It must have been three in the morning when Jamie was able to sleep soundly again. His dreams were frightening and worrisome at the same time, that whenever he tried to sleep, the images kept popping in his head. He just twisted and turned in his bed for hours, waiting until exhaustion took its toll. And when it finally did, the morning stars had already taken their positions in the bleak sky while the roosters prepped for the day.
When he woke up, it was already past eight. He was feeling groggy and there was a slight ache in his head. He massaged it a little, hoping the pain would abate.
"What a headache," he whispered. "What a night. Why did I have such dreams?"
He sighed, tired from waking up after a nightmarish sleep. Just then, his stomach began to grumble. In a split second, he let out a huge fart which instantly filled his room. He sighed again in satisfsction.
"Well, I guess this headache is caused by my empty tummy," he said while picking his nose.
He was very careful touching his nose because of the large blister near the tip. In fact, he was in worse shape than yesterday. The sores in his face became more swollen and red. They were itchy that he was always tempted to scratch them. The ones in his arms, legs, and back were no better. They were larger and increasing each day, as if the older ones were creating children.
Gently, he rose and went out of his bed. He was too careful not to touch his blisters, or else, they will be provoked and he would start scratching anywhere in his body.
He went to the dining room and saw his breakfast ready. He had been eating his breakfast alone for the last few days as his parents were off early to work and he, owing to his chickenpox, was not too eager to get up and eat his meals. Well, there were some soup, hard boiled eggs, and fruits on the table. They were delectable to his eyes but his taste buds were not at their finest so he ate only a little.
After his plate was clean, he went back to his room and changed his clothes. Again, he was too careful with his actions. He opened the curtains and went back lying on his bed. The feel of the sun's warmth on his skin was soothing.
He took out his walkman and put on the earphones. His favorite radio station was instantly played and upon hearing the music beat, he sang along to an Aerosmith hit.
"I could stay awake just to hear you breaking,
Wash your smile while you ahh ahhh..."
He sat up and tried to match words to the lyrics. He took his comb and held it like a microphone. With each beat, he twisted his body and swang his arms like a pro singer. And then, the chorus came.
"I don't wanna close my eyes,
I don't wanna fall asleep
'Cause I miss you baby
And I don't wanna mess a thing (boom!)"
He closed his eyes and felt the music. He relived his favorite scenes from a disaster movie where a large asteroid was supposed to hit the Earth. Bruce Willis was the main protagonist and the astronaut things in the movie were really exciting for them. They watched the movie from a pirated CD, secretly in Bogart's room. There were fragments of the asteroid that already entered the Earth's atmosphere and destroyed many cities and landmarks. They could not gaped at how amazing those scenes were created.
"I don't wanna close my eyes," Jamie sang loudly as the second chorus came.
Carried away by the music, he tried to stand up but some sores on his legs were pressed that he suddenly jumped out of bed. He groaned in pain as Aerosmisth reached the bridge of the song. As the music faded, he crouched on the floor, yelling silent screams.
"Holy mother, that was a pain beyond belief!"
He looked at himself in the mirror. Horrified to see his face, he was frustrated. He was not as handsome as before. He still had that movie actor eyes, nose, and lips but his prettiness was overshadowed by the innumerable dots on his face. Once they die out, they would leave black and dark brown scars. He was fine if the scars would be on his body, but not on the face.
"This is nightmare!" he whispered in surrender. "Would girls still like me? And wouldn't these things hurt like hell once I began playing baseball or basketball? "
He chuckled at himself. Had he gone crazy? For days, he had been talking to himself most of the time. Dancing and singing all by myself. Being quarantined must have caused him to go insane. He stood up and sat on his bed.
"I love that song," he said. "And the movie as well. Seeing those heavenly bodies causing destruction was jaw-dropping...."
And upon realizing his words, his jaw began to drop. Like in the movie, something hit Subangdaku but it was not really a meteor.
"I don't wanna miss a thing," he whispered.
Quickly, he took out his pen and scrawled some notes. He recalled everything that had happened, including his dreams, and wrote them down. His notes were random but he could arrange them chronologically later. Possibly, he could make connections among several events. For now, he needed to write them down fast before he forgot about them. After almost an hour of scribbling, he looked at his notes.
"Did I miss a thing?"
For the next hour, he rearranged notes and made wide guesses of missing links. And once he was done, he was overwhelmed with disbelief.
"Could this be true?" he gasped. "Have I done it right?"
He stood up and went up to the windows. The bright sun was covering the entire district with heat and light. But if he correctly connected the dots, Subangdaku was unknowingly screwed up. In his heart, he firmly believed that they had been manipulated all the while....