Chapter Five — Mango
The fifth chapter of my book that's not at all about mangoes...
“Hey — You!” Ms. Dian hollered down the hall. “You there, Ms. Nadar!”
“Me?”
“Yeah, you. We’re gonna need a third pair of hands, too—”
But before she had finished her sentence, Ms. Nadar had scurried away.
“Rotten bitch.” Ms. Dian mumbled under her breath as her eyes searched for another victim. “You there — come help us real quick.”
Val wanted to protest, but before any words came to her, Ms. Dian had dumped several cables into her arms.
“Follow me.”
Val obeyed. Ms. Dian had a presence about her, and Val didn’t feel it wise to object. Val watched as Ms. Dian’s slumped shoulders led the way down the hall, towards a ladder on the side of the building.
“I’m gonna stay down here with the battery storage units. You two head up to the roof.” She held up her walkie-talkie. “Ms. Mawar knows what to do. You just do whatever she says. Got it?”
“Yeah — Yes mam!”
With that, Ms. Dian spun on her heels and headed back from whence she came.
Val held on to the cables as Ms. Mawar climbed up the ladder, then tossed them up to her as she climbed up herself. It felt exciting being up on the rooftop — almost a little naughty, and freeing, as if she were breaking the rules. The breeze flowed through her hair as Val breathed in the fresh, warm air.
“Alright.” Ms. Mawar sighed. “Can you hand me that cable over there?”
“Sure.” Val glanced around. “So what exactly needs fixing?”
“This.”
Val bent over to get a better look — several wires had been slashed through.
“Was it a tiger, or a bear?”
“No bear.” Ms. Mawar said shortly. “There’s only one thing around these parts that can do something like that, and you had an unfortunate meeting with her the first day of school...”
“Oh.”
They sat quietly, working at a peaceful pace. Val reasoned this would’ve made for a great tanning spot, if it weren’t for the hazards.
“Sorry about Ms. Dian by the way. She can be a little rude sometimes.”
“Oh, it’s no big deal.”
“She can come off bossy, but it’s just her take-charge personality.” She looked back down at the panel she was repairing. “It put me off initially when I first met her, but she’s just a protective person. She sees herself — well, me, her, and Principal Arif, as the guardians of this school.”
“I get it.” Val muttered before turning around and letting her jaw drop.
An ancient priest stood on the edge of the roof. His long, black robes billowing behind him in the wind…
“It took me a while to come around to liking her, but now she’s my roomate. We also have a few, how do you say it in English? Sausage dogs? Yes, I think that’s right, Sausage Dogs.”
“Ms. Mawar...”
“Is that not what you call them? The dog’s shaped like hot dogs? I swear when they run it’s the cutest thing—”
“Ms… Ms. Mawar!” Val hissed. “Look!”
“What, why— oh!” Her mouth gaped, causing her to look hollow. “Oh my...”
They sat there in awe, until Ms. Dian’s voice crackled from Ms. Mawar’s hip.
“Come in, did you guys get the line going?”
Val slowly inched herself towards the man.
“Is everything alright? Come in, NOW!”
Ms. Mawar seized the walkie-talkie from her hip. “Hey,” she whispered shakily, “it’s happening again…”
The jingling of keys wafted through the walkie-talkie. “Okay, stay calm, I’m on my way, don’t do anything!”
Val continued inching towards him, she was halfway there...
“Ms. Val!” Ms. Mawar whisper-called. “Ms. Val, come back here!”
She was only a meter away. Val was about to reach out to him when the sun caught her eye. She rubbed them and opened them once more.
The priest was facing her now. He extended his arms, as if he were about to be nailed to a cross.
Val stumbled back towards Ms. Mawar, but it was too late; his arms wrapped around her. Val couldn’t remember being held so tightly, and then they fell backwards over the ledge.
Val could hear Ms. Mawar’s panicked scream, as she fell… down… down… down…
Her eyes fluttered open.
