Triggs

"Ugh… This dream again…"

The young man moaned as he rubbed his slender fingers on his forehead. 

His medium-length slightly wavy hair covered his eyes as he lay flat on his mattress.

BZZTT! BZZZT!

His phone vibrated near him; the alarm was going off.

He lifted his average-built body and he sat at the corner of the bed. 

Stretching his slightly lean arm, he reached for the phone on the small wooden table beside his bed.

The phone told him the time: 7:15 AM. 

After a deep sigh, he turned off the alarm and dropped the phone beside his toned leg.

For a while, he stayed motionless on the corner of the bed, trying to comprehend his weird recurring dream.

With his senses still half-asleep, he stood up and left his room with his phone in his hand.

He walked towards the dining table. His sister was there, preparing their breakfast.

"Oh? You're already awake? Good morning, Triggs," his sister greeted him. 

"Morning…" he answered with a long lazy voice.

"Uhm, Triggs… Can you help me prepare the plates?"

Although still feeling a bit drowsy, he accepted his sister's request, "Fiiiine…"

"Yey! Thanks, Triggs! You're reliable as ever!"

Triggs sighed. "You don't need to flatter me. I'm not a kid anymore."

His sister replied with an impish giggle.

"Wait… It's Sunday. Why are you up so early? Are you going somewhere?"

Triggs didn't answer, he just continued putting up the plates and dishes on the table. 

As they savored their meal, Triggs' phone started to vibrate again. This time, it was from an incoming call.

Triggs ignored the call and continued eating his food until the ringing stopped. But just after a few seconds, it rang again.

"Aren't you going to answer that? That seems like an important call."

"No. It's just my classmates," Triggs replied. "We're supposed to go on a trip today."

"Ohh… I see." 

It took a few more gulps and swallows until his sister finally noticed, "Are you okay, Triggs? You look so off today. You look so tired, and it's not even past breakfast time."

"I'm fine. It's just… I had this weird dream again," Triggs answered.

"Oh, the one with the image of a lady? What did she say to you this time?"

"Same old - about the changes in the world. Something about this 'Great Awakening' she keeps telling me."

"Woooah!" his sister's exaggerated reaction.

"I'm also having a vague vision of the future… an impending doom that we're heading into," Triggs added.

"Wow! I didn't know you had that kind of ability! All you need is a crystal ball and a good place in Quiapo and you're good to go! You can profit from that."

Triggs was disappointed by his sister's reply, "Are you being serious now?"

His sister chuckled, "Nah! I'm just kidding."

"That's why I hate opening up this topic with you. You're not taking it seriously."

"Okay-okay! I'm sorry! It's just… I don't know how to react because I'm not having the same experience as you. I really don't know what to say."

"But you can - at least - not make fun of me," Triggs said with a bit of huff in his voice.

"I'm sorry," his sister's sincere reply. She looked at Triggs' face. She felt guilty when she saw the disappointment in his brother's eyes. "Come on. Cheer up now."

"Tch!"

His sister didn't know what to do. But she tried her best to lighten up the mood, "Aha! I have an idea! If you're not going with your classmates, might as well go with me. I'll go to the Plaza later to collect something. After that, let's eat at the newly-opened Grilling House."

"Tch!"

"Come on now. I believe that you also need this - you need to unwind. You look very stressed lately; you need to lighten up. Don't worry! It'll be my treat!"

Triggs seemed reluctant at first. But after a few more wooing from his persistent sister, he finally ended his cold charade.

"Pretty please!"

"Okay-okay! Just don't make fun of me again, okay?"

"Okay! I promise!" his sister replied. After that, she giggled and murmured, "You look funny when you're angry. You're still the same little boy I used to play with, hehe."

"Are you saying something, Ate*?"

"Nothing! Just leave the plates in the sink when you're done. I'll be the one to wash the dishes. Think of it as my way to say sorry."

Triggs sighed. "Okay." He then continued finishing his meal.

…

…

…

"Where are we going again?" Triggs asked his sister as they walked through the Plaza.

"We're going to the Remittance Center. I'm going to receive the allowance that Auntie Sarah sent us."

"Ohh, I see. Good thing Auntie Sarah still sends us money."

