tyler's head pop out of the breakfast table.

"Whatcha makin?" Tyler asked.

"I'm gonna cook a very special fried rice for you," Charlie smiled.

"Yum!" said Tyler. "Cook me some hotdogs and eggs, too."

"No problem. Here, have some hot chocolate while you're waiting. Be careful, though. It's really hot."

"Wow!" said Tyler appreciatively. "I wish you could be here to fix my breakfast everyday! I'm tired of eating cereals."

He was done with the fried rice and was starting to cook the hotdogs and eggs when Angela and Danny finally came out of the room.

"I hope you don't mind," he said as Angela walked to the kitchen.

"Not at all," Angela said smiling at him. "That smells really good."

"It's just fried rice with a very special blend," said Charlie. "I learned it from my grandma."

He stole a glance at Danny who was still standing just outside his room staring at him and smiling like a kid.

He smiled back. "Good morning, sleepy head."

Angela looked back at Danny and said, "If you don't marry him, I will."

Danny shot Angela a deadly stare.

Charlie chuckled. "Do you always fight like that?"

Danny walked towards them as Angela began preparing the table. "Don't mind her. She's being a total bitch this morning." He shot Angela another deadly stare, to which Angela just grinned mischievously.

"Mommy always teases Uncle Danny," offered Tyler. "And when Uncle Danny is totally pissed, she comes and says she's sorry and hugs him and gives him lots of presents."

"Yeah. And it'll take a lot more presents this time before I forgive her," scoffed Danny.

"Aw, c'mon, little bro," said Angela. "Ya know I love ya."

"Yeah, yeah," Danny retorted.

"Tell ya what," said Angela. "I'll take all you boys out today. Lunch... movies... shopping... name it!"

Danny smiled and said, "If you buy us new shoes, I'd probably consider it."

"Who's 'us'?"

"All of us," said Danny while smiling at Charlie.

"Oh, alright," said Angela in mock exasperation.

"I'm getting new shoes!" said Tyler excitedly.

They spent the rest of the day at the mall. They came back home really late. Charlie was carrying Tyler who fell asleep while they were driving back. They slept in until the early afternoon of the next day, had a late lunch and prepared to go back to the dorm.

That night, Charlie was surprised when Danny laid himself down on his own bed. He decided not to say anything about it. He thought Danny might still be feeling weird about getting caught by his sister with his arms around him. He was tearing up inside as he lay on his own bed alone looking at the boy on the other bed. He felt so lonely that Danny wasn't beside him. But he didn't want to complain.

"At least he's still treating me the same way," he told himself. "At least he hasn't thrown me out or got himself another room."

He got one of his pillows and hugged it tightly, imagining it was Danny. But it was just not the same. He had a hard time sleeping that night.

The next morning, Charlie woke up late. He looked at his watch and saw that it was past 9 already. He knew Danny had an 8:30 class, but he was surprised when he saw someone sitting on Danny's bed looking at him.

He opened his eyes wide and realized that it was his other roommate.

"Oh, it's you," he said. "If you wanna go at it again with me, don't even try."

"I wouldn't do anything you don't want me to do," the boy said.

"Sure you would," Charlie retorted. "You already did."

"You called out to me," said the boy.

"I remember that dream vividly and I don't remember ever calling anybody," said Charlie looking at the boy intently.

"I heard your body calling out to me."

"So, basically, you just come on to any sleeping horny guy?"

"No," the boy replied. "I only ever come to you. You're the one I always see. Your face is the only one I see."

"How could that be?" said Charlie, puzzled by what the boy said. "I've only been here for 9 days."

"That's not true," said the boy, totally confused. "I've been seeing you forever. I've always made love to you in your dreams..."

"No," countered Charlie. "You only had sex with me once. And that was over a week ago."

The boy fell silent. He was thinking over what Charlie had told him.

"Do you even know my name?" asked Charlie after a while.

The boy looked at him and shook his head.

"I'm Charlie."

The boy kept looking at him with those confused, sad, beautiful eyes.

"Can you tell me your name?" asked Charlie again.

"I uh..." the boy stuttered. "I don't remember."

¹ Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue. The main artery of Metro Manila and the worst avenue in the world. It is where the world famous People Power Revolution happened. back