Chapter Text
“Ay sir, hindi po talaga pwede. Kailangan po ng dalawang valid IDs. Hindi po kasama sa valid IDs ang school ID,” the staff at the front desk tells Raphael with a frown. “Kuha po muna kayo ng ibang ID, tapos pwede na po namin ‘to maprocess.”
PUTANGINANG ‘YAN.
LAHAT NALANG KAILANGAN NG VALID ID.
PAANO KUKUHA NG ANOTHER ID KUNG NEED MO RIN NG ID FOR GETTING ONE?
KINGINA TALAGA NG BANSANG ‘TO!
Raphael left the establishment with a pissed expression on his face, his forehead crumpled while he made his way out of the Omega Health Center by PhilHealth, his grip on his folder a little tight. His heat cycle is coming soon, and he still hasn’t been able to apply for his heat suppressant benefits because of this bullshit regulation where he needs two valid IDs.
How is he supposed to get a valid ID when his National ID didn’t even arrive?! This fucking country and its greedy, corrupt politicians are always to blame for everything. Living as an omega is already difficult, but living as an omega in the Philippines is a different kind of hell.
If only he was born as an alpha. If only he wasn’t born this way.
Living as an alpha, or even beta in this country is so much better.
Alphas are always favored by everyone—they are allegedly born to be leaders, hence why they’re always promoted in their jobs despite their lack of talent or skills. Getting rut suppressants is so much easier compared to heat suppresants—you only need to present your gender ID that contains your second sex/gender, which is either Alpha, Beta, or Omega.
BAKIT PAG MGA ALPHA ANG DALI?
BAKIT ANG UNFAIR FOR OMEGAS?
Looks like he’ll be using loads of Katinko ointments again these next few months.
Raphael came home to his apartment with a huge frown on his face, and his frown only grows when he sees his face—enemy spotted.
“Oh? Nakakuha ka?” He asks as he keeps typing on his laptop. He didn’t even raise his gaze from the screen.
“Hindi, syempre. Bulok sistema sa Pilipinas e,” he answers as he enters the apartment, one which he was sharing with the man he hates the most. This guy with the perfect grades, perfect looks, perfect body, and perfect life—Chikage Utsuki.
That’s right. He’s currently sharing an apartment with Chikage, who is an alpha.
Swerteng kumag.
“Sabi ko naman sa’yo, ako na bahala sa heat suppressants mo, e. Ayaw mo naman kasi tanggapin ‘yong alok ko.” The bespectacled man replies while he keeps working on his laptop. He’s always on his laptop.
“Ayoko nga. Baka kung saan galing ‘yang gamot na makuha mo. Most importantly, I don’t need your help,” he answers grumpily while crossing his arms over his chest. There’s no way he’d accept help from this guy!
At least… more of his help…
“You don’t need my help, pero you accepted my offer of living together?” He teases his roommate with a smirk on his face.
ANG SARAP TALAGA SUNTUKIN PAGMUMUKHA NITONG GAGONG ‘TO.
“Oo na, whatever. Dami mong sinasabi e.”
Raphael rolls his eyes as he sits on the couch in the living room.
“What’s for dinner? Ikaw magluluto tonight, ‘di ba?”
For the first time since Raphael got home, Chikage finally lifts his gaze to meet his roommate, before he smiles.
“Ano ba gusto mo kainin? Any cravings?”
Ayan.
‘Yang ngiting ‘yan.
Putanginang ngiti.
Kung pwede lang takpan mukha niya para never ko na ulit makita.
“Alam mo naman kung ano ‘yong favorite ko, ‘di ba?” Raphael answers with a huff, as he looks away. “Kunwari ka pa d’yan.”
That made Chikage grin widely, before he finally closed his laptop.
“I thought sabi mo we were going to pretend we didn’t know each other?” He says with that annoying smirk on his face.
Right.
They weren’t just roommates.
Chikage… was his ex-boyfriend.
“Whatever, pakyu.” He answers back, annoyed. “Magluto ka na nga. Dami mong satsat.”
