Tasia was fast asleep. Luckily they had lunch this afternoon when they arrived at the hotel.
Tasia was very easy to fall asleep, she was also often sleepy. Since a kid, Tasia's physique was not good. She often suffers from anaemia so that she got tired easily and fell ill. However, because of her cheerful and hyperactive nature, it was rare for people to see that Tasia was physically weak.
The girl woke up when she heard her cell phone ringing, it said on the screen that her grandmother was calling. Tasia snorted before she threw her heavy head again on the soft and comfortable white pillow. But the ring tone was still ringing loudly until it dug deep in her brain.
"Tasia.. picked it up already! It's noisy!" Tata shouted in half-conscious.
Meanwhile, Marya was not disturbed at all. Her friends always said that Marya slept like the dead. Maybe when an earthquake or fire occurs, if there were dead victims, Marya must be one of them.
"Hello .." Tasia answered lazily.
"Where are you, Anastasia?!" Asked her grandmother from across the phone in such a loud voice that the girl pulled the phone away from her ear with a grimace on her face.
"I'm on holiday with my friends, Grandma. I've already told you, and you've also permitted me." She answered. Again, this happened again.
There was a moment of silence across the phone, "Don't be naughty over there! Don't be like your mother, hung around carelessly that made her die! Don't bother your family! Do you think, it's an easy stuff to rise you since kid?!" she yelled.
"Oh, God! Grandma.. I wouldn't be naughty here. I promise you. It's already late at night. You should sleep now." She said quietly. On the one hand, she didn't want to disturb her friends' sleep, on the other she didn't want to yell at the grandmother she loved so much.
"I don't care! You have to go home now! Don't be a burden like your parents!" She snapped again. Tasia just sat quietly, still holding the connected phone to her ear, staring blankly ahead.
"Mom.. don't be like that, Mom.. it's already late, gosh! Mom please.."
"This is naughty Tasia! She's gone, she'll die too!" There was a noise from across the phone. Tasia just sighed in frustration.
"Tasia.. Anastasia.." Call Aunt Janet who had managed to snatch her mother's cell phone.
"Yes, Aunty?" Tasia immediately got up from her bed and tiptoed towards the bedroom door when she saw Tata who was moving, almost woke up again. She came out of the bedroom door and sat on the rattan sofa in the living room.
"Tasia, I'm sorry about your grandma. I just want you to always remember that your grandmother is senile. Don't let your emotions get carried away. Don't take it to heart, okay?" Aunt Janet said softly.
"Yes, Auntie. I knew it. After all, I really love Grandma. I wouldn't hate her just because she changed because of her Alzheimer."
Aunt Janet smiled in relief, "You are a tough girl, Tasia. Regarding your parents, they didn't bother anyone at all. We are all just like you, we love them. It was all just an accident, not anybody's fault."
Tasia nodded slowly, "I know, Auntie. Thank you." she answered with tears slowly trickling down her cheeks that she couldn't hold back.
"Come on, don't let your vacation get messed up. Everything that Grandma said, just let them go like a breeze. Now you sleep, so tomorrow you can have fun."
"Sure, Auntie. Thank you. Please help me take care of Grandma."
"Okay! Don't worry about anything here." Aunt Janet said before the call was hung.
Tasia lowered her phone limply. Slowly, her tears began to flow down freely. Tasia rarely cried, she was not easily getting sad even if someone did something bad or hurt her body though. Even when she fell and was injured she did not cry.
But she had one weakness. It was her parents who died in a tragic accident about five years ago.
Anastasia was the only daughter of Sony and Renata. The lives of her parents could not be saved due to a bleeding brain and internal organs that were destroyed in a single-car accident that they had on their way home from vacation.
Her grandmother, Sumia, was the only remaining family member who was very close to Tasia. You could say, that girl with dimples was the favourite granddaughter of her grandmother.
However, her grandmother began to show symptoms of Alzheimer one year before the deadly incident that claimed the lives of Tasia's parents. Then her illness became more severe because she was very down to see the death of her beloved son and daughter-in-law. Since then, Tasia's life had changed drastically, like plunging down a cliff into a sea of fierce waves.
She had to move out of her house to live with her aunt, uncle, cousin, and grandmother in one house. Tasia often felt lonely and she always received violence and scolding for no reason from her grandmother. Moreover, her uncle and aunt who were hard workers were rarely able to be at home. Her cousin also had a dozen of activities outside the home and focused on being champions of the science Olympiad, so she had to study and tutor here and there.
"I can't be like this! I have to be strong! You need to be patient, Tasia! Otherwise, your face will look puffy tomorrow! You will be ugly!" She said, trying to cheer herself up.
It was eleven o'clock at night. But the event had made her eyes refreshed and confused her mind into a mess.
"Perhaps the sea breeze will make my mood feel better." She thought.
Then she opened the main door and the sea breeze really made her black hair fly like weeds in summer. She didn't care about the cold sea breeze and still stepped outside wearing her blue flip-flops.
"Why is grandma always only mad at me? Is it because she used to love me so much? Could it be my cousins who cursed at me because they were jealous of me?!" She mumbled to get rid of sadness. Although, to be honest, Tasia was not a vindictive person. It was just a nag.
"Uh! My favourite sandals are so dirty. Damn you, Patra! He already knew my sandals were too small for him, yet he still wore them to play football." She cursed by taking off the sandals she was wearing in annoyance.
Tasia remembered what happened this afternoon when Patra impolitely borrowed her sandals without asking for her permission. Actually, Patra didn't use the sandals while he was playing football. He only used them to walk to the laterite soil field that they used to play football. Even though it was just a short walk, it had a huge impact on those cute sandals.
Tasia stepped resentfully along the shoreline, kicking the sand as pouting her mouth. She had tried to sing and so on, but still, she felt annoyed with what she had experienced. Her heart was so broken because of many things. Now even minor problems were brought up for her to blame.
Tasia walked barefoot, making prints of her feet along the shoreline. It was a very dark night, almost starless. But her heart was painful that the cold wind didn't bother her at all.
Suddenly she could remember the spooky myth on the beach. Now she realized that she was a coward. But her fear instantly subsided when she saw a little boy sitting in a beach hut. The boy was wearing a long-sleeved shirt and jet-black trousers.
Tasia wondered, what kind of parents would be so careless to let their child play alone around the beach at night like this?
She quickly walked over to the little boy who was sitting with his back facing Tasia's sight.
"You shouldn't be here, Kid! There is a myth story here. It was said, that in the sea, there is a mystical kingdom." Tasia warned the child who was about seven years old, from behind his back. Then she touched the boy's shoulder.
And the little boy slowly turned to her. Showed his face.
Tasia stared at the boy's face. Her eyes got widened and she felt that her heart was about to burst.