The Fifth Story - The Game of Fame (Part 3)
Jen could feel adrenaline rushing through her veins as she brought the knife down. The sensation as it pierced right into the human flesh caused all her senses to go numb. But she realise something was wrong as soon as she got her senses back. Jen looked down at the knife. It dug deep into the body, but not the body of the person she wanted.
Alston could feel the cold blade in his flesh, but he resisted the pain. He had to protect Jolin from the crazy girl. Jolin was looking at him with very wide open eyes, it was filled with shock and sadness. She's going to cry. Alston wanted to say some words to comfort her but something was gushing out from his stomach and it's stuck in his throat. Blood flowed out of his mouth and everything he saw became blur, even Jolin's face, it was blurring. He fell on the ground, lying beside Jolin. Everything felt so cold, where's Jolin? He can't see anything anymore, he wanted to call out to his sister for help, but words escaped him, he couldn't speak, for blood was still flowing out of his mouth. His eyes teared up. Is he dying? He could still feel the blade in his flesh and the taste of his own blood, is this the way people are supposed to end their life? He thought of his sister's face, and the toys he had in his room, and the old cabin house, and before his final breath, he thought of Jolin smiling at him when they on the jeep going to the Festival. He shut his eyes and slept.
Jolin stared at Alston's body and her hands were full of his blood. "no... no... this can't be happening, Alston, wake up, wake up!" shouted Jolin, shaking Alston's dead body, desperately. Jen walked over to Jolin and pulled her hair. Jolin got up and kicked Jen at the stomach. She began running again, sobbing as tears ran down her cheeks. Jen chased her and caught up and tried strangling Jolin as she struggled on the ground. Spotlights shone on her and the police came down just in time and pulled her away from Jolin. She was handcuffed and lead away to a police car. She shouted and screamed, trying to break free. Allison came to Jolin and hugged her, wrapping a blanket around her body. "Where's Alston?" she asked. "Did you see him? He ran off into the woods right after you left," Jolin cried and explained what happened. Allison was stunt. She rose up, expressionless face, and walked over to her brother's dead body. She hugged Alston in her arms and mourned as Jolin was carried into the ambulance and was sent to the hospital.
Jolin stood in front of the mirror in a room. She checked her hair and make up one last time and head off into the dark corridor. She could hear the fans screaming their heads off. Everyone's waiting for her to get up that stage. As she walked in her high heels, she smiled triumphantly. Everything worked out just as she had planned. She knew about Jen's plan to murder her, she was far too smart for her anyway. So why waste that chance? She would act as the victim, with the right medicine to inflict a minor amnesia, get lost in the woods, but there was this tricky part, hoping someone would find her, but it worked out in the end, and knowing that her best friend would be a determined person, comes back and tries finishing her off, but instead, got sent to jail, and she becomes the nation's most sympathized teen star. Not only did it helped her gain more fame and publicity, she even got rid of unwanted people like that worthless boyfriend of hers. Well, maybe, there was some minor accidents and death, but it was worth it, Jolin achieved her plan. "I always get what I want," she said to herself, smiling as she climbed up the stage to greet her fans and began her first song. The crowd cheered loudly as the famous teen star kick started her concert.
And the story ended with the star blinking in the night.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Sunday, September 12, 2010
The Fifth Story Told By The Stars (Part 2)
The Fifth Story - The Game of Fame (Part 2)
After much convincing and puppy eyes from Alston and Jolin, Allison finally gave in. It was Saturday and the annual Festival was going on in the small town. There would be magic show, concerts and many interesting things for sale in the Festival every year. And Alston was always excited when that day arrives. Allison would always bring her brother to the Festival but she had to duty that day that she couldn't skip. Alston was not suppose to go but Jolin promised to take good care of herself and Alston and so, with Allison's permission, both of them got up a Jeep and followed Allison's colleague to the town. Alston was grinning all the time and Jolin smiled at him too. Jolin liked Alston. He was always so innocent and pure in heart. Jolin never had to be afraid or anxious of anything when she's with him.
They strolled, hand in hand, on the streets. The dull little town came to life on that day. People crowded the streets and brightly coloured tents and caravans lined up by the road side. A big stage was being set up. Jolin stopped and stared at the big lights and huge metal bars used to support the stage. Alston took a glance at them and pulled Jolin away from that place. Jolin became immersed in her thoughts, she used to be singing on those stages. She started recalling on one of her performance.
She danced and sang on the stage, making sure her fans were entertained all the time. He sight fell upon a young man. He smiled and waved at her. "He made it," she thought to herself. She waved back and continued singing, but she felt way more happier than she was before.
Jolin was nudged back to reality. Alston seemed anxious. He pointed at something behind Jolin's back. She looked at where he was pointing and saw a man with a hat, a mask covering his face, staring at her. He broke into a run towards her. Alston grabbed hold of Jolin's hand even tighter and began running. They ran through the gathering crowd by the stage. Constantly bumping into people and trying to evade them. Someone was singing on the stage so nobody minded them. But the masked man continued pursuing. They stopped for a moment to catch they're breath and began running again. They stopped and hid themselves behind a van. Jolin felt her chest rising up and down rapidly. Alston loosen his grip and searched around the place anxiously. For that one moment, Jolin saw a man in him, not a boy. "Nobody around, we safe," he said with heavy breath.
A hand grabbed Jolin's by surprise and she screamed. She was pulled out into the streets by the strong hand. The man who was chasing them took off the mask with one hand and Jolin recognized him. He is the man in her concert. "Jolin? Baby? You're alive?" and he hugged her. It came back to her again. It's him, Federer, her boyfriend. Jolin began crying as she hung unto him tightly. Alston just stood there, staring at what happened. He didn't say anything and remained silent, unsure of what he should do. He felt that it was hard to breath, as if something is in his chest. Alston hated that feeling but it kept growing as he stared at Jolin and the man hugging. He closed his eyes and turned his head to look at something else. He had never felt that feeling before, but it won't go away and he couldn't get rid of it.
The man, known as Federer, according to Jolin, was her boyfriend and sent Alston and her to the cabin house. Alston stomped his foot on the wooden floor as he entered the house. Federer looked at Jolin in the eyes, "I'll come back again tomorrow, maybe in the morning. I have to handle a concert in the Festival, Jen's singing, the company finally officiated her debut, she'll love to meet you, you guys are the best of friends," Jolin just smiled and she waved him goodbye as he left the forest in the car. Allison came out of the cabin. "Alston's really grumpy, wonder what's wrong. So, that's your boyfriend huh?" "Yeah, I remembered him now," "Are you ready to go back home then?" Allison asked. Jolin looked at the star studded night sky, "I don't know," and they entered the warm cabin together to escape from the cold wind outside.
Jolin was trying to get Alston to finish his breakfast, when the car arrived. Alston was giving Allison and Jolin a hard time with his grumpiness. And the sight of the car didn't make it any better. Jolin put on a coat and went outside. Federer got out of the car and so did a girl with shoulder length hair. She seemed tearful and immediately hugged Jolin when she got down from the car. "I can't believe it, you're still alive," and she took a step backwards and took a good look at Jolin, "I missed you so much, we must talk of what happened, Federer told me you lose your memory, do you still remember me? I'm Jen, your best friend, we trained together remember?" And memories came flooding back into her head.
Both of them were really tired from dancing. They sat side by side leaning against the wall in the dance practice room. "I hope we could debut as a group, Jen, like a duo, it'll be so cool," said Jolin. "I know, we could go on tours and have concerts, and you know what's the best thing?" "What?" "We're in this together, silly," replied Jen and the sweaty girls laughed together. Jolin phone rang. She stood up and went outside the room to answer the call. "Jolin, congratulations," it was her manager, "he company agreed to let you debut," Jolin was so excited, "Really?" she asked in disbelief, "how about Jen? Is she debuting too?" The voice from the other side of the phone fell quiet. "Well, the company thinks that, it's not the best time for her yet, so just be happy and sleep early, you'll have your first photoshoot tomorrow morning," and the call was ended. Jolin put her phone in her pocket and stared at the door. She stood there for a while before entering the room again.
Jen. Jolin remembered now. Three of them went inside the car and left the cabin site. Alston looked longingly through the window at the sight of the leaving car. His best friend is leaving him again. Will he leave her and never come back?
The car drove on to a graveled road, up to a hill and stopped near it peak. There was a long bench overlooking the forest below. They sat there together and talked. Jolin felt strange. The place looks really familiar. The trees, the hill, even the gravel road. But she couldn't remember why. "Jolin, we need to go now, I have to go sing in the Festival, it's the last night," Jolin smiled and they all went up the car. Before leaving the place, Jen asked her, "When do you plan to go back, everyone in the company is missing you, especially your fans?" Jolin couldn't answer her. "Let's meet here tomorrow, if you want to go, we'll bring you along and leave this town and forest together, tomorrow," said Federer with a convincing tone. Jolin looked at him and nodded. Federer and Jen smiled at each other. He started the engine and they went down the hill.
Jolin carried her backpack and hugged Allison. Alston locked himself up in the room. "He never liked goodbyes," explained Allison. "It's okay, I'll come back and visit you guys often, you guys saved me after all, tell Alston that I love him very much and take a good care of himself, you too Allison, thanks for everything," said Jolin. Allison smiled and hugged her again. Jolin climbed up the jeep. "Why do they want to meet you there? It's easier to fetch you here," said Allison. "I don't know, but I promised, bye Allison," she waved one last goodbye to Allison and at the cabin, hoping that Alston would notice and left the lovely wood cabin in the forest.
The driver left Jolin alone on top of the hill. She sat on the bench with her backpack on her lap and waited. The sun would be down in half an hour. She looked all around her, the trees, she remembered these trees...
Jolin looked into the car. Federer was driving and Jen was sitting beside him. Jen had been plotting to finish her up all along, but Jolin never thought she would dare to do anything. She ran and ran as the car accelerated even faster. Jen had always been jealous of her for debuting alone before she did. "So, that b*t*h had an affair with my boyfriend all these while," she thought to herself. "I'll make them pay..."
