Starstruck

by Yuriko Hime

  Barbie went to the water, about ankle deep, same as me. “If you hadn’t come into the picture, Dulce would have fallen in love with me. We would have been something great. But you ruined it Frio. You ruined everything.”

  Dad tried to reason with us. “Please get out of the water.”

  I smelled something burning. “Dad, I think the meat is on fire.” He turned around and gasped. He must have done something wrong for the food to end up that way. Forgetting about me and Barbie, dad ran to the griller and tried to salvage everything before we started a forest fire.

  My so-called sister and I continued our stare match. “It’s not my fault that she doesn’t love you Denise. You would have had her if you weren't so stupid. But I doubt that you’ll last long with her because you’re a very selfish girl who only thinks about yourself. Do you think Dulce can live with someone like you? Over my dead body.”

  “Well maybe you should really die.” She lunged for me. We fell into the water, grabbing, scratching, and hurting each other as much as we could. It was now chest deep. Both of us fought to keep afloat as we outlived, outlast, and out conquered each other ala survivor style. The ugly bear was completely forgotten as it floated away from us down the stream.

  “See?” She scratched my neck. “Bear Dulce is gone! Everything is gone because of you!”

  I slapped her right cheek hard. It stung my hand. “Wake up Denise! This is reality. And quit blaming other people for your inadequacy.”

  We grabbed each other. I was gasping for air. She was spluttering and choking. Both of us were filled with hatred for one another. It only stopped when my dad pulled us from the river, dragging us back to land. Like us, he was now soaking wet. But more than that, he was beet red and raging mad. We’ve really done it.

  “I cannot believe that such children exist,” he said. “But you’re not kids anymore. Both of you are eighteen for crying out loud!” He squeezed his eyes shut as he sank on the ground. “All I wanted was to have a simple family trip. What happened to that?”

  I didn’t have the strength to apologize. He was right. We were messed up. And I blamed myself for it. I should have been the better sister. Denise got to me because I let her and taunted her. On my right, my so-called sister was staring at the grass quietly, the same look of guilt on her face.

  Water dripped from dad’s khaki pants and shirt as he stood up. “Change your clothes. We will eat dinner after. That’s final. No more arguments. No more nothing.” He turned around with a huff and went to his bag for a change of clothes.

  Later, the three of us sat in front of a small fire that dad created, paper plates in our hands. It was a chilly night, amidst the number of stars in the clear sky. I stared sadly at the burned meat on the paper plate. Dad made it clear to finish everything he cooked. It was our fault that it was burned. Denise and I forced ourselves to eat the sorry excuse for a food, not even daring to steal evil glances with each other for fear that dad would snap and do something we would all regret.

  When it was time to sleep, Denise positioned her sleeping bag far away from me. It would be for the better. Dad didn’t say goodnight before he fell asleep. His loud snores just filled the silent air. He was too mad at us, and I couldn’t blame him. I took a mournful glance at the stars, wondering what my girl was doing in France. Hoping against hope that five years would pass quickly. Before long, I was fast asleep.

  The next morning, I woke up with an aching back, a few scratches on my arms, and no doubt several bruises here and there from where Denise got me good. I shivered in the cold morning air. Did the small fire we left last night died out? Feeling the need to stretch my arms, I got up and took a good look around. My eyes landed on the empty spot where dad’s sleeping bag used to be.

  I stopped dead in my tracks and quickly searched the place. Everything was gone- the tent, the grill, our other things, and most importantly, dad. In the corner, I spotted Denise curled in her sleeping bag. I ran to her side, calling out her name. “Denise! Denise! Wake up.” Her eyes fluttered open.

  “What? I’m so sleepy,” she replied groggily.

  “Dad is gone!”

  “What do you mean? Maybe he’s peeing in the woods.”

  “Wake up. He’s really gone. It’s just us two.”

  At the mention of us, Denise sat up and opened her eyes wider. She glanced left and right to confirm what I said. Yup, he really was gone. “What’s happening?” She was alert as she stood from the sleeping bag.

