Dormancy
At 25 years old, Woon looked exactly like her baby mug shot. No amount of blusher could create the contour of high cheekbones on her chubby face. She had given up on make-up since her teenage years, but she needed to look pretty that day. So, she glided the red lipstick across her pudgy lips. The crimson shade contrasted her pale complexion and reminded her of old Chinese movies with jumping vampires.
A knock on her bedroom door brought her back from fantasy land. Her father entered and frowned at her. “Quickly change. The matchmaker is coming soon. Wear that blue cheongsam.”
Her father had fussed over her the entire morning. Mrs. Phua, the best (and most expensive) matchmaker in Tapah, will be visiting their home with a prospective husband. Earlier that week, Mrs. Phua briefed them about this man – Chin Huat Long. He was 28 years old, the only child in his family. A photo of a lanky man standing beside his petite mother gave no clue of his personality.
“He is a teacher. Must be a good man.” Her father beamed at the photo after Mrs. Phua left. “Both of you should be a good match. I’ll be so happy when you get married. At least I can die in peace.”
Woon never cared about getting married, but the idea of having a family of her own and placating her father seemed like good reasons to take the plunge. All she wanted was to be normal.
She nodded at her father. “Okay Pa, I will change now.”
Half an hour later, she was engaged.
X
Ten years had passed since that day.
Woon opened her eyes. A clank followed by a thud rang through the fog of her sleep. She pushed herself up on her elbows. The sound rang out again, clearer this time.
She reached over and shook her husband. "Wake up. I think someone is downstairs."
"Hmmm..."
"Wake up!" she hissed into her husband's ear.
Chin grumbled, switched on the side table lamp and fumbled with his spectacles. "What? It's 3 a.m."
"Shhhh. Listen."
Clang. Thump. Bang.
Chin got out of bed, eyes wide. He grabbed the steel pipe by the bed. "Go check on Mimi and wake my mother. Then call the police."
He moved to the bedroom door. Woon grabbed her mobile phone and followed closely behind. Chin slid the door open. The dark stairway revealed nothing. He let the door slide open wider. A beam of yellow light flashed up the stairway. They moved out of their bedroom. She dashed to the door across the landing while he started down the staircase.
Woon went into the room and woke her daughter. The five-year-old stirred. She carried the child and made for the adjacent room through the attached bathroom. She shook the old lady snoring in bed. The woman sat up and rubbed her eyes.
Woon dialled the police and whispered, "Hello, ada pencuri masuk rumah saya… Alamat saya 4 Taman Seri Puteri. Tolong cepat. (Hello, someone broke into our house....my address is 4 Taman Seri Puteri. Please hurry.)"
Glass shattered and a loud scream came from downstairs as soon as she ended the call. Her mother-in-law and Mimi, fully awoken, looked at her with fearful eyes. She rushed the two into the corner of the room and hugged them tightly as she told them to be quiet.
Loud voices mixed with heavy footsteps ascended the stairs. Light filtered through the door gap and shadows flitted across.
Mimi cried. Woon covered her mouth but it was too late. Deafening knocks erupted and shook the door frame.
Woon lifted Mimi and grabbed her mother-in-law's hand. She turned toward the bathroom door. Before they could move another step, the room door swung open. Her mother-in-law shrieked and Mimi wailed. She squinted at the flood of white light.
A silhouette of a short man stood at the door. His scalp glistened with sweat. A cackle and foreign words spilled from his mouth. The two women and child huddled in the corner, frozen in fright, as they dreaded their impending fate.
A tall man walked past the short guy at the doorway to the women. He grabbed Woon and eyed the crying child with a sneer. Woon hugged her daughter closer. The man hustled the women to Chin who spotted a bloody slash wound on his left cheek. A bearded man held Chin at knifepoint.
The robbers quickly bounded and lined up the hostages on their knees in the master bedroom. Mimi clung to Woon in fits of tears. The men continued to search the house, upending everything in sight, and taking all the valuables they could find.
The short guy found the safe at the back of the cupboard and demanded, "Open!"
"No!" Chin answered and a hard slap was swiftly delivered across his left cheek.
Droplets of blood splattered on Woon's face. The old lady whimpered.
"Stop, stop! I’ll open it!" Woon pushed herself up but received a blow from the tall guy. She crumpled to the floor.
The short guy grabbed the raised hand of his accomplice and signalled him to stop. He dragged Woon to her feet toward the cupboard.
They are not getting away with anything. The police will be here soon, she thought.
The backlight of the digital pad on the safe door glowed an eerie green. The bald guy nodded at Woon.
"Four, nine, five, seven, nine," she said.
Beep.
The safe door opened and the robber's grin grew at the stacks of cash and boxes of glittering jewellery.
