The 100th Guy (English - Uned...

Chapter Four
Because it's the beginning, it's good

“100.”

          I slowly stood from my seat to approach the 100th guy. Something inside me was doubting. Should I approach him? Should I still continue this? Was I just playing with myself?

          “Midori,” I whispered to myself. “You waited. And now, he is already here. There is no turning back!”

          I nodded, realizing that my thoughts were right. I started this, I would do this, and I would end this. Whatever might happen, I would just let Fate move the chess pieces.

          “Got ‘ya!” I ran after him and held his arm to stop him from walking. He studied me from head to toe, then looked at my face again. “Hi! Would you like to say hello?”

          He looked around him for a while. I loosened my grip on his arm. He looked lost and it seemed like he had no idea of what was happening. I wanted to snap him out but he suddenly looked at me. And again, he scanned me like I was someone from Mars.

          “I already got you and there is nothing you can do. Whether you like it or not, you will go on a date with me.” I winked at him and I even smiled just to change the awkward atmosphere between us. But he just stood there frozen. Then a knot formed on his forehead. I scratched my head, feeling like an idiot. So counting the 100th guy was a stupid idea after all. “Okay, yeah...” I motioned my hand to tell him that he could leave and then turned my back on him. But just as I was about to walk away, I felt a weight on my shoulders and the next thing I knew, he was already beside me.

          “That’s an interesting offer,” He pulled me closer to him with his arms around my shoulders. I just stared at him with total surprise on my face. He got a different twang, something that only rich people could do. “Do you know a good place? I know a lot.”

He just kept pulling me to some direction I did not know where would lead us. When I got the chance, I removed his arm on my shoulders and he stopped walking. “Wait—”

          “Why? I thought we are going on a date.”

          My tongue felt like splitting into two and my intestinal juices seemed to lump to my throat. Was this really how a date goes? Was the ‘arm-on-the-shoulders’ a must?

          “Come on! I know a good place! Are you in for parties?” I did not answer. “Oh, not. How about music?” I still did not answer. Then there was silence between us. It felt so awkward. I pushed him on a date and now that he was responding, I just stood here like yeah, a Martian lost on earth!

          He took a step forward, I took a step back. He took another step to me, and I took another step away from him.

          “You know me, don’t you?”

          “W-What?” I asked, still hard for me to do because of the lump forming on my throat.

          He removed his eyeglasses and I was taken aback. He looked so gorgeous. I even thought I already saw him before but then I did not even know the guy. It was just that... he was tempting. He got that special aura, a force— something that would attract you, like a magnet, or gravity.

          He looked around and then put his eyeglasses back.

          “You know me, right?” he again asked. I just shook my head because it was true that I did not really know him. He bit his lower lip and remained silent for a moment. And when nothing seemed to be happening between us, he spoke, “You should have not asked me to go on a date with you if you would just act like that. You know, you are lucky. I am the one you asked. What if it was not me? What if it was some other guy who would take you for their advantage? What would you do? Could you fight back? Pardon me, but you look weak. There are many guys here finding someone to go on a date with. See that man there?” I looked to where he pointed and saw a bearded man seated under the tree. “What if he is a snatcher? Or a pedophile? Or someone who would kidnap you and get your intestines?” I stepped back hearing his assumptions. My body started to shiver, aside from the coldness because darkness has already succumbed, because of what he was saying. At first, he just sounded like a stranger who cared as a person, but as he kept on speaking, he sounded like Avril, as if he would really care that much for someone unfamiliar. “How far could you run? Are you even an athlete? With that lean body? You know, Miss, the world that we have today is unsafe. Everywhere you go, there are bad entities flying everywhere. So don’t let your guard down.” He raised both my hands and clenched my fists into fighting position. “Hmm? Take care!” He patted my head like I was a puppy before he left.

          I just watched his retreated back, walking away from me. The 100th guy was walking away from me. The sky was already black, stars started to be seen glimmering. My eyes went back to him. When he was slowly disappearing, my left foot stepped forward. A part of me kept on slapping on my face how long I waited for the 100th guy and I would just surrender in the end, while half of me reprimanded me of how stupid I was just letting go of such a fine man. Both sides were ticking me off, and both of them only meant one thing...

