SCIAS OF THE UNDERWORLD

EIGHTEEN

Napabuntong-hininga siya saka niya ito tiningnan. "What do you want?"

Napatingin naman si Scias sa orasan. "You already know what I want. But anyway, I will tell you about it. You still have thirty minutes before the restaurant opens. That's enough time for me," saad nito saka naglakad papunta sa isa sa mga tables na naroon at umupo. Hindi makapaniwalang nakatingin siya rito.

"Make yourself at home," sarkastikong saad niya at sumunod sa kanila. The moment she sat in front of them, Scias immediately grabbed her hand and caressed it gently. Napakunot ang noo niya.

"I just want you to know na wala kang mapapala kung babalian mo ako ng kamay."

Scias chuckled and looked at her. "Nonsense," he said. And then he stared at her. His eyes were so fixed on hers that it feels like he was looking right through his soul. And his constant gentle caress on her hands feels just like a cherry on top. It was calming and relaxing. It was as if she wanted to sleep all of a sudden.

Then she saw Scias looking at her, grinning like a devil and he said, "Where did you hide my heart?"

It was as if something was broken inside of her--like a bubble-- and she jumped on her seat. She looked around trying to figure out what just happened but found Scias's disappointed face in front of her.

"What the hell did you do?" She stood and pointed an accusing finger towards him. "At ilang beses ko bang sasabihin sa 'yo na wala sa akin ang hinahanap mo?"

But Scias just looked at her na para bang hindi ito makapaniwala sa kung ano mang dahilan. "You," he said and stoop up. Nakaturo rin sa kanya ang daliri nito. "How did you do that? It usually works. But why doesn't it work on you?"

Naguguluhan siyang napatingin kay Azul na nakatingin lang din kay Scias. Hula niya'y naguguluhan din ito sa inaasal ng lalake. "Ano na naman?"

"You resisted me—"

She scoffed and then faced him. "Look here, sir. If you think that with that dashing smile plastered on that perfect lips you can allure and seduce every woman—"

Ngunit tumingin si Scias kay Azul. "You saw that, didn't you, Az? It didn't work on her!" saad nito. And Az looked at her na para bang naliwanagan ito.

"What the hell are you two talking about?" tanong niya sa dalawa.

And Scias looked at her, grinning. "As much as you want to deny it, my dear, I am afraid you are indeed what we need."

Napakunot ang noo niya. "Ano na naman ba 'to?"

"You are indeed the one who will lift the curse." He then extended his hand toward her. Naguguluhang napatingin siya dito. "What are you waiting for then? Lift the curse," saad nito sa kanya. Az stood and also gave her an expectant look.

She chuckled. Then her chuckle turned into a laugh. "Hindi ko alam kung anong hinithit niyo. Pero isa pang pambubwesit sa 'kin sisipain ka na kayo palabas."

But Scias just gave her a confused look. "You mean you don't know how to lift the curse?"

"I didn't even that kind of curse even exist. At pwede pa, if you want me to believe the two of you, prove it to me." Akmang maglalakad na siya palayo nang magsalita si Scias.

"You believe us," he said with so much confidence. "Otherwise, you won't be listening to us. Hindi mo lang matanggap na mali ang pinaniniwalaan mo. Well, dear we really can't do much about it. As much as I hate to burst your phantasmic bubble, I am very real. And unfortunately for you, your fate is tangled with me. Whether you like it or not, you are the one who's going to break my curse."

She clenched her jaw and looked at him. "You can rot in your curse for all I care," she said and walked away.

Nasira na ang araw niya. Agad siya nagpunta sa locker room at huminga. It's too early for her to get stressed about something she doesn't even believe in the first place. Whatever that man was saying, she was determined not to believe him. Kahit ano mang mangyari.

The clock strike 9 at lumabas siya sa locker room. Wala na ang dalawang lalakeng nambwesit sa kanya kanina. She heaved a sigh at binuksan ang restaurant. Customers swarmed and it kept her too busy to be thinking about the things Scias said to her. Ngunit hindi pa rin mawala sa isipan niya ang sinabi nito. He was right. Maybe she was just too scared to admit that all this time, all the things she believed in are not true at all.

Natapos ang araw na panay costumer lang ang inatupag niya. She also received a call from Juno that he already moved to their new apartment. Napaupo siya sa isa sa mga upuan doon. Ang dami niyang dapat atupagin. School is also starting next week. Kailangan niya ring asikasuhin ang mga kakailanganin niya. She already has a lot of things in her plate. Wala siyang oras para makinig sa mga sinasabi ng lalakeng iyon. Whether it was true or not, it is none of her business. And they can't force her to do what they want. She'll make sure of that.

Later that night, the moment she flipped close sign on the restaurant door, a drunk man appeared.

"Sorry sir, but we're closed," she politely said.

But to her surprise, the drunk man pounded on the door repeatedly. She stepped away from the door and the moment she did, the drunk man just pounded harder.

Hindi niya alam ang gagawin. She fished her phone out of her pockets and dialed the police but for some strange reason, hindi niya matawagan iyon. It was as if the phone signal was lost in an instant. Napatingin siya sa lasing na lalake na nasa labas. May dala na itong bato. And she knows what he was planning to do next.

