Cylvia’s POV:
“Rock-a-bye, baby
On the treetop
When the wind blows
The cradle will rock,
When the bough breaks
The cradle will fall;
And down will come baby
Cradle and all.”
Memories kept on flashing in my mind over and over as the song automatically played, giving chills to my entire body and causing my tears to rain down directly on my cheeks. It’s been a year. It’s been a year since my most beloved and cherished person who promised not to leave me alone broke her promise. It’s been a year of carrying heavy emotions on my shoulders. It’s been a year of living alone. At this exact day, at this exact moment, my Mom perished.
She left without even seeing her only daughter for the last time. She left without even holding my hands. She left without even receiving the apology I had never ever gave to her. I was her angel for at least a short period of time, the only good thing that had happened in her not-so fulfilling adventure in life. I was her treasure she had always kept hidden from the rest of the world. I was her lovely daughter. Her most beloved person. I was confident enough to say it because half of the time, I had felt that. I was her expensive diamond; a stone that would worth a King’s ransom. I thought I would get stronger as the time passes by. But I was wrong. After what she did, I came back to being an ordinary stone. A pebble like the thousands of millions of pebbles on the shore. A pebble that brittles over time. A pebble that has no value. She molded me only to break me in the end. She made a mistake that caused me to dump her forever. This might not be so big deal for the many, but let me tell you, it hurts like hell to believe in the promises you have always thought would be fulfilled. She promised me that we would survive; that we would take care of each other even without Dad. I could still remember back then when they decided to divorce after Mom found out that he had another family. At first, I thought Mom would be okay to raise me alone. I thought she won’t beg for Dad’s attention since it was her decision to break up with him in the first place. But then, she realized we won’t make it without him. He was the one who supported our financial needs, that’s why without him, we surely found it difficult to live. So she kept on following dad, asked for his apology and begged him to stay. But Dad refused. My Mom failed. After that, everything fell out of hand. Mom’s life became miserable. From then on, she had drunk herself to death every night. She had smoke countless of packets of cigarettes, thinking that her life was nothing but a mere ash. I couldn’t help myself but just cry and cry until I could no longer take my emotions. I couldn’t do anything other than to feel bad. There were times that I had to ask for our neighbours left-overs only to have something to be put in my empty stomach. She had no time preparing foods to me. And even if she had, she wouldn’t be able to afford any. That was the day when I officially cut ties with her, and declared to the world that she’s no longer my mother. How funny. Out of all of those bitter memories, I had one favourite and I reckon I would be remembering it until I grow old. It was the time when I woke up the day with my Mom ironing my school uniform. I was surprised. For a moment, my anger to her decreased a little. But when I saw the darkening area under her eyes, the unveiling of her sanguine veins on her arms, and the unkempt situation of her hair, I realized that she went a big leap in her addiction. From liquors and cigarettes, to marijuana and cocaine. From living a terrible life with me, to leaving the terrible life alone. Because of that, my guilt oozed even more. My anger rose. All the words she had mumbled when I left home for school didn’t mean anything to me, because all I was thinking during that moment was I hated her. I permanently hated her. “I love you, Cylvia. Please forgive Mom. I promise I will never do it again.”I didn’t really minded those words for I thought that those were just the side effects of the drugs she overtook, that’s why I just left her alone in the house. No kisses of goodbye. No waves of farewell. No hugs of love. Nothing. I finished the entire day without saying a single word. Even my classmates were badly worried. After school, I decided to stop over Ashley’s house to have my dinner in there. We were friends, and I knew her family really well, that’s why crashing without prior notice was never really big deal to them. We had a wonderful dinner, and a quality time together. We feasted over stuffed turkey, glass pasta, spring rolls, and a lot more. I enjoyed my stay with them. In a spur of a moment, I forgot I had problems because of them. It was about eight in the evening when I reached our block. I was in front of Auntie Helen’s house, three houses from ours, when I saw no light coming from our living room. It made me think that maybe, just like every end of the month, she failed to pay the electricity bill again. I was so sick of it. I was so sick of her. I walked towards the doorway, and the first thing I saw was the last thing I expected. It was Mom. Lifeless. Hanging herself on the ceiling, while beneath her was a knocked down chair with a note on its backrest. With my tears streaming intensely over my face, I snatched the letter and read it. “I told you, I will never do it again.”I cried. I grieved. I mourned. I screamed. I did everything I could think of to ease the pain. But there’s no easing the pain. The dark surrounding only got darker when I started to kneel down on the floor. The bleak and silent evening suffered with me. Mom was gone. She died without getting the forgiveness she had always asked from me. Yes, she was terrible. But I was worse than her. I was heartless. I was a monster. She stood on her words when she said she would never do it again. She was true to herself. She never really did it again. “Rock-a-bye, babyOn the treetop
When the wind blows
The cradle will rock,
When the bough breaks
The cradle will fall;
And down will come baby
Cradle and all.”