The sound of the incoming car woke Jolin up. She started to run. It's repeating, as she ran her memories came back to her. It's getting even clearer now. Jolin ran and reached a sign. 'DANGEROUS, BEWARE OF ROCKS'. Jolin ignored and continued running. The car was approaching, and Jolin would soon meet her end. The caught up and was behind her, inching closer and closer every second. None of them realized as a huge rock came rolling down from the higher ground of the hill. It hit the car. The car came to a halt. Jolin stopped and carefully looked into the car. Federer's face was red with blood. He seemed to have fainted, or was he dead? Jen crawled out of the car. Jolin wanted to help her but Jen thought otherwise. There was a long knife in her hand. She shouted Jolin's name and started chasing her. Jolin slid down from the side of the road into the forest. Jen slid down too, still on the hunt for Jolin.
Jolin continued running when she reached the leveled ground of the forest. It's getting dark in the forest. With limited visibility, Jolin found herself groping around and tripping over large tree roots and stones. But she kept on. She reached a large tree and rested for a while. Her strength were all drained. Jolin couldn't even felt her legs anymore. Someone kicked her on the side and Jolin fell to the ground. Jen found her. "I hate you Jolin, why can't you just die from the first 'accident'? Everyone was so sad that they're favourite little singing star went missing. But I was so happy, the company actually debuted me when you're gone, it was my opportunity, no more backstage dancer, no more nobody, I was finally, somebody. Do you think I'll let you go back alive and take the spotlight away from me again? No, Jolin, you'll die here, I'll end your pitiful life. You don't have to take it as a bad thing, just think of it as helping your best friend to succeed in her life," and she raised up the long knife above Jolin's body, ready to dig it deep into her flesh. "Bye bye Jolin, any last words?"
After much convincing and puppy eyes from Alston and Jolin, Allison finally gave in. It was Saturday and the annual Festival was going on in the small town. There would be magic show, concerts and many interesting things for sale in the Festival every year. And Alston was always excited when that day arrives. Allison would always bring her brother to the Festival but she had to duty that day that she couldn't skip. Alston was not suppose to go but Jolin promised to take good care of herself and Alston and so, with Allison's permission, both of them got up a Jeep and followed Allison's colleague to the town. Alston was grinning all the time and Jolin smiled at him too. Jolin liked Alston. He was always so innocent and pure in heart. Jolin never had to be afraid or anxious of anything when she's with him.
They strolled, hand in hand, on the streets. The dull little town came to life on that day. People crowded the streets and brightly coloured tents and caravans lined up by the road side. A big stage was being set up. Jolin stopped and stared at the big lights and huge metal bars used to support the stage. Alston took a glance at them and pulled Jolin away from that place. Jolin became immersed in her thoughts, she used to be singing on those stages. She started recalling on one of her performance.
She danced and sang on the stage, making sure her fans were entertained all the time. He sight fell upon a young man. He smiled and waved at her. "He made it," she thought to herself. She waved back and continued singing, but she felt way more happier than she was before.
Jolin was nudged back to reality. Alston seemed anxious. He pointed at something behind Jolin's back. She looked at where he was pointing and saw a man with a hat, a mask covering his face, staring at her. He broke into a run towards her. Alston grabbed hold of Jolin's hand even tighter and began running. They ran through the gathering crowd by the stage. Constantly bumping into people and trying to evade them. Someone was singing on the stage so nobody minded them. But the masked man continued pursuing. They stopped for a moment to catch they're breath and began running again. They stopped and hid themselves behind a van. Jolin felt her chest rising up and down rapidly. Alston loosen his grip and searched around the place anxiously. For that one moment, Jolin saw a man in him, not a boy. "Nobody around, we safe," he said with heavy breath.
A hand grabbed Jolin's by surprise and she screamed. She was pulled out into the streets by the strong hand. The man who was chasing them took off the mask with one hand and Jolin recognized him. He is the man in her concert. "Jolin? Baby? You're alive?" and he hugged her. It came back to her again. It's him, Federer, her boyfriend. Jolin began crying as she hung unto him tightly. Alston just stood there, staring at what happened. He didn't say anything and remained silent, unsure of what he should do. He felt that it was hard to breath, as if something is in his chest. Alston hated that feeling but it kept growing as he stared at Jolin and the man hugging. He closed his eyes and turned his head to look at something else. He had never felt that feeling before, but it won't go away and he couldn't get rid of it.
The man, known as Federer, according to Jolin, was her boyfriend and sent Alston and her to the cabin house. Alston stomped his foot on the wooden floor as he entered the house. Federer looked at Jolin in the eyes, "I'll come back again tomorrow, maybe in the morning. I have to handle a concert in the Festival, Jen's singing, the company finally officiated her debut, she'll love to meet you, you guys are the best of friends," Jolin just smiled and she waved him goodbye as he left the forest in the car. Allison came out of the cabin. "Alston's really grumpy, wonder what's wrong. So, that's your boyfriend huh?" "Yeah, I remembered him now," "Are you ready to go back home then?" Allison asked. Jolin looked at the star studded night sky, "I don't know," and they entered the warm cabin together to escape from the cold wind outside.
Jolin was trying to get Alston to finish his breakfast, when the car arrived. Alston was giving Allison and Jolin a hard time with his grumpiness. And the sight of the car didn't make it any better. Jolin put on a coat and went outside. Federer got out of the car and so did a girl with shoulder length hair. She seemed tearful and immediately hugged Jolin when she got down from the car. "I can't believe it, you're still alive," and she took a step backwards and took a good look at Jolin, "I missed you so much, we must talk of what happened, Federer told me you lose your memory, do you still remember me? I'm Jen, your best friend, we trained together remember?" And memories came flooding back into her head.
Both of them were really tired from dancing. They sat side by side leaning against the wall in the dance practice room. "I hope we could debut as a group, Jen, like a duo, it'll be so cool," said Jolin. "I know, we could go on tours and have concerts, and you know what's the best thing?" "What?" "We're in this together, silly," replied Jen and the sweaty girls laughed together. Jolin phone rang. She stood up and went outside the room to answer the call. "Jolin, congratulations," it was her manager, "he company agreed to let you debut," Jolin was so excited, "Really?" she asked in disbelief, "how about Jen? Is she debuting too?" The voice from the other side of the phone fell quiet. "Well, the company thinks that, it's not the best time for her yet, so just be happy and sleep early, you'll have your first photoshoot tomorrow morning," and the call was ended. Jolin put her phone in her pocket and stared at the door. She stood there for a while before entering the room again.
Jen. Jolin remembered now. Three of them went inside the car and left the cabin site. Alston looked longingly through the window at the sight of the leaving car. His best friend is leaving him again. Will he leave her and never come back?
The car drove on to a graveled road, up to a hill and stopped near it peak. There was a long bench overlooking the forest below. They sat there together and talked. Jolin felt strange. The place looks really familiar. The trees, the hill, even the gravel road. But she couldn't remember why. "Jolin, we need to go now, I have to go sing in the Festival, it's the last night," Jolin smiled and they all went up the car. Before leaving the place, Jen asked her, "When do you plan to go back, everyone in the company is missing you, especially your fans?" Jolin couldn't answer her. "Let's meet here tomorrow, if you want to go, we'll bring you along and leave this town and forest together, tomorrow," said Federer with a convincing tone. Jolin looked at him and nodded. Federer and Jen smiled at each other. He started the engine and they went down the hill.
Jolin carried her backpack and hugged Allison. Alston locked himself up in the room. "He never liked goodbyes," explained Allison. "It's okay, I'll come back and visit you guys often, you guys saved me after all, tell Alston that I love him very much and take a good care of himself, you too Allison, thanks for everything," said Jolin. Allison smiled and hugged her again. Jolin climbed up the jeep. "Why do they want to meet you there? It's easier to fetch you here," said Allison. "I don't know, but I promised, bye Allison," she waved one last goodbye to Allison and at the cabin, hoping that Alston would notice and left the lovely wood cabin in the forest.
The driver left Jolin alone on top of the hill. She sat on the bench with her backpack on her lap and waited. The sun would be down in half an hour. She looked all around her, the trees, she remembered these trees...
Jolin looked into the car. Federer was driving and Jen was sitting beside him. Jen had been plotting to finish her up all along, but Jolin never thought she would dare to do anything. She ran and ran as the car accelerated even faster. Jen had always been jealous of her for debuting alone before she did. "So, that b*t*h had an affair with my boyfriend all these while," she thought to herself. "I'll make them pay..."
The sound of the incoming car woke Jolin up. She started to run. It's repeating, as she ran her memories came back to her. It's getting even clearer now. Jolin ran and reached a sign. 'DANGEROUS, BEWARE OF ROCKS'. Jolin ignored and continued running. The car was approaching, and Jolin would soon meet her end. The caught up and was behind her, inching closer and closer every second. None of them realized as a huge rock came rolling down from the higher ground of the hill. It hit the car. The car came to a halt. Jolin stopped and carefully looked into the car. Federer's face was red with blood. He seemed to have fainted, or was he dead? Jen crawled out of the car. Jolin wanted to help her but Jen thought otherwise. There was a long knife in her hand. She shouted Jolin's name and started chasing her. Jolin slid down from the side of the road into the forest. Jen slid down too, still on the hunt for Jolin.
Jolin continued running when she reached the leveled ground of the forest. It's getting dark in the forest. With limited visibility, Jolin found herself groping around and tripping over large tree roots and stones. But she kept on. She reached a large tree and rested for a while. Her strength were all drained. Jolin couldn't even felt her legs anymore. Someone kicked her on the side and Jolin fell to the ground. Jen found her. "I hate you Jolin, why can't you just die from the first 'accident'? Everyone was so sad that they're favourite little singing star went missing. But I was so happy, the company actually debuted me when you're gone, it was my opportunity, no more backstage dancer, no more nobody, I was finally, somebody. Do you think I'll let you go back alive and take the spotlight away from me again? No, Jolin, you'll die here, I'll end your pitiful life. You don't have to take it as a bad thing, just think of it as helping your best friend to succeed in her life," and she raised up the long knife above Jolin's body, ready to dig it deep into her flesh. "Bye bye Jolin, any last words?"
The Fifth Story Told By The Stars (Part 1)
The Moon was shining brightly, hanging in the night sky, elegant and pale. A star appeared among the cloud, and took its place near the Moon, as it began telling a story.
