The Workplace

It was the summer of 1998. The weather was so hot that Maria, who just turned 18 yesterday, went inside their four-storey Spanish-style white house to cool off. When she opened the main door, she felt the cold breeze coming from the veranda.

Ah! She thought.

She looked around the house and saw no one was there. She went to the family living room and found one of their maids cleaning it. "Have you seen my mama, Gertrude," Maria asked in Spanish.

"No, señorita. But I think Madame Nadya knows where they are," Gertrude replied.

She thanked her and went to the kitchen to look for Nadya. Nadya was their family cook for years and considered as part of their family. She was almost at the kitchen door when she heard voices talking in soft tones. She sensed that they were talking about an important subject. She also noticed that it should be a secret so she turned around and was about to leave when the door suddenly burst open.

"Maria!" She heard her papa's voice calling her name. "What are you doing here?"

She turned around and smiled sheepishly. "I was just looking for mama and Gertrude told me that maybe Nadya knew where she was so I went here."

Her papa looked alarmed and asked hastily, "Did you hear anything?"

Shocked, she shook her head and she saw her papa relaxed a little. He reached for her shoulders and told her, "Your mama is inside talking to Nadya and Martin. My goodness! You are really a young lady now."

She saw her dad let out a deep sigh and went upstairs. Puzzled by the sudden outburst of his father, she went inside the kitchen and asked her mama about him. "What's wrong with Papa?" Her mom smiled at her and smoothen her long black straight hair. She kept on doing this for a long time and that irritated her. She moved her mom's hands away and asked again,

"What's going on? Why are you all acting weird?" Nadya looked at her husband, Martin, then to Maria's mom. The secrecy irritated her more. She shouted, "If nobody wants to tell me what's going on, then don't! Don't worry! I will be leaving this place for college next month!"

She was about to walk out of the room when a hand stopped her. "I'm sorry, sweetie. It was just that we are worried and amused at the same time...sigh... you are already a young lady. You are ready, sweetheart. Isn't she?" Her mom asked the other two people in the room. Nadya and Martin just smiled and nodded.

She was really confused now. First, her papa acted weird and now, all of them? What's really going on? She let out a loud sigh of frustration and left the room, leaving them looking at her while she walked upstairs to her room at the fourth floor.

Later in the evening, Maria couldn't get some sleep. The air was humid and hot. She felt perspiration all over her body and her white camisole was sticking on her skin.

Irritated, she opened the door at the veranda and let the cool wind circulate her bedroom. She savored this for a moment when she smelled something weird. She looked around and saw nothing, though her nose picked up the scent was just in her room. It was sweet yet, at the same time, sour. The smell was coming from somewhere she believed but where?

To her surprise, she suddenly felt dizzy and held on to the white curtains on her bedroom window. She was starting to lose consciousness when she abruptly hit the floor very hard. To her relief, the floor was carpeted now. Her vision was very dim but she could see her feet under her white long thin camisole. She could hear people walking and talking inside the room, and she started to panic. She wanted to stand up but couldn't. Maria felt as if there was a huge weight laid on her chest. She tried to speak but couldn't either. Her mouth and throat were so dry like sandpaper. She wanted some water. Then she heard something from nearby… Was it just near her or from the outside?

The sound... or was it the chanting became clearer and louder. Why were the people in her room chanting? What were they chanting about? And what was it?

All of a sudden, she saw people around her who were wearing cloaks. Some wore white and some wore black. She couldn't focus her vision properly. She was really dizzy now and was trying hard to stay awake. Unexpectedly, two persons in white and black cloaks emerged from the back and knelt down beside her.

"Don't fight it, sweetie. Just go to sleep."

It was her mama! What was happening? Don't fight it? Why? What were these people doing inside her room? Who were they? Why were they wearing those stupid and dreadful cloaks on a hot summer night? She tried to asked these questions when she heard her father spoke. "Now, lay still and close your eyes, honey. Everything will be alright." Couldn't fight the dizziness anymore, she closed her eyes and went into a deep slumber. Before she lost consciousness, Maria heard the chanting became louder and clearer.