10 Chapter 9: In her Absence

The sunset's kissing the crimson horizon over the gloomy waters of the bay. Dex was already in his twelfth bottle of beer, he was feeling the effects of the alcohol in his system yet his slow and clumsy reflexes have not deterred him from indulging another round. Another bottle empty, another bottle down and another bottle to spare. He clutched a bottle of beer before chugging it down in one go.

The sun finally rested under the thick blanket of velvet darkness and soon the cold sea breeze gently blew and caressed his skin, he felt nothing. Not a shiver, not a sneeze, not even a horripilation. There was no reaction in him. Everything felt like nothing now that she's gone. He took another bottle and realized that all of them were empty. He tried to get up but the liquor finally got to him and he fell flat on the table.

The morning after wasn't pleasant. The first ray of sun that hit his eyes felt painful and blinding. His head throbbed like his heart suddenly switched places with his brain. He tried to stand to put down the blinds but his world spun underneath his feet that it made him nauseous and accidentally hurled everything on the floor.

" You're a mess," said Tristan who was standing at the door of his room.

" A little bit," he replied.

Tristan scoffed in disbelief, " A lil bit?! A little bit! Bro, you got me to carry you from the Baybay Mercato right here to our house! I was supposed to have a party last night. It was supposed to be a launch party but I have to bail because Mama told me you were out cold in Baybay Mercato!"

" You don't have to do that. You should've just ignored Mama," he replied.

"And what get an earful?!" Tristan scoffed as he paced beside Dex's bed. " Look Bro, she's gone! She ended her life. It happened! It's been 9 days already, move on!" he added.

Tristan's insensitive words pierced Dex's heart like knives stabbed in butter. To Dexter, Calista's memory has always been something he treasured the most. Every moment he spent with her had been the happiest of his days. The words Tristan said are nothing but speculations, he knows there was something more to what happened.

Dex quietly stood up and pounced on Tristan leaving his brother stunned and surprised laying on the floor. Dexter's anger was palpable. It's not anger, it was pent up rage. He punched his brother who was under him hard on the face.

"How. Dare. You!!!" putting up every word rhythmically in tune with every punch. " You selfish bastard! She died because of you!", his punches were heavily pounding his brother's face. The barrage was relentless that his bigger twin, Tristan called for their mother to intervene.

It took four helpers and Tristan's bodyguard to get Dex off of Tristan who suffered a broken nose and mangled face in the process. The enraged Dexter was almost unstoppable that his father had to punch him in an attempt to put him back to his senses. The punch worked and Dex was stumbled to the floor panting.

"What are you two doing?!" his Papa asked.

"I..I..was..tryiiingg..to...cooonsole him." stuttering and bloody Tristan replied.

"My boy! Look at what you've done to your brother!" his Mama spat at him while cursing vigorously.

"I was trying to help him, Mama. Agay!" Tristan winced in pain, "I can't breathe, Ma." Tristan was hyperventilating.

Seeing her son this way made her frantic. " Let's take him to the hospital, Pang!" , " Call an ambulance my son might die!!! Their mother wailed and screamed in desperation. In truth, Tristan was just shocked and scared witless at how Dex handled him like a rag doll.

Dex put his gaze in Tristan's direction and saw how his brother worked on his act looking for sympathy from his parents. His pathetic brother the jock turned tail and whimpered in their mother's arms. Their father gave him another punch to the face before their hysterical mother ordered him once more to bring their good son to the hospital.

Their father stood up and asked the other people in the room to help Tristan out and get him to the car. Everyone including her mother carried his brother out of the room however, his father was not done with him.

"What's wrong with you?" his father asked. "That was your brother!"

Dex sat there in silence not moving one bit. "She loved him..."

"What? Is this because of that girl? That girl that almost ended your brother's engagement?" his father asked as their emotions flared up. " Is that homewrecker all worthy enough to get your brother battered?."

"No. What I did to Tristan wasn't enough!" he looked at his father straight in the eyes.

" Why you?!...ungrateful!" his father was about to hit him again when his mother's wails echoed once more. His distracted father glared at him, "We are not finished!"

His father left in a hurry leaving him to his thoughts. He knew all too well that Calista was just his brother's scapegoat. He knew all too well how rotten his brother is and how manipulative he is.

When they were younger his brother would always bully him and most of the time would frame him for things that he didn't do. They would always quarrel and Dex would always get the scolding as Tristan would lie his way out of it. Dex was always treated as the black sheep of the family and this was his final straw.

