The afternoon was hot. The sun was brutally cruel to the ones that lingered outside. People heaved under the sweltering heat asking God for his pity. Maybe rain to quench the heat from the ground or a good shade for them to be protected from the heat. Indeed, a shade! It was better to stay indoors during these times; as for Anna, it was definitely a good idea.
Her apartment was located in the heart of the bustling city. Around tall buildings both old and new. With people coming from afar that mixed in with those who lived there their entire lives. She lived in a neighborhood just 2 blocks away from the slums. A big apartment that wasn't too shabby and wasn't too expensive for her and her boyfriend to rent. And although her apartment room was fully air-conditioned, it didn't save them from the sun's punishing heat. The air-conditioning unit broke about 30 minutes ago. Her hand-me-down cooling unit finally retired after a 5-year long service. But she couldn't care less. Not right now. She's too preoccupied.
The windows were slightly opened, just enough for any sign of blissful air to come inside and cool their room, and just enough for them to be unseen by the naked eyes of those living on the other apartment complex.
Rico's heaving was becoming too audible, but she didn't care. She stood still and calm as she reached for her toes, bending her body like a rubber band, while his boyfriend struggled like he was about to die. She held the position for 30 seconds and counted for him.
He grabbed his legs; Anna heard a pop from her boyfriend like a bone being dislocated from his body. She halted and checked on him as he laid wasted on the mat.
"I'm fine… I think." He slowly rose up and smiled. "Go on, continue."
Anna smiled back and continued her stretches. Yoga was one of Anna's go to relaxation methods especially when her weird appetite bobbed its ugly head.
Anna's hunger was unbearable and almost otherworldly. She ate most of the time and even then, she never gained weight nor was she able to satiate her grumbling stomach. She ate almost twelve times in a day, full heavy meals and yet she still felt hungry in between those hours.
The only time her appetite turned off was when she ate something raw with blood, a discovery that freaked her out the most. Rico didn't know of her predicament and continued to be clueless still, after 3 years of dating.
She felt embarrassed over her unusual cravings and often times snuck in the middle of the night to get some portions of the frozen meats in the refrigerator for her to consume. And it was getting worse as time went on. She only realized recently that her cravings were temporarily shut-off when both of them were making love or doing therapeutic yoga.
She discovered it about a year ago, after getting tired of having splurging so much money on food. She wanted to have a normal life and save some cash as much as she could, to plan their future. It was a decision where Rico never questioned and supported her all the way.
Anna could feel Rico's fatigue from where she stood. She signaled to him one more pose and they'll be done. Rico sighed and stood up. She knew how much her boyfriend hated the next move, the head stand.
Her skin suddenly prickled as she felt her hunger arising once again. Her gut started to clinch, she breathed deeply as she tried to calm her stomach down.
"Are you alright?" Rico approached.
"Yes, I am." She lied. "I-I just needed to...uhmmm…poop!" She ran out of the room and went straight to the bathroom where she focused on controlling her cramping stomach.
Anna managed to calm it down. It was a knack of her. She had always been a firm believer of mind over body philosophy.
Anna immediately acted as if she was flushing the toilet. She got out from the toilet drenched in both their sweats, while Rico laid on the bed staring blankly at the ceiling. He turned on the small fan and was still catching his breath.
She took some clean towel and handed it over to him.
"You're drenched in sweat." She smiled.
"I-I know…the air-con just broke." He laughed. "And we didn't give a fuck about it."
She laughed along with him and laid in his arms. Regardless of the sweltering heat, she was more than happy to be drenched in his sweat. After all, it was the least she could do for him, after she bugged him to do yoga sessions with her.
They gazed at each other as they laid in their wet bed. She hugged her tightly and he hugged back. Their bodies touched as their room began to feel like a sauna and their fan was uselessly blowing warm air. But neither one of them wanted to move. They didn't care. It was one of those rare moments that struck the both of them—not giving a fuck with what was currently going on around them.
She missed him so much. It had been almost a month since they last laid in her bed. The hospital life had been hectic for the both of them. Rico tended to the wards, while she was an Emergency Room Nurse. It was a difficult and complex situation between them especially with their schedules never overlapped with each other, except for this one instance.
She pulled up her mobile phone from her nightstand and played songs from Spotify. It was a plethora of 90s nostalgia wrapped under her library; she liked it, he liked it, they were contented.
"Ohh…is that the one your brother hated to hear?" She patted his chest as she hummed through the lyrics of the song.
"Yeah," He snickered. "He used to be bitter about it…up until last month."
"What was the girl's name again? Billie?"
"Yeah, that's what kuya said. I wonder if she would—"
"Stick around?" She sighed. "I hope so too."