In the background, the old lady's cries grew louder as she watched her precious gold necklaces and jade pendants disappear into the robber's bag. The gold bracelet, the only thing Woon's late mother had left to her, was next. She clenched her teeth in anger.
Where are the police?
As soon as the last wad of cash went into the bag, the bald robber motioned for his two partners to leave. The tall guy stopped the short one. They exchanged foreign words rapidly. The conversation ended with the short guy leaving the room. His bearded partner followed, lugging the loot.
The tall guy picked Mimi up. The little girl's wails turned into screams.
"Leave her alone!" Chin shouted.
"No, don't take Mimi!" Woon screamed.
Chin struggled to get up. The man hit him with a crowbar and he fell back down.
Woon hollered and the floor began to vibrate. The man steadied himself and swung the crowbar at her but missed. He headed for the door with Mimi still in his arm.
"LEAVE MIMI ALONE!" Woon yelled.
Her daughter’s abductor quickened his steps. Woon grunted, and the air around Mimi shaped itself into a bubble and encased the little girl. Her jaw tightened and the man screamed in pain as the air bubble closed in on his arm in a ring of fire. Stunned, he let go of Mimi and turned to run out of the room. Woon shot him a steely stare. His foot lifted off the floor before he could move a muscle. The man froze in a running pose and rotated in mid-air to face his captives in the room.
Woon focused her wide and bloodshot eyes on the man's chest. The muscles on her face tightened and her lips pursed till they were white.
She shouted and the man flew past the door like a pellet released from a slingshot. His spine hit the railing. A sickening crack followed and he screamed in agony.
Woon walked out of the door just in time to watch the man roll down the stairs. The bald man and his bearded partner stopped at the bottom of the steps. Horror grew in their eyes as they realised what had happened to their colleague.
Chin scrambled to the doorway. Woon stood at the top of the stairs and looked down at the robbers. He had never seen his wife's face like that before, hard and ferocious.
Woon turned back to the whimpering man on the middle landing of the staircase. His neck twisted sideways. He screamed, a dull crunch and all was quiet.
X
Inspector Rahim stared at the documents of Case F145 spread before him on the desk, the conversation with his superior still fresh on his mind.
"You want to further investigate this case?" his boss asked.
"Yes, sir. The witnesses' testimonies don’t match the coroner's report."
"Don't waste time. The Chins are not pursuing the case. Just find the two remaining suspects."
"But the coroner's report said the robber did not die falling down the stairs. His neck was broken-"
"I read all the reports. The Chins were bound when the police arrived. They couldn’t have killed that man."
"The old lady said her daughter-in-law did it."
His boss scoffed. "You believed her? She was rambling on and on about superpowers, telekinesis, whatever. All crap."
"What about the little girl? She’s terrified of her mother."
"How do you expect a 5-year-old girl to react after such a scary incident? The psychiatrist said she’s severely traumatised. She needs counselling."
His boss shoved the documents back into the folder. "Mr. Chin's testimony is clear. The robber tripped and fell on the stairs when he was trying to escape. The other two ran away when they heard the sirens."
"But, sir. Why does Mrs. Chin refuse to say a word about the robbery?"
"Again. The psychiatrist said that she was traumatised." His boss shut the file and handed it back to the rookie. "These three robbers have been terrorising the city for months now. With one of their gang members killed, they are likely to go into hiding. Find them before they disappear."
Inspector Rahim took the file. He opened his mouth to speak but his boss raised his hand.
"Rahim, no more sci-fi theories. This is a police station not a publishing house."
The rookie took one last look at the photo of the robber found dead in the house. The man's neck bent at an odd angle. No blood. The coroner stated the bone at the neck showed no signs of fracture which was not typical of a fall down the stairs. The bone was broken with one snap, clean and quick, which could only be caused by an external force.
Enough. You're still under probation and you need this job. Just do what the boss says, the young inspector thought to himself.
He stashed the photo of the deceased at the bottom of the stack and began to look at the mock-up profiles of the other two suspects.
X
"What? You called me a liar!" Nancy shoved Woon.
"No." Woon tried to walk away. Maria yanked at her ponytail.
"Susie said she saw you floating stones in the air by the pond yesterday. Show me!" Nancy thrust a few pebbles into Woon's chest.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Maria pulled her ponytail harder and she winced.
"Then, Susie must be lying or maybe both of you are just making up stories to impress the boys." Nancy cackled. "I know you like that smart and handsome Johan from 3B."
"Nonsense!"
"Look who's blushing. Should I go tell Johan now?" The two bullies giggled.
"No. It's not true. I don't like him. Don't talk nonsense." Woon shook her hands. Her ears burned.
"Her ears are turning red!" The two girls laughed.
Woon turned to run away but Maria still held on to her ponytail.