Chikage snorts, before he makes his way to the kitchen to start cooking their dinner. Raphael had one favorite food, and it’s something that always makes him happy.
Well, he’s looking all gloomy, so it’s worth a shot.
He starts preparing the ingredients and begins cooking. In less than thirty minutes, the fragrant scent of his spaghetti sauce fills the entire apartment—the smell of Jollibee spaghetti, to be exact. Chikage was able to replicate the famous fastfood’s signature spaghetti, which Raphael really likes.
He peeks from the kitchen to look at Raphael, who was… smiling.
That made Chikage smile as well, happy that he can still make Raphael happy, even now.
Maybe… there’s still a chance.
Maybe, they can still…
A few more minutes passed, and the food was finally done. He wasn’t used to eating dinner as early as six in the evening, but… if it’s for Raphael, he’s willing to do anything.
“Tara, kain na.” He calls his roommate, who excitedly walks up to him without knowing.
Ganito siya lagi tuwing spaghetti ang pagkain.
Spaghetti, matcha, or sweets.
He hates sweets, pero Raphael loves it, so he doesn’t really care.
“Bilis ah,” Raphael says as he takes a seat at their small dining table. “Sure ka bang luto na ‘to? Baka ‘di pa malambot yung pasta.”
“I’d never make a mistake cooking your spaghetti, Raph.” Chikage answers as he places the plate of spaghetti on Raphael’s side of the table, and once again, there’s an extra serving of grated cheese decorating the top of the meal—just as Raphael always loved it.
‘Daming cheese, ah. Over na over naman ‘to.’
‘The extra cheese is how much I like you.’
‘Corny mo! Daming alam e, kain na nga tayo.’
‘O, bakit ka namumula? Kinikilig ka lang e.’
‘Manahimik ka nga d’yan! Kumain ka nalang!’
Raphael’s expression falls a little, but he immediately picks it back up and smiles at Chikage. It’s fine. Everything will be fine.
“...Thanks,” he answers briefly, before he takes his food. He prays for it and starts eating.
The taste hasn’t changed.
Even after all these years, it still tastes the same.
“Your heat cycle’s coming up, ‘di ba?” Asks Chikage as he starts eating his own meal. “What are you going to do without heat suppressants? Like usual?”
Raphael groans, remembering his earlier dilemma.
“Katinko lang katapat niyan,” he said with a sigh, as he continued to eat.
Katinko to make himself magically feel better by placebo effect, because heat suppressants are like rare jewelries in this country. The reason why the government is very strict about them is because they believe heat cycles are blessings from God—and taking suppressants somehow invalidates God's teachings—which is ‘humayo kayo at magpakarami.’
According to religious groups, disrupting your own heat cycle is the same as rejecting God's words. It is the same reason why ‘religious’ people still frown upon the usage of contraceptives in society, saying it’s ‘sin.’
Raphael thinks it’s all bullshit, of course. But being born from a family with overly religious parents… yeah, that’s why he was so desperate to live somewhere far away from his family the moment he entered college.
Desperate enough… that he ended up agreeing to live together with his ex-boyfriend despite their horrible breakup.
“‘Di ko alam kung masokista ka lang o ano e.” Chikage replies with a slight shake of the head. “I’m offering you heat suppressants. Tanggapin mo nalang without asking.”
“Like I said, ayoko tumanggap ng unofficial medication. I’m trying to study to become a doctor, tapos I’ll break the rules myself? It’s fine, really. Sanay naman na ako.”
That’s right. He’s used to it.
He’s been alive in this world for more than two decades already.
He’ll survive.
“Tigas pa rin ng ulo mo, even after all these years.”
Chikage takes a deep breath, before he continues eating. He knows how stubborn Raphael is. They were together for about three years, and it was more than enough for him to learn how hard Raphael’s head is. Once he’s made a decision about himself, he won’t back down from it, especially if it’s related to his principles in life.
And to be honest… Chikage respects that aspect of him a lot.
