Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 2020complete | Page 589

In the neck of the woods, a contemptuously beautiful flower bed laid, discreetly admiring itself through
the reflection of the azure river. They were the tenacious blossoms of the city streets, born to take whatever
comes their way and make the beauty of it, she admired their beauty. It was as if they called for some
conifers to accompany them, to make the city streets brighter, to refresh the air that the locals breathe.
There were times she felt that they were nature's graffiti, that chaotic rebellious element cheering on them.
As the wind swayed the sole Bauhinia flower in the centre, the sweet, almost sickly, smell of it cut through
the soft scent of the morning dewy grass.
They went past a recently made Ruin of Church of St Peter —- Cantonesia’s most treasured icon.
With the wonderful statues, portals and engravings made up a sermon in stone effectively. It is known to be
the second greatest monument to Christianity in Asia. It was made in the inspiration of Macau’s Ruin of
Church of St Paul; the church that was designed by an Italian Jesuit and was built in 1602 by the Japanese
Christian exiles and Chinese craftsmen.
Next to it was a force of nature, both beautiful and brutal. Tranquil from a distance but deafening up
close. It was as if the cascades of water conjured cascades of equally powerful emotions in his brain and it
took her breath away. Their crystal clear hair clung to their heads and around their faces, but no matter how
wet they became, it could not dampen their spirits. It was simply spectacular, the most significant sight she
ever had beheld.
Truly, that was what she could call as “Home” ---- a beautiful blend of southern China, Hong
Kong and Macau ---- she called it Machina Kong.
“Thank you for all this” she exclaimed in a buoyant tone.
“I love you”
“I love you also. Mom said you die. But I not lose hope. I know you come back” as she was on the
verge of tears
“I will never leave you, sweetie. If I do, close your eyes and you’ll find me there”
The rain pitter-pattered on the rustling leaves of the saplings before falling onto the ground. Just then,
she awoke as the rain stroke her face giving out a petrichor scent. She groaned halfheartedly and decided to
give herself a little more rest. But after a few minutes of lying on the palpable street listening to the echo of
voices around her and the heavy patter of rain, she allowed her eyes to gently open.
Her eyes gaped.
She leapt out of her bed in the air as if a firecracker had gone off. Shrieked. Wild-Eyed. Bewildered.
Still as a statue, her mouth opened wide and shut like a goldfish with no sound coming out of it. In front of
her laid two deathbeds, making her wonder who could they be.
Slowly, with trembling hands, she lifted the cloth from the faces and saw…the corpses were almost
devoid of skin and pitted by burrowing insects. She turned away as her stomach heaved, nostrils pierced
with the smell of rotting meat. Without eyelids, the milky blue eyes stared at her while the lipless mouth
hung open.
With an unblinking stare, tears flooded out of her eyes as she shook her head in disbelief as she saw the
deathbeds of her loved ones; her mom and dad. Unable to comprehend what had just occurred, she stood
gormless as a guppy amidst the crowd of people that surrounded the two corpses.
She was taken aback by the lone corpses with an incredulous expression, her brain desperately
scrambling to make sense of it all. The home was all a dream.