On This Day, Last Week...

As most of you whom came to my house should know or would probably have known by word of mouth, that I apparently met with an accident around this hour on this day. Not exactly an accident involving mobile objects, more like it involved mobile arms. And hands. And fists. And legs.

At around this hour, I was assaulted from behind first, by a girl then by a guy in a dark alley between my old primary school and a dumpster collection center.

You ask, what the heck was she doing in the middle of the night near a place such as that??

Well, since I've lived to tell the story, I'll tell it like I told the police & let it unfold.

I was done with my Swing shift at 7-11 & was actually supposed to go home with a fellow colleague whom at the last minute bailed out, citing that her boyfriend was coming over to take her home. Since I usually took a cab home at this late hour, I requested for another fellow colleague to accompany me outside till a cab came my way.

As Kak Nazlin & I waited outside, I heard a faint voice calling from behind, near the store. Kak Nazlin was the one who acknowledged it, saying that I finally had a friend to go home with. I squinted my eyes to find that it was Norinsha, an ex-secondary schoolmate of mine whom I had never seen since we graduated.

In fact, this was the second time this whole week in my entire 4 years after graduating that I had seen her. The first time was when she came over on our opening day to ask if there were any job vacancies available. Since Nini was the manager there & I was the one who half-heartedly passed the message, her request was turned down. Nini & I came from the same school so obviously we knew who she was. And frankly, neither one of us were too keen on even asking her to fill up a form.

So here she was again, in front of the store, inquiring if I wanted to go home & whether or not I was taking bus number 28. I knew she lived near me so I agreed. But first, she told me to wait outside for a moment while she went into 7-11. Not a minute passed when she reappeared, not a plastic bag in hand.

When I headed towards walking the long way, which was actually beside a road, she insisted we took a shortcut that was faster. As we crossed the road, I spotted a taxi & suggested that we take it. But no, she said she wasn't a person whom had a lot of money. We were getting closer to this alley that separates Griffiths Primary School & a dumpster collection center.

Frankly, I hated that place because it was pitch black with tall thick bushes & it gave me the creeps so I was dubious when Norinsha insisted we go through that whole stretch of narrow, concrete strip of pavement & instantly as we entered the dark realms of that godforsaken place, I grabbed hold of Norinsha's bag.

With that, I quickly admitted that I had a phobia of dark places, especially places like these & didn't like it that we were walking through a dark alley. As it was, I already had a funny feeling going on in my stomach.

Just as I finished my sentence, the pattering sound of feet running reached my ears & a voice inside my head shouted for me to turn behind.

I did, and saw a silhouette running towards me. Of course, my first thought was that it was a ghost & yes, I let out a bloodcurling scream albeit not enough to shatter glass or avert that running figure's attention from me. My second thought was that this was my colleague running after me because I had left something behind at the store.

But all those thoughts vanished completely when this girl started hitting me on the arms continuously before I had barely registered the shocking thought of encountering a ghost.

And while I couldn't understand why this girl was using me as a human punching bag, at the corner of my eye, I spotted Norinsha moving away from me, not saying anything at all. With my left hand locked onto the straps of my big, orange bag, I used my right arm shield myself from this female maniac, simultaneously asking the thin air what was going on & why she was doing this. Heck, I even apologized for nothing!!

If I thought it was going to be over that soon, I was dead wrong. Because not long after, I saw a guy come forward & a split second later, he landed a ferocious punch on my right forehead.

I literally saw blinding lights & hadn't even the time to recover from the blow before I was dealt with again. With altogether now four hands, I was helpless as the male repeatedly dealt blow by blow to my right forehead & for the punches he gave me, I could see stars. What was amazing, was that I didn't fight back but I didn't go down. Not yet anyway. The hits came from all sides; my abdomen, my arms & even my boobs. My pleas of help to Norinsha proved to be fruitless because everytime I wanted to shout out "Call police!!" they landed a blow at any part of me they could get.

It finally registered to me that I had better go down because if I didn't, then it would spur them on to hit me harder. So, I went from sitting to lying in a semi-fetal position, still clinging to my bag. They started kicking & stamping on me. And that was when I felt the tugging of my bag from my grasp & it was then that the male finally opened his mouth to shout to his accomplice to take my bag.

They pulled & they tugged while kicking out at me. But I wasn't going to let them take away the one thing that I depended on at that moment. You want to take my bag!!?!? MY ORANGE BAG!?!?! No way, fucker!!

So, I did the only thing I could do in my position. I lay on top of my bag on my stomach. All this while, Norinsha was standing there & the only thing I heard from her was soft sentences to tell them that that was enough. At the last kick, I managed to grasp a hairy leg & since they couldn't get my bag & he tripped over, they both let go & fled. I managed to look up just in time to see both my assailants run in one direction while Norinsha ran in another.

You want to know what went through my mind throughout the whole incident of being kicked & punched??