The Fifth Story - The Game of Fame (Part 1)
A girl walked, limping, through the woods. The night has fallen. She felt really thirsty and hungry. The cut on her forehead had stopped bleeding but her left arm was still badly bruised and so were her legs, it was painful to walk, but she kept on. It was like an eternity until she reached a small river. The girl sat on the river bank and scooped a handful of water with her hands. She washed herself and drank. The cuts stung badly so she left them alone. Nobody spoke in the woods, only the crickets and insects in the forest chirped. She was scared and alone. She wondered how she would die in the forest. Out of hunger or getting eaten up alive by the wild inhabitants of the woods? She couldn't decide which was the best choice among those two so she kept quiet and prayed. Only God could save her now. There was a rustle among the wild bush tree near the river. Something's hiding inside, observing her. The girl could not move her body because of fear. That was it, her end had come.
When a boy, same sized as her, but fit and lean, jumped out of the bush. He looked at her as if she was a dream come true. Something that excites him. He shouted a name. Allison. And a girl came running to the river. Allison looked much mature then herself. She stared at them both and remained silent. Allison reach out her hand to the girl, "I'm Allison, the Forest Ranger. I can help you, just come with me," the girl took Allison's hand and she leaned on to her all the time, limping through the woods until they reached a small cabin house. The boy followed closely behind the two girls. The girl was given a bath and her cut was tended by Allison. After finishing up the last band aid, she was lead to a small bedroom. "You'll be safe here until tomorrow morning, we'll contact your family or friends and they could come and bring you home, so don't worry," Allison assured the girl with a smile. The girl seemed confused. "Family? Friends?" she mumbled to herself. "What's your name?" Allison asked before leaving the room. The girl thought hard, but nothing, "I don't know," she replied.
Allison sipped her cup of coffee. She looked at the girl, and thought, " She lost her memories, this will make everything harder, I'll try and see if can help her gain back some of her memories, truthfully, she looks really familiar." "Want a cup of coffee?" The girl stare at the coffee pot and shook her head. She was quiet all day. Allison tried striking up a conversation. "This, is my brother, Alston. He's 18 but he suffered a very high fever and his brain tissues were severed when he was 8 years old. Since then, acts and remain as an 8 year old until now," she looked sadly at her brother. Alston was sitting on the floor, finishing a puzzle. The girl rose up from the chair and walked to Alston and sat beside him. They looked straight at each others eye and turned to the puzzle and continued finishing it. Allison smiled at the sight of the two.
Alston and the girl went for a nap and Allison cleaned up the table. She picked up the toys on the floor and came upon the puzzle. It was almost finished. Just the middle part left. Being helpful, she picked up the remaining pieces and assembled them to complete the puzzle. And she now realise why the girl was so familiar. She was on the puzzle. Jolin, the teen star, singing sensation. She ran to the kitchen table and picked up the newspaper. It was on the front page, Jolin is Missing. So, the girl's name is Jolin. Maybe she could remember something now, "I'll show her all her videos and music, maybe she could regain her memory," and she went to her her computer and started searching.
The girl woke up and walked out of her room. Allison was behind the computer, she seemed busy. The girl stood there, not sure whether she should do anything, fearing that it might disturb the kind person who saved her from the forest. Allison saw her and beckoned her to the computer. The girl approached the computer and sat beside Allison and stared at the monitor screen. There were pictures of her and videos of her singing. Allison kept asking her whether she remembers anything. The girl shook her head, until a picture of the Jolin Tour Concert poster appeared on the screen. Her head felt painful and she saw flashbacks of the past. Fragments of her memories were coming back to her...
She was standing in a room. There was a big mirror, and it was full of clothings, jeans, dresses, tube tops, leather suits and also cosmetics. She walked to the mirror and looked at herself. Beautiful. Confident. Stunning. She smiled with satisfaction. "Jolin," and she turned back, "your concert's starting," said her manager. "I'm ready now, where's Jen? I didn't see her the whole time," she asked. "She must be with the other dancers, in the waiting hall, hurry up, we need you to get the ball rolling," and the manager took her hand and they hurried out of the room.
She opened her eyes and stared at Allison. "I think, my name is Jolin," and Allison smiled, "you're memories' coming back," and Jolin nodded. It must be a good thing to remember something, Allison looked so happy. Both of them turned towards the computer and continued looking at all the videos, hoping that Jolin could recover more. But something was bugging Jolin, she couldn't remember who Jen was. She must be her friend, for she seemed to care for her a lot from what she saw just now.
Days passed, yet Jolin's memories hadn't recovered much. Allison was worried. Should she keep Jolin with her or send her back to her management agency. Alston was playing with Jolin outside of the cabin. Her brother seemed to have grown really fond of Jolin. He liked her since the first day she arrived in their wooden house. Allison had always been a busy forest ranger. Many things needed her attention, illegal lumber jacks, animal hunters and poachers, she was the guardian of the forest. Her brother was always being left alone and with Jolin accompanying him, he seemed to be much happier now. Sending Jolin away would only break Alston's heart, and that in return would break hers. Allison shook her head to get rid of the thought. She turned back to the monitor screen and finished up her report. Suddenly, she heard Alston shouting, "Jolin!". Allison rushed out of the cabin and found Jolin on the ground. Alston was panicking and tugged at his sister for help. Allison checked Jolin's condition and carried her into the house. "What have you two been doing, Alston?" With tear filled eyes, she looked at her sister and answered, "I showed Jolin my toy car," and he held it up for his sister to see, "I played with her and chased her, just game, and she head hurt and sleep on the ground, don't want wake up," Allison patted her brother on the head and smiled, "she dying? she dead?" he asked, "No, Alston she's fine, she'll wake up soon, she just fainted," and Alston smiled at her and at Jolin on the bed. "Good thing she safe, she my friend." Allison bit her lip. Things would get her hard if Jolin goes away.
It was midnight, the clock pointed at 12 sharp. Alston was tucked in his bed. Allison was drinking coffee and reading a book on the couch when Jolin became conscious and walked out of her room into the living room. Allison put down the novel as Jolin sat beside her. "I remembered something."
She was running. It was on a gravel road, there were trees all around her. Someone or something was chasing her. Her leg was killing her. She looked over her shoulder and a black car was speeding up to her, it was closing in. She ran for her life. She must survive. She lost her footing and stumbled. The car continued approaching. They're going to kill her. She had no choice. One of her leg was twisted. With much effort, she carried herself to the side of the road. It was really steep down. She will have to jump down into the valley to save herself from them. They car was coming. A few more seconds and they would reach her. She closed her eye and let herself fall down into the dark valley. She bumped her head into something hard and everything went black.
Allison kept quiet. Jolin stared at the carpet on the floor. "I cannot go back, someone is waiting for me," Allison put her arms around Jolin, "they'll kill me," she said. "Then you'll have to stay with us, until something is figured out and you recover totally from your memory lost," Jolin nodded. "If only you could remember who was chasing you," said Allison. The night was cold and an owl perched, high up on an oak tree branch, as it hooted into the night.
The Fifth Story - The Game of Fame (Part 1)
A girl walked, limping, through the woods. The night has fallen. She felt really thirsty and hungry. The cut on her forehead had stopped bleeding but her left arm was still badly bruised and so were her legs, it was painful to walk, but she kept on. It was like an eternity until she reached a small river. The girl sat on the river bank and scooped a handful of water with her hands. She washed herself and drank. The cuts stung badly so she left them alone. Nobody spoke in the woods, only the crickets and insects in the forest chirped. She was scared and alone. She wondered how she would die in the forest. Out of hunger or getting eaten up alive by the wild inhabitants of the woods? She couldn't decide which was the best choice among those two so she kept quiet and prayed. Only God could save her now. There was a rustle among the wild bush tree near the river. Something's hiding inside, observing her. The girl could not move her body because of fear. That was it, her end had come.
When a boy, same sized as her, but fit and lean, jumped out of the bush. He looked at her as if she was a dream come true. Something that excites him. He shouted a name. Allison. And a girl came running to the river. Allison looked much mature then herself. She stared at them both and remained silent. Allison reach out her hand to the girl, "I'm Allison, the Forest Ranger. I can help you, just come with me," the girl took Allison's hand and she leaned on to her all the time, limping through the woods until they reached a small cabin house. The boy followed closely behind the two girls. The girl was given a bath and her cut was tended by Allison. After finishing up the last band aid, she was lead to a small bedroom. "You'll be safe here until tomorrow morning, we'll contact your family or friends and they could come and bring you home, so don't worry," Allison assured the girl with a smile. The girl seemed confused. "Family? Friends?" she mumbled to herself. "What's your name?" Allison asked before leaving the room. The girl thought hard, but nothing, "I don't know," she replied.
Allison sipped her cup of coffee. She looked at the girl, and thought, " She lost her memories, this will make everything harder, I'll try and see if can help her gain back some of her memories, truthfully, she looks really familiar." "Want a cup of coffee?" The girl stare at the coffee pot and shook her head. She was quiet all day. Allison tried striking up a conversation. "This, is my brother, Alston. He's 18 but he suffered a very high fever and his brain tissues were severed when he was 8 years old. Since then, acts and remain as an 8 year old until now," she looked sadly at her brother. Alston was sitting on the floor, finishing a puzzle. The girl rose up from the chair and walked to Alston and sat beside him. They looked straight at each others eye and turned to the puzzle and continued finishing it. Allison smiled at the sight of the two.
Alston and the girl went for a nap and Allison cleaned up the table. She picked up the toys on the floor and came upon the puzzle. It was almost finished. Just the middle part left. Being helpful, she picked up the remaining pieces and assembled them to complete the puzzle. And she now realise why the girl was so familiar. She was on the puzzle. Jolin, the teen star, singing sensation. She ran to the kitchen table and picked up the newspaper. It was on the front page, Jolin is Missing. So, the girl's name is Jolin. Maybe she could remember something now, "I'll show her all her videos and music, maybe she could regain her memory," and she went to her her computer and started searching.
The girl woke up and walked out of her room. Allison was behind the computer, she seemed busy. The girl stood there, not sure whether she should do anything, fearing that it might disturb the kind person who saved her from the forest. Allison saw her and beckoned her to the computer. The girl approached the computer and sat beside Allison and stared at the monitor screen. There were pictures of her and videos of her singing. Allison kept asking her whether she remembers anything. The girl shook her head, until a picture of the Jolin Tour Concert poster appeared on the screen. Her head felt painful and she saw flashbacks of the past. Fragments of her memories were coming back to her...
She was standing in a room. There was a big mirror, and it was full of clothings, jeans, dresses, tube tops, leather suits and also cosmetics. She walked to the mirror and looked at herself. Beautiful. Confident. Stunning. She smiled with satisfaction. "Jolin," and she turned back, "your concert's starting," said her manager. "I'm ready now, where's Jen? I didn't see her the whole time," she asked. "She must be with the other dancers, in the waiting hall, hurry up, we need you to get the ball rolling," and the manager took her hand and they hurried out of the room.