"Yeah, I know." He reached for the fan and turned it on to max. "He's so unlucky when it comes to love."
"He needs a break. Even her daughter Chariza wished for it."
Suddenly, Rico's phone rang. Her boyfriend picked his phone from the other side of the bed and answered. It was his work. Her boyfriend sat up on the bed, his forehead creased at the caller's loud voice. She knew it from the get-go; the name of his head nurse popped up from his screen.
It only took a few back-and-forth conversations for the call to end, by that time Rico sighed and slapped the bed as hard as he could.
"Emergency from work?" She sighed.
Rico nodded and laid back to bed. "They wanted me there, now. He said we are understaffed. I highly doubt that!" He turned to her and clicked his tongue. "He just wanted me to be there because I asked him for a leave and told him that if he refused, I still need to take that day-off. That fucker really had to make it hard for us!"
Anna tried calming her seething boyfriend down, "I know it's frustrating, but just say yes. We are close to getting our abroad applications approved, just do it a little longer and then, we should be all set."
"Yeah, for us." He smiled to her and gave her a kiss. "That's our promise!"
They wrapped their pinky fingers together and touched their thumbs.
"Promise." She answered.
Rico took a quick bath and donned his uniform before leaving her apartment with a heavy heart. She smiled and kissed him as she escorted him by the door.
"Now, go tiger and get it!" She slapped his butt.
Rico couldn't help but smile and winked at her as he walked through the corridor. She went inside the room once again looking at the mess they made that afternoon earlier. Just like that, Rico's day-off ended with that one annoying phone call. She smiled and shook her head as she picked up their clothes scattered all over the living room up to their bedroom.
She placed their clothes on the hamper for laundry and fixed the bed. As she flattened the creases of their sheets, Rico's scent filled the air once again. His musky scent became even sweeter to her; it was sweet enough that it made her stomach growl.
She opened up her kitchen cabinet and revealed her stash of potato chips and corn chips in different brands. She took a couple out and began eating it as she watched her favorite show on her laptop. She finished eating two big packs of her favorite potato chip brand, but she was still hungry. So, she took another set of two and a plate-full of rice to satiate her, but it wasn't enough.
Normally after doing yoga sessions, she would typically be relaxed and full until the next meal, however, this time, she wasn't. She finished her plate of rice along with the chips; still nothing. She really hated her last resort, but this was the only way to satisfy her hunger.
She took out frozen meat from the fridge, sliced a few chunks of it, and ate it. Somehow, she was full. She sat at the sofa once again contemplating on what was going on with her. She had already consulted with a few doctors and specialists but nothing. They saw nothing. It wasn't a vitamin deficiency. It wasn't some hormonal imbalance; nor was of psychological nature. She just began to accept that it was part of her. Her voracious appetite.
After watching her series for a few hours, Anna finally slept on the sofa.
Anna never dreamt all her life. It was a weird fact about her that even Rico found it astoundingly odd. When she was asked, she would often lie straight to their faces, except for her boyfriend of which she always told the truth.
However, something was different that day. For the first time, she dreamt. The dream was odd, filled imagery of shadowy figures dancing underneath the moon. Their bodies swayed unencumbered at the sound of the beating drum; a cathartic sight to behold.
She stood at the far corner of that place and heard their ethereal calls over a name they kept on repeating. It began with "Asu…Asu…" but that was all that she could hear. All of the sudden, the drums beat faster like a heart racing and full of life.
The dancers' movement became more erratic as the lively beats became faster. She soon realized that the dancing people were no longer dancing. Their bodies flailed violently as the sound of the chaotic beat contorted them, disfiguring them into terrifying monsters.
As the beat continued, she saw the people within the circle grew monstrous wings, while others became more animalistic than man. Fangs and claws grew; some even separated their upper half from the rest of their bodies.
She stood their unmoving, surprisingly, she wasn't afraid. She never did once took her gaze off the transforming humans, even after witnessing such horrendous transformations. The drum stopped as well as the dance. There standing at the center, grotesquely formed monsters that she had never seen. They all stared at her with their bloodshot eyes until finally, the drums stopped.
She stared at them, confusingly. She could hear them speak a language that she haven't heard of before. She only heard ticks and clicks from their mouths.
Her hand started to change. She felt a jolt on her arm. She took a look at it and was horrified to see the skin suddenly peeled-off exposing coarse hair and darker skin. Her claws also began to grow and darken. She tried her best to prevent it from happening, but it was no use. Her hand became grotesque and looked monstrous.
She woke up catching her breath, bathed in her own sweat. It was already the second to the last episode of her favorite Koreananovela. She closed her streaming application and turned her gadget off. She was hungry again, but this time, she craved for something—his flesh.