"Yes. We're grateful that she's still there to support us, but we shouldn't rely on her entirely. After all, she also has her own bills to pay."

"Right."

"That's why you should study harder, Triggs! So we can be financially independent someday. Also, try not to waste money. Save whenever you can! Half of the money we are using isn't ours anyway."

"I understand."

As they passed through the driveway of the Plaza, they walked past an old woman sitting on the curb of the road.

Triggs, who has a soft spot for the homeless - especially for the elderly, couldn't help but notice the old woman.

"Hep-hep-hep! What did I just tell you?" his sister uttered to snatch his attention. 

Triggs quickly turned his gaze away from the elder. But deep inside, he felt a pinch in his heart. He knew he should help the woman.

After a few more minutes of walking, they finally reached their destination.

"We're here!"

"Oh… Okay."

"You can just wait here until I get our allowance."

"Understood."

"Be a good boy, okay?" his sister teased.

"I told you! I'm not a kid anymore!"

"Hehe. Just teasing you. I'll be back for a while!"

Triggs was left waiting outside. Still, the image of the old woman lingered in his head. A feeling in his gut told him that he should go back.

Checking that his sister was already not around, Triggs left the Center and walked back to the road where they found the old woman.

After a few strides, he finally saw the old woman still in the same place where they first saw her. He stepped closer to the elder wearing an old tampered baggy dress - the typical attire worn by a homeless person.

Straight from his wallet, Triggs brought out a 20 Peso Bill and gave it to the elder.

"Here, Nay*. I know it's just a small amount, but I hope it could help you," Triggs said.

But instead of accepting the money, the old lady just responded with a mischievous smirk.

"Judging by your looks, it seems like you need it more than I do," the old woman said to Triggs impishly.

Confused and a bit insulted, Triggs reacted, "I'm sorry, what!?"

The old woman didn't answer. Instead, she stood up from her seat and asked a question, "Young Lad, what do you believe is your Life Purpose?"

Triggs was caught off guard; he wasn't sure what to answer. 

"My - My life purpose?... Wow, Nay! You're hitting me with some heavy questions there!" 

However, he didn't want to disappoint the elder, so he tried his best to come up with a response. He found inspiration from his weird recurring dream.

"Hmm... I always have this deep feeling; with all the craziness happening in the world, I know that we're heading for disaster. I always wanted to share this knowledge with others. But no one is taking me seriously."

The elder chuckled. "You have a good intuition, I like it," she said. "Don't kill it, Young Lad. Who knows? It may be the reason why we met here."

Puzzled than before, Triggs replied, "I'm sorry, Nay. But I don't understand what you're trying to tell me."

"See that beggar over there?" the old lady said. She pointed her finger at the skinny man sitting on the other side of the road.

"You mean that homeless person wearing sunglasses?"

"What do you think of him?"

Trying to comprehend what was happening, Triggs tried to answer in the most logical way he could. 

"He looks just like another homeless person. And I also believe that he is blind - that's why he's wearing glasses."

"Really? Is that all?" the elder asked. "I know you can see more than that. But here, let me help you." 

Abruptly, the old woman drew a knife from the insides of her baggy clothes.

The elder's erratic action made Triggs step back out of reflex.

In a blink of an eye, the knife went flying straight to the skinny man. It landed and pierced into the shoulder of the man.

Shocked, Triggs asked the old woman, "What the!? Nay!? What have you done!? What was that for!?"

The old woman just smiled and answered, "What do you think? Just wait and see…"

The skinny man gnarled in pain. His growls and cries can be heard clearly. 

But things got terrifying when the cries started to sound less humanlike. The growls grew ferociously and the screams dreadful.

"What the hell is happening!?" Triggs uttered.

After a moment, the growling stopped. The skinny man pulled out the bloodied knife sticking in his shoulder. 

He clicked his tongue and menacingly, he turned to the direction where Triggs and the old woman were standing.

The skinny man let out a rabid snarl - something that a normal human wouldn't do. He ground his teeth to show his irritation. 

He jerked his arms sideways and suddenly, large sharp claws protruded from the tips of his nails.

"I-I think you made him angry, " Triggs uttered to the old woman.