The song played in my head once more. But this time, it was interrupted. I felt somebody tap my right shoulder. It was Samantha. I quickly wiped my tears off and pretended that I wasn’t crying. Sadly, it had no use. It didn’t work. “I won’t ask you if you are okay because I definitely know that you are not,”she said calmly as she sat next to me. The surrounding was quiet, that I could evem hear the beating of her heart, and the howling of the air from my nose as they ripple through my skin. Even though I just started wiping my tears away, they began racing down my face again. I felt two warm and smooth hands cupping my cheeks. They were as if like batteries charging up my draining energy. With her skin touching mine, I felt alive again. She covered all the holes in my heart. She drew my past; my painful, terrible, and awful past away. She brought back the old me. Happy. Optimistic. Contented. Despite everything that had been going on, despite all the hard quests I had beem going through, I felt like I’m not alone. She was with me. She will always be. Words from a friend roared within the deafening silence of the surrounding. Words that eased my anger, healed my pain, and drove my loneliness I had been suffering all this time away. “Regrets will always be in the end, Cylvia. I know that even up to this day, you are still being hunted by that terrible past that happened a year ago. But there’s nothing we can do about it. The past is already done, and there’s no way we could go back and live it again. The only thing we can do now is to accept the truth. Yes, I know it’s never easy. But time heals everything. Don’t let your past ruin your future and change who you are. Take it as a motivation. As an inspiration. And trust me, if you do, your Mom will be very proud of you,” she said while painting a smile on her face. The curve on her lips reminded me that I’m done with my past. That I had to move on for it’s already been a year, and just continue to live with or without the guidance of my Mom.I just smiled back at Samantha. Of course, tears were still streaming on my eyes, but I no longer called them tears of sorrow. They were now tears of happiness. I hugged her as tightly as I could. Tight enough for me to feel that there’s still people out there who would love me. Who would care for me. The hug we made was tight enough for me to conclude that I will never experience pain again. I will never be left by anyone again. Right after that almost six seconds of hugging, Ms. Dolor requested Samantha to find our new principal. Samantha had left with no choice but to obey. She then excused herself and left me to where I was sitting. I had no problems with that. The smile was still stickered on my face as Samantha slowly disappeared in my horizon.At this point, I’m maybe alone again. But at least, now smiling.