          I should run after him.

          And so I did.

          I was able to catch his arm. At first he was shaken seeing someone grabbed him, but when he clearly saw who did it, he smiled. The nervousness, the doubt, the confusion inside me all disappeared. Just because of that smile.

“Hey,” he hailed as he faced me.

          I ran after my breath, still holding his arm. When I could already speak, I tried, but my mouth wound not open. And he just stood in front of me wearing a charming smile on his picturesque face. Seeing him like that, everything heavy I felt was lifted. “Can... we?”

He did not speak for a while. I was waiting, hoping, that he would say ‘yes’. “Where do you want to go?”

          “That’s a yes, right?”

          He chuckled. I felt so ashamed of myself. “How could I say no to you? Let’s go!”

          He got my hand and pulled me. But then I stopped walking again just to clear one last thing. “You are not a bad person, are you?”

          He smiled at me, and at the back of those sunglasses, I saw a pair of eyes also smiling. “Of course I am not. Don’t worry. I will not hurt you.”

          And then we started walking, my hands on his… like the world had known us for a lifetime. Like there was no one on earth but us.

          Us.

“Wow! You are so good! How did you do it? I want to try!”

          I reached for the guitar but he just pulled it away. This guy was like more than a feet taller than me, just imagine how high I should jump just to reach for the guitar.

          “Hey! I want to try it, too!” I protested when he raised the guitar in the air then he stuck his tongue out. I even heard someone near us laughed. When I glanced to where the hoot came from, I saw some kids hiding behind the karaoke machine- obviously watching us.

          When I faced him, the guitar was already right in front of me. I got it from his hand and strummed a little bit hard, “I can beat you. And besides, it seems like you have been here everyday. Maybe you already memorized these things.”

          “Try harder.” He crossed his arms and leaned his left shoulder to the Guitar Hero machine.

I looked around me first; everyone was busy doing their stuffs. Some were shooting balls, others were playing those ‘you-can-never-win-this’ games. But no one really cared how fool they looked while they play. They were just enjoying every minute in this theme park. The worry-less laughter and smiles in their faces pulled a string in my heart. The stars were all watching, shining more than it did last night. It was like this night was very meaningful, and my heart wanted to see more of this, to feel more than what it felt now.

          “’You nervous?” he said fighting back his laughter.

          I smirked and spoke like how he did, “Try harder!”

          He ran his fingers through the machine and chose the song for me which I thought was unfair. But then, the song selection flashed on the screen and I discovered how easy that song was. It only had a star, which meant that it was one of the easiest songs in the playlist. I glanced at him and he just gave me a mischievous look. The song started and I tried my best to end it perfectly and flawlessly. But who was I kidding? I did not even reached the climax because I got too many mistakes and the machine started to say “You failed!”. It even repeated those two words and I swore I did not like how the people around us looked at me. It was like they were voicing, “Poor you. Can’t even do good in Guitar Hero. Easy.”

          He was laughing when he got the guitar off me. I wanted to pounce him and show that I can do better in Taekwondo, but I ended up laughing with him.

          “But you are still not a fair player. How did you do it? You’ve got the most difficult song yet you did not miss any key? Was your play recorded?” I got back to the machine and checked it like I knew how. He got my arm and pulled me in front of him.

          “That’s because I am perfect.”

          “And who told you?”

          “My fans!”

          I just gave him an incredulous look, not knowing if I should laugh or just strangle him. He was too full of himself and it seemed so innate. Ignoring his vanity, I tried to get the guitar back, “Let me try once more and beat you—” but he pulled it back and put it on its bracket. “Hey! I will have to beat you first.”

          “Nah, let’s just go to some other place. Don’t worry, you’re still beautiful even if I beat you.”

          “Could you not jest around?”

          “Jest what?”

          “I heard you, you said I’m beautiful.”

          “What? I said that?”

          “I heard it loud and clear, you jester!” I rolled my eyes on him yet he just kept denying with a busted look on his face. He was trying his hardest not to smile!

