We're Just Eighteen

Chapter 3

Shaun's Perspective

I was surprised staring at them, but what I couldn’t understand was why Ephraim was crying as he hugged the girl. And followed by another surprise the moment I saw Clint's reaction when we walked toward them, Clint almost backed away, blinking his eyes several times when we saw the woman up close as if he has just seen a ghost.

"What's going on?... What's going on here?" thoughts messed up with my mind as I kept staring at these brothers, back and forth.

"What are you doing?"
the woman shouted in surprise as she pushed Ephraim away and immediately wiped away the marks of her tears.

When I looked at the woman's appearance, she looked like one of the homeless people, a beggar if called.
Messy hair, long dirty t-shirt and pants, and perforated slippers while her face almost like she surpassed the stray cat that she seemed didn't take a bath in several years.

"Hannah!"
Ephraim whispered weakly as he slowly approached the woman.

Afraid, the woman stepped backwards, but then Ephraim grabbed her, and I was supposed to stop him from whatever he was going to do, but my feet stop when I realized that he wasn't going to cause something bad, instead, he was doing something I've never seen before, a part of him being theatrical. He knelt as he held her hands, sobbing while saying something to her... I couldn't understand all his words but what's clear for me was... he was asking for forgiveness.

Trembling hands, he sobbed, "Hannah, forgive me..."

The woman tried to pull her hands but she couldn't do it. "What are you saying, I'm not Hannah... Please just le-let me g-go!" fear was attacking her facial expression.

I tapped Clint's back, "Hey, are we not going to do anything? The girl is afraid," I whispered but seeing his empty and still surprise reaction, I knew already that it was hopeless to talk to him at the moment.

Slowly turning my head and stared at the woman's face, my mind whispered, "Who are you?"

I couldn't understand what's behind those emotional actions of Ephraim at that moment, same with Clint's surprised face, but the real question was "Who was this girl?"

**********

Akira's Perspective

Slowly, I closed the door, peeking if nobody was around, they would wonder why I got out late from my home.

Tip-toed, I hurriedly sauntered and went to the nearest lake, not that far and not that near under the bridge.

Looking at the water, I could see my dark reflection, I sat down and picked the tiny stone near me as I threw it in the water, and my reflection became unclear, then my heart began to felt the grief that was living within me for how many months...

I cried as my mind collects all the recollections, both happiness, and tragic memories!

"Mom... Dad..." I sobbed when a sudden appearance of a man who just stood up in front of me, startled me. I stared at his shoes first, they were about 41 or 42 European sizes, then I slowly lifted my eyes just to found out a crying man, his eyes were filled with emotions; depressed emotions. But he strange me the way he looked at my eyes, he was staring at me as if we knew each other.

Out of fear, I stood up to walked away before something bad happened, despite that emotional face of him, he was still a total stranger, he was maybe fooling around.
Yet before I could step back, a tight hug from him surprised me and my nervousness almost killed me to death.

Pushing him away, I yelled, "What are you doing?" Yet another grab from him happened, but this time he didn't just hug me- after the hug, he held my hands, knelt down, and cried before me... "Who is this guy?"

"Hannah... Please forgive me... I should have stayed on your side... I shouldn't have let you..."

Struggling, I whispered, "What are you saying, I'm not Hannah... Please just le-let me g-go!"

"Please... don't leave me again!" he cried...

Confused I got panic. "Please, I'm not Hannah..." I begged until a man pulled his hands to let me go...

He has a pointed nose, his hair was brushed up too cool, and he was taller than me, but I could say he was the same age as me.

"Are you alright?" he asked then I slowly nodded my head.

"Can I trust him?" I thought but I found out that they knew each other after he called the one who grabbed my hand by his name!

"Ephraim? What are you doing?" he asked yet the guy just gave him an empty look and looked at me... which made me felt uncomfortable. Then another man came near us again, like the one who just helped me, he was as well tall and young, unlike the one whom they called "Ephraim" his eyes looked innocent and he looked young but at the same time, he also looked like he was older than the rest of us.

"What is this? How many men will come near me?" I felt nervous, yet another uncomfortable stare from this third guy, strange me and made me felt like I was a culprit of something I didn't know! And in the edge of his lips, I clearly heard him whispered the name "Hannah" as well.

"But who was this Hannah? Why do they mistake me as her?"

Nervous, I asked the guy who helped me, "Can I-I go no-now?"

He glanced at me and I thought he would agree with me, but then he went back of me and he grabbed me from my stomach as he covered my mouth and dragged me to the dark area... The two men were surprised to see this guy dragging me to the dark place and followed us.

"What are you doing?" the man name, Ephraim said, as he glanced at us, worriedly, yet I couldn't see this guy was trying to signal to them for he was behind me, all I could hear was his breathing, and Ephraim just stopped and quietly followed us, together with the other guy.

My tears streamed down my eyes as I thought of what might happen to me, what are these guys planning to do? And who actually are these men?

I tried to remove his hands from my mouth but he was strong enough that I failed to it, the fact that he was a guy and I was only a hopeless woman, whose life was destined to be miserable!

"Mom... Dad..." I teared up, shutting my eyes, praying for my safety!