Samantha’s POVCylvia badly needed me now. She needed someone's shoulder to lean on. Someone who could make her feel comfortable despite of all the problems that had been breaking her. If there's anyone who could fit in that position, it had to be me.If only I wasn’t tasked by Ms. Dolor to find the principle, then maybe I would be able to lessen the burden of my dear friend. I'm badly worried about her. But right now, there's nothing I could do except to find the principal as soon as possible so I would be able to go back to Cylvia.I found myself strolling, following the trail away from the students' study area while giving a gaze at the wide blue sheet of skies with the cottony clouds up above. The glimmering rays of the afternoon sun kissed my face as I went on.I must admit, it felt kind of boring to walk alone in the pathways beneath the green broad quadrangle of the University, that's why I co
“Ok, this is it. At the count of three.”One.Two.Three.I opened the door with all my force, and it made a very sounding impact. A great, blinding darkness welcomed me as I decided to step inside. “There’s no turning back now.” That’s what I thought.I was forced to draw out my phone and turn its flashlight on. There’s only 12% battery life left, and I don’t think it would last any longer.I observed what’s going on beyond the darkness, and tried to recall again the voice I heard minutes ago. At this point, it’s hard to believe it would happen again.All of a sudden, in the middle of my walk, the light of my cellphone shut down. Six percent battery life. It’s all that’s left. I tried to contact any of my classmates to ask for help but no one replied.I first chatted Cylvia. But she&rs
Vhynz’s POV I was about to finish typing my essay on the computer when my phone suddenly rang. Mom was calling. I didn’t usually get phone calls from her, because whenever she had something to say, she often talked to my twin sister, Samantha. Receiving one from her unexpectedly and in a very untimely case like this, seemed either important or urgent—or both—to me. I swiftly stood off of my seat and excused my self from the rest of the students inside. I went out of the Research Lab and answered the phone call right after I closed the French doors behind me. “What’s with the sudden call, Mom?” I said, no hi’s, and no hello’s. Just straight to the point. “We are going to the island,” she answered. There are airy breaths inserted between her words. She was always like this whenever she felt nervous. Or even worse. I ran a hand over my side-brushed hair. I b
“Vhynz! Could you please slow down a little bit?!”It took me a moment to realize that while I was running on the pavements going to the infirmary, the three girls were also putting on some speed to make tracks behind me. I didn’t notice nor hear any of them, not until I saw their reflections when I impinged upon the glass walls of the empty cafeteria.Taking notice of them panting their lungs out, I paused momentarily. I only felt my sweats snaking from my forehead down to my neck when I ran a hand over my face. “You followed me?” I asked, a hint of shock was written somewhere over my face.“Of course! We decided to come along when we overheard Samantha’s name from your conversation with that guy.”“Right. And that didn’t sound good.”“The way you panicked and became furious also confirmed our theory that something mi
Travis' POVI was in the parking lot, specifically in the left wing of the University, when I noticed a stampede going on from the Gate Three back to the stadium where the meeting was supposedly happening. Just in time when I was about to open the door of my dark grey Lambo Veneno, a loud wailing sound of siren abruptly sprouted out of the blue. It came from a police car. If I’m not mistaken, it was the fourth one—after the first three arrived at the same time six minutes ago.I hurled my keys back to my pants’ pocket and walked away from my car. I stopped by the hump, and stretched my neck upwards hoping to have a wider vision of what’s taking place on the other side of the area. Students, teachers, and even some of the staff were rushing towards the same direction, having me wonder what was it in there that caused so much panic and drove everybody insane.Until a good while later, a student ran past
SAMANTHAFebruary 25, 2021Thursday, 5:16 p.m.Case #64721.291.1OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTION OF POLICE INTERVIEWINVESTIGATOR: Good afternoon, Ms. Samantha Velarde. I’m so sorry for bothering you, I hope you’re feeling okay now. I know it’s getting late in the afternoon that’s why I need you to cooperate with me, and answer my questions as honest as you can so we can both get out of this room early. Are we okay with that?SAMANTHA: Yes.INVESTIGATOR: Good. For the record, I am Detective Noel Hummingbird with the Jordan Police Department, and I am here to handle the murder case of the late principal, Principal Josefa Magada. Today is 25th of February, Thursday, 5:16 in the afternoon. This video is being recorded.SAMANTHA: Just start already.INVESTIGATOR: Okay... Ms. Velarde, according to Mr. Tan, you passed out after telling h
