One Life Down

Boisterous voices of kids playing by the lake entertained Juliana's ears. She smiled as she reminisced about their joyful childhood... how she would use picking poles to pick Madra's thorn and climb neighboring fruit trees, such as Spanish plum, with Maribeth.

She went by the lake to breathe fresh air just so she could start her new project. The subtle cool breeze kissed her cheeks and embraced her, penetrating her pores. Her hair cascaded, flowing with every touch of the wind.

She observed the cheerful children diving into the calm, glistening lake water. "They look tasty, don't they?"

"Who said that?!" she scanned her surroundings to see no one but the trees, dancing with the rhythmic gust of wind.

A sudden pain in her stomach kicked in, making her knees tremble like she hadn't eaten for days. She couldn't discern the cause of her blurred vision. Was it the brightness of the sun, or had the atmosphere just become dense all of a sudden?

Her stomach rumbled violently as if there was something inside it that wanted to be freed. Her body ached like she was being beaten everywhere. Pain hugged her so tight that she couldn't struggle to feel comfortable.

"Juliana!"

Maribeth's voice was the last thing she heard before she succumbed to darkness.

                                                                                         **

It was nighttime when Juliana regained consciousness. A terrible headache terrorized her as she got up.

"Save your energy," Maribeth said.

Juliana rubbed her temples and squeezed her eyebrows, hoping to get rid of the discomfort.

"Have you been sleeping well lately?" she asked.

Juliana shook her head. "I've been stressed lately, but not because of work." She lay down again. "There's something about the lake."

"What is it?"

"I've been dreaming about it recently."

"It's just a dream. Don't stress over it." She sat beside Juliana and held her hand. "Do you want to eat?"

Her stomach rumbled. It was only then that she realized how hungry she was. But just as she was about to respond "yes," she recalled what Maribeth had done to her food upon their reunion. "No, thanks. I still don't have the appetite."

"Don't worry. Nana prepared your food, not me."

"She cooked, but you can sneak into the kitchen and put something on it."

"You don't trust me anymore, do you?"

"Is it my fault?"

Maribeth left her without a word, and a few minutes passed Nana came in.

"I made your favorite dish, nilaga."

Juliana got up again, excitedly grabbed the spoon, and scooped some soup. 

"Ahh!" She screamed as she spit out. "It's burning my tongue, Nana. Did you put chili on it?"

"No, dear. You don't like spicy food. Why would I put chili? I only added the usual seasonings: salt and pepper, garlic—"

"Salt? Garlic?" She burst into tears. "Nana, please help me!" she wailed and gave her grandmother a hug.

                                                                                    **

Juliana woke up kissed by the cold breeze coming from the open window of her room. It was supposed to be a refreshing night, but she wondered why she was sweating profusely. She stepped into the bathroom and bathed.

She spent nearly an hour there, but the discomfort just wouldn't leave her alone.

She stepped out of her room. Seeing that the house was peaceful because Nana had gone to bed; she didn't know about Maribeth, though. Since she had learned about her half-sister's identity as a manananggal, she couldn't bring herself to trust her again. Not after she discovered that she had been messing with her food, adding some potions to it to make her one of them.

Slowly, she opened the main door, not making any creaking noise.

Cicadas and crickets hum in a harmonious melody, tempting her to tarry deeper into the woods. She didn't care if it was dark, as it was a moonless night. All she wanted was to feel comfortable.

She found herself, once more, by the loch. Jumping into its icy water seemed to soothe her discomfort. With the cool droplets of water seeping through her pores, her sanity returned.

As she dove into the deepest part of the lake, her stomach rumbled. She was experiencing a sensation that she was unable to control.

She just found herself prowling in the woods, crawling back to their neighborhood.

She sniffed the air like a dog smelling for something scrumptious. The aroma of ripe mango mixed with that of jackfruit led him to a house. And the last thing she remembered was the sight of a young boy, wincing in agony while she was trying to grab him with her hairy arm and long nails.

                                                                                         **

The next day, she woke up to their neighbors screaming in terror. 

She got up and checked on her sister and grandmother, who were both on the balcony of their house. They chatted over their morning coffee, but their faces were distorted with curiosity.

Juliana smiled seeing them, but her body suddenly twitched as if telling her to not walk towards them without checking on herself first. Before stepping out of her room, she checked herself in the full-body mirror. Her jaw dropped when she saw her reflection.

Some reddish-brown liquid smudged her face. The splatter appeared to  be  dried  blood. 

She touched them to check what they really were, wiping them off. The tears flowing down her cheeks helped her wash away the stains that stank like metallic rust. Anxiety kicked in when she saw more of the same stains on her pajamas. They were still dripping wet from being soaked in the lake, but they were smeared by what she suspected was blood!

She stopped herself from screaming out of fear that her grandmother and sister would find out what happened to her the night before. Although her memory was foggy, some figments of memory would flash from time to time.

She remembered seeing herself in a hideous form with long hairy limbs and nails. She recalled reaching for a sick boy whose aroma was like the tastiest food she had ever experienced. And she remembered...

Poignant sobs filled her room when realization hit her, especially when their neighbor bellowed about the loss of her son.

"My son! My poor son is gone!"