She opened her eyes and stared at Allison. "I think, my name is Jolin," and Allison smiled, "you're memories' coming back," and Jolin nodded. It must be a good thing to remember something, Allison looked so happy. Both of them turned towards the computer and continued looking at all the videos, hoping that Jolin could recover more. But something was bugging Jolin, she couldn't remember who Jen was. She must be her friend, for she seemed to care for her a lot from what she saw just now.
Days passed, yet Jolin's memories hadn't recovered much. Allison was worried. Should she keep Jolin with her or send her back to her management agency. Alston was playing with Jolin outside of the cabin. Her brother seemed to have grown really fond of Jolin. He liked her since the first day she arrived in their wooden house. Allison had always been a busy forest ranger. Many things needed her attention, illegal lumber jacks, animal hunters and poachers, she was the guardian of the forest. Her brother was always being left alone and with Jolin accompanying him, he seemed to be much happier now. Sending Jolin away would only break Alston's heart, and that in return would break hers. Allison shook her head to get rid of the thought. She turned back to the monitor screen and finished up her report. Suddenly, she heard Alston shouting, "Jolin!". Allison rushed out of the cabin and found Jolin on the ground. Alston was panicking and tugged at his sister for help. Allison checked Jolin's condition and carried her into the house. "What have you two been doing, Alston?" With tear filled eyes, she looked at her sister and answered, "I showed Jolin my toy car," and he held it up for his sister to see, "I played with her and chased her, just game, and she head hurt and sleep on the ground, don't want wake up," Allison patted her brother on the head and smiled, "she dying? she dead?" he asked, "No, Alston she's fine, she'll wake up soon, she just fainted," and Alston smiled at her and at Jolin on the bed. "Good thing she safe, she my friend." Allison bit her lip. Things would get her hard if Jolin goes away.
It was midnight, the clock pointed at 12 sharp. Alston was tucked in his bed. Allison was drinking coffee and reading a book on the couch when Jolin became conscious and walked out of her room into the living room. Allison put down the novel as Jolin sat beside her. "I remembered something."
She was running. It was on a gravel road, there were trees all around her. Someone or something was chasing her. Her leg was killing her. She looked over her shoulder and a black car was speeding up to her, it was closing in. She ran for her life. She must survive. She lost her footing and stumbled. The car continued approaching. They're going to kill her. She had no choice. One of her leg was twisted. With much effort, she carried herself to the side of the road. It was really steep down. She will have to jump down into the valley to save herself from them. They car was coming. A few more seconds and they would reach her. She closed her eye and let herself fall down into the dark valley. She bumped her head into something hard and everything went black.
Allison kept quiet. Jolin stared at the carpet on the floor. "I cannot go back, someone is waiting for me," Allison put her arms around Jolin, "they'll kill me," she said. "Then you'll have to stay with us, until something is figured out and you recover totally from your memory lost," Jolin nodded. "If only you could remember who was chasing you," said Allison. The night was cold and an owl perched, high up on an oak tree branch, as it hooted into the night.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
The Fourth Story Told By The Stars (Part 2)
The Fourth Story - Lotus In The Sea (Part 2)
It was Saturday, Jon and Kat went on a date together, and they watched movie and had lunch together. Jon realised his love for Kat. And he could felt Kat's feelings for him too. But neither of them confessed their feelings. They're both sitting on the beach, looking out into the sea at the setting sun. It was beautiful. Kat closed her eyes and the breeze blew on her face, her hair was swept back by the wind and she looked really pale. Jon was worried, Kat's health's getting worse, and she's not telling him anything. Kat spoke after a while, "Jon, you're a very nice guy, I hope you find someone, a girl, good enough for you," Jon fell silent. Kat suddenly bend low with her hands around her waist. She seemed to be in pain. Jon panicked, "Are you okay?" she faked a smile and straighten up, "Got you didn't I?" But Jon could see that Kat was really in pain, it wasn't just one of her jokes. Kat stood up and ran towards her car, she waved at Jon, grinning, and entered the car and sped off. Jon was troubled by Kat's action. He would have to find out and dig the truth from her tomorrow night.
But Kat didn't come at night. She never appeared again. It was like she disappeared. Jon couldn't contact her because he, (foolishly) never asked for her number or address before this. And all that Jon could do was wait. And waiting was probably one of the most tormenting thing that Jon had to do in his life, at that point of his life. One evening when he just arrived at the beach for his night duty, one of the lifeguard came up to him. "Jon, you remembered the lotus thing you asked each of us before this?" "Yeah," Jon answered. "Well, my children told me about this story, a myth they learned from teacher who was a local around here, about a lotus in the sea, they said that, when the moon was right, you would find a lotus flower, I remembered it was white in colour," Jon nodded, "yeah, what does it do?" My children said that it's magical, just by eating the petals of the flower, any sickness would be healed, any illness gone away, even death could be cast away, it's too impossible and illogical," Jon kept quiet, thinking hard, "Kat needs the flower, she's sick?"
"Nobody believes in those stories, maybe people desperate enough, dying people might believe it, where did you hear this from Jon?" "Kat..." Jon understood everything now, Kat's ill, really ill, she's dying, that was why her health was failing, that was why she needed the flower so much, the white lotus in the sea. "Kat? Katherine Carlson?" Jon looked up. "You know Kat?" "Well, in this whole city, there would only be one Kat that's famous enough to know, Katherine designed the best surfboard the beach has ever seen in years, and she was the best female lifeguard, after Jacqueline that is, we had, That was before she left and you came and replaced her. She was having some sort of complications, illness, can't be in the water for too long, it affects her body immune system, that's what I heard, it must be depressing for her, Kat loves swimming, she loves the sea, poor girl," Jon understood everything now, it's all so clear, why was he so blur? "Do you know where she lives?" he asked. "She was admitted into the hospital long time ago, she wasn't suppose to walk around too much, she needed rest," Jon ran off. He needs to see her, now, she had to be fine, she must.
Jon arrived at the hospital and checked with the nurse for Katherine's room. "Room No 25, sir, second floor," and he sped off, up the stairs into the Intensive Care ward. There was many ill people in the hospital, and none of them looked fine either. He walked past the beds, with his eyes constantly searching for Kat's face. He reached the end of the long room and on laid on the bed on the left, sleeping, was Kat. She looks really pale, as if all her energy had been drained away from her. Jon's trembling hands made its way to hers. She looked much better than the rest in the room, but he couldn't stop his tears from running down his cheeks. Kat opened her eyes and smiled at him. "How did you found me?" "I had my ways," Jon replied, sniffing. Kat smiled and went to sleep again. Jon dug his face on the bed, just beside her frail body, and cried.
"Where are we going Jon?" Kat asked. He piggybacked her from the hospital and they're now standing on the soft sands of the beach. "Your favourite place, the sea," and Jon continued walking, making his steps towards a small boat. "I have a surprise for you, a present," he said. When Kat was seated comfortably in the boat with blankets wrapped around her body to keep her warm, he rowed the boat to the middle of the sea. It was a night with the full moon, yet the sea was so calm. Everything was bright, the pale moonlight shone on Kat's face, and it was so white, as white as paper. Jon stopped rowing when they reached the usual spot where they would spend their time searching for the lotus. He pulled out his backpack, and unzipped it. He put his hand in and took out beautifully folded lotus flower, made of white origami paper. He gave it to Kat and she hold it in her hands. Jon smiled and continue taking another lotus and placed them on the sea, and they floated on the calm water. He took more flowers and placed them on the sea. Before long, there was countless white paper lotus flower floating on the sea all around the little boat. Kat hold the one in her hands close to her heart and began crying. Jon moved in closer to her and hugged her. "I love you so much, it took me days to finish these flowers, but they're nothing compared to what you've been through, I'm sorry I couldn't be with you in the first place, when you needed someone, will you accept me now?" he asked. "She cried even harder. Jon wiped the tears off her face and under the full moon, with many lotus floating above the sea around them, they kissed. "I love you too, Jon."
A year had passed since Kat left Jon and this world. Jon was still an awesome lifeguard. He was not given night duty anymore now and was entrusted to handle the crowd in the day time, when the beach was at it's busiest moment. "You've got a package to sign, Jon, the mailman's waiting at the reception counter," said Jacqueline as she took over Jon's place for a moment. "Who is it from?" "I don't know, check it out yourself," "I'll be right back," and Jon ran off into the office. The mailman seems to be having quite a hard time with the reception girl, as usual. "Here's your package sir, if you don't mind, please do it faster, I'm not welcomed here," and he glared at the girl. Jon smiled and signed the package, it was a big and rectangular in shape box. Jon wondered what's inside. He carried the box into the locker room and unwrapped the sellotapes. Jon opened the box and there lying among the styrofoam cubes was the most beautiful designed surfboard Jon had ever seen in his life. There was a card. He opened it and read it to himself, "Jon, I could never repay you for your present, the beautiful paper lotus, I always knew there was no such thing as the mythical Lotus in the Sea, but I had nothing left, no hope for life, I knew I was dying, the lotus was the only thing left for me, a reason to live. Then you came and proved me wrong, I was looking for the wrong thing all along, your love, was the real lotus, the only Lotus in the Sea that I needed. Thanks for everything, this is for you, that I've made, use it well. Goodbye, Jon, I love you."
Jon felt the surface of the surfboard and in one corner, was Kat's signature. He hugged the card and cried as loudly as he could in the locker room. "Thank you, Kat."
The moon shine brightly as the sea reflected it's pale light. If someone would just look carefully enough, he or she could have seen a white lotus, floating among the waves. The Lotus in the Sea...
The star ended it's tale and hid itself behind the Moon.
It was Saturday, Jon and Kat went on a date together, and they watched movie and had lunch together. Jon realised his love for Kat. And he could felt Kat's feelings for him too. But neither of them confessed their feelings. They're both sitting on the beach, looking out into the sea at the setting sun. It was beautiful. Kat closed her eyes and the breeze blew on her face, her hair was swept back by the wind and she looked really pale. Jon was worried, Kat's health's getting worse, and she's not telling him anything. Kat spoke after a while, "Jon, you're a very nice guy, I hope you find someone, a girl, good enough for you," Jon fell silent. Kat suddenly bend low with her hands around her waist. She seemed to be in pain. Jon panicked, "Are you okay?" she faked a smile and straighten up, "Got you didn't I?" But Jon could see that Kat was really in pain, it wasn't just one of her jokes. Kat stood up and ran towards her car, she waved at Jon, grinning, and entered the car and sped off. Jon was troubled by Kat's action. He would have to find out and dig the truth from her tomorrow night.
