A Cradle of Phantasm
Yvette P. Rejuso
©
Copyright 2024 by Yvette P. Rejuso
|
Photo
by Ukiyoo.on Pinterest courtesy of the author. |
June
01
[8:45
AM]
A sublime light penetrated through the classic and gentle-curved
window which widely extends outside of his home giving a panoramic
view of the outdoors. His hand caressed the smooth surface and
minimally reflective glossy tiles on which his body had been
sleeping. It is cold.
It
is unbearably
silent. His throat was dry, absence of saliva, yet a lingering acid,
sticking on the tongue and teeth. It has been 5 hours since he drank
all the beers in his fridge, and had not moved from the floor. His
eyes caught a glimpse of a dark figure towering over him. Then, a
loud sound was all he heard before passing out.
“9:00
AM, June
14, Tuesday, come back for another check-up. Try this medicine for
two weeks, it will help ease your pain.”, Dr. Lan advised. He
opened his notebook and wrote notes on Kenji’s diagnosis,
future assessments, and medicines needed, including prescriptions,
vital stats, blood pressure, and weight.
“Sure,
whatever.”, Kenji answered while examining the room.
“Good.
Avoid
excessive alcohol intake this time and get more sleep.”. Dr.
Lan closed the notebook
and
stood up from
his chair.
“You
know
what? I have doubts that you recognize I’m an adult.”.
Kenji rose from his seat and
pointed
his finger
at Dr. Lan.
“Mr.
Kenji, I
do have doubts. From now on, don’t drink 8 bottles of beer
overnight. You’re lucky someone saw you lying unconscious in
your bathroom. Get more rest and I’ll see you when you return
to our appointed date.”. Then, Dr. Lan left the room.
[11:27
AM]
The tiny bell hanging above a door, made a tinkling sound. Inside,
was an intoxicating scent
roaming around
the place. Perhaps a cinnamon or a wood aroma somewhat similar to a
coffee bean. However, there were also certain interesting odors;
vanilla, citrus, fruity, mushroom like, turpentine, and geranium
leaf-like. For him, it was the smell of a second home. After over
half an hour of checking every newly stocked material, Kenji walked
straight towards the counter.
“I’m
sorry, Sir. The Series 5 Kolinsky Sable Brushes had already run out
of stock but we have Bristle
paint
Brush.”,
the cashier said.
“It’s
alright, I’ll find another art supply store. Thank you.”,
Kenji replied.
“45
X 54 inches
canvas, that’ll be 5 dollars, Sir.”.
He
grabbed his
wallet and offered the cash. Then, he turned his back to the cashier
and walked out of Equiseeticie, the oldest art shop in the city.
[12:22
PM]
People were pacing left and right. The street of Han-Ta, the main
street in Naoti, is yet again, bustling with restless people either
having a pleasant shopping, on the way to work, visiting beauty
salons, checking out galleries, or enjoying a rare taste of luxury at
restaurants. The crowd seemed to have too much plate on their hands.
Kenji glanced at the dark gnarly corner of the street
where
he saw a few
police officers walking toward a guy with a red dragon tattoo on his
face. He dropped to his knees and pleaded in front of them, shouting
it was his mother who forced him to do dirty work.
“We
already
took custody of your mother. Stand up son, you can talk to her in the
station.”. The
police
officers then
apprehended the guy.
‘If
there’s
one significant lesson I had grasped from this place, that is, life
is beating. I wasn’t. What was I doing here? I was nowhere
close to the townspeople, tied down to do something bad or good but
big. For everyone, life is full of exciting pages. People with
stories, with books, retell every valuable moment they had in this
sphere-shaped rock. Yet, here I am, working intently mad to conceal
my existence. I did not mind it then. But now, it is clear that I do
not want to grow still with time.’.
Kenji
then strode in
front of the road. He stood there, waiting for the green light. His
eyes wandered to
every life
sitting tightly inside all the vibrant cars, absorbed in varying
activities some were arguing, laughing, and popping their eyes out
playing games. He doesn’t know them. Everyone was, all his
life. He never did. Slowly, he covers his ear with his hand, he looks
away from all the gazes: he wishes he was not there. The flickering
red light kept burning his skin-certain, his lungs too felt defeated
by an overwhelming fear and tension of the surrounding. He needed
silence. He looked side by side, swallowed dryly, closed his eyes,
and turned his back against the traffic. From all directions, it was
still too loud. A high-pitched vexing sound then shatters the fussing
breaths around him. Through the clear glass of a three-story
building, a restaurant. A vivid interior view of the restaurant can
be seen; decorative paintings pasted on the wall, redwood vases, and
bowls full of food served to a girl who seems paralyzed, staring
vacantly over the table and not even batting an eye at the food.
“You
slut!”,
a woman wearing an apron slapped the girl on the face.
“You
are a
disgrace, a disappointment, letting your body be used by random men.
How dare you enter this pure place! How can a girl be so disgusting?
Leave! I don’t want a slut in my house, setting a bad example
to your sisters. Everyone in the family knows, the whole city knows.
I should have not given birth to a daughter like you. You get the
hell out!”, the mother shouted again making every head outside
the restaurant turned towards them.
“Mother,
it
was not true. They all made it up. Ma, please believe me.”, the
girl took a few gentle steps toward her mother. Her other hand wipes
the blood that comes out of her nose. The mother brushed the girl’s
hand off her shoulder. She took a dollar out of her pocket.
“I
know you
could make more money off by selling everything you have. Leave, now
or I’ll be the one dragging you outside.”. Then, she left
her daughter on the table.
