Gift used the handkerchief she was holding to rub her face one more time. She felt so heartbroken and so sad that she did not know how to express herself. She needed to tell Jacquard exactly what happened to his uncle. Every time she tried to say what happened, she stopped whenever she almost did. After many tries, she said, " your uncle, Siyabong . . ." "Yes. Okay! What happened to uncle Siyabong? Has anything happened to him? Please talk to me. Tell me what happened. Anything that happened I promise you to react to it well. I won't even do as if you told me anything." He said while his body was shivering already. " Your uncle, Siyabong, had an accident today at his place of work. He is dead." She said crying and trying to stand up from where he was sitting to roll on the ground but was prevented from doing so. Jacquard could not what he heard. He kept on repeating what he heard. " Your uncle, Siyabong, is dead! Your uncle, Siyabong is dead!! Your uncle, Siyabong, is dead!" He
Jacquard, Jack, Gifts together with several neighbors accompanied them to their house. Jacquard went straight to his bedroom while Jack and the rest sat in the living room. No one talked to one another when they were coming down home. One of their neighbors accompanied them back home who happened to be the closest friend of Gift stood up, Mrs. Smith, went straight to the kitchen to prepare something for the family. Every one of them even jack had refused to take anything after he had regained consciousness. All the food prepared had always been eaten by people other than those members of the Jacquard who did not even say anything or make any move towards food, he would just look in the direction of the table where the foods that were prepared by the neighbors were placed. Likewise Jack also throughout their stay in the hospital.Upon getting home, the neighbor, Mrs. Smith, went to the kitchen. She did not allow how they, including her friend, were allowing her efforts to be in vain b
Jacquard locked himself inside his room for several hours. No one for once mistakenly moved towards his door, not to talk or open it. Jack and his mother were the only ones left in their living room. Mrs. Smith and others who helped cook had left. Mrs. Smith was a merchant. She owns a retail business where she sells clothes and other clothes-making materials. Mrs. Smith was the one who Gift first worked with for some months where she was able to learn how to trade and run a small business. Through Mrs. Smith, Gift was able to get connected with some suppliers and buyers from other regions and those from other neighboring nations. Mrs. Smith had been a window after the third year of his marriage. His husband was a high soldier of the Abasia Kingdom before he died after a short-time illness. She had two kids then but now are the same age as Jacquard and Jack. She started her retail business a few months after her husband died with the death gratuity of her husband she received. She
Jack and his mother gave Jacquard a disbelieving look. They looked at him as if he had said something that his beyond what they could comprehend. "Hey guy, if it is because you just stoop up from bed or whatsoever you have been doing inside your room since hours ago that is why you thought of saying this, just to cajole or cheer us up, please stop it. How was it possible for Uncle Siyabong to have a daughter and we won't know? " Is it even possible for him to have done something like what you have just said and he will not tell me at all? We both knew each other secrets. He always tells me he had nothing, no one except us. He did not for once made mention of such or discuss such with me, and you know how close and the amount of time we do spend together in a day. Now you are saying he had a daughter in this Abasia Kingdom. It is you that was always busy with your work and other activities of yours he will get you situated and tell you such. It's not possible. And stop all this your
Before a knock was heard from the door, Gift stood up from where she was to go into the kitchen to get herself some water. After she drank a little out of the water in the glass cup and she went back to where she was sitting before she went into the kitchen. " Yeah, I could remember the night you were talking about. I mean the night he returned from the trip and he was narrating his experience and how they were attacked and the soldiers saved them from being slain. Throughout the conversation, he was just repeating the same thing. He really emphasized the attack than his experience. I was really interested and eager to hear about his experience, those things he saw, their culture, buildings, and other things that distinguished the nation from others. But he failed to talk more about that. That really got me bored and I was feeling asleep then. I had no choice but to excuse myself but I knew he had something he really wished to tell me but the day was hectic. I was already drained out
The hospitality and treatments Mr. Louis, Hana, Siyabong's wife, and Helena, his daughter, received were so heartwarming and compassionate. They all thought it was going to be a very tedious task to convince the whole family that, Siyabong had a family and a daughter before he died. Mr. Louis was so confused by distress and anxiety. He was not sure if the family could accept them just the way they just did. He did not relate with the family that much but his little encounter with every of the family caused such feelings. The first time he realized Jack was Siyabong's nephew was the day Jack gave Mr. Julius the most memorable and highest beating of his life. He felt Jack was already going wild and uncontrollable. Particularly he felt so uncomfortable about a young worker beating his superior officer. Mr. Louis tried to help Mr. Julius out that day to take down Jack. Every by him to assist Jack that day resulted in him getting a huge share of the beating. Mr. Julius was not well dealt
