New Journeys to the West
St . Paul ' s Convent School ( Secondary Section ), Kuek , Kassie - 13
Tang sat isolated in the extravagant room , a lemony silk curtain blocking his sight of the garden blooming with exotic flowers imported from the west . He glared at the curtain , willing his magical powers to open them for him . He sighed and looked around the room again , anticipating to see an article that may catch his eye . Nothing . Just bronze and copper figurines positioned all over the place .
' It ' s raining a lot today ,' commented the dragon on the shelf .
' It has to stop soon ,' said the dancing lady next to the dragon dramatically , ' otherwise I won ' t be able to dance outside with the peonies .' She faked a sob . ' Stop being melodramatic ' Tang furrowed his brows and told the miniature statue . The dancing lady turned and leveled a naughty stare at him . Just as she was about to retort , the infuriating curtain was flung open and as effervescent bouncy creature jumped on to the bed beside him .
' Monkey King !' he let out a jovial shout . He imagined his furry friend letting out a smirk and looking at him with a smug expression that said ' who else ?'
Tang loved his monkey . They were always able to have telepathic conversations and it understood him more than anyone else . No one believed the vibrant world they reside in , only the Monkey King recognized the colorful truth his words .
Two uniformed servants walked in with their footsteps echoing around the vaguely empty room . Tang identified the towering one as his caretaker but the other one was a complete stranger . He pursed his lips disgustedly at the sight of Monkey King and Tang tightened his hold on it . The servant raised his chin in a deliberate effort to ignore the monkey while motioning for his caretaker to get Tang ' s chair . The caretaker caught Tang ' s eye and let out an exasperated breath . Tang promptly burst into giggles as they settled him into his chair .
He was greeted with a pair of reluctant and judgmental eyes as his chair settled on the ground . He was no stranger to discriminatory glances and brushed it off with ease . They were typical people living mundane lives , they would never comprehend his vision of the world . Tang ' s eyes met a startling pair of inky orbs brought out by her pale face and shiny dark hair twisted into a half bun on top of her hair . She smiled shyly at him , as if unaware of the rumors that stuck to him like glue . His mouth went dry as he continued to gawk at her , his mind was running 100 miles per hour . Someone else to share the secrets of the world maybe ? A cough snapped him out of his musings . Tang ' s father looked at him with distaste and continued his speech . Tang furrowed his brows and tried to make sense but all he heard was messed blurbs . His father raised a delicate brow at the end of his monologue and he nodded so quickly he almost snapped his neck off . The girl lowered her eyes respectfully and dipped her head in a way have been art . The man rose and shook his father ' s hand strongly with a satisfied glint in his eye . The girl stood up and gestured for him to follow . Tang ' s servants immediately carried the chair out and accompanied them for a short tour of the garden . During the entire walk , Tang tried to connect with her telepathically to no avail , though the way her eyes shone when smelling the chrysanthemums was enchanting and the genuine concern whenever she caught his eye made him feel special in a way no one ever made me feel before . Tang retired to his room after the walk , the Monkey King flung open the window and swung himself outside . It landed in a bush and it silenced himself once it heard the noises from the garden .
' - see him ? Does he really think anyone would actually like him ? What an abomination .' The girl called Bai complained in a hushed voice to her handmaiden . The Monkey King swung himself back up and woke Tang . Tang sat up and blinked slowly at the sight of his friend , he just had the weirdest dream ever .
' Hey , buddy . What ' s up ?' Tang asked the Monkey King , his eyes still glazed over from his sleep .
' That girl Bai ? She ' s bad news ' he imagined it talking back , with a furrowed brow and concentrated expression .
' Really ? That couldn ' t be such weird coincidence ? Tang wondered about his dream . Just then , Bai walked into the room with tears streaming face down her face like the Huanghe . She wept and said a lot of things , none Tang could decipher , and still , he reached down and patted her back gently . The words the Monkey King had cautioned him forgotten as if washed away by Bai ' s tears . The Monkey King hugged him unsubtly but he ignored it , frustrated that it was coming between him and Bai ' s private time . She pressed a kiss to his cheek daringly and turned away with a faint pink dusting on her cheeks . She stood up and walked towards the door , holding a gold bracelet in her hand . Tang felt that the trinket seemed vaguely familiar , without warning the Monkey King throttled her . She let out a scream that alerted the servants . His caretaker dashed