END OF THE BEGINNING

#1: Get Someone to Hit you Very Hard

'Get Someone to Hit you Very Hard'

The blanket of calmness that covered me was lifted, allowing the voices stream into my ears in bits.

Inside my head, little monsters were playing drums at a certain pace which was intensified by me trying to open my eyes. After continuous struggling, I overpowered the monsters and successfully got my eyes open.

My vision was a little blurry but gradually it became clearer and I could make out the image of my mother beside me.

"My baby..." She gripped my right hand firmly as if to prevent anything else from happening to me.

Judging from the white walls surrounding us, I perceived that we were in a hospital.

"Mom." I called faintly, and a weak smile fought its way to her face where worried lines ran through.

"You had me worried." She said in an effort to conceal the pain I knew she was feeling by Tamara's kidnap, but her pathetic effort failed woefully. I knew she had been crying before I awoke from my sleep because I found traces of tears on her cheeks.

I reached out to wipe away the remaining droplets of tears from her right cheek.

"Don't cry mom, we'll go through this together." I caressed the back of her hand which flattened out on the hospital bed. She sniffed and cleaned her eyes properly with a white handkerchief withdrawn from the back pocket of her plain pair of trousers.

My eyes went to the door which was opened slowly, heralding the entrance of a nurse who after greeting us silently, proceeded with her usual business and in a few minutes left in the same manner as she came, silently.

About two minutes after she left, the poor door flew open and the self-confident man I once knew as an egoistic idiot walked in, making a huge smile play with my lips. Seeing his own smiling and carefully structured face, my smile widened.

Telling from his clothes, I knew he came straight from his office to see me. Without glancing at the clock which I knew was somewhere above me, I knew it was a few minutes past five.

After greeting my mom who nodded subconsciously, he shifted his gaze to me.

"Hey." He buried his hands in his pocket as he spoke.

"Hey." I replied shyly, much aware that my mom lingered in the room, watching us closely. However, she cunningly sneaked out of the room and I smiled again, seeing how much she respected my privacy except on some occasions when I deserved her intruding on it.

"How are you doing?" He demanded, his eyes boring into mine, probably trying to analyse how I felt internally.

"I'm OK now, seriously."

He nodded and allowed his eyes wander around the wide room.

💭💭💭

The doctor discharged me, after deciding I was well enough to leave the confines of my hospital room. I learnt from Philip who sat beside me during the drive to my house, that I was 'out' for less than a day as I blacked out at exactly eight in the evening yesterday.

Throughout the short drive home, all that occupied my brain were thoughts about my sister. I wasn't totally sure she was alive, if she was, what was she passing through? I groaned as thoughts about her being maltreated by her kidnappers haunted me.

Philip left immediately I stepped out of his limousine, saying he had something urgent to handle.

I met Michael seated on the porch tapping furiously on his iPad's screen. He had the same stressed out appearance as my mom, and I could tell from his drooping eyelids that he hadn't had sufficient sleep.