Tempting Fate

"If you treat fate like a joke, it will play with you like a magician, tricking your eyes and making you believe in an illusion, then drowning you in trouble and shame."

-

"Son, I haven't understood you since you returned from the battlefield."

Reed was standing near a window. From there, he can view his kingdom's vastness. His father told him about the woman who would become his queen. Reed can see himself in the window in front of him. With scars and a broken wing, he won the battle.

"What happened after the war?" the former king asked. "There's no one else with you but you."

"There is nothing to say, Father," Reed told his father. "All you need to know is that my victory came at a price, and I can't return on the deal."

"Deal?" asked the former king, but he couldn't finish his sentence because Reed spoke again.

"I will go look for my queen." Reed turned toward his father. "Don't worry, Father. I won't disappoint you." He took a deep breath. "If we have nothing to talk about, I'll leave."

The former king just looked at Reed, who had left the room.

-

It has been a few minutes. Emy stepped out of the passenger jeepney to avoid becoming stuck in the traffic jam. She sprinted to the side of the road to get to work.

Her torn shoe caused her to stumble and fall. "Aw!" Emy exclaimed and shook her head.

With a frown, Emy sat on the side of the road for a moment. She gasped for air as she stood across the pedestrian lane, but Emy thought she was waiting too long for the red stoplight. She turned back before crossing the road, but the traffic enforcer noticed her.

She looked back, and she saw the enforcer chasing her. "Ah, shit!" Emy said.

Emy kept walking across the road until she reached the other side. She ran again, but she heard the traffic officer's whistle. After a while, he grabbed her arm, so she used her bag to hit him.

-

While she is staring at him, Emy gives her ID to the law enforcer. "Sir, today I need to go to work," said Emy. "I also don't have the money to pay the fine you're asking for."

She sat at the enforcer's desk, directly across from the chief's. They insisted on getting her identification. The chief gives her a receipt for her fine for jaywalking and the community service she had to do.

"Your fine is just five hundred pesos, Miss," the chief said, looking at her. "If you don't want to pay a fine, you should not have crossed the street against the traffic light," the chief said. "I don't believe that you have no money." Emy shook her head. "You're working and getting paid."

"I work in a factory, sir, and I only earn the minimum wage, which is not as much as your salary," said Emy. "I have four siblings that I have to take care of, and for now, I don't even have money for a jeepney fare."

While she talked to the enforcer, Emy massaged her red foot. The cold air filled the entire room. She noticed that all the windows were securely closed when she surveyed the room. One enforcer came up and whispered to the leader. Emy noticed the chief's frown and a slight nod. The chief enforcer looked at Emy, so she smiled at him.

The enforcer glanced at Emy. "Here," the enforcer said, handing Emy her ID. It ended up in Emy's bag. "You are free to go to work."

She grinned. "Thank you, sir." Emy said, "Thanks a lot."

The officer nodded. "Don't jaywalk again; is that clear?" said the man in charge.

She got up and gave the man a salute. "Yes, sir," she said happily. "Thank you so much again, sir."

Emy hurried as she left the office. The two enforcers were looking at her broken shoes and swollen foot. The chief shook his head and took a deep breath.

-

When Lorie gets to the factory, she immediately pulls Emy away. Lorie was her best friend. They have worked in the factory for five years but are not regular employees.

Lorie looked around before she could talk. "What happened?" Lorie asked. "You are late again."

"If I told you, you wouldn't believe it." This morning, I had many bad things happen to me. I promise this is the last time I will be late." She opened her locker and placed the bag inside. "Do you have spare slippers?" she asked, removing her shoes. "My shoes tore."

Her friend looked at Emy's shoes. Lorie took a deep breath and got her extra shoes from her locker.

Lorie handed it to her. "Here, put this on," said Lorie.

Emy grinned and then squeezed both of Lorie's cheeks. "You're the best." She put on the shoe, and it fits perfectly.

Lorie gazed at her. "Emy, you came late at the wrong time," said Lorie.

