Throughout the weeks, Dai-Tai felt her body grow stronger. She was now able to do at least ten pushups and thirty sit-ups. The fat that once circled her thighs and arms were now toned. Her calves had grown tougher, and there were small lines already forming on her flat stomach. The bluish-purple bruises on her arms and legs were fading to a pale yellow color, and the wounds on her knees were replaced by scabs. One day, Itzal didn't appear to show up, but it didn't stop Dai-Tai from conditioning.
She was able to do most of the exercises Itzal had taught her, but she still had trouble doing pull-ups. He told her to master the monkey bars first which she had done, but she still couldn't do the pull-ups. Staring up at the metallic pull-up bar before her, Dai-Tai wondered if her failure was caused by the height of the bar or her low jump.
Dai-Tai took a deep breath. I can do this, she thought assuring herself. I can do this. She cracked her knuckles, and to her surprise, her hands grasped the bar. A wave of accomplish washed over her as her body hung in the air. If only Itzal could see her now; the girl was smiling with pride. Straining to pull herself upward, Dai-Tai barely passed her chin over the bar. The aching sensation rushed throughout her arms that her muscles could no longer handle it. Dai-Tai dropped back down and massaged her arms with a sigh.
She took one more wistful look at the pull-up bar and headed over to the water fountain. The girl washed her face with the cool water, but the coldness on her skin was short-lived. The moisture eventually evaporated from the summer heat. Glaring her eyes from the sunlight, Dai-Tai scanned around the playground and was relieved to find an empty bench under a tree. The shadows casted by the tree branches allured her to bask under their protection from the sun...
~~~
Someone gently shook Dai-Tai awake. She almost jumped up to her feet when she saw Itzal standing before her.
Shaking his head, Itzal said, "You should never fall asleep in the park. It's dangerous."
Dai-Tai yawned and rubbed her eyes. It was the first time she had fallen asleep in a park. "Dangerous?" she mumbled. The girl wondered how long she had slept.
Itzal's eyes grew dark for a moment. "You're showing others that you're off guard."
Off guard? Dai-Tai wasn't quite sure what he meant, but she understood that she should never fall asleep in the park again. She remembered that Itzal wasn't in the park previously. "I thought you weren't coming."
The man grinned at her. "I was busy before. Come on now, I'll treat you to a bakery."
Dai-Tai widened her eyes at the treat. Nostalgic memories filled her mind when she remembered that Chenglei's brother used to treat her to sweets. She quickly trotted behind Itzal as they headed out of the park.
~~~
The aroma of sweet bread captured Dai-Tai's nose as she stepped inside the Chinese bakery with Itzal. The bakery in the afternoon was packed with customers, and there were no seats or tables spared. As she followed Itzal in the back of the store where the baked bread was, she passed through a table of strong-smelling coffee.
Timidly, the girl stood behind Itzal while he picked up a triangular sandwich in a plastic container. As he turned around, he glanced at Dai-Tai with a tint of confusion. "Why are you following me around?" he asked. "Go find something you like. I'm treating you remember?"
Oh, she thought. Usually her mother bought her bread in bakeries without asking what she would like. Dai-Tai turned back around and headed toward the cold display section near the cash register. The colorful cakes lined up in rows lured her forward.
There were so many cakes to choose. Dai-Tai almost drooled when she gazed at mousses and fruity tarts. Which one should I get? she wondered. The girl wanted to make the best decision; this would be her only time treated in the bakery and get whatever she like. Her mother would never buy any of the cakes for her since it was expensive according to her standards.
The round strawberry mousse caught Dai-Tai's attention. She didn't realize that Itzal was behind her.
"You want that strawberry one, right?" he asked.
Dai-Tai nodded.
After Itzal paid the costs, he handed Dai-Tai the paper bag which contained the cake. Dai-Tai was so grateful for him treating her to the bakery as they walked out of the store.
She looked up at him. "Thank you!" she exclaimed smiling widely.
Itzal remained giving her a grin as always. "You're welcome. Want to eat in the park together or do you want to go home?"
"Park," was the girl's immediate response. Thinking about returning home spoiled her good mood. "I don't want to go home."
"Why not?" Itzal questioned as they crossed the street to the park.
"I hate my ma," Dai-Tai replied bitterly. "And I know she hates me too. I rather be with you than her."
The man glanced at her curiously. "And why is that?"
The girl smiled at Itzal. "Because you're a nice person to be with."
Itzal pondered silently for a while. They sat on a bench and started to take their food out of the bags. Dai-Tai frowned at the big strawberry sliding off the mousse's pink cream. Plucking it off with her fingers, Dai-Tai stuffed it in her mouth. The sweet juicy fruit quenched her thirst, and she started to eat the cake ravenously.
Itzal bit his sandwich. "So, you are going back to school soon?" he asked through a mouthful of food.
Dai-Tai was too distracted by the delicious mousse that she didn't seem bothered about it. "Yes," she answered. "Next week on Monday." The girl remembered that her mother telling her yesterday that they had to buy school supplies soon. "On Sunday, ma will probably go with me to buy things for school."
"Might?"
The girl licked the strawberry cream off the fork. "She does it all the time. When she's supposed to go somewhere with me and is too tired, she stays home instead. I usually end up going by myself."
"Hmm… you're quite the independent girl," he remarked.
By the time they were done eating, it was time to go home. Itzal walked Dai-Tai home as she chattered nonstop about her life. She asked a few questions about Itzal's personal life, but his answers were usually vague.
