Ping!
The FASTEN SEATBELT SIGN illuminated in the cabin as the aircraft started its descent into Iloilo International Airport on a breezy Sunday morning.
A flight attendant with baby doll blue eyes took the ceremonious walk down the aisle, swinging her head nonchalantly from side to side. She leaned effortlessly sideways to open the window blinds. The passengers were treated to her sweet floral scent. She continued to sashay down the aisle, swinging her head mechanically from side to side, ensuring all passengers in her area of responsibility complied with the aviation’s safety regulations at top of descent.
“Excuse me.” Deline Amaranthine raised her hand gently to call the attention of the flight attendant.
She was a woman in her late 30s with shoulder length jet black hair and pale yellow complexion. Her petite nose curved down into a cupid’s bow mouth.
“How may I help you Madam?” The flight attendant’s scarlet lips crinkled into a reassuring smile as she bent her knees but still kept them locked together to ensure she was at eye level with the passenger.
“I have my dog Moon in the compartment under us all the way from the Gulf. I just want to be absolutely sure again that I will get her in the the airport when I land.” Deline asked with a worried frown that smeared across her smooth forehead.
“Absolutely Madam. She is ok and ground staff already briefed us about your fur baby in the cargo.” Natalie as written on her name badge reassured Deline at the same time admiring the purple flecks fenced inside the petite passenger’s almond-shaped eyes.
They sparkled along with the rays of light shimmering through the window blind. They remained ensconced in the center of her coal-black pupils, almost obliterating them into exile.
Look at those gorgeous violet crystals in the eyes of Passenger 28A. I wonder if it is real or fake?
Natalie mused fondly, albeit with a tinge of envy.
“Thank you.” Deline breathed a huge sigh of relief and rested her head on the back of the seat as she stared out into the breathtakingly beautiful azure summer sky of Iloilo. An abundance of emerald grass glistened against the blue backdrop as little nipa huts scattered all over the fertile farm lands of Guimaras islands.
Out of sheer habit, she scooped her moonstone pendant in the shape of a crescent moon between her right index finger and thumb and started rolling it back and forth, almost like a gentle caress. It was her most valuable item of comfort and security. The moonstone pendant nestled on the hollow of her throat. It was held in place by the platinum silver chain. This was her most treasured item as this was the only piece of memento she had from her parents who passed away when she was 5 years old in a fire accident in their house in Iloilo. Plus, her Aunt Laya kept on reminding her incessantly to safeguard the priceless pendant with her life.
She remembered that tragic night as if it was just yesterday.
Deline sighed heavily and willed her mind away from the traumatic tragedy of losing the two people she loved most in this world.
Good thoughts only Deline.
She squinted her eyes out into the oval hope of plexiglass that was the only link between her and the outside world 33,000 feet above the ground.
She recently acquired the strange habit of squinting her eyes as they seemed to click away like telescopic lens. The more she squinted them the more they zeroed in like target missiles as they focused and amplified a particular location of her own choosing. She didn’t tell anyone at all as she herself wasn’t really sure as to why she was having this certain anomaly, along with other unexplained anomalies.
If I go and see a doctor for this they might succumb me to a series of lab tests and then eventually break it to me with pity in their eyes that I have a deadly disease.
Deline mused but in truth she was more scared of finding out that if the doctors might not even have a medical explanation for what she had…
Then where did that leave her?
Never mind.
Life is too short.
Some things maybe are just meant to remain mysteries forever.
Deline closed her eyes trying to ignore the unexplained anomalies she was lately experiencing in her body. She dreaded the fact that these anomalies might have something to do with her age. She instantly shook off the dark cloud of pessimism.
Anyway, can’t wait to see Aunt Laya, Rhyll and Nimuel. And also Aunt Laya’s mischievous fur baby Boris.
Back home
At last
Deline daydreamed while locking her purple lens into a small nipa hut stationed in the mountains of Guimaras island 33,000 feet from where she was encapsulated, enjoying the clear and upclose view of farmers splicing the tall grass with their bolo knives.
She could almost hear the whoosh of their bolo knives as they sliced through the air. She could clearly see all of their determined expressions even up to the multiple drops of perspiration around their furrowed brows as they all struggled to get their work done under the intense heat of the summer sun.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
I don’t know how long this weird vision of mine will last but might as well enjoy it while I can.
Deline thought in amusement, relying always on her great but wacky sense of humor to get her through every hardship in life.
She searched for love in the Gulf but never found it as all she got was a broken heart. But it was from the ashes of her broken heart that she found her true passion which was animal rescue.
Some people are just lucky to find their soulmate, others are even luckier to find their true purpose in life and fulfill it.
She consoled herself with a subconscious hug. A wisp of a grateful smile broke into the hesitant curve of her skeptical mind.
Cabin Crew take your seats for landing.
Upon the public announcement from the Flight Manager, the flight attendants hastily claimed their cabin crew seats, strapped themselves in amidst laughter and gaiety that the long flight of almost 12 hours was almost over. As soon as the aircraft landed, their weariness were already long forgotten as they planned to check out the city, do some sightseeing and shop for handcrafted items native to Ilo.
Deline continued to enjoy the view of her birthplace which she left 19 years ago to explore her luck in the Gulf partly for her career and another to heal from the heartbreaking memory of her parents’ tragic death that fateful rainy night of August.