          “I did not say you are beautiful. I just said, let’s go.” He smiled teasingly and bumped his elbow to my side, “You’re fantasizing, huh? Don’t tell me you like me?”

          I suddenly choked hearing his words. I did not know what made me choke, probably my lungs wanted to come out because it could not handle too much air, or maybe my juices wanted to get out of my intestine and I would just vomit on him. “What? Don’t you feel it’s getting cold here? So airy.”

          He tsked. “Let’s just go… beautiful.” He walked pass by me and started strolling away . I was just left here frozen, feeling like a total fool. He really said that I was beautiful, and now he would tell me that I was fantasizing over him and that I liked him? He really had those guts.

          When I saw a horror house at the corner of the theme park, I instantaneously grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him towards it. I had always loved horror houses. When we were young, Avril and I usually went to these kinds of places just to scare ourselves and go home almost crying in the end. But I really enjoyed horror houses. It was like the the more you scream, the more your worries lessen. And as you leave, you would just find yourself laughing, like nothing happened.

          “Where are we going?” He asked me, but as soon as we were approaching the corner, he started to become heavy and it made my pulling him difficult. “H-Hey! W-where are you bringing me?”

          I glared at him with my knotted forehead. Then I taunted, “You're scared, right?”

          “N-no! Of course not!” He put his hands on his waist and looked at the horror house, then pointed at it. “That’s not even scary! Look— Oh my God!”

          I almost fell down laughing when he sat there like a child and covered his face with his hands. He was pointing at the horror house and apparently boasting his courage, but when someone in her white lady costume came out, he just jolted and all the manliness in him was gone with the wind.

          “Could we just go somewhere else?”

          “Are you really scared with this?” I asked in disbelief. I was admiring how manly he was and now what? Such a hunk would be scared of a horror house?

         He did not speak. He just walked around with his hands on his waist. I was just watching him walk here and there. Honestly, this guy was kind of different. He was wearing a coat, a thick one to add, but the atmosphere was humid. Having that on him would feel sticky. He was also wearing his sunglasses… at night. It was already dark and he still had those tinted sunspecs blocking his sight.

          “Let’s just go somewhere else,” I told him.

          He gazed at me and said, “But you like it there, don’t you?”

          “But you don’t.”

          “But I can… wait for you here.”

          I snickered. I thought he was going to say that he would join me even though it was scaring him. “Doesn’t it sound so wrong for a date?” He gave me an apologetic smile. He was about to insist but I could see that he was just doing it because I wanted to go. So I just said, “Let’s just say that we can’t get all the things we want.” Then I pulled him to some other place that I thought would be a pretty substitute.

          “Then, where are we going now?”

          “To some place where only the stars could see us.”

          He did not speak anymore and just let me drag him to somewhere. When I saw the words, “restricted area” on the sign board, I tried my hardest for him not to see it. I was not really a gatecrasher, but this time, I had the urge to be one. Thanks to darkness he did not notice what was written.

          “What’s this?” he asked.

          “Just come with me,” I answered.

          We passed under the rope where the little sign board hung and we went up the hill. It was already dusky, but I did not know why I suddenly had the impulse to go up here again.

          When we were already atop the hill, I saw him dropped his jaw. It was just a small hill, with only two big sturdy trees stood on top. It was grassy and the humidity of the night made these little friends dewy. We both sat at the best spot— the front middle. The city lights had a different glow from here. And when you look above you, there were the stars, shining brightly. Effervescent. You could clearly see the difference of the lights from the earth to the heavens. And of course, the skies have a better view.

          “This is cool,” he said, staring at the lights on the city. “How did you discover this place?”

          “I have been going here for ages. My brother first brought me here when we were in high school. From that day on, I have always loved this place, most especially at night.”

          He did not speak. He was just staring at the luminosities. I gaped at his calm face. He removed his spectacles and there I saw him again. He was like a drawing, someone surreal. His features were sophisticated, but there was nothing fascinating. Until his lips formed a curve and my heart skipped a beat. I did not know what was with that smile that made my heart forgot to do what it should. Maybe everyone could smile like him, but only he could have that smile.