She found herself lying on the ground. The light was glaring directly in her eyes again.
“VAL — VAL — VAL!” Ms. Mawar screamed as she jogged to Val’s side. “Ms. Val, can you hear me?”
Val grunted.
She picked up Val’s hand. “Oh dear — Oh dear — Oh dear! Can you feel this? Can you move this?”
Val made a thumbs-up.
Ms. Mawar crawled over on her hands and knees toward Val’s feet. “How about this?” She pinched Val’s toes — hard.
“Ouch!”
Ms. Dian was at her side now. “I got the backboard. Don’t move, you could have a spinal injury.”
Val shook her head and sat up. “I—”
“I — what?”
“I feel… fine?”
“You’re not fine. You just fell off a building.”
“No, really.” Val flexed her hands. “I feel fine, great, nothing.”
Ms. Dian pulled Val’s head back and shone her flashlight in her eye. “What’re you doin—”
“What’s your grandmother’s full name?”
“My what?”
“What’s your grandmother’s full name? Just tell me!”
“Okay, um, it’s Señora María Luciana Palacio Herrado Gomez Maestro De las Osa—”
“We need to take her to the hospital right away!”
“You didn’t let me finish! Where was I... Maestro De las Osas Marrón. Some Colombians have long names.”
Ms. Dian and Ms. Mawar shared a look before examining her once more.
“Well, it doesn’t look like anything’s broken.” Ms. Mawar felt the back of her head. “There aren’t any lumps or scratches...”
“Her pupils are fine too.” Ms. Dian sighed as she peered up at the roof. “This place…”
“Alright, we’re gonna help you up now, but easy, okay?”
Besides being a little shaky, Val felt perfectly fine and surprisingly normal. They insisted on inspecting her from head to toe before Ms. Mawar gave her another ride home, just to be “on the safe side.”
“Man,” Val groaned, as she handed her helmet back to Ms. Mawar. “I thought those holy men were supposed to be ours, I don’t know, protectors… why would he do something like that?”
“You didn’t see her standing behind you? She looked murderous.”
A chill shivered down Val’s spine. “No, I didn’t.”
“Well, I’m okay, you’re okay, Ms. Dian’s okay… the cables will have to be finished another day.”
She offered one last wave before spinning her scooter around and driving off.
Val had barely entered the house when a small hand grabbed her wrist.
“It’s about time you’ve got home!” Yeo A’i sputtered. “I almost left without you!”
It had slipped Val’s mind to let Yeo A’i know she’d be late. “I’m sorry, it was just that—”
“Oh, we aren’t walking today.” She said certainly, as she slung her purse over her shoulder and dragged Val back through the front door. “We’re on a mission!”
“Wait, where are we going?”
“Don’t worry.” Yeo A’i sang as she unlocked her car door. “ You’re not allergic to dogs, are you?”
“No?”
“Good.” With that, Yeo A’i shoved Val into the passenger seat and sped off down the road.
Val messaged Khoo Hun Chhiau, letting him know she’d been kidnapped, and a dry “okay” was all she got in response. Val huffed, tossing her phone down into the cup holder.
“Okay, now can you please tell me where we’re going?”
An excited grin crept across Yeo A’i’s face. “Well, you know how we walk a bunch?”
“Ya?”
“Well, I was thinking, something’s missing. I couldn’t put my finger on exactly what, but then I was out gardening today, and it hit me— dogs! I haven’t had a dog in years, not since my daughter was little.”
“What does your husband think about this?”
“I didn’t ask him. Anyways I called my friend who owns a shelter nearby, and she said we can come anytime until seven.” Yeo A’i held up her bag. “I bought some treats. The dogs are gonna love us!”
Val wasn’t sure if this was a good idea, but she really wasn’t sure of anything anymore.
So Val and Yeo Ai chatted away— What breed should they get? Should it be a boy or girl? What size?
“I think we should find a dog with short hair. We don’t want it overheating on our walks.” The pair pulled up next to a sign reading: ‘Eng Lee’s Happy Animal Shelter, Established 1992.’
