The Blind/Gangster

Chapter Six

Eunice Mariano

"You're alone?" Dovan asked me while I was sitting on one of the benches here in the pool area.

"I'm sorry, who are you again?" I asked with sarcasm. Rolling my eyes and sighing in disbelief.

"It's Dovan, why can't you recognize my voice? I am the only one who has this voice."

"Oh. Yeah. But I just want you to know that whatever happened last night was meaningless." I said and looked up at him. I noticed his body, buffed up with muscles and cuts, flexing everything in front of me. I looked around and noticed that all the men who were in the swimming class wore swimming trunks, revealing their bodies built for battle. I tried not to look too long at their bodies and too amazed by it. "I mean, if that made you feel like you had a very strong connection with me, then I will tell you this, that is what is pathetic to me, so please don't talk to me, like it is as if we were something more than nothing." I explained to Dovan and looked down on the tiles. But then, someone stood in front of me, so I looked up and saw Zulius's new body structure.

"Where's Mollie?" Zulius asked.

"She doesn't have a swimming class," I answered. He was looking down at me, smirking, and looking at his friend Dovan.

"You look hot in your swimsuit," Zulius said, smirking. I laughed.

"You all looked dark in my eyes," I whispered. "Dark enough for me to kill." I said in my mind, and the professor came in, wearing a white shirt and pants.

"Eunice, do you know how to swim?" the professor asked me.

"Yes, Sir," I answered and stood up.

"Maybe you should sit this one out, Eunice," Yasmin said, and she and her friends laughed like anyone else.

"Yeah. Because you will never know who would pull you down under the water." Rose said.

"And you can never point fingers, can you?" Aileen said.

I turned to them and pointed my finger at their faces. "You know, if I could? I would kill you all three in the dark." I whispered. And they all laughed at me.

"Touch, Eunice, and I will kill you." Zulius threatened them. Because of that, they all closed their mouths and began to step back away from us.

"That's enough!" The professor shouted at us. "Get on the platform. One each. Line up. Zulius, guide Eunice."

"Let's go," Zulius said, and held my hand. I let him guide me to the platform. I looked side to side and noticed that I was going against Dovan. "You should go first. I can't let you stay here with Yasmin around. After you get to the other side, wait for Dovan to pull you up."

"Sure." I said and smirked. "I wonder how long I should wait." I whispered and prepared myself on the platform.

"On the count of three!" the professor shouted. I breathed in deeply. Made myself calm down. "One! Two! Three!"

I jumped into the water, swam as fast as I could, moved my hands faster, kicked my feet faster, and when I saw how I started to get ahead of Dovan, I smiled, until I reached the other side first.

"What?" Dovan asked when he got finished. I breathed in deeply, trying to catch my breath. I looked at Dovan and he had already got out of the water. "Eunice." He called and offered his hand to me. I reached out to him and let him pull me up. "Did I get slower? Or are you just faster?" Dovan asked me. I looked at him and smirked.

"I'm not sure, I didn't know." I lied.

"You are excellent at swimming," he said while nodding.

"Are you accepting defeat?"

"No. I have just accepted the competition."

"From the girl you said blind and weak?"

"How great do you think you are?" He asked, spitfully.

"I try to be great at all things I do. Why? Do you feel small?"

"Are you shrinking me?" Dovan asked and got closer to me with his clenched fist. I looked up at him, paused, and smirked.

"What is happening here?" Zulius asked after he finished his relay and got out of the water. He walked closer to us and held my hand to pull me away from Dovan.

"You are just seconds ahead of me, so don't get ahead of yourself," Dovan said to me.

"Woah. Are you sure you want to compete with a blind girl?" Zulius asked.

"Seconds ahead means I am ahead of you." I said to Dovan.

"Eunice. That's enough." Zulius said and looked at both of us. "You two are great. You two are fast and if I competed with you I might be the third best."

"No. I got slower, trying to guide and be considerate to a blind girl. Maybe I just can't let her bump her head into the pool."

"That's your excuse for being slow?"

"Okay. That's enough. Let's go." Zulius said, and pulled me away from Dovan.

"The class is not done yet," I said.

"It is," he said and shoved me inside the shower room. "Get change. Say something again, and I will go inside to change you myself." He threatened.

"No." I said and closed the door.

I took a shower alone, changed alone, and when I was done, I headed outside. Not searching for Zulius or anyone, I headed outside the gym and saw Ryan Clemente, waiting by the entrance.

"Eunice." He called.

"Ryan," I said, and continued walking.

"Let's go." He said and grabbed my hand. I stopped him and tried getting out of his grip, but he is stronger than me now.

"Let go of me." I said with my mouth close, glaring at him.

"You are coming home with me."

"No."

"Yes, you are," he said and continued pulling my hand, even with all my struggling out, he still managed to move forward.

"I am not going back. I hate you, I hate your family, and I am going to kill you all." I threatened him. He stopped and looked at me in the eyes. "You know what kind of person I am back in America. You know what I can do," I whispered. "Do you want me to start with your father?"

"Why do you hate your father so much?"

"He's your father, not mine, and he was never my father." I said in a spiteful tone. "I was born and raised without him for eighteen years, so I think I can die without knowing."

"Whatever you say, Eunice. You are his daughter, and we are half-siblings, no matter what you do. And I am going to take you back home."