  “I don’t know. He was gone when I woke up. So is the tent.” Panic lingered in my voice. Did something happen to him? No. Please no. Denise scanned the area and ran to the direction where her eyes locked to. I followed her. There in the corner was her camping bag and mine, a note taped to it.

  The note read:

  Glace and Denise,

  I’m sorry I had to do this. Both of you are very smart girls who need to reconcile your differences. With me in the way, it will never happen, so I left. My father taught me as a young man that a good adventure will teach you a thing or two, and I’m praying that the woods will impart something valuable to you. Don’t worry, there’s plenty of food and water inside the bag. Good luck finding your way home.

  Ps. Don’t kill each other.

  Chapter 37. Sisters

  Glace

  Panic build in my chest as I read the note that dad left. What would happen to me? To us? Did he really think that we could last the day in the middle of nowhere? Denise was breathing heavily beside me, as if her cat died. The feeling was not lost to me.

  “How many hours did it take for us to hike here?”

  I expected her to do one of three things- scream a response, ignore me, or attack again, but surprisingly, her voice was even as she replied. “About three hours or so. I’m not really sure because I haven’t been looking at my watch.” She turned paler. “What if we die out here? I can’t! I can’t die without seeing Dulce again.” Denise grabbed her blonde locks. She was ready to bolt anytime.

  I took hold of her shoulder, stared her directly in the eyes. We were the same height apparently. “Chill. We won’t die. I’m sure dad is playing a nasty trick on us. Think of it like this. Will he leave his two daughters defenseless in the woods? The answer is no.”

  That seemed to calm her. “What do you propose we do?”

  I pushed her to the grass so we could sit. “Maybe it’s best if we wait for him. If he was really playing, he’d return in an hour or two.” Denise nodded. For once she didn’t argue, which in my opinion was a big miracle. Sinking to the ground next to her, I began to count the minutes, wishing that dad didn’t leave us, and this was his nasty way of teaching us a lesson for ruining his vacation.

  Two hours into the wait, Denise raised herself from the ground. Worry was etched on her face. “I don’t think he’s coming back.”

  “We should wait a little longer.”

  “I know him way more than you do Frio.”

  I challenged her with a stare as I stood up. “Are you trying to tell me that I’m illegitimate again? Now is not the time to insult me Barbie girl.”

  She rolled her eyes, throwing her hair over her shoulder. “What I meant was if dad was joking, he’d be here right now. And I don’t need to tell you that you’re illegitimate. You already know that.” I reached for the phone in my back pocket while I struggled not to strangle her. “I’ve tried using mine,” she said. “No signal.”

  “Don’t you think I know that?” I pushed a button here and there. “See?” I showed her my screen. “I downloaded a compass application on my phone before we went here. If we walk towards one direction and stay on that path, we’ll be out of here soon.”

  Her eyes glimmered. She held out a hand. “Can I see your phone?” I didn’t like her tone. She was planning something.

  “Why?” I asked carefully.

  “I want to see your pictures of Dulce.”

  “No way. Those are private.” I maneuvered away from her and placed the phone on sleep mode.
Did she really think that I was going to show her pictures of me and Dulce while cuddling? She must have been dreaming.

  “What are you hiding?” she prodded, advancing to me. “Are there naked pictures of her there? If so, I want to see.”

  “You’re stupid Denise. I’m an actress remember? I don’t keep pictures of my girlfriend like that. Hacking is very popular nowadays, and I just can’t risk it. Besides, you’ve already sent a picture of us to the paparazzi. What more do you want?”

  “Then don’t hide her photos from me.” Denise dived for my phone. Her reach was long, but I managed to get away. In an effort to outdo me, she tripped me to the grass, causing the gadget to slip from my hands. We watched in horror as it cracked to the ground, ricochet, and fell with a plopping sound to the water. It was dead when I scooped it out.

  “Fuck! Fuck it Denise!” My hands trembled in anger. “That’s our way out of here. Now it’s gone!” She must have seen something on my face because instead of shouting back, she bit her lips. “I hope you’re happy.” I grabbed my bag and trudged to the forest without a look back. She ran after me.

