It had been a couple of minutes since Alan took the mysterious pill and suddenly collapsed. Thanks to Kokong's quick decision-making, he had jumped out of the boat to save him.
Wet and in anguish, Alan squirmed inside the boat like a man about to meet his end. Blood and foam came out of his mouth, releasing a nasty smell at the same time.
"Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! I told you many times not to take that pill!" Mang Tiko held Alan's hand with a mix of anger and regret. He should've used the tokon to knock Alan out before he could take that pill.
"Aaaagh. It hurts. It hurts!~" Alan cried. His body felt like it was being boiled alive by an unseen stove. His head throbbed with a pulsing pain that scattered throughout his entire body. His fingers and muscles twitched madly.
"What should we do, Uncle? I think that pill had poison! What should we do!!!?" Kokong panicked, staring at Alan helplessly. His wet clothes dripped as a result of saving Alan from drowning after he collapsed into the sea.
"How should I know!? Do I look like a doctor?" Mang Tiko barked before issuing a command. "Quick! Turn the boat towards the shoreline. Let's get this bastard to the nearest hospital!"
"Uncle, the hospital is about two hours away! Alan might not make it!" Kokong reminded him desperately.
"Then what the f*ck do you want me to do? Throw him away!?"
"I'm not saying that! What I mean is we need to maybe do some sort of first aid or something?"
"I know how to stop a wound and gulp a hundred beers in one go, but I ain't no sh*t when it comes to first aid for poisoning."
"How about if I try sucking it out?" Kokong suggested. His uncle glared at him.
"And then let you die from the poison too? Don't be stupid. Hurry up! Let's row as fast as we can toward the shoreline! Maybe we might be able to save him somehow. It's the least we can do."
"Yeah, you're right, Uncle." Kokong quickly positioned himself at the rear, replacing Alan's usual spot. Both of them started rowing like madmen.
"I know this bastard is dumb and unlucky, but I never expected it to be this bad!" Mang Tiko grumbled at the thought of all he had lost tonight. Not only would they miss their fish catch, but now they had to bring Alan to the hospital.
"Goddamn it!" he cursed under his breath.
The calm surface of the sea was disturbed by the speeding boat under the soft moonlight glow. With Alan's life on the line, they didn't hesitate to crash into coral barriers they would usually avoid. Their desperate faces were quite the contrast against the peaceful background.
"Where am I?"
Alan's calm voice jolted the two out of their intense focus. They stopped rowing and rushed to the middle of the boat.
Lying on his back, Alan was now wide awake, his eyes filled with serenity and clarity. But one thing they noticed quickly was a soft bluish glow on his left eye—where half of his birthmark was.
For some reason, their hair stood on end as they gazed at that glowing eye. It felt as though they were staring into the eye of a god.
In the next few seconds, the glow faded, returning to normal. Mang Tiko glanced at Kokong to confirm what he'd seen, but all he got was a dumbfounded look. Kokong had seen it too, but seemed too stunned to react.
"Did you see that glow in his eye?" Mang Tiko asked. "Are poisons supposed to do that?"
"I don't know. Ask him. He seems fine now."
They turned to Alan.
"What happened?" Alan asked with a confused expression while Kokong helped him sit up slowly.
"Remember the pill you pulled out from a floating bottle? That's what happened, you idiot." Mang Tiko raised his hand and flicked Alan's forehead.
"Ow." Alan winced at the stinging pain, but it was better than death.
"Does that hurt? Good. That's still not enough punishment for the damage you've done today."
"You scared the sh*t out of both of us, you know that?" Kokong added, still dripping wet.
"I hope your diarrhea is gone because I'm about to add new pain when we get back. You crazy bastard never listens to me. If it wasn't for Kokong, you'd be fish food by now." Mang Tiko nagged as he picked up his tokon and walked toward the front.
Alan tapped Kokong's shoulder gratefully.
"Thank you, Kong."
"Don't mention it. As long as you compensate me with a couple of cases of Red Horse beer later, we're even."
"Naah. I'd rather give you a sack of rice instead."
"Hey, you ungrateful monkey! It was me who saved you, remember? Right, Uncle?"
Suddenly, there was another collapse. Alan and Kokong's eyes darted toward Mang Tiko, who was now clutching his chest and falling to the floor. His face was drenched in sweat, and he struggled to breathe. His arms twitched, and he quickly lost consciousness.
It was a heart attack—a severe one.
"UNCLE!" Kokong rushed to his side, repositioning him and shouting for help.
"HELP! SOMEBODY! HELP!"
His voice echoed into the night, unanswered.
"Oh no, Mang Tiko!" Alan reached toward him to help, but Kokong shoved him away.