"I don't want to!" I shouted.

"I am not asking!" He shouted back and carried me to his shoulder, holding my two hands and hugging my legs in front of him. I let go of my bag and screamed at the top of my lungs.

"Put me down, Ryan!" I screamed as he walked away, not bothered by the attention we were getting. I continued to scream, until someone ran to us and stopped him.

"Ryan Clemente!" I heard somebody else's voice. I furrowed my brow and looked at the man. He was the third member of Dovan's gang.

"Nixon Sebastian," Ryan said, and turned around to face him.

"Put her down." Nixon begged. I sighed, and then the other got to us too.

"Eunice, are you hurt?" Zulius asked me.

"Don't do something like that, Ryan," said Dovan.

"You and the gang should mind your own business. This is a matter that needs to be taken care of by us," Ryan said.

"Eunice doesn't want to go with you, so please put her down, or at least ask her nicely," Nixon said.

"Let her go, or we will fight." Zulius threatened.

"Do not meddle with something you don't understand," Ryan said to them.

"I think we understand everything about you taking advantage of a blind girl," Dovan said. Ryan paused, looked at me, and sighed.

"What?"

"Have some respect, Ryan," Zulius said.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Ryan asked while laughing. Zulius and the other looked at each other, confused as to why Ryan was suddenly laughing, and then Ryan stopped, looked at the three confused men. "Eunice, you really need to come with me." Ryan said to me.

"This is embarrassing," I whispered.

"Now, that looks uncomfortable," Justin said as he got to the scene. I tried to look at him and shook my head due to the hopelessness they were giving me.

"Eunice, care to explain why are you suddenly blind?" Ryan asked in a hushed tone.

"I don't really know, maybe because of the color of my eyes," I explained sarcastically in a hushed tone. "Maybe you should listen to them, have pity on your dear half-sister, I am blind and weak in front of them."

"What kind of load of b*llsh*t have you put inside their minds?" He asked angrily, keeping his tone down.

"Don't blame me, I tried telling them, but they are just as stupid as they can be," I said, laughing. Ryan looked at the guys. "Go on, tell them the truth, it would be nice for me if they believed the real truth about me."

"What are you planning?" He asked.

"Nothing."

"I'm not putting you down," he said. I sighed and relaxed my muscles.

"I'll come with you," I said. Ryan turned to me. "Willingly," I added. He furrowed his brows, looking at me for a second.

"No, Eunice," Zulius said.

"Okay, I will put you down. Don't run." Ryan said to me.

"Sure. Sure."

"I'm serious."

"So am I." I said, and he put me down. He held my hand tighter than earlier, so I faced the guys and smiled at them.

"You are not really going with him, are you?" Dovan asked.

"I need to go," I answered.

"Where?" Justin asked.

"I don't know," I answered, and looked up at Ryan.

"Where are you taking her, Ryan?" Zulius asked. "We have known you for years, don't even think about taking her to a motel."

"What?" I asked, looking at Zulius. "You are a player?" I asked Ryan and looked at his hand holding mine.

"Yeah. But I am not hitting on my sister, am I?" He asked me with closed mouth. We glared at each other, he tightened his grip so I clenched my fist to flex my muscles.

"He's a gangster, he might take you to a forest to hurt you." Dovan said. My eyes widened in shock.

"You kill in the forest too? What a low-grade gangster," I said, with a scornful look.

"Watch your tongue, I also kill older people than you." He threatened.

"Oh. I got scared." I said sarcastically, and faced the others. "Seriously? Guys? What kind of minds do you all have?" I asked with a smirk on my face.

"If you have to go with Ryan, can I at least make sure that he is not going to take you somewhere dangerous?" Zulius asked. I laughed and gave Ryan a look. He sighed and nodded at Zulius. After everything, Ryan, Dovan, Zulius, Justin, and I got in Ryan's car. He drove us to their house.

"What is happening here?" Father asked when we got inside the living room. He was reading a book and having tea.

"I need money if I am going to live separately with you," I said, and walked up to him.

"Of course, your mother has already told me all the details of your condition," he said and stood up.

"What? She will never change if she lives in her way. Eunice, coming here will all be a waste." Ryan said.

"Your sister is old enough to look after herself. Her mother told me that, as long as she stays here in the Philippines, everything she wants and needs is to be given to her, because banishment here is her punishment." Father explained. I raised my eyebrows and looked at Ryan to give him a scornful look.

"What? Sister?" Zulius asked Ryan.

"She's my sister," Ryan answered.

"No. Half-sister, this man knocked up two women." I rephrased. All of them looked at me shocked and in awe.

"Manners!" Ryan shouted.

"Can I leave now?" I asked father.

"Of course," Father answered.

"Oh. And my great mother wanted me to give this back to you." I said, and pulled out his wallet from my pocket.

"Oh. I was searching for this." He said with a fake laugh. He opened it and pulled out one of his cards. "This is yours to use." He said and handed me a credit card. "Next time I will set up an account for your allowance."

I accepted it and put it in my pocket. "Okay," I said and started walking out.

"What is your relationship with Eunice?" Zulius asked Justin while we were walking out of the house.

"We're cousins," Justin answered.

"Ew." Both Zulius and Dovan reacted.

"Dirty minds," I whispered and shook my head.