          He raised his index finger and pointed at something, “Do you see those lights? They are all shining so bright. And we are enjoying them. But do you know the truth? Sometimes, they just want to dim so the people would not look at them anymore.”

          I did not know if it were the lights that he was talking about anymore, or something else. “But some lights wanted to shine even more, but they just can’t. Because too soon… they’ll just be gone without any traces. And no one could ever see them. Not anymore.” I lay on the ground and looked on the black canvas above me. When he saw what I did, he lay too. And we both stared under the sky where the stars were shining paint sprinkled on the dark hessian. “Do you know why the stars are better than city lights?”

          “Why?” he answered, and by that time, I had the feeling that he was not the guy I was with just a while ago.

          “Because we are the stars. When we soon leave the world, our souls will go to the heavens, and we will shine for our loved ones to see. And there we will be, the stars. The more you shine, the more you will be remembered.”

          I glanced at him, only to find out that he was looking at me too. “Are you going to die?”

          I smiled at him. “Everyone will die.”

          “But why are you saying things like that? Doesn’t it scare you that you are talking about death?”

          “Why should we be scared of death? Everyone will die anyway. We should not be afraid of dying. We should be afraid of not even trying to live. Because not even living when you are breathing is wasting life worth lived.”

          We just lay there, staring at each other. But I just settled my eyes on the sky. Because the more I look at him, the more I appreciate his eyes. And I did not want to die if I caught him smiling, because my heart for sure would skip a beat. Or maybe beats.

          Minutes of silence passed and he stood. “Let’s go somewhere else.”

          I sat on the ground and looked at his silhouette. “Where shall we go?”

          He looked at his wristwatch then pulled me to stand. “Let’s go. We could still catch up.”

          Then we walked our way down the hill. I was walking behind him when he came to me. “You should not walk behind the guy. The guy should walk behind you. Or if you don’t want it that way, just walk beside him.” Then he got my hand and we walked side-by-side. He was not really holding my hand, but my wrist. But my eyes could not get off that sight. Was this really how a date goes? If yes, then it was spectacular, even more spectacular than the stars.

          When we got to the ferris wheel, he left me on one place. He approached the conductor of the ride and talked to him for a while. Soon enough, when the wheel stopped spinning, the people began to exit the ride.

          He came to me and pulled me as he said, “Let’s go.”

          We were the first ones to ride, and I was stupefied when the wheel started to spin without anyone riding but us. I looked at him and he was just smiling at me.

          “Why… Why did the other people not ride— Oh!” I held to my seat and he got my arm when I seemed to off-balance. I looked down and realized that we were at the topmost part of the ride and it stopped. “Is this thing still working?”

          He softly laughed. “Don’t be afraid. It will really stop at one hundred-eighty degrees.”

          I nodded slowly. It was really awkward being in this position. We were in front of each other and we were only, like, three feet away from one another. And there he was, just staring at me. And what could I do? Look away? Then it would be obvious that I was feeling so odd. “What are we going to do here? Just… stare at each other?”

          He again smiled because of what I said. And I was kept enthralled by that same smile over and over again. “I just want to show you something.”

          “What is it?”

          We just waited for a while and then few minutes more, I heard people shouting, “10… 9… 8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1…”

          And colourful fireworks started to fill the skies. The sprinkled paint of stars vanished for a moment when smear of vibrant paint blotted the black canvas. There were red, green, blue and yellow ones. All wonderful. All marvellous. Then, the ride started to run again. But my eyes could not get off the sky. Until they were all gone.

          I faced him and he was just staring at me.

          “Is that what you wanted to show me?” I asked.

          “Not just that,” he uttered sympathetically. Then he leaned forward to me and the next thing I knew, he was about to kiss me. A  stranger was about to kiss me. The 100th guy was about to kiss me. Was it what I wanted? Was this the date that I was talking about? Was this part of the list I made?

          But all my mind said was no. A kiss was not everything. It was not what I asked for. So I pushed him away and just as we landed on the ground, even though the ride was about to go on spinning, I managed to jump off it and ran away.

          There was something inside me that wanted to go back. But a larger part of me told me it was not right. That I should just leave.

          And I just ran away.

          Not because I was afraid. But because it felt so wrong.