爱の恐惧

Love Phobia

[ Chapter 14 ]

We cannot live unaffected by love,

We are

most alive when we find it,

most devastated when we lose it,

most empty when we give up on it,

most inhumane when we betray it,

most passionate when we pursue it

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I've finally started working at " One-Stop Love Service Center ". I conclude Pahim is not only good at fortune telling, his marketing gimmick of showcasing me at the front desk work wonders, I manage to lure in numerous groups of school girls to the center everynow & then, on the pretense of getting their fortune told, but their real motive is to get to know me. For the first time ever, the limelight was shone on me, I never knew I could be that popular among the opposite sex. The daily work & all these attention has diverted away all the unhappy thoughts previously.

" Reagan .. good job done ! " Pahim patted on my shoulder saying.

" thanks .. just doing my job yea .. " I replied

" hoho .. it seems you're enjoying this limelight shone at you .. but beware .. cupid not only fire the arrows of love, but also laid traps to kill too .. hoho " Pahim winked

" huh ? " I went into a blank.

Pahim's words usually contains wisdom that not many could understand. I presume thats his greek sense of humour & laughed it off my thoughts.

" o .. ya Pahim .. will you mind from next week onwards, I only work on weekends ? I'm going for my 3 months PRE-JC ... "

" uhhh ~ sure ... go ahead ! go enjoy your youthfulness !!! young fella ... hoho ~ "

" hahaha .. yea !! back to studying !!! I sort of miss my mugging days man .. keke "

" hoho .. all the best yea ... & don't forget to come back during weekends .. the center needs you !!! hohoho "

" suries " I nod smiling.

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" juliet dear ... quick make a decision .. my mum is nagging at me .. we are so late for registration for PRE-JC !!! " Joanne spoke in a hastily tone.

" yes yes .. my dear .. don't worry .. the JC won't run away right ? hehe " I spoke in a assured tone.

" can't stand you .. quick look at the choice given again & decide plssss "

" hey .. joanne .. why don't we play a little game of fate ? "

" huh ? its not the time for a game right ... "

" relax .. hear me explain .. look there are so many choices right ... you & I just write on a piece of paper respectively our choice then tally .. if its the same choice then we will proceed to that JC !!! wooooo ~ how about it ? hehe .... "

" what if it is different .... " Joanne gave me that annoyed look.

" aiyo .. it won't be .. I believe in both of our intuition .. lets try .. faster !!! hehe "

" just can't stand you & your fate .. tsk tsk ... " joanne spoke in a jokingly manner ...

Joanne thoughts start to ponder, wondering what choice will Juliet make. Slowly she started writing on the piece of paper, in mind thinking of the promise with Romeo, which was to study together at the same JC .. she folded her paper & placed it under her pillow ..

Juliet thoughts started to wander on the choice she should make. Just then, she remembered how her dad used to tell her stories of his own JC life, slowly Juliet write on the paper too. She has decided to go back to search for her dad long lost memories ...

" DONE !! " both me & Joanne say it together in a synchronised manner at the same time .

" hahaha ~ see .. I told you both our intuition gonna work wonders .. we did it at the same time .. keke " I spoke

" yaya .. lets see the results first ... " Joanne retorted.

" Lets open our paper together at the count of 3 ... !! 1 ....... 2 .... 3 !!!

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" Reagan .. so have you make a decision on the JC you want to go ... "

" yea .. Ah pa .. "

" oo ~ so which JC is that ? "

" the JC that you & ah ma went through ... " I replied.

Dave went silent. He was somehow reminded of his own story there ...

" I used to remember ah ma telling me her story of JC life when i was young .. I wanted to go back & search for her long lost memories .. "

Dave's heart sunk upon hearing that ...

" yea ... a long lost story there ... " Dave mumbled to himself

" huh ? what story again ??? " I asked ...

" oh ... no luhs .. i was saying the story between your ah ma & me ... "

" I never hear you mentioning it before, neither did ah ma tell me before ... can tell ??? " I spoke in a exctingly manner.

" its late ... some other time ba .... " Dave walked back to his room solemnly.

I was left dumbfounded in the living room. Somehow the negative response from dad tells me this story wasn't a happy one ....

