Twins missing in Typhoon Linfa (Egay) in 2015 — 10 years later, the older brother makes a shocking discovery.

The story begins with a vague but haunting memory in the mind of Migs (Miguel), the older brother who just turned 22. Exactly ten years ago, when Typhoon Egay hit the coast of La Union (Northern Luzon), in the family’s small house in a coastal barangay, Tatay and Nanay tried to keep their three children safe. Migs was the eldest, only 12 years old; the twins — Andres and Anton — were only 6.

That night, the wind howled through the tin roof, the whole house shook violently. The rising tide and the river flooded so quickly that no one could react. In just a moment, the whole house was submerged. Tatay carried Migs, Nanay hugged the two brothers tightly. Suddenly, a huge wave came and swept everything away. Migs only had time to hear Nanay scream: “Ilagay mo sa ligtas ang mga bata!” (Hold on to the children!). When he opened his eyes, he was on a lifeboat; Andres and Anton had disappeared.

In the following days, the rescue team and villagers searched everywhere: along the coast, the river mouth, the ruined houses. No one could find any trace of the twins. The family could only light candles in the small church, praying for their children. Migs lived in torment: “If only I had held on to my sister’s hand…”

Ten years passed. Tatay and Nanay gradually recovered, opening a sari-sari store (small grocery store) at the beginning of the alley. Migs grew up, studying information technology in Baguio City. But the void left by his two brothers was never filled.

On the 10th anniversary of their death, Migs returned to his hometown. That night, while sorting through some old boxes in the warehouse, he discovered a waterproof plastic box hidden under the broken tiles. Inside was a faded child’s bracelet — the same kind Andres had worn, with a blue bead that Nanay had strung on it the other day. Next to it was a piece of paper wrapped in plastic, scribbled in pencil:
“Buhay pa kami.” (We are still alive.)

Migs was stunned. Who could have written this? A cruel joke or a real signal from Andres and Anton? He tossed and turned all night.

The next morning, Migs brought the bracelet and the piece of paper to Tatay and Nanay. Nanay burst into tears, immediately recognizing them as her son’s. Tatay was suspicious: maybe someone had picked them up and written nonsense. But Migs believed there was something unsaid.

He asked around the village. An old fisherman told him: after the storm that year, there was a rumor about two children who had been carried deep into the Bued River by floodwaters to the Cordillera, and were rescued by people working in the fields. Migs went to the neighboring commune to find people who had participated in the 2015 relief effort. A female officer vaguely remembered: “It seems that there were two strange children who were brought to the Rural Health Unit of a mountain town in Benguet, then taken in by a foreign charity organization…”.

The more Migs followed, the more fragments he was able to piece together: the children’s names were unclear, their records were lost; they were only listed as “orphans after the storm”. On social media, he happened to see a photo of a pair of twins studying at a public boarding school in Bontoc, Mountain Province. The faces of the two boys were strangely similar to Andres and Anton: big eyes, round cheeks — and especially, one of them was wearing an old bracelet exactly like the one Migs was holding.

Migs’s heart was pounding. He printed out the photo and brought it home to show Nanay; Nanay was shaking. The whole family decided to keep it a secret, not telling Tatay yet. Migs told himself: we have to see it with our own eyes.

A week later, Migs took a bus to Bontoc. His heart was in turmoil: what if it was a mistake? If it was true, why had no one contacted him for 10 years?

At the boarding school, Migs asked to see the principal and explained everything. At first, the principal was hesitant, but when he saw the bracelet and the piece of paper, he agreed to let Migs meet the two students. The door opened, and the two boys walked in. Migs was stunned. Without DNA, his heart told him: it was Andres and Anton.

As joy rose, the harsh truth emerged. The principal said: after the storm, the two children were taken to the medical station by an international volunteer group. Because they had no family papers, they were sent to the mountains to be raised, and their names were changed to Jun and Tomas. For ten years, they repeatedly told their friends that they had “kuya (older brother) and parents at sea”, but no one believed them.

What was more shocking: the loss of the file was not accidental. A local official at that time had intentionally erased the information to make it easier for the organization to receive international funding. That is, Andres and Anton had been deprived of the opportunity to reunite because of greed and irresponsibility.

After hearing this, Migs was both angry and hurt. But looking at the two children sitting in front of him, smiling awkwardly but familiarly, he could only feel tears welling up. The three brothers hugged each other.

The next day, all three returned to La Union. When they entered the small house by the sea, Nanay collapsed in her two children’s arms, crying and laughing at the same time. Tatay stood still, turning away to wipe away her tears.

After the reunion, Migs’ family decided to bring the matter to light. The road ahead is arduous — working with the authorities, digging up old records, confronting those involved — but they believe that as long as they are together, all losses will gradually be healed.