Agad siyang tumakbo kung nasaan ang telepono and dialed someone. Anyone. Ngunit wala rin. The telephone doesn't seem to work. Mahina siyang napamura at napatalon nang itapon ng lasing ang bato sa glass wall. But the glass was unexpectedly sturdy.

The man kept on throwing rocks at the glass wall and she was starting to get nervous as the man doesn't seem to want to stop. Napatingin siya sa paligid. She needs to find something to defend herself. If the drunk man manages to get inside, then she has to give him hell.

Ngunit nang tingnan niya ng mabuti ang lalake, hindi niya maiwasang magtaka. The way he moves wasn't like that of a drunk person. And when she looked at his face, hindi niya maiwasang mapasinghap. The man eyes were blank. It was all...white. Hindi niya iyon napansin kanina dahil nakayuko ito nang kausapin niya but now that he's seen him, hindi niya maiwasang matakot. Who wouldn't be scared if a man who looks like he's been controlled is trying to smash the glass wall?

The man was being controlled by something. Hindi niya lang alam kung ano. "I've had enough weirdness for a day. Give me a f*****g break!" sigaw niya sa lalake at huminto ito sa pagtapon ng bato sa salamin. She was breathing hard. Buong akala niya'y titigil na ito ngunit bigla itong ngumisi sa kanyang gawi. She swallowed hard. That grin will give her sleepless nights. That's for certain.

Napaatras siya nang kumuha ito ng malaki-laking bato. And with all his strength, itinapon ito sa glass wall. It shook and it left a very small crack dahilan para mas nangamba siya. Napatuloy ang lalake sa pagtapon ng bato sa salamin until the crack got bigger and bigger. A little more and the glass will break.

So she screamed help. She screamed for as loud as she can. Hindi niya alam kung may makakarinig ba sa kanya but she screamed anyway. And the man continuously hits the glass wall with a rock hanggang sa nangyari ang kinatatakutan niya. The glass wall shattered. Nanginginig siya sa takot.

The man looked at her with those blank eyes at napalunok nalang siya ng laway. She ran behind the counter and picked something that she could use against the man. A bottle of liquor.

"Whoever you are, know that I won't go easy on you," she warned at the man. Ngunit ngumisi lang ito sa kanya at pumasok. The man was barefoot as he stepped into the shards of glass on the floor. She couldn't help but wince when she could clearly hear the glass shards scraping against the floor while the man walked.

Patuloy sa paglalakad ang lalake and she stepped back, using the bottle of liquor as her shield. She doesn't know if she'll be able to swing at the innocent man but she has to. Kaya naman nang makalapit ito nang husto sa kanya ay hinampas niya ito sa ulo.

Much to her horror, it only made the man stopped walking. At nanlilisik ang mga mata nitong nakatingin sa kanya. She screamed when the man jumped at her. Her back hit the floor and the man's fingers wrapped around her throat until it tightened. She tried getting the man off of her ngunit sadyang mas malakas ito sa kanya. Breathing was suddenly hard for and the more she tried to get him off, mas lalong humihigpit ang hawak nito sa leeg niya.

She choked and she was starting to lose her strength. And just when she was about to lose her consciousness, nawala ang lalake sa ibabaw niya. And the next thing she heard is the sound of glasses shattering. She started coughing as she got up. Hawak-hawak niya ang leeg niya habang nagpalinga-linga siya sa paligid.

And she looked at the counter, she could see another man, choking the other. What what surprised her more was the fact that the other man was lifting the man off the ground.

She stood up and the other man heard it. Lumingon ito sa kanya and waved his other hand in her direction.

"Sorry I was late," saad nito.

"Scias?" She scanned him with her eyes. Hindi siya makapaniwala na narito ang lalake. And he easily lifted the man by choking his neck."How...?" she asked.

"Heard you screaming from across the street," he said casually. And before she could even utter another word, hinarap na ni Scias ang lalake.

"Who, pray tell, sent you here?" Scias said and the man stopped fighting him and his hands went limp beside him.

And then his eyes started to change. Hindi na ito puro puti. It went back to normal. And the moment he realized someone was choking him, he started to panic and fight.

"Maawa po kayo sa akin. Anong nagawa ko?" he asked while trying to get Scias' hand off his neck.

"I see you've been controlled," saad ni Scias bago niya ito pakawalan. The man sat on the floor, coughing. Scias then crouched in front of him and lifted his chin.

What he did next shocked her.

"Now listen to me," Scias said to the man. And the moment he let those words out, it was as if the man was in some kind of a trance and he was looking at Scias as if he is willing to listen to everything he's going to say. "You will forget about this moment. You have never seen me or the woman behind me. You will go him and the moment you do, you will continue what you were doing."

The man nodded slightly and repeated everything he said. "I will go home and continue what I was doing."

Then he stood up and walked out of the restaurant as if he was sleepwalking. Hindi makapaniwalang napatingin siya sa lalakeng nagligtas sa kanya.

"What the hell did you just do?"

Scias looked at her before he said, "Saving your ass?"

"What did you do to him?"

It was then that Scias faced her that she realized this man is more than what she thinks.

"I compelled him. Control him to do what I want him to do. Whoever controlled him to kill you is someone similar to me. That's what I tried to do to you this morning but you're immune to it. But others are not. So our enemies are free to use whomever they like to control para patayin ka. And that is why Alaska Meriden," he stepped closer towards her, "you need my help."

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