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” he says as he eats his food. They ate together in silence, as if tiptoeing around each other. Walking against each other in eggshells, wanting to know which line is okay and not okay to cross. It’s only been a week since they started living together, after all.
After a few minutes, Raphael finishes his meal.
“Ako na maghugas, since ikaw na nagluto.” He picks up his plate and starts cleaning up, but Chikage raises a brow at him.
“Anong tinitingin-tingin mo d’yan?”
Chikage just chuckles as he drinks his water.
“Didn’t you know na ‘di ka pa pwede magligpit habang kumakain pa ang ibang tao? ‘Di na ako makakapag-asawa niyan.” He says while laughing, which makes Raphael laugh alongside him.
“At saan mo na naman narinig ‘yan? From your mother who believes in every single pamahiin there is?” He jokes, which made Chikage smile.
“Well, I’m sure masaya siya kung gano’n. She doesn’t want me to get married, after all.”
Right.
That woman… is the reason why their relationship ended.
“Still? Grabe naman ‘yan, ayaw talaga paawat.” He tries joking around to mask the heaviness in his chest. Remembering their past relationship made his throat close up, his heart still feeling the pain he felt the moment Chikage decided to end it all between them.
“Gano’n talaga ‘pag omega na iniwan ng alpha niya,” he murmurs as he finishes his food, and it’s clear that he was uncomfortable with the conversation. He doesn’t want to think about his mother. He doesn’t like even the mere mention of that person.
Raphael, as the ever kind soul that he is, dropped the subject and proceeded to clean up. He shouldn’t pry any further. It’s all in the past, and now, they’re just roommates—nothing more, nothing less.
“Ah, male-late ako ng uwi bukas. May duty ako sa ospital,” he tells Chikage, making the latter blink in surprise.
Why is Raphael telling him his schedule?
Well, he already knew beforehand, but…
Must be a slip of the tongue, huh.
Old habits die hard, ika nga nila.
“Ah… Then, ingat ka.” He replies as he goes back to his work on his laptop. He still has requirements he needs to finish, after all. But more importantly, there are many thoughts swirling inside his head, feelings he doesn't want to acknowledge—happiness that Raphael is still updating him with his schedule, because he knows that Chikage is easy to worry about people being late, especially when they return to their homes.
He’s always been a protective person, and him being an alpha only made that trait grow stronger.
“Salamat,” he murmurs, before his cheeks go red upon the realization that he updated Chikage without even asking; unprompted. Just like before. Just like always. Just as he always had.
He immediately went to his room once he’s done cleaning up in the kitchen.
Raphael distracted himself by burying his face in his medical books.
He can’t let anything distract him from his goal. He disobeyed his parents to become a doctor, just as he always wanted to be. He’s not going to let anything trample over his dreams once more.
Once was enough.
He can’t let it happen ever again.
Morning came, and Raphael was early to leave the apartment. He didn’t see Chikage around the house. He’s probably still asleep, or he woke up even earlier than Raphael. That guy has many mysteries to him, after all. Even when they dated for three years, there were still many things that confused him.
Still, it’s not important anymore.
He has other things he needs to worry about.
“Fifteen minutes nalang,” he murmurs to himself as he rushes through the hallway, passing by many people to reach his designated room.
“Shit, terror pa naman ‘yong prof,” he curses against his breath as keeps glancing at his wristwatch, panicking, because his room is still far from where he is. This campus is too big for his own comfort, to the point where it was normal to take a jeep to the next college. But Raphael didn’t want to waste any money, and so… he chose to suffer.
Sweat dripped down from his forehead as he finally reached his destination.
Just in time.
He glances at his wristwatch—two minutes left until his class starts.
Hopefully, their classes could start today. Last week, many students were absent, so the professor dumped homework on them so she doesn’t have to teach, saying it’s their ‘punishment.’
A deep breath, before he pushes the door open.
And when he did…
“Fel! So you study here too? What a coincidence!”
Joke ba ‘to?
Bakit nandito ‘tong babaeng ‘to?
“Rika?”