After his parents left the house to get their good son to the hospital, Dex packed up his things and left. He didn't leave a note, he just went off. He drove his car as far from the city as possible. Away from all of this, away from his parents, away from his brother and away from everything.

Another day breaks as the dawn approaches its end. The sun can be seen peeking from the horizon on the beach. The marvelous streaks of orange-colored light lines the sky signaling a new day but it was all too bland for Dex who camped at the side of the beach for almost a week now.

He immersed himself in the serene waters of the beach. He even threw away his SIM card so as to not be contacted by anyone. He went all out for this retreat with only his car as his house and protection from the elements. He did his best to make himself at peace even if that tranquility is but a farce. His mind is still there, during that day. That day Calista died.

He sat on the sand as his emotions swirled and raged like the waves in front of him. His heart sank to the emptiness he felt. Calista left a gaping hole in him. Her death was surprising and tragic. At one time during that night, they were laughing and having fun in the pool. Then the next day she just died. Her smiles and laughs were all the memories she left him with that night. The painful reality of losing someone you love. He wished he could've done more for her.

If only...If I could've, he thought.

The sea breeze embraced his body with a chill. He took his comforter and wrapped it around him and took a swig from a bottle of a strong spirit to warm him up. He looked far away from the horizon, his eyes were bloodshot from the alcohol and sleepless nights from the neverending barrage of memories about her that went storming his mind.

Today, he has decided to end it all. He took another swig of that bottle of hard liquor before walking towards the horizon. The water was cold that his foot stiffened in protest to such an overwhelming temperature but he kept ongoing. The jagged corals pierced his foot, normally it could've been painful but he had no reaction from it. His body got numb from the emotional turmoil he felt in his heart. He inched a step and the cold water rose waist-deep.

He paused as he looked back at the shore to look at the things he will leave behind. His car was parked beside the small shed house he rented for his stay, his phone inside his car loaded with pictures and memories of the good 'ole days with Mae and Calista and his comforter which he left on the sand.

He looked at the sky to glimpse at the moving clouds that looked like still frames of shaped animals running across the sky and remembered how much Calista enjoyed it so much as he. He continued on with his journey towards the unreachable horizon.

The cold water was giving him difficulty in moving now. The small splashes of saltwater hit directly into his eyes irritating them but he didn't mind it. He just kept moving forward until the waters finally swallowed him.

Dex felt the water rushing into his mouth and nose as he sunk deeper into the cold dark sea. His throat and lungs were filled irritating seawater and he was losing air inside him but he didn't mind it. He never fretted at its discomfort, he just let himself sink deeper and deeper. Now, he could only hear the stillness of the waters as it gently cradles him to his demise.

His mind was filled with happy memories with Calista. He burned that last smile in his memory. He remembered it all that night that conversation and even her crappy costume. He cracked a little smile of contentment on his face then everything faded away, even her memory.

"Promise me. Dex...live."

Dex suddenly heard that voice out of nowhere. The disembodied voice sounded like Calista's. calling him towards the surface. He woke up from the brink of endless sleep and struggled back his way to the surface. Alas, the water weighed heavy on him, the belly was already filled with water and now he is racing against time to go back to the surfaces for some air. His struggle came unfruitful and now, he finally drowned slowly sinking until the rushing currents took him away.

"I am sorry Calista...I.."

Dex felt soft sand where he laid on. He felt the sensation of water flowing to and fro on his feet. He also felt a tapping sensation on his head. It started gently then it became harder and constant. His mind played around with the idea of him dying but why feel these sensations?

He convinced himself to open his eyes and find what that tapping sensation could be. He opened his eyes and saw a small shadow with a glaring halo light. The glare hurt his eyes so badly he squinted to make a clear view of the figure. He saw a small child with curly hair and big almond eyes with a color distinction of mixed blue and brown. He doesn't look like an ordinary child from a villager somewhere near the area there's something about him that looks otherworldly.

"What are you doing, kid" he coughed out some water.

The child's eyes were wide open, he looked surprised as if he saw a ghost. From the distance, a whistle sounded frantic and it became noticeably louder as if it was going nearer. The look on the child's face was memorable, he is a beautiful child even if he looked so dumbfounded right at that moment.

Not a minute passed and Dex was approached by men bringing a stretcher and some first aid kits. He got distracted for a while as the men tended to him. It turns out, a passer-by saw him walking straight towards the dangerous parts of the beach. When the passerby saw him disappear, that's when the concerned person called for help.

"You were lucky to be alive, sir." said the lifeguard. "Had you not surfaced for another minute you could've been a goner."