But Kat didn't come at night. She never appeared again. It was like she disappeared. Jon couldn't contact her because he, (foolishly) never asked for her number or address before this. And all that Jon could do was wait. And waiting was probably one of the most tormenting thing that Jon had to do in his life, at that point of his life. One evening when he just arrived at the beach for his night duty, one of the lifeguard came up to him. "Jon, you remembered the lotus thing you asked each of us before this?" "Yeah," Jon answered. "Well, my children told me about this story, a myth they learned from teacher who was a local around here, about a lotus in the sea, they said that, when the moon was right, you would find a lotus flower, I remembered it was white in colour," Jon nodded, "yeah, what does it do?" My children said that it's magical, just by eating the petals of the flower, any sickness would be healed, any illness gone away, even death could be cast away, it's too impossible and illogical," Jon kept quiet, thinking hard, "Kat needs the flower, she's sick?"
"Nobody believes in those stories, maybe people desperate enough, dying people might believe it, where did you hear this from Jon?" "Kat..." Jon understood everything now, Kat's ill, really ill, she's dying, that was why her health was failing, that was why she needed the flower so much, the white lotus in the sea. "Kat? Katherine Carlson?" Jon looked up. "You know Kat?" "Well, in this whole city, there would only be one Kat that's famous enough to know, Katherine designed the best surfboard the beach has ever seen in years, and she was the best female lifeguard, after Jacqueline that is, we had, That was before she left and you came and replaced her. She was having some sort of complications, illness, can't be in the water for too long, it affects her body immune system, that's what I heard, it must be depressing for her, Kat loves swimming, she loves the sea, poor girl," Jon understood everything now, it's all so clear, why was he so blur? "Do you know where she lives?" he asked. "She was admitted into the hospital long time ago, she wasn't suppose to walk around too much, she needed rest," Jon ran off. He needs to see her, now, she had to be fine, she must.
Jon arrived at the hospital and checked with the nurse for Katherine's room. "Room No 25, sir, second floor," and he sped off, up the stairs into the Intensive Care ward. There was many ill people in the hospital, and none of them looked fine either. He walked past the beds, with his eyes constantly searching for Kat's face. He reached the end of the long room and on laid on the bed on the left, sleeping, was Kat. She looks really pale, as if all her energy had been drained away from her. Jon's trembling hands made its way to hers. She looked much better than the rest in the room, but he couldn't stop his tears from running down his cheeks. Kat opened her eyes and smiled at him. "How did you found me?" "I had my ways," Jon replied, sniffing. Kat smiled and went to sleep again. Jon dug his face on the bed, just beside her frail body, and cried.
"Where are we going Jon?" Kat asked. He piggybacked her from the hospital and they're now standing on the soft sands of the beach. "Your favourite place, the sea," and Jon continued walking, making his steps towards a small boat. "I have a surprise for you, a present," he said. When Kat was seated comfortably in the boat with blankets wrapped around her body to keep her warm, he rowed the boat to the middle of the sea. It was a night with the full moon, yet the sea was so calm. Everything was bright, the pale moonlight shone on Kat's face, and it was so white, as white as paper. Jon stopped rowing when they reached the usual spot where they would spend their time searching for the lotus. He pulled out his backpack, and unzipped it. He put his hand in and took out beautifully folded lotus flower, made of white origami paper. He gave it to Kat and she hold it in her hands. Jon smiled and continue taking another lotus and placed them on the sea, and they floated on the calm water. He took more flowers and placed them on the sea. Before long, there was countless white paper lotus flower floating on the sea all around the little boat. Kat hold the one in her hands close to her heart and began crying. Jon moved in closer to her and hugged her. "I love you so much, it took me days to finish these flowers, but they're nothing compared to what you've been through, I'm sorry I couldn't be with you in the first place, when you needed someone, will you accept me now?" he asked. "She cried even harder. Jon wiped the tears off her face and under the full moon, with many lotus floating above the sea around them, they kissed. "I love you too, Jon."
A year had passed since Kat left Jon and this world. Jon was still an awesome lifeguard. He was not given night duty anymore now and was entrusted to handle the crowd in the day time, when the beach was at it's busiest moment. "You've got a package to sign, Jon, the mailman's waiting at the reception counter," said Jacqueline as she took over Jon's place for a moment. "Who is it from?" "I don't know, check it out yourself," "I'll be right back," and Jon ran off into the office. The mailman seems to be having quite a hard time with the reception girl, as usual. "Here's your package sir, if you don't mind, please do it faster, I'm not welcomed here," and he glared at the girl. Jon smiled and signed the package, it was a big and rectangular in shape box. Jon wondered what's inside. He carried the box into the locker room and unwrapped the sellotapes. Jon opened the box and there lying among the styrofoam cubes was the most beautiful designed surfboard Jon had ever seen in his life. There was a card. He opened it and read it to himself, "Jon, I could never repay you for your present, the beautiful paper lotus, I always knew there was no such thing as the mythical Lotus in the Sea, but I had nothing left, no hope for life, I knew I was dying, the lotus was the only thing left for me, a reason to live. Then you came and proved me wrong, I was looking for the wrong thing all along, your love, was the real lotus, the only Lotus in the Sea that I needed. Thanks for everything, this is for you, that I've made, use it well. Goodbye, Jon, I love you."
Jon felt the surface of the surfboard and in one corner, was Kat's signature. He hugged the card and cried as loudly as he could in the locker room. "Thank you, Kat."
The moon shine brightly as the sea reflected it's pale light. If someone would just look carefully enough, he or she could have seen a white lotus, floating among the waves. The Lotus in the Sea...
The star ended it's tale and hid itself behind the Moon.
The Fourth Story Told By The Stars (Part 1)
It was getting colder in the night, but the girl kept on listening, as the star began another tale.
The Fourth Story - Lotus In The Sea (Part 1)
The Wise Men of the village often gather the children around him, huddled together by the fire and tells them wonderful stories of warriors and beautiful goddess, of lessons and myth that they could learn from. One of the stories the little children liked, was about the Lotus in The Sea. Legend has it, when the moon was in the right shape and position, and it's soft light beam shines down from the heaven unto the sea below, one would be able to find a white lotus, revealed by the moonlight, floating among the white waves. This white lotus was rumored to be magical, so magical it could work wonders...
Jon grabbed a tighter hold of his backpack. He swung it over his shoulder and after taking a deep breath, entered the South Beach Management Office. He approached the counter and the office girl took one glance at him through her spectacles before continuing her work on her desk. "How may I help you?" she said with a solemn tone. "Did someone died this morning? What an attitude," he said to himself, in his mind, "I'm Jonathan Choi, the new lifeguard who was transferred here from the North beach as a replacement, I was supposed to meet the manager or something," I said. She continued her work without establishing any form of eye contact with me. She was silent for a few seconds, "Maybe she's like a computer, a slow one, she needs time to process data..." Jon thought. "Replacement huh? Mr Woo Jung Dal will be waiting for you in Room 3, so please proceed there with your documents ready," "Thanks," he smiled, hoping for a smile in return. To his 'dismay and shock', there was none.
"I hope Mr Woo behaves in a much more positive manner," he mumbled to himself as he unzipped his backpack and took out the documents. He knocked at the door and entered the room. And Mr Woo, the manager of the Administration of Safety and Lifeguards was sitting in a chair. He was smiling, and Jon felt at ease. Mr Woo asked him to have a seat and they went through the interview session quite fast. Mr Woo was friendly and very outspoken and they both left the room and headed out to the beach for orientation.
"This would be the lifeguards' restroom and office, and that would be the restricted area, no fishing, boating or any kind of water activities, especially swimming there," he explained pointing at a secluded area behind a huge rock. "The other lifeguards will explain everything else, and this is Miss Jacqueline, the head lifeguard here, Jac, this is Jon, the new guy who got transferred here," and a matured lady came up to Jon and shook hands. "Nice to meet you, I hope you do great as a replacement, won't want the quality of the lifeguards here in the South Beach to drop, don't we?" and she winked at Mr Woo. "You're right, Jac," and he turned to Jon, "give it all you've got, make friends so they won't see you as just 'the replacement' and impress the seniors here, alright?" Jon grinned. "I've got to handle some work in the office, handle the new boy for me, will you, Jac?" "Aye, aye captain," and Mr Woo left. "Let's go and meet the others," and Jon followed Jacqueline to continue his orientation.
Jon got home that night. It was a tiring day. Apart from the moody reception girl, the other lifeguards and staffs were really friendly. He felt that he could fit in just right in time. He stood by his apartment window, facing the sea. It was calming, the sea waves rolling in and out, the sound that the water makes when they hit the rocks and the shore. The moon was shining brightly, almost full moon, but not fully rounded. Was he imagining it? Someone seemed to be swimming in the middle of the ocean. That's really dangerous, and not recommended. But the figure was an excellent swimmer, with just a few strokes, she swam yards, "she's good," he said to himself. Assured that a lifeguard must be in duty at that time, lessening his worries for the swimming figure, Jon fell on his bed and slept soundly.
Jon woke up early, it's the next day. He was assigned night duty that day. He carried his backpack and wore short trousers and a T-shirt before heading out for a stroll in the city. It was a sunny day, he went around, checking around stores and restaurants for something interesting to see. He came across a shop selling sports and swimming equipments. Jon entered the shop and a ring from the bell welcomed him. He checked out the surfing boards. A very nice collection, good board, perfect design, build tough. He was impressed. He checked for the designer's name. But there was none. "Like it?" Jon turned back and there stood a girl, about the same age as he is. Tanned skin, gorgeous body and sharp eyes. "Ye..yeah..." he stuttered, "Darn it, what's wrong with my tongue?" he asked himself. She scowled and walked away, leaving Jon standing there stunt.
The rain poured and the heavy tapping on the glass windows made by the raindrops woke him up from his dreamlike state. Jon rushed to the door. He was too late, the rain's too heavy, and he didn't brought any umbrella. He would have to call the taxi or something. The girl was standing outside of the shop's entrance too. She seemed annoyed by the rain, she glared at Jon for staring at her before using a plastic file she was holding to cover herself from the rain and ran across the street into a car parked there. She started the engine and left. Jon checked his wallet, "great, not enough for a taxi", so he ran from shop to shop, seeking refuge under their canopy, avoiding the heavy rain.