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. My mind shut down on me. I couldn't feel anything. Not even the taste of fear entered my mind. It was totally blank. I didn't even think about fighting back partly because, well maybe because I wasn't wearing my pink boots but even if I did, I highly doubt that I'd be able to even think about fighting back. I only have God to thank for that they didn't use anything other than their fists.

Except for when I forced myself to go down, I was thinking about what someone I knew said to me about my being so stubborn, he/she didn't even want to waste time arguing with me. Apart from remembering that, there was total voidness in my mind & after looking at the directions they ran, I picked myself up & ran back to the store.

My colleagues took one look at me & hurriedly ushered me to the office where I sat, quite shaken after the whole fiasco. Reality hadn't really sunk in yet; it seemed like it was just a nightmare gone wrong. After explaining everything to them, my colleague rang up Mom & of course, she panicked & upon hearing her tremoring voice, I forced myself not to break down just yet.

It was only when Dad called the store from his office & just hearing his voice on the line broke the dam that held my tears & that was when reality had finally sunk in. What I had just experienced a few minutes ago weren't just a figment of my imagination; it really happened to me, unbelieveable as it was.

Dad informed me that my uncle was on the way & that Mom was hitching a ride with my aunt who lived naught but a bus stop away.

Dad proceeded to talk to Kak Nazlin & had her ring up the police so they could come down to the store & take down my statements. After which, I rang Nini up to tell her the news. Her response was unlike that of my mother, but for sure, it probably took her aback that this would happen.

It was the beginning of a long night ahead as my Uncle Bob was the first of the Alonsos to arrive.

Cutting everything short & skipping the parts where I was surrounded by some beautiful people -namely, a policeman, two young paramedics & an inspector *sighs dreamily*- it was a very trying night & when I finally reached home, it was past 4am. Thoroughly checked, I consider myself VERY lucky that I didn't suffer from any fractures on my head, whatsoever. Just lacerations, heavy bruises. And the next few days were buzzing with activity for me with people streaming in & out of the house coming to visit me.

I believe that it was written in the books that this would happen to me; God has funny ways of testing us & in my opinion, this is one of them.

To my family, especially Mom who couldn't stop crying everytime I relived the whole episode but was strong enough to handle it like a pro, I cannot express how grateful I am to her & the rest of the Alonsos whom gave me the best kind of support anyone could give. Everybody was shell-shocked that my mother's firstborn could get into a helluva accident as this. Also since this happened on Mother's Day & thwarted any plans I had whatsoever with my sisters to celebrate the occassion.

Seriously, I can't imagine a life without my Mom's love. I really can't. Though we've been at loggerheads more often than not, what with both of our tempers going at full blast, I never doubted for one moment that there was a time she didn't love me. Yes, we are both loud & fiery & there are times when I hurt her with my words. But I realized, no matter what, I am still her firstborn daughter & for the most part of my life, all she ever did was support me & back me from behind. And with that thought alone, I know that I could never hate her. Not now, not ever. Especially not after this.

It was only as I laid down on my bed that early morning after returning from the hospital when sleep refused to come, I realized that no matter what small thing I did or wanted to do, I had always automatically turned to her just to ask her opinion. And I'm not ashamed to admit that I still do. Heck, I even ask if I looked okay in my clothes before I go out. It seems that I treasured whatever opinion she gave & it was only when she gave a positive opinion that I felt good about myself.

Yes, I may be dependent on her for various reasons & may well be even what you might say, a Mommy's girl. But then, so what?? I guess it depends on each individual how involved they want their parents to be in their lives. Some loathe the attention given, others thrive in it. And I know for sure, that I could never be satisfied without my mother's opinion.

My sisters, whom fussed over me like overprotective motherhens as I lay almost like a vegetable -a purple one, no less- in bed, your concern has not gone to waste. Ehh, I blanja all of you so many times already, okay!!
To the friends who came, I really appreciate you guys coming down all the way; some of you even took leave off from work & school just to see for yourselves how bad I looked. And I am so grateful for that. You don't know it, but the moment I knew & saw all of you at my front door, I can't tell you how much I wanted to weep. The two tubs of ice cream, the 4-in-1 Berkeley romance paperback -now, that just HAS to be my fave romance book of all time & not because of contents but because it came from all of you- and most importantly, the company provided. From those who forgot my address & went to the wrong block to those who waited an hour or so for a bus that had long finished its service rounds, I think all of you played a part in my recovery so, thanks. A million.

And to those whom didn't have a chance to see me but in some way or form contacted & talked to me; again, I'm grateful for that as well. I know the story of my demise has spread to the whole level of Block S in NYP; I don't know HOW that could happen even without my very prominent presence. Actually, not only did it spread like wildfire in Blk S, the whole of Darul Ghufran mosque has apparently heard of this whole incident & is waiting for me to make my return there.

Now, please excuse me while I go cry in my pillow.

Laterz...
Lenny GodGilla Xabs