Hana's impression of Gift and her children was totally different from the kind of people she met and related with. She thought when Siyabong told her to relax and prevent herself from being in hurry to visit other members of his family in the Abasia Kingdom. She thought his husband, Siyabong was scared of them and what they are capable of doing to stop him from getting married to her. After Siyabong and Hana got wedded together as husband and wife by a priest the following day when intercourse had taken place between them. It is a taboo in the nation for unwed man amendments to have intercourse and wedding rituals and other things that are needed to be done are not carried out three days after when they have copulated. Siyabong did not do any of it but carried all that out just to make Hana more comfortable around him and also to earn her the respects and benefits that a married woman gets in the nation. Married are well respected and are always treated with dignity and with holi
Gift, Jacquard, Jack, and Mr. Louis were astonishedbyh the request. Gift and his children were surprised because her request was what they were deliberating on. Whether to place it before her or carry things out the other way around. They had a bad feeling towards such a request from a person who had just lost someone so close to her heart. Because of that, they felt so reluctant to make such a request but they knew it is important to them to make such. They presumed it might sound unfair and weird to Hana's hearing. They felt it would be too imposing and inhumane to demand for both of them to stay in the Abasia Kingdom where life is good and comfortable. Or she leaves behind Helena, and she can leave for his nation. With what she requested, there is no need to start giving her any criteria or law or start to start another episode of expatriation of reasons for her to stay. There are no cultural or spiritual reasons to keep her and her daughter in Abasia Kingdom, but the family fel
I'm still surprised that she remembers me by my first name. She lets me pick the books that I want to, after we've returned the previous ones to their rightful places.When I'm done, she leads me back to her table, and make me sign on the record book once again, after re-writing my name, and the new date.Outside, I have three textbooks, all cramped to my chest. Damn, these are heavy even when they'd looked as though they would be light.I am about crossing the road when I heard, "Rash." It's a familiar voice. I turn to the person. Dean's grinning. He wears a black jacket on top, inner white shirt under and a blue jean. The sole of his canvas kinds of lit under the day light. "Hey." I say back, coolly."Um, what're you doing here?" Whilst saying, his eyes dart to the library's building, "oh, came here?""Yeah." Is all I say, staring into his eyes. I see they are green. They are so bright. The beauty runs in the family, don't you think?"Hey, what's up with you?" He notices.Well, h
"Rash!" Oh, boy. I hurry up and get a plain blue towel around my waist while there's another in my hands, being used to clean my face and torso. I get out of the bathroom and go to the closet. I put on a simple nylon black shirt, long enough that the hem stops around my thighs, and a khaki short. On the way, I slip into my flip-flops, getting down the stairs, I see aunt Melissa, giggling to the screen of her phone. She's Face-timing with someone, and really, I don't want to know who it is. When she catch my figure, walking to the couch, she quickly wraps it up and tells me. "So, what's the plan?" I shrug. She's placing her phone away, and concentrating on me. "I don't know." "You're a dickhead." She says. Well, I have a dickhead, the thought comes abruptly but I quickly shake it away. "What do you think...wait, where's granny?" "She's not around." Remember that I said she and granny never gets along. This is one of the obviousness that I mean. Granny is religious on her si
As Jacquard fainted, Jack couldn't believe his luck. He had always envied his brother's skills and successes, and now he had the chance to claim the glory for himself. He approached the unconscious form of his brother and the princess, carefully picking her up and cradling her in his arms. He looked down at her sleeping face, and couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement and anticipation. He had always wanted to prove himself to the kingdom, to show that he was just as capable as his brother, and this was his chance. “Yes! This is my perfect victory. That’s right… I win!” He exclaimed joyfully. Jack's heart leapt with fulfillment although he did his best to conceal it. He felt as though a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders, and the weight of his envy and resentment had been lifted away. The mission to rescue Princess Diana was a success, and he was the hero who saved her. It was all he had ever wanted, and now that he had it, he could barely contain his elation.
