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CHAPTER VII: MY NAME IS
RINGING in Akira’s ear was the cash register’s unlocking signal, next to the sharp clinking of coins as the next shift began.
She hurriedly shoved her things in the bag and pocketed her phone before turning to her coworker Nathaniel – or Nathan – who just walked in, fresh in his uniform.
“Boring night?” he asked, and Akira responded with a tiny shrug while she handed Nathan the keys of the convenience store.
“Sort of.” Akira let out an uncomfortable laugh and then her eyes glazed over the racks at the back of the counter. “A few call-center people, drunk people, just-came-from-a-wake people… the usual.”
“Hey, I know you can see and hear me!” the stray beside her interrupted.
He was talking and screaming and whining non-stop, and Akira’s head began to ache. Of the short shift she worked in this 7-Eleven, it sure felt like a thousand days with this tireless, lost soul.
Shut up, shut up, shut up!
“’Just-came-from
Ma. Paula FifiFor non-Filipino readers: Nanang – a term of endearment for elderly women, usually for relatives; Papang – a term of endearment for elderly men, usually for relatives; Ate – an honorific used for an older woman/older sister; Hija – (of Spanish origin meaning "daughter") used in the Philippines as a term for a younger woman; Luntian – an old Filipino word for "green"; Kuya – an honorific used for an older man/older brother; Po – a Filipino word usually added to the end of a sentence/question to make it polite/formal; Pagpag – (loosely translated as "to dust off"); a traditional Filipino superstition that is practiced by not going home directly after visiting a wake/funeral to prevent the ghost of the deceased from latching on and causing hauntings/attracting evil.
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GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER VIII: CHESTER DANTE
HANDS over her ears, Akira had dropped the box of cigarettes and the lighter on the floor. She shook her head for a moment, and the stray stood frozen a few feet away from her in surprise. “I was just –” “I said no!” Akira shouted. “I don’t care what you need. You followed me home and invaded my personal space despite me obviously not wanting to do anything with you.” “But –” “I don’t care! I don’t want to know your name!” His expression just crumpled like a piece of paper, as if he had just witnessed Akira kick a puppy. Before pity took over, Akira decided that this man had to disappear because knowing his name might strengthen his latch onto her. She swiftly bent down to pick up the lighter and the box, opening it without a second thought. Muscle memory provided useful as her fingers moved on their own, unwrapping the pack and pulling one of the sticks out before placing it between her lips. The stray just stood there dumbstr
GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER IX: COMEBACK
TOSSING and turning in bed was what Akira did most of the night. Gian, sweet and supportive as he is, tried to stay up with her for as long as he could. Near 4:00am, they were still telling stories about how their individual days went and it took Akira’s mind off of strays effectively. Under normal circumstances, any other long-term couple like Akira and Gian would end the day like this: talking about what happened with them while they were apart. Indeed, very normal, very long-term… except theirs happened during ungodly hours on Thursdays and Fridays. This is Akira’s favorite part of being in a stable, sane, relationship. Not the dates, or the sparkle, or the grand gestures, but the boring. She loved that Gian and her could be so into each other that their plain conversations and watching television and homemade dinners were a hundred percent satisfying to the heart and soul. Perhaps it’s the eye that made her crave whatever normal is, for y
GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER X: A FATHER AND TWO SONS
STOPPING in front a building with bright pink neon lights was Akira’s ride, a red Vios with the front windows down blasting Aqua’s Barbie Girl. It was ridiculous and hilarious at the same time; two words that perfectly described the driver that stepped out of the vehicle.She wore this skimpy dress with a streets-of-Japan pattern, a leather jacket, and pink sneakers, apt for a night of tequila shots and bad decisions. Basically, Akira’s opposite, with a graphic t-shirt and jeans. In a single look, one would instantaneously wonder why Akira was in any way associated with this person.“Really? Windows down in Manila while wearing that?” Akira flashed a grin and took one last hit at the cigarette between her fingers, before throwing it on the asphalt and putting the light out with the sole of her boot.“It’s fine, I have a gun in the glove compartment,” she stated plainly and pocketed her keys after closing her car wi
GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER XI: CHARITY
GREETING Akira’s face was a Monday morning hangover, which she expected, what with Erin drinking like a sailor and her putting up with it. That woman was made of steel, not one complaint about her newly-finished tattoo on the thigh no less, where leather seats at the bar tend to ultimately cause sweating. It was a miracle how her best friend had driven with ease and dragged her bum up home last night, even when they both took the same number of shots and bottles. Despite the intoxication, Akira remembered the night flawlessly, including that weird side trip to a fortune teller. Erin is a fun drunk – not that she got drunk ever – and knowing the future, no matter how unfortunate, is part of her pain-is-an-adventure thing. “You do know that we’re about to get scammed, right?” Akira asked when Erin pulled over at the fortune teller’s shop. The woman in the dress just shook her head in disbelief. “For someone who sees the dead all the time, i
GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER I: ALL SOUL'S DAY
FLOWER markets were a nightmare this time of year.There was a horde of people in every direction, and everyone was struggling to buy last minute baskets and bouquets and garlands… all for people who won’t even be there to see the florals arranged beautifully for them.Akira looked down on the basket of white lilies on her lap before gazing out the window, attention caught by an old lady silently watching a bucket of flowers get sold from the corner. She had her hands on her back, observing the vendors near her like a teacher watching students during an exam.As the car slowly rolled forward, Akira’s gaze dropped down to the old lady’s bare feet. They were swollen, blackened, from the ankles to the toe tips covered in severe gangrene. Akira squinted and could faintly see through the old woman’s body, as if the elder was made of parchment every time the sun hit her skin.“Everything okay?” Gian asked when he saw A
GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER II: FREE KEITH
IF SHE wasn’t with Gian, Akira would’ve looked like she was out of her mind, getting worked up over something that no one else could see.This child appeared like – for lack of a better term – a hot mess. His hair was disheveled and his lips were dry and cracked, tiny nails the color of bark and almost-blue bags under his eyes. Overall, he just seemed like a very sleep-deprived kid.Akira held Gian’s hand as she let the boy lead them around the cemetery. Obviously, this happened a lot and Gian was used to it, but he still asked anyway.“How old is he?” Gian questioned as they make a turn. The boy held up five fingers happily.“He’s holding up five fingers,” Akira replied, and when the slightest beam from a far light post shone on them, she added, “His skin is yellow.”It was unmistakable. All strays that Akira had encountered may be translucent to the eye under illumination, bu
GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER III: MAGIC GO-AWAY STICKS
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GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER IV: DEAD ROOMIE'S TALE
SMOKE was a neat trick.Akira noticed in the past that churches didn’t have strays during mass which was strange, since all religious methods she tried didn’t do anything for her. And then the priest took out his censer and she wondered if that was the reason.Akira bought frankincense and a metal bowl the first day she lived alone. Tonya, intrusive as she is, showed herself immediately. The woman wasn’t a malicious spirit at all, but boy was she talkative, and Akira needed the quiet for work.So, one day, Akira whipped out and burned the frankincense right in the living room where Tonya usually appeared. It made her fade – a different kind of fade from when a spirit is finally free – but more akin to paint smeared with a finger. Akira referred to it as glitch.The only problem with frankincense is that it produced too much smoke and made the whole apartment smell musty, like a wet forest.Akira occasionally smoked cig
Latest chapter
- GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER XI: CHARITY
- GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER X: A FATHER AND TWO SONS
- GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER IX: COMEBACK
- GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER VIII: CHESTER DANTE
- GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER VII: MY NAME IS
- GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER VI: HELLO
- GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER V: WELCOME HOME, TONYA
- GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER IV: DEAD ROOMIE'S TALE
- GONE ASTRAY CHAPTER III: MAGIC GO-AWAY STICKS