"It was you! You fcking piece of sht! You bring nothing but bad luck! Don't come near us!" Kokong angrily kicked Alan back into the mound of fishing nets.
Alan didn't retaliate. He asked quietly,
"How can I help? I don't know what to do, but I'll try my best. Just tell me."
"Then shut the fck up and start rowing! Can't you see my uncle is dying!? Use your fcking brain at least once!" Kokong screamed. His fury and desperation surged. Mang Tiko was his favorite uncle—the only one who stood by him.
His family hated him for being the opposite of his perfect older brother Kaizen, who was now in the U.S. for an international piano competition. Kaizen was talented, well-mannered, and brilliant. Kokong was the opposite—rude, reckless, and talentless.
But Mang Tiko supported him when no one else did. He picked him up after every mistake. He didn't want Kokong to follow his own failed path, but he still gave him love when no one else would.
And above all, they shared a bond over alcohol—drink together, fail together.
"I'm really sorry. You can count on me." Alan, understanding how important Mang Tiko was to Kokong, grabbed his tokon and took the rear.
PUSH!~ PUSH!~ PUSH!~
Alan's figure alone powered the boat forward. Sweat mixed with seawater. He didn't stop for a second. His whole body screamed for rest, but his will kept going.
They were in a treacherous area. The fast current pushed against them, and strong northern winds added resistance. This is why they usually had two or more tokon crew.
Below the calm night surface, the only sounds were Kokong's shouts trying to wake his uncle and Alan's grunts of effort.
"Can't you go any faster?! My uncle's dying here!" Kokong yelled.
"I'm trying! But the wind and current are against us! Maybe you can help too!"
"Then who's going to hold Uncle?! You want to take the blame if he dies?!"
"He will die if you don't help me row faster!"
"SHT! FCK!" Kokong, frustrated, laid his uncle in a stable position and grabbed a tokon.
"Hang in there, Uncle!" he shouted and started rowing with all his might.
The shoreline was about one and a half kilometers away. With three rowers, it would take ten minutes. But now? Even thirty minutes might be impossible.
"GRAAH!" "OAAAHRAAA!"
Their shouts echoed as they pushed their limits. After fifteen minutes, they finally passed the powerful current. The wind began to calm.
"Alan!" Kokong shouted from the front.
"Huh… yeah?" Alan was completely exhausted but kept rowing.
"Keep rowing. I'll check on Uncle."
"Leave it to me."
As Kokong tended to his uncle, Alan's vision blurred from exhaustion. His stomach growled painfully from hunger. His hands shook from fatigue.
Then a scream:
"IT'S ALL BECAUSE OF YOU, BASTARD!"
Tears streamed from Kokong's furious eyes as he swung his tokon at Alan's face.
Alan bent back just in time, dodging the strike.
"YOU KILLED UNCLE! YOU STUPID F*CKING CURSE!!"
A second strike. Alan ducked again, but the sudden movement made the floor beneath him collapse. He was trapped.
"W-wait! Don't tell me—"
"That's right! Uncle is dead! And it's because of you!"
Kokong raised the tokon again. Alan blocked it just in time. The impact numbed his arms.
Another blow was coming. Alan couldn't move.
It seemed like this was his end.
Or was it?
SLAM!
SPLASH!~
Everything turned into a blur.
In an instant, Kokong found himself underwater, choking. But suddenly, a hand pulled him back into the boat.
It was Alan—or was it?
"Calm down, kid. I got this."
Alan's calm voice shook Kokong out of his daze. Then he watched Alan moving to Mang Tiko and starting tapping his head, back, and chest in quick, precise movements—like a martial arts master you see in Kung Fu movies where they press some vital points to paralyze their opponents.
Swift. Accurate. Alan's gaze glinted mysteriously. A strange aura surrounded him.
Kokong felt pressure from the dumbest man in town.
"There. All done," Alan said calmly.
"Done?" Kokong stared. Mang Tiko was snoring, his chest rising steadily.
Before he could ask questions, Alan said:
"Next, I want you to drop the net right there." He pointed west.
Kokong obeyed instinctively. The moment the net dropped, a gust of wind pushed the boat in a wide arc. The speed rivaled that of three rowers.
"There's no fish here!" Kokong said.
"Who says?" Alan smiled.
The sea shimmered. Then the water churned. Millions of anchovies surged toward their trap.
"What the—?!"
Their net filled to the brim.
Kokong stared at Alan—now shrouded in mystery. The moon reflected in his eyes, glowing faintly blue.
"It's a good night for fishing, isn't it?" Alan said with a deep, enigmatic voice.
At this moment, Kokong can't help but ask himself, "Is this really Alan?"