The rain subsided and Jon reached the beach. He took over the duty from the afternoon session lifeguard. It was his turn now. He sat on the chair under the big umbrella. There was only a handful of people left on the beach and they all left when night covered the sky like a big blanket. Jon relaxed and laid back on the chair, closing his eyes. But his ears were open and alert. The sea was like an orchestra, there was a symphony going on its own. The waves began a melody and the 'splash' was like the rhythm of a song. But something disrupted the beautiful song. Someone jumped into the water, diving straight into the surface of the glassy sea. Jon stood up and took a closer look at the sea. With just a few strokes, the person swam a great distance away. Jon took off his shirt and jumped into the cold water.
The moon was shining brightly. Jon was closing in the person, a girl. The girl turned and looked at him. It was that girl from the shop. She scowled, again. "What are you doing here?" she asked, "I'm the lifeguard, night duty, and I believe I'm the one supposed to ask that question," I replied and she said, "So you're the new guy, the replacement, so whatever," and continued swimming around, she seemed to be searching for something. "Can I help you or something?" Jon asked. She ignored him. "I'm good at looking for stuff too..." She turned and looked at me, "just leave me alone," "the sea is a very dangerous place to be at night, my lady," and for one moment, Jon thought that she might act in a more kindly attitude after his good intention and care. Instead, she glared at him, "You, don't teach me how I do things, especially when it comes to the sea," she checked her watch, "great, it's all your fault," and she swam to the shore and ran off into the night. Jon went up to the shore, wore his shirt back and sat back on the chair. "Funny girl," and he smiled.
Jon was given night duty for every night, except the Saturdays. And every single night, the girl would go and swim in the sea. She was always circling around the same spot, searching for something. And being the gentlemen he always was, he would go and accompany her in her swim. But the girl never answered his questions. She was always ignoring Jon. But Jon was persistent and for the 100th time he asked her, "What are you looking for?", "Gosh! I'm looking for a stupid lotus flower, happy?" she replied, out of annoyance. "Lotus?" "It's time again, I have to go," and she swam back. Jon was confused, he's no scientist but he was smart enough to know that lotus never grows in the sea. He went home and on the next morning, he asked around the lifeguards whether any of them knew about the lotus growing in the sea but nobody seemed to have heard anything about that.
It was night again, and Jon met the girl in the sea, "I'll help you find the lotus, what colour is it?" This time she looked at me and smiled, "You believe that there's a lotus, floating in the middle of the sea? You're crazy," Jon smiled back and said, "At least I'm not the only one crazy around here," "Thanks, it's white, by the way," the girl said. "What is it for?" Jon asked again. "You won't believe me anyway, I appreciate this, I'm sorry for being so cold," "It's okay, it's normal for me," and she giggled. They spent nights like that together, but with each meeting, the girl seemed to lose her strength and stamina more, day by day. It showed from her swimming. Jon became concerned and asked, "You're not as good as when I first saw you, are you alright?" "I'm okay, and they continued swimming, searching for the lotus. 'What's your name? I never got to know it," said Jon.
"Call me Kate," was the reply.
The Fourth Story - Lotus In The Sea (Part 1)
The Wise Men of the village often gather the children around him, huddled together by the fire and tells them wonderful stories of warriors and beautiful goddess, of lessons and myth that they could learn from. One of the stories the little children liked, was about the Lotus in The Sea. Legend has it, when the moon was in the right shape and position, and it's soft light beam shines down from the heaven unto the sea below, one would be able to find a white lotus, revealed by the moonlight, floating among the white waves. This white lotus was rumored to be magical, so magical it could work wonders...
Jon grabbed a tighter hold of his backpack. He swung it over his shoulder and after taking a deep breath, entered the South Beach Management Office. He approached the counter and the office girl took one glance at him through her spectacles before continuing her work on her desk. "How may I help you?" she said with a solemn tone. "Did someone died this morning? What an attitude," he said to himself, in his mind, "I'm Jonathan Choi, the new lifeguard who was transferred here from the North beach as a replacement, I was supposed to meet the manager or something," I said. She continued her work without establishing any form of eye contact with me. She was silent for a few seconds, "Maybe she's like a computer, a slow one, she needs time to process data..." Jon thought. "Replacement huh? Mr Woo Jung Dal will be waiting for you in Room 3, so please proceed there with your documents ready," "Thanks," he smiled, hoping for a smile in return. To his 'dismay and shock', there was none.
"I hope Mr Woo behaves in a much more positive manner," he mumbled to himself as he unzipped his backpack and took out the documents. He knocked at the door and entered the room. And Mr Woo, the manager of the Administration of Safety and Lifeguards was sitting in a chair. He was smiling, and Jon felt at ease. Mr Woo asked him to have a seat and they went through the interview session quite fast. Mr Woo was friendly and very outspoken and they both left the room and headed out to the beach for orientation.
"This would be the lifeguards' restroom and office, and that would be the restricted area, no fishing, boating or any kind of water activities, especially swimming there," he explained pointing at a secluded area behind a huge rock. "The other lifeguards will explain everything else, and this is Miss Jacqueline, the head lifeguard here, Jac, this is Jon, the new guy who got transferred here," and a matured lady came up to Jon and shook hands. "Nice to meet you, I hope you do great as a replacement, won't want the quality of the lifeguards here in the South Beach to drop, don't we?" and she winked at Mr Woo. "You're right, Jac," and he turned to Jon, "give it all you've got, make friends so they won't see you as just 'the replacement' and impress the seniors here, alright?" Jon grinned. "I've got to handle some work in the office, handle the new boy for me, will you, Jac?" "Aye, aye captain," and Mr Woo left. "Let's go and meet the others," and Jon followed Jacqueline to continue his orientation.
Jon got home that night. It was a tiring day. Apart from the moody reception girl, the other lifeguards and staffs were really friendly. He felt that he could fit in just right in time. He stood by his apartment window, facing the sea. It was calming, the sea waves rolling in and out, the sound that the water makes when they hit the rocks and the shore. The moon was shining brightly, almost full moon, but not fully rounded. Was he imagining it? Someone seemed to be swimming in the middle of the ocean. That's really dangerous, and not recommended. But the figure was an excellent swimmer, with just a few strokes, she swam yards, "she's good," he said to himself. Assured that a lifeguard must be in duty at that time, lessening his worries for the swimming figure, Jon fell on his bed and slept soundly.
Jon woke up early, it's the next day. He was assigned night duty that day. He carried his backpack and wore short trousers and a T-shirt before heading out for a stroll in the city. It was a sunny day, he went around, checking around stores and restaurants for something interesting to see. He came across a shop selling sports and swimming equipments. Jon entered the shop and a ring from the bell welcomed him. He checked out the surfing boards. A very nice collection, good board, perfect design, build tough. He was impressed. He checked for the designer's name. But there was none. "Like it?" Jon turned back and there stood a girl, about the same age as he is. Tanned skin, gorgeous body and sharp eyes. "Ye..yeah..." he stuttered, "Darn it, what's wrong with my tongue?" he asked himself. She scowled and walked away, leaving Jon standing there stunt.
The rain poured and the heavy tapping on the glass windows made by the raindrops woke him up from his dreamlike state. Jon rushed to the door. He was too late, the rain's too heavy, and he didn't brought any umbrella. He would have to call the taxi or something. The girl was standing outside of the shop's entrance too. She seemed annoyed by the rain, she glared at Jon for staring at her before using a plastic file she was holding to cover herself from the rain and ran across the street into a car parked there. She started the engine and left. Jon checked his wallet, "great, not enough for a taxi", so he ran from shop to shop, seeking refuge under their canopy, avoiding the heavy rain.
The rain subsided and Jon reached the beach. He took over the duty from the afternoon session lifeguard. It was his turn now. He sat on the chair under the big umbrella. There was only a handful of people left on the beach and they all left when night covered the sky like a big blanket. Jon relaxed and laid back on the chair, closing his eyes. But his ears were open and alert. The sea was like an orchestra, there was a symphony going on its own. The waves began a melody and the 'splash' was like the rhythm of a song. But something disrupted the beautiful song. Someone jumped into the water, diving straight into the surface of the glassy sea. Jon stood up and took a closer look at the sea. With just a few strokes, the person swam a great distance away. Jon took off his shirt and jumped into the cold water.
The moon was shining brightly. Jon was closing in the person, a girl. The girl turned and looked at him. It was that girl from the shop. She scowled, again. "What are you doing here?" she asked, "I'm the lifeguard, night duty, and I believe I'm the one supposed to ask that question," I replied and she said, "So you're the new guy, the replacement, so whatever," and continued swimming around, she seemed to be searching for something. "Can I help you or something?" Jon asked. She ignored him. "I'm good at looking for stuff too..." She turned and looked at me, "just leave me alone," "the sea is a very dangerous place to be at night, my lady," and for one moment, Jon thought that she might act in a more kindly attitude after his good intention and care. Instead, she glared at him, "You, don't teach me how I do things, especially when it comes to the sea," she checked her watch, "great, it's all your fault," and she swam to the shore and ran off into the night. Jon went up to the shore, wore his shirt back and sat back on the chair. "Funny girl," and he smiled.
Jon was given night duty for every night, except the Saturdays. And every single night, the girl would go and swim in the sea. She was always circling around the same spot, searching for something. And being the gentlemen he always was, he would go and accompany her in her swim. But the girl never answered his questions. She was always ignoring Jon. But Jon was persistent and for the 100th time he asked her, "What are you looking for?", "Gosh! I'm looking for a stupid lotus flower, happy?" she replied, out of annoyance. "Lotus?" "It's time again, I have to go," and she swam back. Jon was confused, he's no scientist but he was smart enough to know that lotus never grows in the sea. He went home and on the next morning, he asked around the lifeguards whether any of them knew about the lotus growing in the sea but nobody seemed to have heard anything about that.
