“Come on… we’re doing the ‘jay’.” He said, grabbing my hand and dancing with me.
The loud blaring music from my iPod only reminded of that moment. Everything reminded me of him. That just goes to show how many memories we’ve had together. I could never forget the day that I met him. His introduction seemed so ridiculous.
“Hey, my name’s Rancho. I come from a faraway land called Urethra. Nice to meet you,” the boy held out a hand. I was stunned. A faraway land? Was he mental?
“Um… Hey?” I replied and reluctantly shook his hand. He smiled. What caught my eye was a shimmering crystal blue necklace that adorned his neck. That day, we just sat atop that giant mossy rock.
But of course everything good comes to an end.
I heard the lock click as I closed the front door. The first person to approach me was my mom. She came to me with her eyebrows dipped. She held out a hand as if I was something fragile that would break any moment.
I did break.
“Sweetie,” my mom said with a gentle tone. “That boy,” I knew she was referring to Rancho. I could feel goosebumps crawling on my skin. My mouth became dry. Did something happen? My mom finished her sentence. And when she did, the only thing I could do was gasp and run out. I broke into a sprint. There was no way. I stopped in my tracks when I arrived at the giant rock. I could see the red color of the sky as the sun started to set. I climbed up, dirt getting into my fingernails. I found no one. My mom’s words rang through my head as I tried to hold my tears in.
“He’s dead.”
I took off my headphones and stood in front of the giant rock, fresh flowers cradled in my hands. I started climbing, one hand hoisting myself up while the other gripped tightly at the bouquet. Like usual, I placed the flowers in front of the grave and payed my respects. But, today seemed different. I don’t know how but, I have a weird feeling in my stomach. And I knew, it wasn’t because of something I ate. I scanned my surroundings, something shiny catches my eye. I took a few steps. It was glowing. Embodied in a crack of the rock was a crystal blue necklace. It started to glow even brighter. I shielded my eyes with my arm. The next moment, I felt a drop of water on my head. I opened my eyes.
I rubbed my eyes. I wasn’t hallucinating. I pinched my arm. I wasn’t dreaming. Then, where am I? There were dark clouds looming over the sky as if it was going to rain. I don’t know what to do.
BOOM!!
I heard a loud noise. I spun my heel and turned back. All I saw was smoke. On the other side of it was a creature. A really mysterious creature. More like a monster. A huge lizard-like monster with gnawing teeth and beady eyes. It started running. Crap! It was coming for me. I stumbled backwards. I tried to run but, my legs didn’t seem to obey my commands. My eyes widened with terror. I closed my eyes waiting for my doom.
When I still didn’t feel any sort of pain surging through my body, I opened my eyes. The creature was lying on the ground. In front of my view was a person in a blue tunic and brown sandals. In his hand was a dagger with blood dripping down the tip. He turned towards me. No way.
“Rancho?” I asked unable to say any more. He seemed surprised. But, he smiled.
“Long time no see,” he replied. I couldn’t believe this. I had to be going crazy. But, I didn’t care. I got up and launched myself into his arms. I could finally hug him again. He was alive. I could feel tears streak down my cheeks.
“Where am I?” I looked up to him, trying to rub away my tears.
“Urethra.”
He wasn’t mental. This place was real. Unless I was going crazy. But, it didn’t matter if I was going crazy. I can finally spend more time with him.
“You can’t stay here,” he said.
“What? Why?”
“It’s too dangerous. Besides, if they see you with me, they won’t hesitate to kill you,” he said, a stern expression planted on his face. What is he talking about? As if he could read my mind, he continued. “Look, the only reason I ran away from this place is because I couldn’t take it anymore. I rebelled against the leader. I’m an outlaw. But, I had to come back to make things right. They’re hunting for me. You need to get out while you’re still alive.” He said, gripping onto my shoulders.
“No, I wanna help. If I help you win, then you can come back right?” I asked, my eyes shining with hope and faith.
”No, you ha-” I put a hand in front of his face.
“I’m helping and that’s that.” I said, clearly not budging. I felt another drop of water.
“It’s gonna rain. We better get to shelter,” Rancho said and pulled me along.
We had gone into a small hut. “So, what are you going to do about this situation?” I asked.
“Overthrow the leader,” he said straight-forwardly.
The next day, we had walked into town. Rancho had made sure to cover his face so no one could tell who he was. I wouldn’t blame him. There were wanted posters of him everywhere.
Suddenly, Rancho approached a tall man. He swiftly took out his dagger and took a swing at him. What the?! This was what he meant? KILL him?!
The man – the leader, i assume – wielded his own weapon, a razor-sharp sword. The steel of the sword and dagger clashed together multiple times. Rancho spun and dipped low while jabbing his dagger upwards. Surprisingly, there were no guards around. The man just kept his guard and avoided Rancho with ease. The man swung his sword with both his hands gripped on the handle. Rancho jumped high onto a low building and rebounded to take another swing. This went on for quite some time until men with spears came running. Rancho broke apart from the fight.
“Aren’t you ever going to stop? I’ll even spare you. Just how persistent are you?” The man asked.
“It’s too late, I’ve already paid the price. I have to keep going. Or else, all my family’s efforts will be a waste,” Rancho’s voice was filled with disappointment.
“You’ve lost your place at Urethra,” the man said, smirking.
“I never had one in the first place!” Rancho screamed and lunged forward. This time, guards started to stand in his way. Instead of tearing through them, Rancho stepped to the side and ran. Thinking it was the best idea, I followed him. He seemed to feel my presence.
We came to a rocky terrain with the guards right at our tail. Rancho jumped to lower ground. He turned back. “JUMP!!” he shouted.
I ran as fast as I could and when I neared the edge, I leapt into Rancho’s arms. When we regained our balance, we continued running. We came to a cliff. Rancho turned to me and put something around my neck. I looked down to see the crystal blue necklace. “You have to jump,” Rancho said. “You’ll get back home, I promise.”
“No, I wanna stay,” I said. “And wait until you can come back with me.”
Rancho smiled. He rested his chin on my head. “I promise I’ll come back. When I finally kill him.” Rancho lightly pushed my shoulders and I found myself falling into a dark abyss. I stretched my arm out. Guards started to crowd Rancho. I wish I could bring him with me. The necklace around my neck started to glow.