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I lied down on my bed, staring at the empty walls within me. Just then Pahim's words struck me again ..

As your feelings has finally reveal themselves in front of love, your destiny awaits you ... for you shall be the key to conquer the phobia .. It shall starts from the tale of star-crossed lovers to the tale of S'Agapo."

" tale of star-crossed lovers ? it seems so familiar ~ hmmmmm " my thoughts start to search back ...

" EUREKA !! EUREKA !! EUREKA !! I remembered it !!!"

I guess being with Pahim for a period of time has somehow influenced me, I've picked up some greek words from him, & like to mimic his expressions at times. Eureka is an exclamation used as an interjection to celebrate a discovery. It comes from the Ancient Greek ..

I quickly ransacked my room searching for it, the long lost presence of it ...

"the tale of the pair of star crossed lovers - Romeo & Juliet"

I finally found it ... this lost book that shares the memories of me & Juliet ... I brushed off the dust from the book looking at it once again. The words that were written on the cover still captivates my imagination. This book still carrys the mysterious aura within it, it still won't budge after all these years, this book just couldn't be flipped open.

I further explored the book, then i felt a heart shaped behind the hard cover of the book. I turned around & source for the carved shape. Then i saw it .. it was the same piece of exquisite carving work i saw back then at my primary school table. The same piece of R & J carving work on the book. The R & J was deeply carved onto the book with the heart shape surrounding it ... I remember it vividly, it was the exact same design how the R & J was carved on my primary school table. I went blank for that moment of time...

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" Juliet dear ... we are gonna be late !! quick .... " Joanne quicken her footsteps saying.

" come on .. its only the first day & moreover its orientation week .. relax ... don't get so excited !! hurhur .. you can't wait to see all the dashing guys ar .. " I joked.

" blah .. don't you know its always important to have a good impression to the seniors & your fellow school mates .. "

" yes yes ... noted .. Joanne schoolmate .. " i saluted her in a teasingly manner.

" sighs* should have wrote a different answer on the piece of paper back then ... " Joanne replied back jokingly.

"awww .. come on .. you're my sister !!! you won't have the heart to do so, moreover I already told you that both our intuition will work wonders .. hehe " I winked back

" yes yes ... noted Juliet schoolmate .. " Joanne mimic my salute in the same teasingly manner.

We both laughed at our silly manner, & soon after we finally arrived at the front gates of the college.

" we're gonna be here mugging for the next two years of our life ... so lets breathe in the aura of our college !!!!! " I joked

" you & your theory again ... tsk .. come on lets go .... " Joanne pulled my hands & dragged me with her.

" welcome to victoria !!! let our victorian culture lead you to victory !!! victory !!! victory !!!" shouts & cheers could be heard among the seniors as we walked pass the pathway.

It was a welcoming cheer from the seniors to us, freshies. It was kinda akward, as if me & joanne was walking in the limelight being shone at us. I guess I'm not used to this type of attention afterall.

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I sat down in one secluded spot waiting for the orientation to start, with thoughts still lingering upon last night discovery. Thoughts started to intertwine with one another, making me bewildered by my own discovery.

" Hey Reagan ... its starting soon .... " someone shouted at me ...

I climbed out from my seat, & awake myself from this slumber.

" I can't possibly make new friends with this mood of mine .. hurhur .. its time to start afresh, & I shan't think no more since its all over between me & her " I thought to myself.

I ran towards the crowd, getting myself mentally prepared for the orientation.

" Alright ... arts group 1 .. gather here .... pls !!! " one of the senior was gathering us.

" Alright ... arts group 3 .. gather pls .... !! "

It was a completely messy scenario, mixing up many groups of students.

" we gonna take attendance ... so pls respond if your name is shouted !!! thanks ~ "

" REAGAN CHEN !! REAGAN CHEN JUN FENG !!! "

" JULIET CHEN !! JULIET CHEN FENG LING !!! "

" Here !! " Reagan responded.

" Here !! " Juliet responded.

[ to be cont .. ]

One half of me is yours, the other half yours-

Mine own, I would say; but if mine, then yours,

And so all yours!

william shakespeare