Jacquard started to panic as he realized how close the warriors were getting. He knew he had to think as fast as possible and come up with a plan that could at least put him on the higher ground of the table of turbulence. "What do I do now? It’s only getting more and more complicated!" Jacquard thought to himself, with a faint trace of fear. "I can't let them catch me with the princess. We’ll be done for." He said He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. "Think, Jacquard , think," he whispered to himself. "What can I do to get out of this situation?" Just at the moment when he was still thinking, the memories of the charm song his mother taught him flooded his mind. "Maybe that's it," he said to himself. "Maybe the charm song can help me get out of this." He started to hum the song softly, hoping it would have the same effect as it did the last time. But as he hummed, he noticed that the warriors were getting even closer. He needed to sing the song louder. He too
Jacquard continued running through the night with memories of his past flooding his mind. He remembered the times he spent with his family before they were left by him and his brother, by the proposal of the neighboring kingdom's soldiers. The pain of leaving his loved ones was too much to bear, but the thought of the princess's safety gave him the strength to keep moving. He thought back to the time he and his twin brother, Jacquard uard, went to their friend's farm. They had so much fun working and playing together, but a little argument over who should carry the most harvest nearly ruined their day. Jacquard wanted to carry more than his fair share, but Jacquard insisted on carrying an equal amount. Jacquard smiled as he continued remember how the words of Lucky had diffused the situation in a lucid illusion. They all ended up carrying an equal amount and left the farm with big smiles on their faces. It was moments like those that made him miss his family even more. The memories
As Jacquard thought back to that day, he smiled to himself, remembering the fun they had at the farm. He could almost smell the scent of the fresh crops and feel the warmth of the sun on his skin. But his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of rustling bushes nearby. He stopped in his tracks and listened carefully. “Shit!” He exclaimed. “What’s that? Oh my God I hope it’s not what I’m thinking?” He asked himself quietly in fear and trepidation. ”Is it the sound of Amah warriors approaching?” He continued to ruminate. He couldn't take any chances. He carefully placed Princess Princess Princess Diana on the ground and crouched down, ready to attack if need be. The sound of rustling bushes grew louder and louder, but to his surprise, it was just a small animal, a bunny for that matter, scurrying away. Jacquard breathed a sigh of relief and picked up the princess once more. “Such a drag. These animals sure can get one a really high blood pressure.” He said to himself, after wh
Jacquard was relieved that he had finally found some water. As he drank, he could feel his energy returning, and he knew that he needed to act quickly to save Princess Diana . He ran back to her side and gently placed his hand on her forehead. She was burning up, and he knew that time was running out. "Your Highness, can you hear me?" he asked, his voice trembling with fear. There was no response, and Jacquard felt his heart sink. He sprinkled some water on her face, hoping that it would wake her up. Slowly but surely, Princess Diana 's eyelids began to flutter, and she opened her eyes. She looked up at Jacquard , and for a moment, he could see the fear in her eyes. "Don't worry, Your Highness," he said, trying to sound as reassuring as possible. "I'm here to protect you. Just take it easy and drink some water." He held the water up to her lips, and she took a few sips. Jacquard could feel the tension in his body starting to ease as he saw her regain some strength. They couldn't st
Jacquard could still feel the weight of the princess pressing on his back as he moved further, making every step more difficult than the last. He could feel the heat of the sun bearing down on him, the sweat trickling down his face, mixing with his tears, and he just wished it would all end already. He couldn't help but think that they were doomed, that they would never make it out alive. But then he remembered his training, his years of preparation for a moment like this. He couldn't give up now, not when the princess's life was on the line. "Stay with me, Your Highness," he said, his voice strained with exhaustion. "We're almost there." He yelled. But Princess Diana remained unresponsive, her breathing shallow and weak. Jacquard felt a sense of despair wash over him. He couldn't carry her much further, and they were still far from safety. He didn't know what to do. As they continued to run, Jacquard could hear the sound of the Amah warriors getting closer and closer. He felt a
As they continued their treacherous journey, Jacquard's mind was racing with thoughts. “Could this be the end? After all I have gone through alongside my brother Jacquard ? Never! I won’t allow that. I promised mom I’ll be back. No! We will be back!” He swore to himself as encouragement. He couldn't afford to let the princess down. He had been tasked with her safety, and he was determined to see it through to the end. He could feel her weight on his shoulders dropping on every single one of his nerves, applying pressure on his well bred muscles and tendons, and he knew that if he stumbled, they would both fall. The adrenaline was pumping through his veins, but it was starting to wear off. The pain in his legs and back was becoming unbearable, but he pushed through it. "Are you okay, Jacquard ?" Princess Diana's voice was weak, barely audible over the sound of his footsteps. He was running as silently as possible to avoid any sneak attack… that was one of the military logics of the