"I am alive?" inquired the confused Dex.

"Yes sir, luckily a huge wave washed you ashore. Most of the time you one wouldn't be so lucky." he replied, "What were you doing there anyway? That part is infamous for its rip currents!"

Dex felt ashamed. He was ashamed to say what truly happened so he made an alibi. " I was doing a morning dip when something strange caught me and dragged me down."

"Must be a shokoy!" shouted another man. The idea was then dismissed by the lifeguard and told him that those aren't real. "But, they are..my-"

"Mang Kanor, we have a visitor here! Plus, who would believe that anyway?" It was the ripped currents!" said the lifeguard dismissively.

They helped Dex back on his feet but not before he gushed out a huge volume of seawater. He let them stay inside the resort's infirmary that was just a nipa hut with a small folding bed fashioned at the side. He stayed there for half a day before he decided to go back to his car.

He opened the car and saw his phone at the driver's seat, out of battery. After that brush with death, he opted to charge his phone as he planned on browsing the pictures again with Calista. His heartfelt heavy once more as the memories flowed back again. He closed the car door and went back to the beach to look at the sunset and look for his missing comforter.

The sky painted a crimson canvass with streaks of dark clouds. Dex was walking around the beach looking for the comforter that was gifted to him by Calista. He looked for it all over but couldn't find it. He was about to give up on it when he saw a familiar face. It was the boy who was poking his head while he was unconscious.

He approached the boy and noticed he was busy poking something again in the sand. He asked what he was doing but he didn't get an answer. Instead, the boy turned to him and pointed at the thing buried in the sand. It was his lost comforter!

"Yes! The comforter!" he shouted in relief. He dug it out quickly and the boy even helped him with it.

After digging the comforter out a huge smile broke Dex's face, he wanted to cry but he was embarrassed. He might not look that manly crying in front of the child. He thanked the child for finding it and started to mess with the child's beautiful curly hair. The child smiled for a while and then stared at the comforter for almost a minute.

Dex stood up and walked back to his car however, he noticed the child was following him. He went back to him and asked if he was lost. The child gestured his hands telling him "no". The darkness was already enveloping the horizon so he asked the child about what he wanted. The child timidly pointed at the comforter.

Dex was hesitant to give such a valuable item to the little boy but there was something about the child that was both very alluring and calming at the same time. He looked at the child's eyes and saw the blissful feeling of innocence in him so he agreed to give him the comforter. The child jumped in glee and smiled wide at him like his eyes were already thanking him. The child positioned his right hand over his left chest and bowed to him and was ready to walk away when he caught the child's hand.

"Wait! before you go, let me give you this as well.", he said as he untied his cheap bracelet from him. " I'm sorry kid this is just a cheap bracelet, but my friend made this for me. See this green bead? That's for health and this yellow is for happiness! I want you to keep it since your smile reminds me of her when we were younger."

The child was delighted as Dex placed it on the child's wrist. The boy stared at the bracelet in his arm then looked back to Dex. The child's face lighted even brighter. Then the next thing he knew the child was saying gibberish to him as if it was thanking him or maybe blessing him of a sort. When that ended he tugged Dex's hand and asked him to kneel. Dex did so, then the boy patted his head.

As soon as he did, Dex was crying. It felt like a huge weight was released from his chest and that the experience was so incredible that tears began flowing instantly. Dex cried his heart out that he didn't notice the child was gone by the time he got himself together. Dex felt light after that weird encounter and made a promise to live his life to honor Calista, his friend, and his greatest love.

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WRITER'S NOTES

Dear Reader!

I am terribly sorry if this chapter made you feel things. I know the writing here is heavy and emotion-filled but I hope you can get through it! ( Promise you'll love the next chapter)

Anyways, I'm back to giving you the meaning of a word you might've thought of something that I have just made up.

shokoy- merman. Yes, the merfolk a human-fish hybrid. The staple of ancient literature. Here in the Philippines, we also have our version of it! It's known as shokoy. Mostly, these creatures can either be found in beaches or rivers where they mostly consider how. Their size can also vary from a length of a corn cob to an average human height. These creatures are scaly and fish-like, compared to their women counterparts (mermaid) and they have legs and they walk on two feet! They also have webbed feet and hands and gills on their necks. Do I also need to mention their face?

Just imagine an image of a ugliest looking fish having a bad hair day. Also, it's only a face a mother could ever love.

That's all for today! I think I've talked too much, the merfolk could sue for badmouthing them.

Thanks for your continued patronage and I will see you in the next chapter!

Pugay!