Nana went into her father's workshop for the tenth time after they'd had breakfast to meet Mason, but the boy wasn't in his room. She hadn't seen him since morning, and it was afternoon already, and Nana was starting to get worried.
Mason doesn't go anywhere alone; she knew that much. He's such a homebody that finds comfort in his room rather than elsewhere. If he were to go somewhere, which he hardly does, he would call her. But now it's almost 3 p.m. and he's nowhere to be found.
"He's no longer a kid; he can go anywhere he wants," Mr. Robinson, who noticed she was worried, told her. "He'd come back home whenever he wanted."
"You really should see him as your son now, Dad," Nana said. "It's been six years already, do you still dislike him?"
"Of course I did see him as my son," Mr. Robinson said. He sat at one corner of his shop, a demarcated area where he repairs clocks. "And must I write it on my face that I like him?"
"You don't need to say it before it's obvious. Everyone knows you don't like him," Nana said. "If I were the one who went out this morning without notice, you'd have been worried about me. But you didn't care about Mason because he wasn't your real son."
Mr. Robinson remained calm as he continued his work.
"Mason is a young man already, Nana. He can handle himself," he replied. "Whereas you… you're just a fragile little girl."
Nana's eyes blazed with fury. "You will never lose an argument with me, will you?" she snapped. "You always have your way with words! So annoying!" She ran out of the shop.
A smile crept onto Mr. Robinson's face, which never reached his eyes. He stared at the large entrance, but his eyes were blank, perhaps, a little bit of guilt clawing at his spine.
As Nana got outside, she saw Raymond and another familiar guy approaching. As the other guy's eyes landed on her, a wide grin appeared on his face, revealing his perfect white teeth.
His black hair fell far beyond the reach of his shoulder. His blue eyes sparkled like diamonds, enough to drop most girls' jaws. He was dressed in designer clothes and a white pair of snickers to match. He held a bag in one hand, and the other was in his left pocket.
"Hey Nana! You must have been worried when you didn't see me," he said as he finally approached and wrapped his free arm around her shoulder. "Let's go inside, sister."
Nana tried to speak, but her mouth just wouldn't move. Who are you? she shouted, but it was through her mind. Her muscles are failing her, and even her legs are losing their normal flow. What's wrong with me? Haven't I seen a handsome man before? He's not even that pretty!
She tried to confuse herself multiple times, but her body seemed to retrain her from thinking otherwise. Her legs merely staggered as the boy urged her toward her father's workshop.
Meanwhile, Malia and her friends stood a few distances away, inspecting the siblings' interaction.
"It's him. He's really Mason!" Beth exclaimed.
"Oh my God! I can't believe this!" Dolores said.
"What are you going to do now, Malia? You clearly rejected him."
"And you guys made fun of him!" Malia snapped.
"You didn't stop us either, you laughed along, didn't you?"
"That was my mistake. I should've stopped you guys. I hope he still likes me."
"Too late for that, all of us are into him now."
Malia turned to her friends, and they nodded in confirmation.
"Seriously?" she said through clenched teeth.
The girls nodded again.
"Who wouldn't like someone as handsome as him?" Dolores smirked.
Malia felt her neck burning, but it wasn't from the sunlight. It was from within herself. Her eyes lingered on Mason's house until her gaze met with Raymond's.
"We've been caught, guys!" Beth announced, also seeing what Malia was seeing. "It's time to leave!"
Malia could see a smile appearing on Raymond's face as he muttered something to himself. She couldn't make out what he was saying, but whatever it was, she didn't want to hear it. Beth pulled her hand, and she reluctantly ran along with her friends.
Subsequently, Nana was still dumbfounded as she was pulled by Mason into her father's workshop. When Mr. Robinson saw them, he abandoned his work and rose up from his seat with a look of alarm.
"Who are you?" his voice thundered across the room, causing both Nana and Mason to flinch.
Mason whirled around the shop to confirm if there was another person with them, but there was none. And the realization hit that the question was directed to him.
"It's me, Mason," he replied. "I may look different because of my hairstyle and the–"
"You're Mason?" Mr. Robinson cut in, and Mason could see his eyes widening beyond their normal surprise shapes.
Mason nodded and turned to Nana, who had been quiet all the while. Her eyes were even wider than her father's, yet no word escaped her lips. He turned to Mr. Robinson, but the man wasn't able to talk any longer.
"Then we'll excuse ourselves," Mason said, and he wrapped his hand, which he'd thrown down earlier, around Nana and nudged her toward his room. When they got in, Mason left Nana, dropped his bag on the bed, and sat down. "Are you going to pretend to be dumb forever, Nana? Aren't you going to talk to me?"
"Are you… Really, Mason?" said Nana at last. "Are you really the brother I knew?"
Mason smiled and nodded. "Same Mason, different appearance."
"Can I… hug you?" stammered Nana.
"Why would you even ask? Come on," Mason laughed. He opened his arms and accommodated her embrace. Nana held tight for a while, and Mason wondered what was going on. He pulled back and his eyes widened as he saw Nana's face.
"Why are you crying, Nana? What's wrong?" he asked, visibly agitated. "Was it because of my look? I will return to how I looked before if you don't like it. Is that enough?"
Nana wiped her tears and hit him on the chest with her fist. "You had this beauty in you all this time, and you allowed those ugly girls to laugh at you," she sniffed.
"I already revealed myself to them. I bestowed on them the shock of their life," Mason replied.
"That's not enough. I want them lingering around our house every day, apologizing for how badly they'd treated you."
"What do you want me to do?
"Let's hang out tomorrow. Let's give them a taste of their own medicine."
"And what if we don't see them?"
Nana's face turned sour. "Why would you even think like that!?" she snapped.
"I was just envisaging any possibility," Mason clarified.
"If we don't see them, we'll find them, silly!" Nana said, then her face softened. "Has Mom seen you?"
Mason shook his head sideways. "I'm done for, right?"
"You already know, why ask?"
"Can you help me hide her slippers?"
"That'd be a wise idea. She can't beat you with anything else apart from her slippers. Of course, I can help you hide them."
"Then you go first, I'll join you soon."
Nana nodded and went off. Not long after, Mr. Robinson entered the room. As Mason saw him, he stood up.
"I didn't expect you to look this handsome, Mason," Mr. Robinson said. "I'm afraid you'd need to keep away from my daughter. I won't have Brazzers at my house."
"I'm sorry, but I can't do that," Mason replied, his determination thick. He didn't know what Brazzers means, but he's sure it's something that would keep him and Nana apart.
"I've never forgotten our agreement 12 years ago. I was young, but I carved everything you said into my mind. I know my time in your house is nearing - perhaps a few more days - and I want to spend it with the people I love. You, Mom, and particularly, Nana."
"You know I have never made any other friend apart from her; she's my only sister and friend. So whatever you're thinking won't work, Dad. So if you'd excuse me, I need to go see Mom." He reached for the door and turned back to Mr. Robinson. "I wish you could see me as your son before I leave. Even if it's just once, what else could I ever ask for?"
Mr. Robinson's face clouded over. He knew the boy was right. He'd never once looked into his eyes for the past 12 years Mason had been living with them. He felt immense heat over his body, but there was no sweat.
"You don't unders–" he turned to speak, but Mason was gone. His stomach lurched, and his head felt dizzy. Has he in any way wronged the boy?