After 19 years in the Gulf, after reaching the highest peak of her career in a foreign soil, she was offered by the biggest hotel chain in Asia a full time Senior Trainer’s position.
She negotiated for part-time instead.
She wanted to spend more time with Moon and animal rescue activities. She already drilled herself to the ground working long hours for 19 years in the Gulf. She was elated when they agreed and adjusted the working hours to part-time as she had always dreamed of going back to Philippines for the longest time.
She saved enough money already to live a comfortable life with Moon so this was just icing on the cake.
But now, doubt and pain seeped into the cracks of her joy.
Here she was, back to where all the grief and sorrow started.
She desperately clutched at a glimmer of hope that her beloved Aunt Laya was already waiting in sheer anticipation of her arrival to give her the biggest hugs and kisses.
The aircraft gracefully dipped its wings like a giant white shark as the ocean of clouds parted in complete surrender of this majestic flying beast. The whirring sound of landing gears being deployed magnified until the gears kissed the runway softly as the aircraft finally came to a halt in the tarmac.
Everyone stood up hastily reaching for their bags in the overhead stowage. Deline quickly adjusted her outfit of pastel yellow chiffon blouse and white slim fit jeans finished with comfortable beige ballerina pumps before rising up to join the throng of excited passengers retrieving their hand-carried baggage in the stowage compartment.
She already relinquished the use of sweaters for the past few months as the ice-cold chill of winter from the Gulf failed to cause any discomfort oh her body. She barely sweat from the scorching hot sun of the Gulf.
Another mysterious anomaly.
She just shrugged it off as maybe due to her biological clock changing. After all, she was about to turn the big 4 – 0 tomorrow together with her best childhood pals Rhyll and Nimuel. They were all born just minutes apart from each other.
She was a fruitarian by choice for the past twenty-eight years mainly because she just couldn’t be a part of the vicious cycle anymore of ending the lives of innocent souls just for humans to have their greedy gastronomic experience.
These past few months, her taste buds had been working against her as she could barely savor the taste of her favorite fruits like peaches and pineapples. All the fruits and nuts she tasted lately were bland and tasted almost like…
Chalk?!
Another weird abnormality.
Yeah tell those things to the doctor and I might just be locked into a mental institution.
Deline assumed in jest. But a glint of worry seeped through as her mind wandered into the strangest symptoms she had regarding her vision, followed by not being able to feel cold or hot anymore as well as her lack of appetite and taste.
If it is my time to leave this world then there is nothing we can do about it, isn’t it? Everyone has to go sooner or later.
She reflected darkly with a defiant toss of her hair.
After completing the trek from immigration all the way to arrival like so many millions of passengers, Deline rushed to seek assistance on where to pick up Moon. She was escorted to an area far from baggage claim. The ground staff led her to a double steel door to wait for Moon.
After an hour of nervously pacing back and forth, the double door finally opened and in came a large steel crate perched on a wide flat trolley. It contained a restless shadow inside. A uniformed ground staff along with two baggage handlers wheeled the crate in.
“Moon! Mommy’s here shookie girl!”
Deline cooed soothingly as she walked briskly to reach the crate containing her precious fur baby. Her maternal comfort audible with the name of endearment she always used to call her fur baby – shookie girl. It never failed to calm Moon’s nerves as the mixed black Saluki and Canaan (oldest breed of stray dogs in the Middle East) moved around in a skittish manner inside the restricted steel confinement.
“Step aside, Miss!”
The ground staff rudely ordered.
Deline glared at him in annoyance before stepping to the side to allow the baggage handlers to pull the trolley towards the vet clinic where Moon will be checked by a veterinarian employed by the Ministry of Agriculture.
As soon as Moon acquired a clean bill of health, she would be finally allowed entry into Philippines. A legal but necessary process Deline had to face with trepidation as she was always mindful that anything could go wrong along the way.
Or there might be some requirements she might have missed.
The list of dread went on and on even if she went through the procedures with a fine-toothed comb half a year before she decided to go back home for good.
They reached the entrance of the clinic. They halted by the door to manually remove Moon and her mobile home away from the trolley. They lifted the crate from the bottom abruptly, tilting their faces away from the crate as if they were carrying an extremely dangerous creature. Without due care that there was a living soul inside it who might be petrified from the sudden brisk movement, they marched in unison and recklessly dumped the crate with a loud thud on the cold concrete floor, first on one side and then the other side as if they were throwing a lifeless piece of wood.
The moment Deline heard Moon yelped in surprise, blood immediately rushed to her face in anger. She went berserk at the irresponsible baggage handlers and the heartless ground staff.
“You hurt my dog!”
Deline seethed at the top of her lungs. She thrusted her index finger heatedly at the faces of the three culprits while Moon growled and made mini-sprints around her cage in agitation.
They all stared at her in terror.
There was a timbre of ominous threat in the tone of her voice. It instilled a subconscious seed of unexplained fear in the deep recesses of their mortal minds.
Instead of turning a crimson shade of bright red, she turned a very dark shade of charcoal.
On top of that, her purple flecks which were always the most admired feature of her face started bouncing around the corners of her eyes like a miniature pack of ping-pong balls inside a dryer.
This time, a new battalion of silver flecks jetted out of nowhere and joined the pack of flustered purple crystals in their storm of unbridled rage.
The three men went completely pale in complete shock and disbelief.
Their faces drained of crimson blood as if they saw a ghost!