Two Sides of the Same Coin

Suppose that this situation is the cruel reality or simply karma for affiliating herself with the indulgence of going against strong political parties within the corrupt society of the Philippine government— let's state in laymans terms "nakikisawsaw at pabibo" just because she calls out politicians for their unjust actions. Frankly, Atty. Regina Vanguardia doesn't really care about being called those words by those idiotes* who stand to live their lives trolling those who want justice for the oppressed— seriously, how can they fathom to live that way? To get the satisfaction of participating in the doom of democracy?

But what Regina does care about is that—

"Today we have one of the survivors of the snake lady— Valentina's attacks." a reporter's voice reverberated around the enclosed walls of Regina's office, as the woman lay hunched on the floor breathing heavily. Holding a trashcan close to her while she felt yet another sensation of bile crawling up her throat.

Valentina — the woman who, like Medusa of Greek mythology— was a woman who has snakes as her hair and a deathly reputation in the area she lives in.

She was known for her nightly terrors, killing people in the shroud of darkness, inflicting fear amongst the townspeople of Nueva Esperanza— those who dared roamed the night unsolicited, that is.

The night before however — made the first official dent in Valentina's killing streak. Leaving a survivor—a victim to tell the tale of the night before.

" Ano s'ya ma'am... " Regina flinched as she heard the voice of the survivor. "Nakakatakot po talaga yung naranasan ko."

"Para po ba siya (Valentina) ay wala sa sarili? Para po siyang ahas na kapag gumagalaw. Nakapulupot po ako sa buhok niya at akma na nga po akong parang pipigain pero maulan nung araw na yun ma'am..." The survivor recalled whilst Regina closed her eyes tightly.

"Bigla po siyang natigilan at pinakawalan ako." They sighed in relief. "Hindi ko po alam kung paano o bakit nangyari 'yun pero maulan po noon eh."

"Baka ayaw ni Valentina sa ulan ano?" the reporter suggested while the survivor chuckled softly. "Baka nga ho."

Regina shook her head. 'They got it all wrong' , it was not as if Valentina hated the rain, it's just; Regina saw herself in a puddle behind her to-be victim and frankly, it woke her up from her trance and quieted the voices in her head.

However the reflection in the puddle wasn't her, it wasn't Atty. Regina Vanguardia, lawyer for the masses. It was Valentina—the feared night killer with snakes in her hair.

It was as if she was two sides of the same coin. Where one side is good, and the other is bad.

The mere thought made Regina choke down a sob. She was all alone in her office at that moment, as she demanded that Ali leave her alone. She thought she didn't need anyone to fuzz over her current state of mind. She'd rather not have anyone to see her in this state.

Well... anyone except—

There were three gentle knocks on the door to her office yet Regina didn't pay heed to it. Choosing only to hug herself tighter as a form of defense mechanism she formed as a child.

A soft "Ali, I thought I told you to leave me alone—" came from her broken sobs, and Regina tried to make herself seem smaller so as not to be seen as vulnerable to anyone else.

"Regina...?" an even softer voice called out making the lawyer look up to see...

" Narda...?"

"Are you okay?" Narda gently enters the door and closes it behind her. Making long strides towards her in concern. The EMT gently places the files she was carrying on Regina's desk and knelt down next to the lawyer.