The
light turned
green, yet, Kenji didn’t take a single step. It was no longer
loud. He waited. There was something he could not explain, holding
him grounded outside the building, waiting for her. The girl then
dashed out of the restaurant, with no bags, just wearing a smeared
uniform of Sahi High School. He followed the girl and then attempted
to stop her from walking any further.
“I’m
Kenji Lee. I apologize for approaching you like this after everything
you’ve been through just now and I’m sorry for meddling
my nose on your business. But I am offering help.”. He stood in
front of her staring at her bruised cheeks and blood running out her
nose.
“I’m
thirteen years old. Just get out of my way or I’ll call the
police.”. She answered then walked past
him,
taking quick
steps to get away from him.
“I
do not
intend to harm you. I have an apartment and there is an available
room for you if you can’t find a place to sleep on.”
“And
what?!
So, every night you can feel me? Is this it?”
“I
promise
you, that won’t ever happen. And I also know you’re not
like that. I believe you and that is why I am here extending my hands
to help you. Here’s the address of my place.”. Kenji lent
a card of his address.
“Just
get it.
Then, I will leave.”. He insisted again.
Irritated,
she
turned her back to Kenji snatched the card, and ran.
June
02
[8:25
AM]
We all fear something. But this, one is what he feared the most.
“What
are you
doing?”, Kenji asked the girl cooking at his kitchen. He
blinked twice.
“Can’t
you see? I’m cooking pancakes.”. The girl replied.
“Oh
no, no,
no. You, girl, should not be in the kitchen. You’ll burn this
apartment down to ashes. Please, move.”. Kenji turned off the
stove and faced her.
“When
did you
get here? I waited for you till midnight hoping you could come by and
rest.”, he spoke.
“I
did come by
at 3 AM. You shoved your key under the door and I just simply took
it.”. The girl idly answered and rolled her eyes.
“Ah,
right.
Good. Now, take a seat and I’ll cook for you. You’re too
young to be in the kitchen, missy.”
“My
name is
Aurora.”. She took a seat at the table. Her eyes stayed on the
magazine flaunting open on the table. She reads it.
[10:45
AM]
Kenji once was living in Soiki Island when he was younger. His
now-deceased parents had adopted him. But before that, everything on
that island was screaming danger. He felt as if the girl needed to be
saved too. He opened the door and found her sleeping, then carefully
closed it. He grabbed the canvas he bought yesterday and went to his
art room. Sketchbooks lie open in the room, colorful and colorless
paintings hang fully on the walls, and one table of colored pencils,
brushes, and paint is placed beside the window.
“So,
you’re
an artist.”, a voice broke the silence.
“Hell-what?
Can’t you knock?”. He looked right straight at her and
gazed down at his floor full of smudged paints that had not been
removed.
“I
was an
artist. I can’t paint now.”
“Why?”,
she asked raising her eyebrows.
“I
need
inspiration. Ever since my parents died, I could no longer lift a
paintbrush anymore. I tried,
but
the strokes feel
stingy. Even staying in this room, suffocates me.”. He stared
at a canvas fitting
the
exact width of
the room. It was a portrait of his parents.
“I’m
sorry about that Mr. How about I help you?”, she said and
smiled.
June
2-13
[8:43
AM]
He could not recall the details but Aurora had been helping him to
paint again. Normally, he would always end up walking outside his
apartment smoking the pressure off his shoulder, and leaving the
bottle of paints dry open. He watched the fluffy white clouds moving
against the green field full of wildflowers, and his eyes blinked. He
took a deep breath, and his face lit up.
“Aurora,
finally…”, he heard no sound in her room. Usually, every
morning, she would spend time to burst her room with music and
laughter. Now, it was quiet. A quiet, similar to what he feels like
being forced to edges.
June
14
[2:
27 PM]
The sky dappled by the cloud, intermingling the pleasant hues of
light in the afternoon was visible at the double-hung windows with
curtains widely open. Birds passed by and some stood outside tilting
their heads. It was the perfect time to daze breathlessly at the
sight of a summery
afternoon.
“Mr.
Kenji?”,
Dr. Lan asked.
“Yes?”,
Kenji answered and slowly fixed his gaze to Dr. Lan.
“Are
you aware
that you went out yesterday barefoot shouting outside a restaurant?”.
The doctor looked at him concerned and full of questions.
“I
was finding
Aurora.”, he suddenly raised his voice as he answered Dr. Lan.
“She
died,
Kenji. Your daughter died, twenty years ago.”.
“No.
Aurora
was that girl I helped. She was not my daughter. I just helped her. I
need to find her. Poor child.”, he answered. His body was
shaking. Then, Kenji looked at his clothes, a hospital gown.
“Mr.
Kenji,
I’m sorry I would regret it that you will remember her as a
stranger so I’ll just remind you
that
you were
diagnosed with Hypnagogic hallucinations and Aurora was your
daughter. You loved her very much. You said she was the sweetest
angel you had.”.
[2:
30 PM]
Kenji, 50 years of age had closed his eyes. Dr. Lan knew it would no
longer open again.
He
at that dire
moment, wished for the floor to cave in and swallow him.
Yvette P. Rejuso
is a Filipino student studying at Aklan Catholic College. Naasug,
Malay, Aklan is her home. She makes an effort to read poetry and
other great literary works for the majority of her time. Her passion
for literature has never wavered. Her current priorities are taking
care of her family and engaging in things like writing and public
speaking that she feels would help her develop. She wanted to become
a well-known writer in the future, and this would be the first step
toward that aim. She is committed to pushing beyond her
shortcomings.
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