Nancy stopped laughing. She slapped Woon and looked her in the eye. "You're ugly, fat and a NOBODY. Only I get to tackle the boys in this school. Don't you dare go near Johan, freak. Now go do your magic trick by the pond and I'll leave you alone."
Maria let go of Woon's pigtail and shoved her head hard. She joined Nancy. The girls walked away, giggling.
Red spider web veins spread across Woon's eyes. She ground her teeth and stared hard at the back of the mean girls. Two rocks rose silently from a flowerbed nearby. They hovered beside her head and shivered. The veins on Woon's neck thickened. The rocks launched at their targets.
A big hand grabbed Woon's shoulder and a raspy voice commanded, "Stop it!"
Her shoulder sank in crushing pain. The rocks which were inches away from the girls' heads fell to the soft grass. The girls, oblivious of the danger, walked away without looking back.
The school gardener turned Woon around and grabbed her face with both hands. Thick calluses dug into her cheeks.
"What did I tell you, huh?" The man shook her head. She whined from the crushing pressure.
"You almost killed those girls!" he hissed.
"But Pa, they are bullies," she said through her tight lips.
"You leave them alone and they will leave you alone. Never use your powers! If you do, you'll end up like me. No job, no friends! You understand?" His voice came out hoarse through gritted teeth.
She frowned and pursed her lips.
His father's eyes turned red. Woon felt an invisible force squeezing her neck. She wheezed and her head spun.
"I catch you doing it again, I'll kill you myself," he said.
X
Woon woke from her afternoon nap with a start, gasping for air. She reached for the invisible fingers around her neck which were never there eighteen years ago.
Over the years, she had tried to search for an explanation of her unique ‘condition’. Scientists have studied the human brain for centuries, and the way it works still baffles them till this day. They claimed that normal human beings only use 10 percent of our brains. However, with the constant evolving nature of the human genome, there have been documented cases of humans with extraordinary abilities such as Stephen Wiltshire with his crazy visual memory and Daniel Browning Smith who has been named the world's most flexible man. Her findings made her feel less alone, but she could never get comfortable with who she is, and is more afraid than ever to reveal her true self.
Cries from the baby monitor on her bedside table sent another shockwave through her. She jumped out of bed and rushed to Mimi's room. The little girl sat on her bed, howling. Woon wrapped her arms around Mimi, her shirt soaked wet despite the air conditioner set on full blast. Another bad dream.
"Ah Ma, Ah Ma, Ah Maaaaaaaa!" Mimi screamed and pushed her mother away.
She caressed her daughter but Mimi wailed even louder.
"Ah Ma here!" The old lady hurried into the room and took Mimi from Woon's arms.
"Shhhh. Don't cry, don't cry." The woman soothed the little girl. Her eyes flitted to Woon. She hurried out the door without taking a second glance at her.
Woon stared at the empty bed. Her daughter's cries slowly subsided in the background. It had been four months since the robbery. Mimi and her mother-in-law lived in fear ever since. They were afraid of her.
She wondered when life would return to normal, if it ever would. Woon buried her face in her hands and cried. Her father's words rang in her head, louder than ever.
X
They had not gone out on dates since the robbery. For the first few months, Chin acted aloof. Woon tried to talk to him about the incident but he refused to utter a single word. As time passed, he spoke to her again but only when necessary. So, when her husband suggested a date night that Friday, she was pleasantly surprised.
Dinner at their favorite restaurant serving Penang food was satisfying. Chin didn't speak much but his company gave her solace. They finished off the night with drinks at a nearby bar.
Contented and a little tipsy, Woon closed her eyes and relaxed into the passenger seat. The car cruised along the highway, Demons by the Imagine Dragon band played on the radio.
I wanna hide the truth
I wanna shelter you
But with the beast inside
There's nowhere we can hide
"We need to talk," Chin said at a red light.
Woon, still with her eyes closed, answered, "Yes?"
He cleared his throat. Silence.
She opened her eyes. Needles tingled up her spine.
"You need to go away for a while," he said.
"What do you mean go away?"
"I found this apartment for you-"
"You are chasing me out of my house?"
The light turned green and he drove forward. "No. It's just for a while or at least until Mimi has recovered."
"I am her mother. How can you ask me to leave my child?"
"My mother is scared too."
"So, this is your mother's idea. Now she thinks I'm some monster!"
"She said it’s for Mimi’s safety."
The radio turned off by itself.
“What do you think?”
No response from Chin.
“Why am I not surprised?” She waved her hands in the air. “You are always a mummy’s boy. You agree with everything she says. She chose your major in university. She found you your first job. She even found you a wife through a matchmaker. Now, she’s telling you to ditch your wife and you’re doing exactly what she wants. You have no opinion of your own at all!”
“How could you say that?” He glanced at her and refocused on the road. “I lied to the police for you. I told them the robber fell to his death on the stairs. I could have told them the truth. You killed the robber!”