  “It’s not really my fault,” she argued, trying to keep in step with mine. “You were the one who dropped it.”

  I halted. “Shut up for once. If you want to come with me, you need to shut that shitty mouth of yours because I’m tired of hearing you whine and complain. If you don’t, I’ll leave you to rot here alone.” Her lips closed in an instant, no doubt from the fear of being lost in the forest by herself. We proceeded to walk forward silently. Finally, some peace and quiet.

  Hours into the walk, I decided that I was feeling two things at once. One, it felt like we were being followed, yet there were no footsteps apart from ours. We still haven’t encountered anyone. Two, though I have never been here before, I was having a déjà vu. Strange. Very strange indeed. Come midday, the sun’s rays turned harsher, making me sweat like I was working out. The green V-neck I was wearing clung to my body uncomfortably. Denise was not looking great as well. Her blonde hair was stuck to her nape. The tall trees effectively shaded us from the glare, but offered little protection from the humidity.

  “Can we stop for a while?” she asked. Denise licked her dry lips. She was pale. Her pink tee was also drenched in sweat.

  “Are you tired?” I asked, taking a bottle of water from my bag. The water soothed my burning throat as I gulped. I offered the drink to her after, which she declined with a shake of her head.

  “I need to pee,” she said.

  I gestured to the ground. “Go ahead.”

  Her eyebrows rose. “I can’t relieve myself here. Someone might see.”

  “Who? Who will see?” I retorted sarcastically. “In case you haven’t noticed, we’re in the middle of nowhere with zero reception and the absence of human beings apart from us. No one will see you pee. Go ahead and lower your panties Denise because I’m not interested in what you have to offer.”

  “I don’t know.” She squeezed her thighs together. “Animals. Deers. Whatever. Can you just accompany me to the bushes over there so I can get this over with? I really need to pee.” She looked like she was about to cry.

  “Fine. But hurry up because I want to get out of these woods as soon as possible.”

  Nodding enthusiastically, Denise hurried to the bushes on the right, about fifty yards from us. We left our bags on the ground so we could stay on the same direction that we have been trekking from the start. My companion disappeared behind the bushes, doing her business while I stood beside a tree, my eyes closed. When she was finally finished, Denise marched in front of me. I followed while she whistled happily.

  I slammed behind her as she halted. “What’s your problem?”

  “O-our bag.”

  There was something about the way she said it that got me pushing her to the side. I hurried to the spot and saw what she meant. There lay the bag we left a few minutes earlier, shredded beyond recognition. I pawed through our things and I saw that everything was destroyed, our food, our stuff, everything. “That’s it.” My knees sagged to the ground. “We’re done for. There’s nothing left.” My stomach felt empty.

  “Is it a bear?” She glanced back.

  “What else could have done it? I haven’t seen anyone. Have you?”

  “No. But if it’s a bear then we need to go.” I had to agree with her. But where could we go? We were lost. It was just the two of us. Now our things were destroyed. To make the situation worse, the sky opened up. Down came the rain, as the song went, pouring all over us. Perfect. Just a while ago it was too sticky and hot. Thank you mother nature for trying to kill us.

  “Let’s make a dash for it before we catch a cold,” I said. Taking her hand in mine, we ran and ran, attempting to find temporary shelter. As time passed, our steps became shorter and slower, our feet heavier. We were getting tired, but the rain was not about to stop. Shelter was what we needed since it was going to get dark soon. By some stroke of luck, Denise found a cave. It was the first good fortune that we have encountered in a while.

  “We need to build a fire,” she said.

  “With what?” My teeth chattered due to the cold. I wrapped my arms around myself in an attempt to keep warm. “Everything is drenched outside this cave, and we don’t have anything we can use.”

  Realizing that I was right as usual, she sat on the cold floor of the cave, leaning her head on the wall. It was dark and cold inside, but it was warmer compared to what was out there. I didn’t want to imagine how long this cave stretched in or what kind of creature was lurking in the pit. I should really stop watching suspense movies, I thought dizzily. And was it really this cold?