It was night again, and Jon met the girl in the sea, "I'll help you find the lotus, what colour is it?" This time she looked at me and smiled, "You believe that there's a lotus, floating in the middle of the sea? You're crazy," Jon smiled back and said, "At least I'm not the only one crazy around here," "Thanks, it's white, by the way," the girl said. "What is it for?" Jon asked again. "You won't believe me anyway, I appreciate this, I'm sorry for being so cold," "It's okay, it's normal for me," and she giggled. They spent nights like that together, but with each meeting, the girl seemed to lose her strength and stamina more, day by day. It showed from her swimming. Jon became concerned and asked, "You're not as good as when I first saw you, are you alright?" "I'm okay, and they continued swimming, searching for the lotus. 'What's your name? I never got to know it," said Jon.
"Call me Kate," was the reply.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
The Third Story Told By The Stars (Part 3)
The Third Story - Dear Mom & Dad (Part 3)
I screamed at the sight of Roger's body. I knelt down by his side and tried wiping off the blood on his forehead but it just got worse, and my hands were dripping with blood too. Dad was standing, just staring at me, holding a baseball bat. Mom came up to me and knelt down beside me, looking at Roger and she said, "It's okay now honey, he can't hurt you anymore, we finished him off," I was so shocked, how could those cruel words came out of her mouth, I was so filled with disgust, I pushed her aside and tried pulling Roger up, all the time trying to wake him up. We need to leave this house. I turned with Roger leaned on to me and staggered towards the door. That was when I felt a hard hit from the back of my head. And I fell to the floor, along with Roger. Everything was spinning, round and round, and I closed my eyes, trying to lessen the pain I felt on my head.
When I opened my eyes. My hand was tied up. I was laid on a bed. It was a rather small bed, a children sized bed. The bed had pink coloured sheet and there was stuffed dolls placed all around me. My head still hurts. I squinted my eyes trying to focus my vision. Dad was drilling and Mom was seating on an old rocking chair, huddling something in her arms. She noticed that I was awake and smiled at me. "You might want to meet your sister, Mary, she misses you, maybe you can play with her for a while," and she stood up from the chair. My dad finished drilling and he hammered a hook into the wall. He finished fast, and turned to her wife. Dad hugged Mom and they walked to me, all the time smiling at the thing my Mom was holding in her arms. I was so afraid, but I couldn't do anything. They sat on the bed, and put the thing next to me. I almost faint out of screaming, for the thing next to me, was a rotting corpse of a small girl, strands of her black hair still stuck on her scalp, and there were worms wriggling in and out of her pink frilly dress. I screamed till I sounded hoarse. But all they did was just smile as the gazed lovingly at the dead body.
"You guys are crazy! Nuts! Get away from me! Get that thing away from me! Oh God!" I shouted. Mom spoke, "your sister, she was so badly hurt, when the wretched man rapped her. He forced her and she became depressed. The police caught the man, but Mary, poor Mary was still disturbed by what happened. She wouldn't eat, not even her favorite lasagna. Then she died. It was so unfair, our whole world was falling apart, but then we found you Monica, you looked a lot like your sister. Black hair, fair skin," and Dad continued, "So we took you home from the orphanage, we decided to protect you from any harm. We could not let the same thing happened just like what happened to Mary. So, we captured those naughty boys, and brought them here, and made sure they caused you no more trouble, ever again," my dad stood up and walked to a switch. He flipped it on, and I saw everything. There hanging by the ceiling, was the body of all the boys I've dated. In one long row. And now, Dad just finished adding one more hook to the row, for their new collection, Roger.
"At least, your sister won't be lonely with these boys here to accompany him," and she smiled. "I'll go and get the knife," and she walked out of the room. Dad came closer and sat next to me and the dead body, "We love you two, very, very much..." and Dad fell to the ground, unconscious. Roger had woke up and beaten him on the head from the back. "Are you okay?" he asked. I nodded. He untied the rope, binding my hands. We walked out of the room and we're in the basement. Roger saw the baseball bat on the floor, among the boxes, he picked it up and we climbed the basement stairs out into the living room.
We ran to the door. It was locked. "Where do you think you're going without telling us, honey? You're grounded..." and Mom slashed blindly at us with the long knife. Roger took a firmer hold of the baseball bat, "I'm sorry, Auntie, but we've got a party to catch," and with one hard swing, my Mom was beaten down to the ground. He then kicked the door open and we ran out of the house into his car. He started the engine. His face was still flowing with blood, but he looked relieved. I was too. We've escaped hell.
But we're wrong. My phone rang. I answered the call, "I think you've forgotten you're lunch box, honey," I looked back. My Dad's truck was chasing us. They're still following us. Roger understood the situation and he sped up. We drove up the cliff area. And Dad's truck started banging into Roger's car. Roger sped up cornered and turned the car. We're beside the truck now, and Roger accelerated and banged the truck knocking it off the road, down into the cliffs, 50 feet below, along with my parents. Ex-parents. And that was the last time I ever saw them again.
I stayed over at Yvonne's home. The house was just full of bad memories to me now. I found out that Mary was rapped by a man when she was just 12. Traumatic and depressed, she refused to eat and died. Her parents got depressed too because of their only daughter's death. That was when they adopted me. Things should have gone better. But they got over protective. And thus, the disappearance of the boys happened. It was my fault after all, those boys, actually died, because of me. The police came and dealt with the case. The dead bodies, Mary and those boys, they were placed where they should have been in the first place. I was really grateful for Roger, he stayed by my side through everything. I was finally safe.
It was such a rough year, but I pulled through. On my graduation day, there was no tear filled parents sitting there, proudly, heads up high, to see me receive my graduation certificate, but, I didn't mind. I was relieved never to see those two person I once thought to be my parents. When the ceremony was over, I took some photos with my friends and they all left for photo taking with their own families. I sat down on one of the benches. It was a very sunny day and a hand grabbed me by the shoulder. Roger massaged me and then sat by my side. "Where's your parents?" "They met an old acquaintance, and well yeah, they talked, so I've got some spare time for the lonely girl sitting on the bench here," he answered with a grin. "Thanks Roger," and I laid my head on his chest. I closed my eyes, trying to forget everything, just appreciate my life and how lucky I'd been, and my phone rang. I answered the call. And a familiar voice, the voice I never thought I'd ever hear in my whole life again, sounded from the speakers to my ear.
"Congratulations on your graduation, honey, Mom prepared your favourite dish to celebrate together, lasagna"...
And so the star ended a story and retreated back behind a cloud.
I screamed at the sight of Roger's body. I knelt down by his side and tried wiping off the blood on his forehead but it just got worse, and my hands were dripping with blood too. Dad was standing, just staring at me, holding a baseball bat. Mom came up to me and knelt down beside me, looking at Roger and she said, "It's okay now honey, he can't hurt you anymore, we finished him off," I was so shocked, how could those cruel words came out of her mouth, I was so filled with disgust, I pushed her aside and tried pulling Roger up, all the time trying to wake him up. We need to leave this house. I turned with Roger leaned on to me and staggered towards the door. That was when I felt a hard hit from the back of my head. And I fell to the floor, along with Roger. Everything was spinning, round and round, and I closed my eyes, trying to lessen the pain I felt on my head.
When I opened my eyes. My hand was tied up. I was laid on a bed. It was a rather small bed, a children sized bed. The bed had pink coloured sheet and there was stuffed dolls placed all around me. My head still hurts. I squinted my eyes trying to focus my vision. Dad was drilling and Mom was seating on an old rocking chair, huddling something in her arms. She noticed that I was awake and smiled at me. "You might want to meet your sister, Mary, she misses you, maybe you can play with her for a while," and she stood up from the chair. My dad finished drilling and he hammered a hook into the wall. He finished fast, and turned to her wife. Dad hugged Mom and they walked to me, all the time smiling at the thing my Mom was holding in her arms. I was so afraid, but I couldn't do anything. They sat on the bed, and put the thing next to me. I almost faint out of screaming, for the thing next to me, was a rotting corpse of a small girl, strands of her black hair still stuck on her scalp, and there were worms wriggling in and out of her pink frilly dress. I screamed till I sounded hoarse. But all they did was just smile as the gazed lovingly at the dead body.
"You guys are crazy! Nuts! Get away from me! Get that thing away from me! Oh God!" I shouted. Mom spoke, "your sister, she was so badly hurt, when the wretched man rapped her. He forced her and she became depressed. The police caught the man, but Mary, poor Mary was still disturbed by what happened. She wouldn't eat, not even her favorite lasagna. Then she died. It was so unfair, our whole world was falling apart, but then we found you Monica, you looked a lot like your sister. Black hair, fair skin," and Dad continued, "So we took you home from the orphanage, we decided to protect you from any harm. We could not let the same thing happened just like what happened to Mary. So, we captured those naughty boys, and brought them here, and made sure they caused you no more trouble, ever again," my dad stood up and walked to a switch. He flipped it on, and I saw everything. There hanging by the ceiling, was the body of all the boys I've dated. In one long row. And now, Dad just finished adding one more hook to the row, for their new collection, Roger.
"At least, your sister won't be lonely with these boys here to accompany him," and she smiled. "I'll go and get the knife," and she walked out of the room. Dad came closer and sat next to me and the dead body, "We love you two, very, very much..." and Dad fell to the ground, unconscious. Roger had woke up and beaten him on the head from the back. "Are you okay?" he asked. I nodded. He untied the rope, binding my hands. We walked out of the room and we're in the basement. Roger saw the baseball bat on the floor, among the boxes, he picked it up and we climbed the basement stairs out into the living room.
We ran to the door. It was locked. "Where do you think you're going without telling us, honey? You're grounded..." and Mom slashed blindly at us with the long knife. Roger took a firmer hold of the baseball bat, "I'm sorry, Auntie, but we've got a party to catch," and with one hard swing, my Mom was beaten down to the ground. He then kicked the door open and we ran out of the house into his car. He started the engine. His face was still flowing with blood, but he looked relieved. I was too. We've escaped hell.
But we're wrong. My phone rang. I answered the call, "I think you've forgotten you're lunch box, honey," I looked back. My Dad's truck was chasing us. They're still following us. Roger understood the situation and he sped up. We drove up the cliff area. And Dad's truck started banging into Roger's car. Roger sped up cornered and turned the car. We're beside the truck now, and Roger accelerated and banged the truck knocking it off the road, down into the cliffs, 50 feet below, along with my parents. Ex-parents. And that was the last time I ever saw them again.
I stayed over at Yvonne's home. The house was just full of bad memories to me now. I found out that Mary was rapped by a man when she was just 12. Traumatic and depressed, she refused to eat and died. Her parents got depressed too because of their only daughter's death. That was when they adopted me. Things should have gone better. But they got over protective. And thus, the disappearance of the boys happened. It was my fault after all, those boys, actually died, because of me. The police came and dealt with the case. The dead bodies, Mary and those boys, they were placed where they should have been in the first place. I was really grateful for Roger, he stayed by my side through everything. I was finally safe.
