He peeled off the highway, going at moderate speed as the fog slowly settled in. At 11:50, he parked his car beside a very nice vintage car. 'Must be Mr. Jilani's.' He thought. The morgue was a quaint place, the steady rising smoke from the chimney the only ominous sight in the building. He went to the entrance to go inside when the front doors burst open, and a haggard woman in her 50s ran off with 2 young adults running after.
He peeked inside and saw Mr. Jilani's face scrunched up in stress and held back anger. He knocked twice on the glass doors, "Hi Mr. Jilani, is this a bad time?" He sighed, shaking his head. "Nah, you might actually help me distract from personal issues running my life amok." He gestured to Richard to come closer, hefting a box with a thin layer of dust. "Here's the entire files we have on the previous reservation incidents and after as well as a few obscure ones from before it was officially for the First Nations."
"Not a lot is there?" He mused, flipping through the old archives, shooing off dust particles. He saw the notes from previous morticians and Jilani's updated notes added to it from months ago. The oldest records date back to the 1600s and it wasn't a whole lot of accurate recordkeeping or up to current modern standards, but it does help with having some sort of evidence.
He wiped the box clean and carried it, thanking Jilani, and went back to his car, carefully securing the box and making sure that it wasn't tossed in the back. He drove to the city hall, to ask for permission to see the archives but the employees there weren't keen on letting him look. He wasn't sure whether the judgmental stares were from his youthful e-boy appearance or from the color of his skin.
Regardless, he was stuck without a way to corroborate the files with archives from legitimate documents. He sat on a nearby bench after purchasing an American hotdog, the ones that were made and tasted cheap but damn if it wasn't delicious. 'Still doesn't beat eating tempura and qwek-qwek on the way home to school though.'
He sat contemplating his next course of action as he essentially got roadblocked by some nasty women in outdated hairdos and dresses. A shadow fell over him, causing him to look up. A familiar figure fell upon him, causing an involuntary smile to grace his features. 'Good afternoon little flower. Lovely day isn't it?' Johann greeted, hand out for Richard to shake. They shook hands as Richard replied. "Hi, it is quite lovely. The weather's been great so far."
Johann snorted, "The weather is indeed lovely, but I was referring to everything going on with you in general?" Richard's cheeks flushed in embarrassment. "Ah, that's what you were referring to? My bad." Richard slumped into the bench. "Honestly? Not really a productive day." Johann looked at him concerned, "Is that why your standing in front of the city hall? Something went wrong there?" Richard nodded glumly. "I wanted access to newspaper clippings, journals, anything really that was related to the old reservation that's currently unused."
Johann looked contemplative, gave Richard's down-trodden appearance a glance, and shrugged nonchalantly, even such a gesture looking graceful when he did it. "I can try on your behalf to get them. Perhaps they'll allow me to do so as I do have some sway being an anthropologist. I can claim to need them as part of my research."
"You'd really do that for me?" Richard said, perking up. He grabbed Johann's gloved hands and grasped them tightly, mumbling his thanks.
"Of course, anything for you darling." However, Johann warned him not to get his hopes up in case they also declined to give him access. "Still, you're willing to do this for me. That's more than I'd ever hoped for. Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Faust!"
Johann's lips twitched in a slight smile before stepping out of Richard's grasp and nodding his head as he strode into the city hall looking like a dignified gentleman or a model walking on a runway. Half an hour later Johann returned, carrying a large brown envelope and looking quite satisfied with himself. "Hello, Richard. I come bearing gifts." With an exaggerated flourish, he gently dropped the package on Richard's lap. "They were only going to give me half of the files, but I managed to... persuade them to give me all the relevant information pertaining to what you were looking for." Richard beamed, handling the package with care.
"This is really helpful, I truly do appreciate it! Salamat kaayo Mr. Faust!" Johann's smug grin turned a touch softer. More genuine one could say. That smile lasted all the way until Richard looked away as he spotted a bouquet of native flowers he hadn't seen before. Johann stood back watching as Richard began asking for things that went beyond his comprehension.
"Johann, is it okay if we go to your place so that I can check up on the gift?" Richard asked, oblivious to Johann's slowly tinted cheeks. "Of course, we can also warm up there. I did invest in a decent heater recently, it'd be a shame not to try it out in an intimate setting."
"I was lucky to have rented a house with a good heater. I honestly don't understand how you people survive in these conditions. It's too cold most of the time to do anything fun."
Johann raised a brow. "Didn't you go to Michigan University a while ago?"
"Yes but that's different, I barely survived then going to university and I'm barely surviving now," Richard admitted. " The weather in the Philippines might have been hell on earth but it's weather I know how to survive in. Sometimes I used to be absent and just bury myself in thick blankets to stay warm. My classmates used to laugh at my weak constitution, but it was different." He trailed off, rubbing his gloved hands together to generate heat.
Comments (0)
See all