  “Can I sit beside you?” Denise’s voice bounced from the wall. “I’m so cold.”

  I was too tired to argue. “Be my guest.”

  She scooted next to me, just a few meters from the mouth of the cave. “God Frio, you’re burning up.” She touched my forehead and withdrew her hand quickly, remembering that she hated me.

  “I didn’t notice. Just make me rest for a while okay?” I closed my eyes. The next thing I knew, someone was removing my top off. What was Denise doing? “I’m your sister,” I said. My voice sounded different. Sickly. And everything spun. “I’m not about to get it on with my sister. Besides, I'm in love with a Goddess.”

  “You’re disgusting,” she said, continuing to peel my shirt. It must have been hard to do since everything was wet, and I was being uncooperative. When it was finally removed, Denise took her own shirt off. She huddled to me, taking me by surprise. It was replaced by comfort as her embrace warmed my body.

  “I thought you were mad at me.”

  “I’m not mad at you. I absolutely hate you," she cleared. "But Dulce said to take care of you too, and I don’t want her to blame me if something happens. I love her too much to disobey her.”

  “Can’t you just say for once that you’re concerned for me since I’m your sister? That you're a nice human being who just pretends to be annoying so she can have her way?”

  “Don’t flatter yourself Glace. I'm anything but nice. I'm the devil personified. Now go to sleep before I kick your ass.” Even if her tone was sarcastic, I still smiled as I closed my eyes. She said that she hated me, yet she called me by my real name. I snuggled closer to her. For the first time since Dulce left, my dreams were happy.

  Several voices woke me the next day. As I opened my eyes, I saw Denise surveying the place at the mouth of the cave. “Put your shirt back on,” she instructed.

  “What is it?” I pulled the shirt over my head. The fever has miraculously subsided, though I was still feeling a little bit dizzy. I went right behind her.

  “There are guys out there. They look. . . They look like savages.”

  I was about to check when two guys came from out of nowhere. They grabbed me and Denise roughly out of the safety of the cave, towards their peers. We were outnumbered, ten to two. Five of them men, the other half women. All of them were dirty lookin
g with rotten teeth and smudged faces, like they haven’t taken a bath for quite some time. It was funny if you thought about it since it just rained last night. Their clothes were filthy too.

  “Hey Lorenzo,” the one holding Denise hollered. “Look at what we have for you.”

  Their apparent leader walked forward. He was taller than the others with a big muscular build and a strong prominent jaw. I’ve seen him before. Where? My brain came up with nothing. Maybe he was a wanted criminal, and his face was flashed in the news. Lorenzo came to us, sporting a sneer. “Well, well, well. What do we have here?”

  Denise struggled from her captor. It was useless since he had her on a death grip. “What do you think? Two gorgeous women of course,” she said defiantly. “Now please take us back to the city so I can call my daddy. He’ll give you a reward for saving us.” Save? No Denise. More like capture.

  Lorenzo guffawed. It was not a pleasant sound. Like a bear laughing before it ate its prey. “No way kitten. I’m going to get so much more if I trade you as a slave.”

  “Slave?” I interrupted. “What century do you think we live in?”

  “Oh it happens kitten. Especially in third world countries. Now choose.” He turned his back to us.

  “C-choose what?” Denise sputtered.

  “Choose who will be a slave and who will die. There’s room for only one more. The other needs to be discarded so she can’t talk to the police. I’m running a serious business here lady.” He took a knife from his pocket. “So, who will I kill?” Denise and I stayed silent, not even daring to point the other out. It was happening too fast. There was barely time to think our way out of it.

  “Very well then,” Lorenzo said with a flourish of his hand. “You.” He pointed to Denise. “You look like a very reasonable lady to deal with. Tell me, should I kill her or you?” Upon snapping his fingers, the man holding me pushed me down so I was kneeling on the ground. He gagged my mouth with a handkerchief which he produced from his pocket before I could cry out. I stared helplessly at Denise.