RABIYAIt was Friday, the first day after the principal’s murder, when I became desperate to initiate a talk with my classmate, Travis. Yes, Travis Exposito. The coldest, the strangest, the most mysterious, and the only guy of few words I’ve ever known in and out of the University. Technically, I didn’t know him. And in actual fact, no one from within this five hundred hectares wide Hamlet Creek University had the opportunity to heist at least a handful of information about him. He’s just uncanny. Very enigmatical in a way that messing with him was like ambushing a ship full of deadly pirates equipped with extreme arsenals, and sticking to your belief that you would still be able to take them all down just because that’s what the magical wisp had told you in your dreams.We were classmates since freshmen years, but it appeared to me—and surely to everybody as well—that the longer we breathed the same a
Between the moonlight making nine p.m. look like four a.m. and the cars clogging the parking lot like a cemetery after World War II, I had gone on foot only to realize that once I reached the center point of the area, there’s no identifying which was the North, East, South, and West anymore. Discombobulation had me at seven blinks, making the following blinks utterly harmful to my eyes as they made my vision go round in circles.Not one out of the sea of cars had its lights on. Not one person who owned any of them was traipsing around, either. Stuck in this place had me wondering, How am I supposed to find Travis’ car, the white one with golden strips above the plate number, when almost half of the cars inside this parking lot is identical to the one he owned?I continued walking, unmindful of where would my feet take me this time. The veins in my hand turned blue as I squeezed the silver chain of my shoulder bag, pressing it against
SAMANTHA Everything went so fast and abrupt since we decided to ditch the police and never show up in either of anyone’s houses. The best part was that, I felt what it was like being a villain. Yes, the way we moved, the way we established plans, and the way we executed them, it surely the same as how villains did their job on movies.By around this time, we were now inside our house. The black truck was parked outside the gate, as all of us entered inside to take a short break. While the rest were slouching on the sofa beds, I and my twin brother Vhynz searched the house to look for the map of the island where our slaughterhouse business was located. Well, the thing was, neither of us two was able to remember where we put that thing. All I could remember was the passcode of the safe where the credit cards and the money was left by our parents. When I checked it the moment we arrived, the map wa
CHUCKLooking at Travis when he followed to cop to lead him to where our tents were located was already a pain in the eyes to me. I could sense the fear he was feeling from afar, and I could hear the loud drum rolls of his heart as he walked steps farther away that us. It was already given that if someone was here in this island with us, chances was that, he or should could have planted the evidences that linked to us inside one of those tents. There could be a slim possibility that we would be proven guilty. Every single one of us were drunk and wasted last night; it would have been a perfect opportunity for the killer to get our fingerprints or perhaps, to be more believable, tag the murder weapon in our hands right after killing Janvic with it. But until now, I still did not realize how Janvic was killed. There were bruises and stabbed wounds all over his body, but they were scattered. Was it a brutal way of slaughtering? Or
A not so long time had passed but still none of Noel Hummingbird’s so called disciples had went out of the cottage to give us at least the tiniest update they could provide regarding on how was the status of the conversation. It has been an hour already since the clash between Philip and the detective had happened, but still, here we were, pinned down to the ground just yet, feeling the intense numbing of our arms, and the pain on our necks as we contest on our nerves about who will stay longer in this position and who will remain surviving until the end of the investigation protocol. While we were trying our best not to collapse and get passed out on our spot where everyone of us friends were gathered, I decided maybe it was best if we had our own little chitchat just to shut down the dead air that had been wrapping and suffocating us. I initiated the conversation, and thank all the heavens above my classmates chimed in and made it as fluent as possible. “Are you still
TRAVISWhen we heard the sirens wailed from afar, we already suspected that it was them already; Philip with the rest of our friends, and then the police car. Hearing them made us skip each of our things that we were doing and ran out of the cottage to meet them half way. There were some signs of relief in my heart, but at the same time I could not deny the fact that there were also nerves of nervousness trying to ruin the day. Obviously, none of us three who were left here in the cottage was the killer, and there supposedly have no reason for us to be feeling guilty. But why are we feeling the complete opposite? Why, while running going outside, are we feeling as if we wanted to hide something only to make sure that we could prove ourselves innocent? And lastly, why did I feel like here would go another round of spitting lies again, only to assure that this time, I, or neither of Rabiya and Chuck, would not be accused a killer?