~~~
The day Dai-Tai had dreaded finally came; the day before school started. She didn't expect her mother to keep her words to go to school supply shopping with her. The girl dragged herself to the nearest drugstore and tried to keep her mother's words in mind. "I gave you enough money to buy one pack of loose leaf, notebook, and folder," her mother's voice echoed in her ears. "If you decide to buy junk instead, it's your responsibility. I won't be giving you money again, so don't come crying to me if your teacher yells at you."
Entering the drugstore, Dai-Tai was relieved to feel the air conditioning cooling her skin. She wished there was an air conditioner to replace those fans in her home. She could picture her mother laying lazily on the couch with two fans blowing in her direction.
After gathering the items, the girl lined up for the cash register. Trying to fish out the five dollar bill in her shorts pocket, she pulled out the calico cat keychain instead. Dai-Tai stared hard at the miniature cat for a few seconds and panicked. Oh no! she thought. I left the money on top of the dining table!
Dai-Tai quickly stashed the school supplies in the wrong aisle and left the store. I can't believe I left my money. She scolded herself for being so silly while she headed back home. She wondered if her mother would laugh at her if she told her what had happened.
A familiar black car was parked in front of her building. Dai-Tai hesitated to past by it to get to the tenement. Before she could remember where she had last seen the car, the car's driver window rolled down.
"Hey, Dai-Tai!" called out Itzal.
A grin spread across the girl's lips, and she sprinted toward the car. "Hi, Itzal! I didn't know you have a car!"
Sunglasses were hanging down from Itzal's face, and he was wearing a camouflage cap. "Now you know," he replied as he took a glance at the girl. The smell of nicotine leaked out of his mouth, and Dai-Tai fought back the urge to take a step back. Itzal chuckled at her reaction. "You must really hate cigarettes, eh?"
"I guess…" she muttered very low but loud enough for him to hear.
"Well, I hope you get used to it," he remarked. "And you're quite in luck for bumping into me. I just bought bread from the bakery. Want to have some with me?"
Dai-Tai smiled. "Okay! But I have to get something upstairs first." She literally ran back inside the building and up the stairs. She knew Itzal would wait for her, but she didn't want to make him wait. When she reached her floor, a shout—almost a scream pierced through the hallway. Shivers flowed to the girl's spine as she froze. The cry soon faded, but Dai-Tai remained motionless like a stone.
What was that? she wondered frighteningly. Was someone having a fight? Where did it come from? Dai-Tai waited minutes for the sound to return, but the hallway remained silent. Maybe someone was angry, she thought coming to conclusion. Relieved that it was probably nothing, the girl proceeded to her room's door.
Right when she was about to knock on the door, the door creaked open startling her. Dai-Tai felt tension pulling her away from the door. Some part of her body was telling her to run, but she didn't. When the door opened all the way, blood drained out of the girl's face.
Her mother was facing toward the ceiling as her body lay on the couch. Blood soaked from her chest through the couch dying it red as her limp arms reached toward the rugged ground. Her eyes stared emptily at the ceiling yet her face recorded her horrifying murder.
"Ma!" Dai-Tai sobbed as she ran toward her mother. She tripped over a telephone that was thrown off from the table and smacked against the floor. Tears blurred her eyes, and she flinched back when she saw a man staring surprisingly at her from the kitchen.
The man was wearing a black face mask and was dressed all in black, but it didn't cover his round hazel eyes and thick lips. His gloved hands stopped on top of a box of matches on the kitchen counter.
Dai-Tai shook violently that she had forgotten how to get back up. This gave him an advantage for he quickly lighted a match within a blink of an eye. A small flame burst from the match, and he held it out to drop it teasingly. The girl gawked helplessly as the lighted match plunged toward the rugged ground. The small flame erupted into a large fire as it ate away the inflammable material. Dai-Tai's dilated eyes flitted among her dead mother, the man, and the fire spreading around her home. The dusky smell of smoke smothered her instincts—immobilizing her.
A sickening sensation squeezed her stomach when she saw a flash of silver in his hand. She stumbled back as he approached her like a stalking cat. He killed her mother, he set her home on fire, and now he was going to kill her.
Dai-Tai fled out the room. All she could hear was her sneakers pounding against the stairs, and the man chasing after her with a knife. Tears streamed down to her cheeks as the whipping wind mocked behind her. I'm going to die, she screamed in her head. I'm going to die! It felt eternity when she finally reached the bottom of the stairs, but someone blocked the entrance's door. It was Itzal seizing out a gun from his holster!
"Dai-Tai!" he roared, "take the gun from me now!" Itzal forced a Glock 19 into Dai-Tai's small hands.
Before she had time to think, she felt the coldness of the huge weapon sinking into her sweating palms.
"Pull the trigger at him!" Itzal shouted.
The man froze a few feet away from Dai-Tai. Her arms were shaking as they pointed the gun at the man. Her mother's blood on the couch, and the smell of fire blinded the girl. Fear slowly dissipated into anger and hatred. She wanted revenge; she wanted his blood on her hands.
Before the murderer could drop his knife into surrender, Dai-Tai pulled the trigger, and she was thrown back as the gunshot rang out toward his direction. Itzal steadied the girl from falling down as the loud gunfire almost made her ears bled. She refused to look at the man she killed and remained clutching the heated gun in her hands. A dust of gunpowder surrounded her weapon as she wept. It was over now. It was all over.
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