It was such a rough year, but I pulled through. On my graduation day, there was no tear filled parents sitting there, proudly, heads up high, to see me receive my graduation certificate, but, I didn't mind. I was relieved never to see those two person I once thought to be my parents. When the ceremony was over, I took some photos with my friends and they all left for photo taking with their own families. I sat down on one of the benches. It was a very sunny day and a hand grabbed me by the shoulder. Roger massaged me and then sat by my side. "Where's your parents?" "They met an old acquaintance, and well yeah, they talked, so I've got some spare time for the lonely girl sitting on the bench here," he answered with a grin. "Thanks Roger," and I laid my head on his chest. I closed my eyes, trying to forget everything, just appreciate my life and how lucky I'd been, and my phone rang. I answered the call. And a familiar voice, the voice I never thought I'd ever hear in my whole life again, sounded from the speakers to my ear.
"Congratulations on your graduation, honey, Mom prepared your favourite dish to celebrate together, lasagna"...
And so the star ended a story and retreated back behind a cloud.
The Third Story Told By The Stars (Part 2)
The Third Story - Dear Mom & Dad (Part 2)
"Dad! You scared me," I exclaimed. Appearing behind someone out of the blue would scare anybody. "Got you didn't I?' and he laughed. "I see you found the chain, braveheart, coming down the basement all alone," "I'm a big girl now, Dad," I replied, "Don't worry so much." My dad smiled at me. 'Where do that leads to?" I asked, pointing at the barred door. "That one's nasty, it leads to the sewerage treatment system underground, our house was one of the old ones, so the basement's situated deep beneath the ground. It smells so bad in there, and sometimes beggars and homeless people lives in there, so I had to locked it up. It's very dangerous if they broke into the house." Dad explained. He seemed concerned.
We went up the stairs together. Mom was watching the TV. "There you are, honey, you scared us, never go off anywhere without telling us okay? Or you'll get grounded, understand?" 'Yes, Mom," I smiled and sat down on the couch with her to watch the TV when I felt something hard in my back pocket. The photo. I took it out and asked my parents about the girl in the photo. They fell silent, and my mom began to sob. I felt really guilty, and my Dad comforted her as he told me the story they've been hiding from me. The girl's name was Mary. My elder sister. She died when she was 12 because of an accident. They felt really depressed losing her, they decided to forget about her and they stored up everything about her and left it in the basement. I felt really sad because Mom couldn't stop crying. So I left Mom and Dad alone in the living room and went back up stairs. I locked my doors and stared at the photo. If only she was still here, we could be the best of sister. To think that I never knew about her all these years. I lay on my bed and fell asleep.
It was the next day. Halloween was here. I rose up from my bed and checked my phone. "Are you ready for tonight?" its Roger, so I texted back. I got into the toilet and washed up. It was a holiday so I have the whole day to finish my costume. It's so exciting. I sat down in front of my desk and I saw the photo again. I picked it up and put it in my drawer. I need to find out more about Mary. I picked my phone up and called a senior I've known from church. She works in the hospital in the town. Everyone in the town was born in that hospital. My senior handles all the birth records in the hospital. So I asked her to find out more on Mary. I need to know more about my sister. At least her birthday, I owe her that much as a sister. When I went down, Mom was cooking, she seemed to returned to her usual self, cooking and humming to herself. I felt glad. After lunch, I continued finishing my costume. When I checked my watch, it was already 4:30 p.m.. The party starts at 7. I need to hurry up. With one last touch, it was done. I checked my phone, only to realize that the battery's dead. Great. I connected it to the charger and rushed into the bathroom for a bath.
After the bath, I put on my costume and went downstairs. "Nice costume, honey, isn't it a bit scary?" mom asked. "It's a new fashion trend mom, after all, Halloween's about ghost and the scary isn't it?" I answered back with a laugh. Mom smiled and said, "I guess so, by the way, Roger called the house, he couldn't reach your phone, he said his car broke down, he couldn't come fetch you, you'll have to drive to the party yourself, he'll follow his friend's car, he apologized, honey" I realize my phone was charging, " I see, I hope he's okay, thanks mom, I went upstairs and took my phone. It was half charged, but it's okay. It was already 6.30 p.m.. I took my car keys and head downstairs. "Don't come home late, honey," "Sure" and I closed the door and entered my car. I switched my on my phone before starting the engine. Miss calls from Roger. I hope he's there already. Somehow, there was this uncomfortable feeling inside of me.
I was on my way when the phone rang. I answered. It was Yvonne, my senior from the hospital, she sounded worried. "Monica, I think there's something you need to know," "What is it?" I asked. "Mary, was born on the 10th of Sept in 1980. I had all the documents with me. I tried having while I'm at it so I searched for you records. But, there weren't any," "What?" "It's true, and according to the records, your Mom never gave birth again after giving birth to Mary. That means you're..." I stopped my car. Turned the wheels and head back home. "Where are you now?" "I'm heading to your house, Monica. I'll pass you all the documents," I was really confused, there's more, other than Mary, that my parents had been keeping secrets of from me. I don't even think they're my real parent's now. "Thanks, Yvonne, I 'll reach the house soon, bye" and I put down my phone. I need to know the truth. I accelerated. I need to know it now.
When the house come to sight. There was a car parked outside. Roger's. What's the car doing here? I parked my car and entered the house. It was silent. Yvonne haven't reached the house yet. What I heard next stopped my heart. "What are guys going to do?" It was Roger's voice. He sounded scared. And I heard loud thuds, like someone getting beaten up, it came from the dining hall, and it was silent again. I felt my hand trembling as I walked nearer to the dining hall.
And there was Roger, lying on the carpeted floor, with blood flowing from a cut on his head.
"Dad! You scared me," I exclaimed. Appearing behind someone out of the blue would scare anybody. "Got you didn't I?' and he laughed. "I see you found the chain, braveheart, coming down the basement all alone," "I'm a big girl now, Dad," I replied, "Don't worry so much." My dad smiled at me. 'Where do that leads to?" I asked, pointing at the barred door. "That one's nasty, it leads to the sewerage treatment system underground, our house was one of the old ones, so the basement's situated deep beneath the ground. It smells so bad in there, and sometimes beggars and homeless people lives in there, so I had to locked it up. It's very dangerous if they broke into the house." Dad explained. He seemed concerned.
We went up the stairs together. Mom was watching the TV. "There you are, honey, you scared us, never go off anywhere without telling us okay? Or you'll get grounded, understand?" 'Yes, Mom," I smiled and sat down on the couch with her to watch the TV when I felt something hard in my back pocket. The photo. I took it out and asked my parents about the girl in the photo. They fell silent, and my mom began to sob. I felt really guilty, and my Dad comforted her as he told me the story they've been hiding from me. The girl's name was Mary. My elder sister. She died when she was 12 because of an accident. They felt really depressed losing her, they decided to forget about her and they stored up everything about her and left it in the basement. I felt really sad because Mom couldn't stop crying. So I left Mom and Dad alone in the living room and went back up stairs. I locked my doors and stared at the photo. If only she was still here, we could be the best of sister. To think that I never knew about her all these years. I lay on my bed and fell asleep.
It was the next day. Halloween was here. I rose up from my bed and checked my phone. "Are you ready for tonight?" its Roger, so I texted back. I got into the toilet and washed up. It was a holiday so I have the whole day to finish my costume. It's so exciting. I sat down in front of my desk and I saw the photo again. I picked it up and put it in my drawer. I need to find out more about Mary. I picked my phone up and called a senior I've known from church. She works in the hospital in the town. Everyone in the town was born in that hospital. My senior handles all the birth records in the hospital. So I asked her to find out more on Mary. I need to know more about my sister. At least her birthday, I owe her that much as a sister. When I went down, Mom was cooking, she seemed to returned to her usual self, cooking and humming to herself. I felt glad. After lunch, I continued finishing my costume. When I checked my watch, it was already 4:30 p.m.. The party starts at 7. I need to hurry up. With one last touch, it was done. I checked my phone, only to realize that the battery's dead. Great. I connected it to the charger and rushed into the bathroom for a bath.
After the bath, I put on my costume and went downstairs. "Nice costume, honey, isn't it a bit scary?" mom asked. "It's a new fashion trend mom, after all, Halloween's about ghost and the scary isn't it?" I answered back with a laugh. Mom smiled and said, "I guess so, by the way, Roger called the house, he couldn't reach your phone, he said his car broke down, he couldn't come fetch you, you'll have to drive to the party yourself, he'll follow his friend's car, he apologized, honey" I realize my phone was charging, " I see, I hope he's okay, thanks mom, I went upstairs and took my phone. It was half charged, but it's okay. It was already 6.30 p.m.. I took my car keys and head downstairs. "Don't come home late, honey," "Sure" and I closed the door and entered my car. I switched my on my phone before starting the engine. Miss calls from Roger. I hope he's there already. Somehow, there was this uncomfortable feeling inside of me.
I was on my way when the phone rang. I answered. It was Yvonne, my senior from the hospital, she sounded worried. "Monica, I think there's something you need to know," "What is it?" I asked. "Mary, was born on the 10th of Sept in 1980. I had all the documents with me. I tried having while I'm at it so I searched for you records. But, there weren't any," "What?" "It's true, and according to the records, your Mom never gave birth again after giving birth to Mary. That means you're..." I stopped my car. Turned the wheels and head back home. "Where are you now?" "I'm heading to your house, Monica. I'll pass you all the documents," I was really confused, there's more, other than Mary, that my parents had been keeping secrets of from me. I don't even think they're my real parent's now. "Thanks, Yvonne, I 'll reach the house soon, bye" and I put down my phone. I need to know the truth. I accelerated. I need to know it now.
When the house come to sight. There was a car parked outside. Roger's. What's the car doing here? I parked my car and entered the house. It was silent. Yvonne haven't reached the house yet. What I heard next stopped my heart. "What are guys going to do?" It was Roger's voice. He sounded scared. And I heard loud thuds, like someone getting beaten up, it came from the dining hall, and it was silent again. I felt my hand trembling as I walked nearer to the dining hall.
And there was Roger, lying on the carpeted floor, with blood flowing from a cut on his head.
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