A chink sounded at the bottom of the car.
She turned to face him. "They were going to take Mimi away. I saved her. I saved all of you!"
The steering wheel vibrated in his hand. He tightened his grip. "Woon, are you doing this? You need to calm down."
The car accelerated. He stepped on the brakes. Nothing happened. He tried them again. The speedometer shot up a notch.
"Woon, stop! Stop!" He screamed.
Spider web cracks spread across the windscreen. The wheels locked at an angle, spinning the speeding car around like a top. The bumper of the Proton Perdana smashed into a railing. The whole car flew off the bitumen surface, wheels still rotating in the air. The car flipped several times until it came to a complete stop. Metal twisted, glass shattered, bumper dislodged and one of the headlights dislocated.
A passer-by stopped his car not far from the broken railing. He got out and stood there, in shock and helpless.
X
Inspector Rahim placed his black coffee on the dashboard of his MyVi. He slurped the piping hot noodles from the Maggie Cup and savoured the rich taste of its curry flavour – his first meal after a 12-hour shift at the police station. Once he took care of his stomach, he would head straight back to his apartment for some shut-eye.
The 6 a.m. news came on through the car radio. He half listened to the list of news reports - politicians accusing one another of bribery, government scandals, more robberies, water rationing and accidents.
"... an accident occurred along the North-South Highway at about 11 p.m. last night. A Proton Perdana skidded off the road and crashed into the woods. A passer-by stopped to help and found the driver, Chin Huat Long, unconscious. Chin was rushed to the hospital and pronounced dead on arrival. His wife Woon See Mun who was supposed to be with him in the car was nowhere to be found. Chin left behind a daughter and mother. The cause of the accident is being investigated..."
Chin Huat Long? Wasn't he the guy in the house robbery case six months ago? One of the robbers was killed in his house and his wife-
The vibration of his mobile phone interrupted his thoughts.
"Yes... drug raid operation... briefing at 7a.m." He rubbed his tired eyes. "Ok, I'll be at the office in 15 minutes."
He gulped down the rest of his cup noodles, burning his tongue. There would be no sleep for him that day. He left his thought on the missing woman from the car crash in the rubbish bin with the empty noodle cup before he drove out of the petrol station.
X
The man with greasy hair cursed into the cool air. He swung his half empty bottle of cheap liquor at the moon and spilled some on his wrinkled shirt, "Bloody hell! If I have money, I can have all the girls in the world."
He stumbled and fell onto the dirt ground under the bridge. He took a swig from the bottle and wiped his oily mouth with the back of his hand.
"Hey, you!" He gestured to a homeless woman lying down at the corner of the bridge. "Why woman always want money, car, house? Why? Love not enough is it? Must be Superman!"
The woman pushed herself up. She staggered over to the man, grabbed his bottle and took a sip. The man protested and snatched the bottle from her.
"Superman can fly and he's so handsome. Women sure love him," she sang.
"Ceh! He only can fly. I want super power to read people's mind, so I can know what they want," he answered and chuckled.
She grabbed the man's shirt and whispered, "I have super power. You wanna see?"
The man laughed at the woman. "I don't believe you. Gila (Crazy)!"
Just as he turned to leave, the bottle came loose from his fingers and floated up in the air. It spun and danced higher and higher into the night sky.
The man froze.
He turned and looked at the woman, her eyes a web of red. He took a few steps back, turned on his heels and ran, never looked back.
She lifted her hand. The bottle floated back down into her grasp. She tipped it into her mouth and swallowed the vile concoction which burned her throat as she staggered back to the corner under the bridge.
The bottle floated from her hand and landed in a stack of newspapers among broken plastic ware, empty cans, a three-legged stool and other odd objects in a shopping trolley. She picked up an empty plastic bottle under the trolley and dumped it into the heap.
As she sat on the ground, she fished out a purse from the worn pouch buckled around her hip. She removed a photo from the inner pockets of the purse. A sweet little girl riding on a tricycle smiled in the photo.
“I miss you so much, Mimi.” She traced the outline of the girl’s face fondly. “But I can’t come back. I don’t want to hurt you.”
AGNES ONG is a freelance writer who writes for small businesses when she’s not writing fiction. Coping with an unknown nerve condition all her life, she finds solace, escape and revelation through writing. She hopes that her work will console, excite, delight and inspire others to live beyond their limitations.
Her short stories have been published in Love in Penang, an anthology of short stories by Fixi Novo, Amok: An Anthology of Asia-Pacific Speculative Fiction, and Rambutan Literary; an online and digital literary and arts magazine dedicated to showcasing Southeast Asian literature and art.
Her latest young adult novel, Mama’s Maze, is sold in major bookstores in Malaysia. Follow her on Facebook at “Agnes Ong – Author”