Brooklyn, New York City, 2006

Jace took a glance at every door in the hallway of the building. The sign board was already rusty outside that old building. The plants and the weeds are crawling over the neglected space in the front yard. The blackened concrete walls are full of moss. Upon the entrance, you would be greeted by a curved desk counter with a peeling, almost fading away brown color. There was an old man sitting behind the counter in a rocking chair beside the burning fireplace. He had a beanie on his head, a pair of round eyeglasses, and a long mixed black and white mustache that was almost touching his chest, a bit shorter than his perm long hair. He's like a hobo in his tattered outfit, which is covered by a thick black woolen coat.

On the third time that Jace was brought by his stepmother, Aubrey, to that apartelle in Brownsville, they would always be welcomed by that grumpy old man reading the newspaper. He would simply peek at them behind the newspaper, which almost covered him whenever the counter bell rang. The old man would just nod at them like he already recognized their faces. He would not say a word and just return his attention to what he was reading. Jace never heard the old man's voice, not even once. He wondered if he was mute or something.

Jace followed Aubrey while they were walking down the corridor of the old building. The floorboards creak with their every step. His head would not stop turning from door to door with their unit numbers. Each one of them was closed. The glass windows are also sealed to block the cold air. Outside, the snow was falling slowly. The asphalt road was still not covered with snow yet because the blizzard was expected to come next month, according to the weather forecast. 

"Jace." Aubrey turned her head to him. She leaned forward and caressed his cheek gently with her hands, covered with black gloves. "You know Aunt Maila, right?"

He nods his head. "Yes, Mom. She's your childhood friend, isn't she?" The woman was the one they'd been visiting in that apartelle.  
In terms of physical appearance, Aunt Maila resembled his mother. They both had jet black hair and jet black eyes—Asians. Aubrey was just a bit lighter than Aunt Maila.

"Yes, son. And my friend asked me a favor. I still haven't told your Dad yet." Her pleading smile was asking for understanding. "Can you help me convince him if ever?"

The fourteen-year-old, Jace, understood her language best inside their house. He was not fluent in Tagalog, but he kind of understood the language. As far as he remembered, Aubrey had talked to him in her native language ever since he was four. His mom took care of him personally, although there wasn’t even an ounce of her blood running through his veins. They are not blood-related. Jace's biological mother, who's a pure Brit, died of a complication upon his delivery. Aubrey, his stepmother, was the nurse in the nursery at that time. His father, Dawson Wilkins, took Aubrey to be his nanny. After two years, the two fell in love with each other and got married. 

Jace grew up in London. They migrated to New York when his dad was assigned to the biggest airline there as a captain pilot two years ago. It took time before he adjusted to the environment there, unlike Brianna, his eldest sister. Brianna is three years older than he is. She was already in her second year of senior high school. As much as he got attached to Aubrey, Brianna was the opposite. Even now, he can't understand the reason why she is mad at their stepmom. Aubrey showed nothing but kindness and humbleness inside their abode. She had never raised her hands on them or said anything bad about them, on the contrary of what Brianna was doing to her, always insulting her and whatnot. It wasn’t a personal vendetta. It was more like racial discrimination. She was influenced by her racist friends. Brianna could not accept the fact that the woman their Dad replaced their Mom came from a low social background---that was according to Brianna. She treated Aubrey like a maid. That's the main reason why Jace is upset with her. 

Jace didn't know why they grew up so differently. Brianna was very selfish, unreliable, and a real bully to him. She's also so narrow-minded. At her age, she still got persuaded by her friends to go to whatever hell place they wanted to go to. She ought to call him a nerd and a bore. Maybe because Aubrey often brought him to church, he was guided rightly and had a straight personality. His stepmom said that there couldn’t be a reason for him to ruin his life since he was blessed with such a good life. He was a normal teenager. He had friends and buddies in school, and not all of them were good. They sometimes took him to places where minors are banned. But he wouldn’t get easily influenced since his character building had a good foundation. He knew the path where he would be heading. And that was music. 

"Jace, Maila had a daughter." Aubrey patted his head. "I'm going to take care of her until your Aunt Maila returns to the Philippines."

"Why is that?" he asked curiously.

"Your Aunt Maila needs to work to support the family. West, her live-in partner, didn't want the child's presence here," she said of the black man who shared Aunt Maila's home. "She's going to stay with us for the time being. Is that okay with you?"

"Is she a nice girl? How old is she?" It's okay with him as long as she's not as bratty as Brianna.

Aubrey shrugged her shoulders. "I have no idea, Jace. I'm only seeing her now. Maila said her name is Hannah. She's pure Filipino like me."

Jace smiled at her. "I have no problem with it, Mom." For him, Aubrey is the most beautiful stepmother. Blondes. Blue and green eyes. Fair skin with freckles. They are common in New York City. Rarity was his sense of beauty. He loved Aubrey’s black hair and black translucent pair of eyes. They were dark as the night—full of strange grace and mystery. 

- to be continued -