One lazy afternoon, my friends and Keira visited me in my room a week after my near death experience. I just took a shower when I heard some knocks on my door.
"Hey, Brad!"
"Come in!"
They came with fresh fruits, fried chicken, and cans of cold beer. Luke and Owen set the food on the table while Shane opened a can of beer.
"Want some?" Shane asked. I nodded, so he gave me what he already opened.
"How are you feeling?" Keira asked while we sat down on the sofa. She caught my gaze at the brown envelope on her lap.
"You're lucky that Diana saw Sheryl waving her hands frantically. She wasn't able to shout..." Keira says.
"Coz' of panic for sure," Owen added, sitting comfortably with his legs crossed.
I tried to recall what had happened, but no matter how I tried, the memory was still fuzzy. I pressed my temple, hoping to remember it. "I don't know for certain, but before I lost consciousness, I saw a shadow of a person swimming away from me," I said.
"Are you sure?" Keira asked, seemingly surprised, but seemingly not. Like, she's already suspecting foul play, yet it still got her.
I hesitantly nodded and replied, "I'm not sure actually, but I have a weird feeling that something's not right!"
"Yeah! We are also having bad feelings about this," Luke commented.
"I already asked my father for help. In no time, his men will scour the island," she blurted out.
"What?! I don't think it's necessary," I replied as I looked at them with confusion. My friends stared at me with their mouths shut.
"My dad owns 'Swords and Guns', a private investigation firm based in London and Amsterdam," she said with a reassuring smile.
"You didn't tell me that!" Owen told her.
"You didn't ask," she answered.
"What else don't I know about you?" he grunted as he crossed his arms and turned away from Keira. Then, he drank his beer--- one shot!
We all looked at him in disbelief while Keira smiled at his childish gesture.
"Haysh! How can someone be an open book in a short span of time?" Shane scolded.
"Ah... molla!" he said while he opened another can of beer--- another bottoms up!
Despite the seriousness of our conversation, we shared a hearty laugh.
"I think, this is not the right time for that. Besides, never in my wildest dreams have I imagined my first boyfriend being so immature!" she blurted.
My friends and I were stunned by her statement, especially Owen who suddenly sputtered the beer he just drank.
"Fuck! That's disgusting!" Luke cursed then he turned to Keira. "Is he your boyfriend?" Luke asked.
"Am I your boyfriend?" Owen asked confused but undeniably happy as he threw punches in the air.
We all looked at Keira who was covering her mouth with her eyes wide open.
"Is that a yes?" Owen asked joyously while cupping her face. She was about to speak when her phone rang which she immediately answered.
"Yes, dad!..... Are you sure? That's impossible! Please be certain....," she said while simply removing Owen's hands still cupping her face.
Her eyes widen. "Got it. Oh my god," she answered before ending the call.
There was a long silence. We were all nervous. She looked troubled. I felt uneasy. She cleared her throat and subconsciously held Owen's hand obviously seeking strength.
"My father is still digging into your case as we speak while his top agent is on her way here," I said.
"O- okay!" I just agreed on coz I didn't have anything else to say.
"Anyway, where's your girlfriend?" I asked Shane who turned towards me.
"Lambert called for a confidential meeting with the ladies," he answered. Dr. Lambert Stuart, the top neurologist in Mevious city, is also their brother in Suits.
"Why~?" I asked confused.
"As a doctor with two marine biologists on her side, it's her duty to know what might have given those bite marks on your leg," he replied.
"As I've said before, there's a high probability that someone orchestrated this," Keira answered.
"This is insane! Why am I the only one who doesn't know what's going on?" I asked a little irritated.
"Just hang in there for a moment. Save your questions," Luke said tapping my shoulders to calm me down.
"Do I have a choice?" I said still annoyed. I exhaled in desperation before drinking my beer.
At around 5 pm, the three ladies entered the room. They sat down with us.
"You okay?" Shane asked Tamara after welcoming her with a peck on her lips. She took the envelope from her bag. My heart was throbbing as she opened it.
"You're all skilled swimmers and divers, right? So, I suppose you all know what a sea krait is," she started.
"They are semiaquatic elapid sea snakes," Diana added. "They rarely attack humans unless in self- defense."
We all nodded. "I don't get it. If Brad was bitten by a sea krait, what does it do with attempted murder?" Luke asked innocently while passing the chicken wings to Diana.
"I will excuse you with your stupidity, Luke. But... where can we find sea kraits?" Cassandra asked him.
"Indo- Pacific?" he replied.
"And where are we?" Diana questioned.
"North--- Holy shit!" Luke exclaimed. "But how did you know about that?"
Keira placed the photo on the table for everyone to see. I stared blankly at it. In the photo was me in front of a group of damselfish.
There were colorful corals both hard and soft such as the brain, sea whip, staghorn, elkhorn, pillar corals, sea fans, star, and sea rods, swaying with the current and attracting various fish, crustaceans, mollusks, and other marine animals.
But, behind my left leg was a tail of a banded sea krait!
The image was distorted by the bubbles created by my snorkeling fins while I paddled my feet to keep my balance.
But it was unmistakable!
The question was "How did it get there?"
Korean 101:
Molla (몰라) - Don't know. informal