RABIYA The amount of boxes for Travis to unpack was so overwhelming, just as overwhelming as the number of drawers I had check to make sure that not a single clue will be left unseen. Ever since we started doing what we were opt to do, we had not yet seen an evidence. Not one. Not even a little, slight, or discreet one. At this point of our semi investigation, I was now starting to think that what if there were really no clues hidden inside the cottage? What if we were just used to know that this was the usual routine every time there was a crime happening that it brought us to conclude that the same protocol should be implemented? I rested my face from frowning because of the unpleasant smell coming from the utensils that were long kept inside the drawers-- only God knew how long had they been there inside their cases. I moved three steps away from the kitchen cabinet, and then clapped the dusts off my hands. I then washed the
CHUCK After five minutes at most, Rabiya got out of the kitchen room with a serving platter and three cups of coffee. Just by the aroma of it, and just by seeing how the steam evaporated in the air sending thin clouds of visible smoke towards us, as if a hand trying to seduce us to drink it right away, I could already determine that the freshly brewed coffee were so satisfying. I jumped out of the sofa where I decided to sit for three minutes, and fetched Rabiya from the isle to get the cup she prepared for me. I determined it right away which cup was mine, because I was the only one who ordered my coffee to be black and pure. No sure, no creamer, no anything at all. “You better be sure this taste great,” I threatened Rabiya in a jokingly manner. She just gave me a good smirk, as if she was utterly confident that her brewed coffee would meet the standards of my peculiar taste buds. I then picked up another cup, the
It did not took us that long to finally accept the fact that now, starting from this moment, there will only be the three of us left here. I did not know how would I begin to internalize us, but every single time I would think about the isolation i give to our own selves, the first few things that wold cross my minds were death, conflicts, and again, another crime. Right now, just simply thinking about how big this place was for only the three of us who were left inside the beach resort, I was already defeated by the fact that we were completely overwhelmed. I did not know what was circling inside Travis’ mind at this exact moment, but there was only one thing I was sure: Whatever it was, it must be very, very complicated. I walked my feet away from the garage after the black truck Philip used to drive Janvic exited a couple of minutes ago. If not because of the wind which slapped me a cool hand on my face, never would I ever have awaken myself from that lucid daydream I had.
CHUCKIt did not took us that long to finally accept the fact that now, starting from this moment, there will only be the three of us left here. I did not know how would I begin to internalize us, but every single time I would think about the isolation i give to our own selves, the first few things that wold cross my minds were death, conflicts, and again, another crime. Right now, just simply thinking about how big this place was for only the three of us who were left inside the beach resort, I was already defeated by the fact that we were completely overwhelmed. I did not know what was circling inside Travis’ mind at this exact moment, but there was only one thing I was sure: Whatever it was, it must be very, very complicated. I walked my feet away from the garage after the black truck Philip used to drive Janvic exited a couple of minutes ago. If not because of the wind which slapped me a cool hand on my face, never wou
ANDREI Travis grouped us all into two, where each and every group had its own task to perform, all of which were very vital to the progress of our movement. The first group were merely composed of Geodie, Samantha, Cylvia, Yuri, Philip, and me. Based on the instructions of our acting leader who was Travis, we are going to be the group that will send Janvic to the nearest hospital and at the same time call the cops and bring them back here. Meanwhile, the other group which was composed of only Travis, Chuck, and Rabiya, they will be the ones that will remain here to check and investigate the place. When I asked Travis if the job was not too big for only the three of them to handle, he answered me firmly and confidently, ‘the lesser we are here, the easier the job will be.’ Well, that only made a lot of sense because it would be harder if there will be more people to stay here. The more the people will stay, the more