R E D ! [Under Revisions/Editings]

"The Dark Shadow"

It was 2001..

When the 13th President of the Republic was Impeached for Plunder, and the 2nd Woman President in Philippine History, took her oath for the said office.
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The tall skyscrapers, fancy cars, malls, marketplaces, and all other fancy stuffs that you can see, located at the center of Manila were just FRONT to hide the grimful horror that surrounds the city.

I came from an interview for my Academic Scholarship application in one of the finest University in the Philippines, and I'm walking toward home.. Well, sarcastically speaking, it was my HOME.

I got used to the deafening noise of dreadful horror of the streets in the slum part of Manila where I lived.

AGAIN..

I'm not shocked that there's another dead body lying on the ground, shot in cold-blood. 8 gunshot wounds, 3 in the head and 4 in the chest, and one on his private part. Its a drug-related incident again, as some had said.
When a drug pusher failed to remit the drug money to his drug lord, this kind of incident happen... ALWAYS.

There's this Manila's Police Chief being interviewed by a local TV News Channel, and there's a massive crowd behind him, waving at the camera, smiling, laughing, shouting, as if MURDER is just another typical thing around this dreadful place.

Just walk by another alley and you will see these group of young juvenile, perhaps a dozen of them, aged 8-13 years old, high and floating on their very own CLOUD 9, while cracking marijuana. Well, you can buy a teabag of marijuana in a very cheap and affordable price of only 25 pesos (that's equivalent to only HALF of A DOLLAR). I am not provoking it. So stop!

Oh, you're shocked? Don't be. Because there are adults in our gorgeous scene maybe just 10 steps from them and they are not even worried! So, don't feel worried, because even those heartless souls were not worried! Again, yes, that's sarcasm on my part.

The group of men were all busy with their own business, drinking liquor, on the streets in group, talking how they secretly cheat their wives without being noticed.
While the pile of women on the other side, busy with CARDS and GAMBLING while telling stories about the gossips they heard from their poor sad neighbors who had left by their husbands.

What a cliché!

That's the colorful scene in this slum place where we are living. And I believe, even those tall Skyscrapers and grand malls in the central part of the city, can never hide these dire sceneries.

Well, there's more.
I didn't even mentioned the gang wars and street fights that will wake you up at night. Prostitution, vigilante killings, rape... Say it all! Its all happening here..

But, suddenly, while I was drawing nearer to our beloved house, a young kid named Chito, the son of our neighbor, came rushing toward me - AFRAID AND TERRIFIED.

Young Chito was screaming while running and there's a huge fear I vividly saw in his face. And he shouted (while running towards me),
"RED! RED! REEEEEEEDDDD!!! Come home quickly!!!! There's an incident that occured in your house!!! Come quickly!!!"

My instinct told me to run....
So I ran...

"What the heck could have happened on that house?!!!", I said to myself while running mindlessly.

I was terrified.