Last Hope (Completed)

Chapter 6

Sarah and Remy stumbled on the water as Remy made Sarah let go of the dead little girl's shirt. Sarah cried out loud as Remy pulled her towards the shore. Remy cried with her. They covered their mouths in shock and in fear. "R-Remy, bata yun. Bata sya," Sarah cried. "I know. I know, ate. I know," Remy cried with her. She felt sick to her stomach. She stood up, her body throbbing in intense pain. Sarah bit her lip as she got up as well. She grimaced in pain. She walked towards the water. "Ate," Remy called out to her. "Where are you going?" She asked. She was trembling from what she had just seen. "Kelangan natin kunin yung katawan, Remy," Sarah said. Her face was twisted. Remy shook her head, her face showed confusion. "Ate, no!" She yelled as she grabbed Sarah's arm. "I can't," Remy said. She continued to cry. "I can't touch that body. I'm sorry," she added. "Paaanorin na lang ba natin sya sa dagat, Remy?" Sarah asked. Tears fell from her eyes. Her breathing was shallow and fast. "Ate, I can't carry that body. What are we going to do with it? Hindi ko kaya. I'm trying so hard not to puke my insides out right now, but that really made me feel sick. Ate, I'm sorry," Remy claimed as she cried. Sarah watched as the body moved with the waves. Tears continued to stream down her face. Her chest tightened. Then she hurried towards it. "Ate, no! Please!" Remy begged as she pulled Sarah by the shirt. "Remy, tao yun! Hindi yun luggage o anong basura na pwede na lang natin hayaan anorin ng dagat!" Sarah yelled. "Ate, alam ko naman yun eh! Pero we're already scarred and traumatized as it is. Anong gagawin natin sa katawan nya? We'll carry it then bury it? First of all, sobrang trauma na nga dala nito sating dalawa eh. Tapos dadagdagan mo pa by having to deal with a dead body on the island with us? Tapos ano? You want us to carry it? We don't even have a blanket to cover it with. Wala tayong gloves. We're risking getting contaminated with whatever disease that decaying body could give us. And I don't think I can rest easy knowing na may patay buried somewhere in this island with us," Remy claimed as she trembled. "Kaya ng konsensya mo na hinayaan natin anorin yung batang yun ng dagat, Remy? May ina, may tatay, tita, tito, lola't lolo, pamilya at kaibigan na nangungulila para sa batang yun. Bangkay na lang nya ang meron sila na sana maibigay man lang natin sa kanila. Ang sakit sakit na mamatayan tapos wala ka man lang katawang mapag-luksaan. Parang wala kang closure kasi hindi mo alam san na napadpad yung katawan ng mahal mo," Sarah said. Anger burned in her eyes. Remy didn't move. She bowed her head as she wept. "I'm sorry, ate. I can't. I can't," she said as she shook her head and sobbed. Sarah watched helplessly as the body was carried onto the ocean again. She and Remy stared at it until they couldn't see it anymore.

Sarah and Remy sat separately by the shore. They were both soaking wet, but neither of them got up to get changed. Sarah stared at the water. Remy did, too. It was cold and they were both trembling, but none of them cared. They sat there for an hour, just staring. None of them had the appetite to hunt for something to eat. None of them had the energy to do anything at all. Another hour passed, Sarah stood up. "Mag-papalit lang ako Remy," she said. "Do you want me to come with you?" Remy asked. Sarah shook her head. It was the first time Remy has ever heard Sarah to want to go on a place alone. Remy figured Sarah needed time for herself to process everything, so Remy stayed at the shore. She watched Sarah as she disappeared into the forest on her own. Remy sighed. She looked at the water. Then she stood up and continued building their little shelter for the fire. An hour has gone by, Sarah didn't come back to the shore. Remy figured she was mad at her. She trembled as her wet clothes have already dried from the wind. Then she sat inside the little shelter she had partially built for the fire. She sighed as she stared at the water again. She was exhausted, so she decided to grab the large leaf that they found on their first night and put it inside the shelter. She laid on it and eventually fell asleep.

Another hour has gone by, Remy woke up just in time. She grabbed more firewood then she put it on their shore fire. She looked around for any signs of Sarah, but she never came back. Remy's eyebrows met. She stood up and decided to follow her into the forest. There, she found Sarah sleeping on the little shelter she built for the two of them. Remy slowly crawled inside to check on her. She placed her palm gently on Sarah's forehead. She took a deep breath. She was relieved that Sarah didn't have any fever. Then she decided to boil them some more water from the stream. She decided to look for stones she could use. When she found the right size and the right shape, she started sharpening its edges. Her sore hands from building the fire started hurting again from the repeated motion she was doing as she sharpened the stone on a huge rock. She spent almost half an hour trying to get the edges to sharpen. Her hands started to stiffen. Then she tested the stone's sharp edge to try and carve out another pointy edge on a piece of long wood she found as she made her way back to the forest. It took her a while to get the pointiness she wanted, but she figured its arrow-like shape was good enough. She was pleased with the sharpness of the stone. She was exhausted, and her arms and hands hurt her like hell, but she was content because now they have two spears to use. She grabbed the newly-carved spear and waded into the water. She didn't bother watching the fish this time. What they saw at the beach almost made her turn barbaric. The moment a large fish caught her eye, she speared it as fast as she could. Then she immediately took it out of the spear, tossed it on the grass, and immediately speared another one. She caught one medium-sized fish and a large salmon. She thought Sarah would be pleased. Then she grabbed the first fish, she used the stone she had just sharpened and used it as a knife to fillet the fish. She shook her head as she thought of her family. Look who's filleting a fish now, folks. Remy said in her head. Her parents and relatives used to mock her for not knowing how to cook. She shook her head at the thought. Though it wasn't perfect, she succeeded in cleaning and filleting a fish for the very first time. Then she decided to keep the head of the fish, she barbecued them on a stick and put them by the fire to cook. She smiled at the salmon she caught. She was pleased to see its roes. She ate some of them raw. It would have tasted better if they could use some of the salt water for a bit of flavoring. However, after seeing what they saw earlier, it made her stomach sick to even think about eating anything that came from the sea. Remy took her time filleting the salmon. She took its meat and decided to give Sarah a treat. She thought she'd appreciate her little "salmon sashimi a la Remy" and was excited to give it to her. Then she decided to grill the rest of the salmon including its head and tail. As the fish was cooking, Remy decided to hunt for some plants they could eat. Then she found a bed of dandelions. She remembered watching a video online of a man saying that dandelions were edible, so she decided to give them a try. She took its flower, stem and leaves and put them on an empty mason jar. She thought if she could just find them a fruit tree, she could probably make them a salad worth serving at the dinner table. Remy checked on the fish. Then she checked on Sarah. She was still sound asleep. She continued to search the trees and bushes nearby for any fruits but didn't find any. She took a deep breath feeling disappointed. Then she went back to the fire and checked on the fish again. They smelled so good, her mouth watered. She slowly made her way towards the shelter. She took a deep breath as she saw Sarah sleeping.