The Sin He Chose

INSERT ONE

•DANIEL•

My Black sleek ride stopped before a cozy suburban home, the fresh air that carries the scent of different flower hits my nose as soon as I steppped out of the car.

I smiled with a satisfied nod as I gazed around at the surrounding, nothing had changed — the neighborhood still looked exactly as it was six years ago before I left for another country.

— and now? Nothing may have changed around here but I have — now older, wealthier and carrying the quiet loneliness of a man who has lost more than he lets on.

“Everything looks just as ordinary as it used to be...” I muttered under my breath before walking to the front door of the cozy house.

Taking in a deep breath, I knocked softly at the door. Moment later, the door opened, revealing a man in his early forties — he's just as the same age as I am, and he was wearing a shocked expression on him.

“Micheal...” I called out slowly, with a genuine smile lighting up on my face.

Micheal laughed heartily, just as the same he used to before I left. “Is this really you, Daniel?” He said between his laugh, and I nodded in response.

“Yes, it's me.”

Micheal gave me a hug almost immediately, still laughing and I was kind enough to reciprocate the hug and the laugh.

“How long has it been?” Micheal asked, checking me out — though he had stopped laughing, but the smile on his face was genuine. “Is it five? Or six years even?”

“Six years, Mich, it's six years already.” I replied. “Time flies these days, man, that you lose track of it quickly.”

“Yeah, you can say that again.” Micheal nodded in agreement and gestured inside the house. “Ccome in… come in.”

We both entered the house and Micheal offered me a seat. He quickly when to get the both of us two cups of black coffee — just the way we do like it back in the days.

Soon, we both settled down finally, sipping our coffee in silence, neither of us uttered any words for couple of minutes before Micheal finally broke the silence.

“I hope you are married now, Dan…” He said, a hint of concern in his voice as he sets down his cup on the center table.

I paused my cup, wearing a small mischievous glint in my eyes that flashed for a few moment. “What made you think I'll love to settle down now and start a family?” I asked carefully before taking another sip from the cup.

“Why not?” He replied with a slight shoulders shrug. “I mean, look at you now, you looked way more successful and fulfilled than you were six years ago before you left.”

Well, true. I nodded in agreement, he's right though. I'm not just only successful, I have everything I need at my beck and call — even women and ladies flocked around me just to get my attention.

“I just haven't seen the woman who has done enough to get my attention...” I said plainly, earning a raised brows from the latter. “— the right woman, I mean.”

“Oh...” Micheal mouthed. “Well, I'll tell you, there's no right one aanywhere, Dan. You just choose one and keep her, as long as you both are happy.”

“I don’t want to repeat the same mistake as eight years ago, man...” I said with a small sigh. “I can't afford to invite another Johanna in my life again — as a divorcee, shouldn't I choose better next?”

“Yeah, you're right.” Micheal nodded in agreement. “First mistake should serve as a lesson and not a pathway to another mistake.”

I chuckled silently, I don't want to recall whatever I had with Johanna. “Enough talk about me...” I pointed out. “— how's Sophia? What's she up to these days?”

The expression on Michael's face quickly morphed into a proud one, with a smile too. “She's doing better, she's in college now.” He said in response. “But she's around for the college's short break in her room, taking a nap probably.”

“Yout look proud, man. She must be quite the filial daughter, no?” I told him with a smile.

“You can say that again...”

We went on talking about work and careers, catching up on the years we've missed. This moment, we're laughing, and the next moment, we're being serious — talking about some essential topics and sorts.

“Dad...?” Sophia called out, interrupting the conversation which made Michael and I turned towards her direction.

I didn't realized I held my breath at the sight of Sophia as she walks in, she was no longer the little girl with braces I remembered. She now looks radiant, composed, and was wearing a sundress that shouldn’t be illegal but feels that way.

Sophia's face spark up in recognition the moment she saw me. “Uncle Dan...?” She called out with a knowing smile. “You probably don't remember me, do you?”

I'm aware she's teasing me. “I do...” I said plainly before my tone would give me away. ‘— too well now.’ I completed the words in my head.

•••

The living room hums with soft music and the occasional clink of glass. Michael is already halfway into his third whiskey, lounging on the couch as he recounts a story from their college days — something about a stolen mascot and a near-expulsion.

I chuckled where necessary, but my focus slips again — my attention was somewhere else.

Across the room, Sophie sat on a chair with an armrest, swirling juice in a glass.

When she laughs, it bubbles up in a bright and genuine way and for the hundredth time that night, I find myself watching her instead of listening to Michael.

She’s not a girl anymore, and that’s the problem — everything I remembered about her had changed.

Her hair fell in waves, her lips painted just enough to notice, legs tucked beneath her like she owned the place.

F*ck, she’s beautiful!

I watched her, noticing how she spoke with warm ease. Not like a teenager craving attention, but like a woman who knew she had a lot of it.

I took a sip of my drink, my eyes not leaving her and lord help me, it was like she was growing more beautiful as the seconds passed.

’She’s your best friend’s daughter, Daniel. She’s off limits...’ I tried to remind myself, but when I met her eyes again and held them for a second too long, I forgot why she was off limits.

She smiled at me, small and secret, like we were in on something. Like she knew the unholy thoughts I was having — that should scare me more than it does.

Michael stands, stretching with a yawn. “I’m heading to bed…” He said amidst his yawning. “It's going to be a long day tomorrow.”

I stand up too, quickly. “Yeah, I should go.”

Sophie slides off the chair, turning towards me. “I’ll walk you to the door.” She offered with a small smile.

Michael waves a sleepy goodbye and walked down the hallway, his footsteps fading.

I followed Sophie toward the front door, my heart was beating uncomfortably in my chest. The night air presses cool against the windows with my jacket’s in hand, but I didn't put it on.

She pauses by the doorway, fingers brushing the knob, her face half-lit by the porch light outside. “It was good seeing you again…” She says softly.

I could afford nothing but only a nod, forcing a polite smile. “You’ve grown up.” I managed to say.

She tilts her head, wearing an unreadable gaze. “You noticed...” She enounced as her lips curve, not quite a smirk, but close. Then, before I was able to say anything, she opens the door and steps aside.

I seized the moment to walk out, the night breeze hitting my face lightly and she closes the door behind without another word.

I stands on the porch for a moment longer than I should, staring at the closed door.

"She’s trouble…" I thought. "— and I’m already thinking about her."

INSERT TWO

•DANIEL•

"It was just a bottle of wine, a thank-you and a promise kept — nothing more…"

That’s what I keep telling myself throughout the entire drive over. And again as I parked, and again when I climbed the steps to the front porch.

I knocked lightly on the front door, expecting Michael like the previous day.

Instead, the door opened and revealed Sophie — barefoot, tousled hair, a cropped tee hugging her frame, and sleep shorts that should absolutely not be seen by company.

I felt my breath caught in my throat, just briefly and maybe enough for her to notice.

“Oh, hey…” She said, casually leaning against the doorframe. “You're back so soon?”

I was quick to hold up the bottle of red like a shield. “I owed your dad this, I told him I’d drop it off...” I said in a rush, my gaze anywhere but on her. “— I owe him this at least.”

She stepped asi