An excerpt from an upcoming literary Zine written by me and Jules Joaquin. The zine (untitled) is a series of 100 word stories about regular folk and their relationships with people with mental disorders.
“Humility is a strange thing,” Valentina said softly while seductively twirling a strand of hair between her fingers. “when you’re perfect in every way possible.” I chewed my food even louder hoping it would drown out the sound of her voice. She spends all her free time looking at the mirror and taking pictures of her face, she tells me. “Am i distracting you?” She laughs, pulling out her phone to take another selfie. “I even distract myself sometimes.” She says smiling as the camera shutter goes off. I suppress a scoff but my face contorts itself into a look of annoyance. She glares at me and grabs her purse. “Pretty hurts.” She boasts. As she leaves, she hears the sound of necks breaking and cars crashing into each other.
Although i work primarily as an Art Director at an advertising agency, I once tried my hand at copywriting. Here are a series of “love stories” between humans and animals for PART (Philippine Animal Rescue Team.)
NORMAN WHITE
A story about second chances
It was her and me and there was nobody else. That summer we spent strolling around the streets of Manila, enjoying every stride we took. We would spend hours and hours people watching at the local park while eating lunch and enjoying the view. She would stare a lot, sometimes maybe too much, but she was far from rude. When we felt like going on an adventure, we would run across empty fields and lie down on the cold wet grass and look at the sky, following the clouds as they’d float on by. I would ask her if she wanted burgers for dinner and she would give me an empty stare that meant “Sure, I guess.” We didn’t always see eye to eye but she was my best friend and I was hers. And I knew from the first time I picked her up in that lonely place, reeking of ketamine and sedatives. Her name was Norman White and I felt her stare right through me as she was behind the cold wire fence. In the front seat of the car, with the windows rolled down, I could tell she was happy.
UNREQUITED
A story about love
For years, he would sit on the balcony and gaze at pretty young things, as if i weren’t there. Jeremy Lin would lounge there for hours at a time, watching distant stars in the icy night sky. At dinner time, he would sit by his food, mute and motionless, as he chewed every morsel. Attempts at casual conversation would be answered with stark silence as he curled up on the living room couch. He was too busy being fixated on the static snow on the television set, scratching his ears and still ignoring the sound of my voice. I would sit on the couch next to him, and feel something graze my bare leg; the same soft touch I felt for the first time. All of a sudden, I would feel a sense of gentle contentment, that not much else mattered. He made me realize there was a vast reservoir of untapped feeling on this planet. I gave him a pendant. He gave me his love.
BUDDY
A story about friendship
We spent days lazing in the afternoon sun, waiting for something exciting to happen. Other days were spent watching the game on the television set, munching on beef jerky with no agenda in mind. During breaks from my day job we’d run off to random places wandering about the concrete jungle while I’d smoke a cigarette with Swallowtail by my side. I’d ramble on about the most trivial and inane things and he would sit there listening without any judgement. At times, I’d take him to the seediest bars in town and he’d always have my back when I’d get into fights with random strangers. At late nights he’d crash on my couch or on the foot of my bed. He was my partner in crime, my confidante. And I knew that from the moment I saw him for the first time, that he was the best friend I could ever have. And from that moment on, I had his back, and he had mine.
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