Emy looked at her friend. "Huh? Why?"

"The company will lay off almost half its employees today," said Lorie.

Emy smiled. "Are you concerned that you might choose me?" She held her friend's shoulder. "I polished my work and always put in extra hours."

-

She was crying as she walked. She was one of the employees who lost their jobs when the company cut back on staff. Emy was like a crying child walking along the road. She thinks about how they'll live the day after tomorrow. Her father is only a part-time jeepney driver.

Emy stared up at the sky. The sun was setting, but the sky was already dark. Emy's cell phone rang. She pulled out the phone from her pocket. Someone put an old phone in the trash, and her brother found it. Her father fixed it, and he put tape around it. Her eyes kept getting watery with frustration.

"Hello?" On the other line, Emy inquired.

"Is this Emilu Briones?" said the man on the other end.

"Yes, I am Emilu," Emy said. "Who am I talking to?"

"Your dad needs you at the police station near your house," the caller said.

Someone had poured cold water on Emy, and she dashed to her father.

-

"Are you okay, Tay? Aren't you hurt? Do you have no wounds or injuries?" When Emy arrived at the precinct, she inquired.

She stood behind bars in front of her father. Her father hit a fancy car and wanted compensation for the damage. And since her father had no money to give him, he took him to the precinct and held him there.

"I am fine, Emy." Her father told her. "Forgive me. I did not expect this to happen. I don't want to cause you a problem."

"Tay, the important thing is that nothing happened to you. We should be thankful for that. I'll handle it and speak with them." Emy said. "Don't worry too much, okay?"

Emy was sitting in front of the police desk. The owner of the expensive car stood before her. He is asking for damages that are a hundred times greater than what she would have made at the factory for almost a year if she still had a job.

"You're asking too much," Emy said. "We're just poor, and my dad only makes extra money as a driver."

The man was smiling. "If you can't pay money for the damage your father did, that old man, I'll make sure your father rots in jail," said the man.

Emy looked at the man. He is well-dressed and seems smart, but he is more than just rude to her squatter friends. When the police presented her with a photo of the man's car, Emy was shocked to see that the damage to his car was minimal compared to the severe damage to her father's car.

"This is just a scratch compared to my father's car," Emy said.

"Do you know how much that car cost? Even if you sold your and your father's souls, it would still be less than what your father made. Find a lawyer, Miss, or your father will rot in prison." The man then walked away.

Emy watched the man walk away. "I am sorry, Miss. Your dad hit his car, and you must pay for the damage, even if it's not too bad. I apologize. That's how most rich people are." The police said so.

-

Emy is not on her own as she walks home. Her world almost fell apart when she lost her job and her father went to jail. Emy must find out where she'll get the money to pay and bail out her father. After taking a deep breath, Emy stopped walking on the bridge. She has let out the tears she had been holding back. She cried while holding onto the bridge railing.

After coming out of the portal, Reed sat on the side of the bridge. 'So, this is where humans live? It was not at all what I expected.' Reed thought.

He turned around and saw a woman crying off into the distance. The woman wailed as if she were in too much pain. Slowly, he moved toward the woman and stood next to her. She couldn't see him, so he watched the woman cry. He even saw her grip tighten on the bridge's railings.

"If anyone hears me, I'll sell myself for anything. Get me out of this horrible life!" Emy screamed at the top of her lungs as tears fell from her eyes.

"Are you willing to surrender yourself to me if I grant your wish?" Reed wondered.

"It's not fair to me. I did everything, but why should I live with this curse of life? Isn't it enough for a good person to have even a little luck? My life stinks and is exhausting. If there were an easier way to leave this life, I'd sell myself." Emy spoke as she continued to cry.

Reed was surprised. It was as if they had first met on that bridge that evening. Reed smiled and put his lips close to the woman's ear.

When the wind touched Emy's face, she thought she heard someone say, "It is a deal."

Suddenly, there was a roar of thunder, and lightning lit up the sky. Emy was on her way home before it rained.