The Curse

Tala's mother scolded him again for wanting to walk alone in the park. "How many times do I have to tell you not to go out alone, Tala? You're only 17, and Kandawgyi can be dangerous. Listen to the grown-ups."

"But, Mom," Tala replied, "a lot of people come to do exercises in the morning. It's not that dangerous."

"You kids won't understand the dangers," his mother retorted.

Tala had always wanted to take a walk in Kandawgyi Park, which was just down the road from his house. His mother's constant warnings never stopped him. So, today he snuck out of his house, and now he was getting scolded for it.

"Don't do that ever again," his mother said sternly.

"I won't," Tala replied, though he wasn't sorry in the slightest.

"Go take a shower. We're going to meet your grandfather in the hospital."

Tala's grandfather had always been in good health, never showing any signs of weakness. However, one day, he collapsed while reading, and had been in the hospital ever since. Despite the best efforts of the doctors, they still couldn't find the cause of his collapse. His health had been getting worse and worse over the months. Tala loved his grandfather, since he always let him do whatever he wanted. His siblings, on the other hand, didn't spend much time with him.

They arrived at the hospital, which was not far from their house. When they entered his grandfather's room, he looked pale and thin. He gave a soft glance at Tala, his mother, and his two little sisters, and faintly smiled. His mother put some flowers on the table, and after chatting for a while, his grandfather asked Tala's mother and sisters to leave him alone with Tala. Though his mother wanted to ask why, she left them alone, taking her daughters with her without questioning. Tala was puzzled as to why his grandfather would ask such a request.

As soon as they left, his grandfather looked at him with a serious expression. "I will trust you, I chose you out of all the people."

Tala was puzzled. "Huh? I don't know what you're talking about, Grandpa. I'm so confused."

"Look, Tala," his grandfather said, "I don't have much time left. There's a small statue that looks like an angel in the attic. Along with that angel statue, there is a book. Turn to page 6, and you will see a title named 'Cleanse.' Follow the instructions under it."

Tala was still confused. "Wait, Grandpa, slow down. Slow down."

"I can't," his grandfather said urgently. "Just do what I said. It's very important for the whole family. Our family is cursed. If you don't do what I said, they will die one by one. But don't tell them that I said this. Go, quick!"

Tala still didn't understand the situation completely, but he got the gist of it. He pushed open the door and ran as quickly as he could, leaving his mother and sisters standing there puzzled. He ran down the stairs, pushing everyone out of the way. All he knew right now was to do what his grandfather said as fast as possible. His grandfather's expression told him everything.

After about 10 minutes of running as fast as he could, he finally arrived at home, but the door was locked. "I will break in through the window. Forgive me, Mom."

He picked up a brick and broke the window and quickly ran upstairs to the attic to look for the small statue of the angel. After a few minutes of searching, he found it, along with an old leather book attached to it. He quickly started reading the instructions on page 6.

Meanwhile, at the hospital, Tala's mother and sisters were left with confusion and started questioning his grandfather. "Where did he run off to, Dad?" his mother asked.

"Oh, don't worry," his grandfather replied. "I asked him to go to an ice cream stall down the hospital."

"Why did he run so fast, though?" his mother pressed.

"The ice cream stall won't be there for too long," his grandfather said with a chuckle.

"Whatever, you could've just asked me," his mother said, exasperated.

His grandfather looked out of the window, and a breeze passed by. He whispered to himself, "Looks like it's time for me. It was all my fault. Please forgive me, Tala."

Suddenly, his grandfather stopped talking. Tala's mother's expression turned pale, and she started shouting, "Dad? Dad?"

She couldn't believe that he had passed away like that, without knowing anything. The kids started crying too. Tala's mother called the doctors, and they rushed in to confirm his death. Tala's mother knew that this was going to happen sooner or later, so she stopped panicking and tried to call Tala.

Meanwhile, Tala was reading through the instructions carefully. It seemed like a ritual or something. He had all the items he needed to perform it ready. He put the statue on a higher place and put the necessary items in front of it. The phone started ringing, but Tala wanted to perform the ritual as soon as possible, so he left it ringing and tried to recite the lines written in the instructions.

Before he could even recite a word, someone with a black coat crashed through the roof window. Tala couldn't see the man's face since it was covered with a black cloth. The man threw his fist into Tala's stomach with great force. Tala didn't have time to dodge, and the fist sent him flying, crashing into the wall. The man quickly tried to grab the book and angel statue, but Tala picked up a small iron box and threw it at the man. The box hit the man's head, causing the black-coated man to fall to the ground. Tala got up and uncovered the man's face. He looked like an ordinary man with a mustache, but it seemed like the box had knocked him out.

"Everything I do just won't go normally, sigh," Tala said to himself.

He tied the man up tightly and tried to read the lines on the instructions again. The phone rang again. He tried to ignore it, but he had a bad feeling about it, so he picked it up.

"Hello?" Tala said.

"Hello, are you Miss Pyone's son?" an unknown voice asked. Tala felt anxious.

"Aah, yes? Who is talking right now?" he asked nervously.

"Well, your grandfather passed away a few minutes ago, and I'm your grandfather's doctor," the voice replied.

Tala was not surprised at all. He kept his calm and asked about where his mother and sisters were. "I see, but why isn't my mother on the phone?" he asked.

Both went silent, and after a long pause, the doctor decided to speak. "Your mother hurriedly rushed down the stairs and went out of the hospital and was hit by a car along with your little sisters. I'm sorry..."