“I’m so excited — look at me, I’m shaking!”
Yeo A’i was right. She nearly took the mirror off the car next to her. By the time Val climbed out, Yeo A’i was already ten feet ahead of her, skipping through the double doors.
“Hello there–” Yeo A’i greeted the woman at the front desk. “We’re looking for an angel to take home with us today!”
The woman turned around, and the childish energy extinguished itself from Val’s body at once.
“Christ!” Val swore.
“Actually, it’s our policy that you submit an application. Once we do a home inspection, you need to wait six weeks before picking up one of our dogs… if, that is, you’re accepted!” Ms. Nadar sneered as she peered down her nose at Yeo A’i.
“Yes, Thuya — can I call you Thuya? Actually, I was told by Ms. Eng Lee that I’m already approved. Our daughters were pals at school, so she’s been to my house and everything. Here’s the email.”
Yeo A’i handed her phone over to Ms. Nadar, who barely glanced at it.
“I’m gonna have to confirm this.”
“But that’s her email address?”
Ms. Nadar held up her finger, as if to shush Yeo A’i. She dialed something into her phone. The call was brief.
“Well, it appears a severe lapse in judgment has been made... follow me.”
Val and Yeo A’i shared a glance, before following behind Ms. Nadar.
“So,” Val spoke up, “you volunteer here?”
“Yes, for several years now. They’ve begged me to come on full time… ”
At that moment, a dog larger than Val bounded towards Ms. Nadar, barking, snarling, and foaming like a rabid mess. Ms. Nadar leaped into Val’s arms.
“Really?” Yeo A’i stressed.
“Yes really, but since they couldn’t hire me, the staff promoted me to a brand new position.” She pointed towards her volunteer badge. “I’m the managing volunteer of: “Sanitation, health, and intestinal transitions.”
Val’s chest lurched. She got it... how did Ms. Nadar miss that?
“So, you’re the head volunteer of… shit? Am I right?”
Ms. Nadar stopped in her tracks. Her eyes widened, her nostrils flared. Wow, she really had missed it. “No, no, you’re mistaken—”
“Really, then what exactly does the managing volunteer of Shit— I mean, sanitation, health, and intestinal transitions do exactly?”
“I clean the pens, and make sure when other people clean them, they do a good enough job!”
“And what do you have to clean in these pens?” Yeo Ai joined in.
Ms. Nadar shook her head and glared in the opposite direction. Val could have sworn she saw a tiny tear. Maybe she should’ve kept her mouth shut, even if it was Ms. Nadar.
They made it down the final row of pens, where Yeo A’i stopped in front of a fluffy pooch.
“Awe, what a cutie!”
Val peered over his information sheet. “This one is heartworm negative, good with kids, and his favorite treat is peanut butter.”
“Can we have a look?”
“He’s a long-haired breed, so his hair will mat the second you don’t brush it out!” Ms. Nadar snapped. “I see this dog with a young family. Maybe you’d prefer a senior dog, like yourself.”
“Senior dog!” Yeo Ai shot back. “I ran a marathon in four hours and thirty minutes last year. I can probably outlast this thing several times over. Now take him out!”
Ms. Nadar groused a bit more, but ultimately realized there was no point. It only took a moment of frolicking for Yeo A’i to make up her mind.
“What should I put as her new name on this form?” Yeo A’i wondered to anyone within earshot. “I’m gonna go with: “Princess Diana!”
“He’s a boy.” Ms. Nadar growled.
“Mhmm, well then, Prince Diana it is!”
“You can’t be serious?”
“Oh, I’m dead serious.”
She finalized her signature, and Val, Yeo A’i, and a leashed Prince Diana sashayed out the door, just as the sun was setting.
“That’s strange.” Yeo A’i sighed.
“What’s strange?”
“It’s just that I’ve never been to an animal shelter where the biggest bitch wasn’t a dog.”
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