Chapter Three
"P'Pope, I really think this woman is...is abnormal."
The pair of Sririsothorn siblings watched Nee dance around there courtyard, stopping to sniff the flowers in the garden, and playing with the water in the elephant fountain. It was a beautiful day indeed and the seemed to be higher and brighter than usual, it's rays making the water in the fountain sparkle. Everyone in the Sririsothorn house including the servants, maids, and drivers, had come outside, perched around the marble pillars of the entrance of the driveway, and watching Nee, wondering this beautiful, deranged woman was.
"Khun Pope and Khun Da brought her home last night," Yod, the driver, told everyone. "I opened the door for them late last night."
"Ohh," the maids and servants nodded simultaneously.
Arida turned to her older brother, Gunpope, who watched helplessly as Nee jumped from the edge of the ivory fountain. Even though she was a little bit deranged but Gunpope could not deny the fact that she is the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his entire life. He and Arida had named her Neera because her whole name was too long to pronounce, and not to mention that it was probably made up by Nee herself.
"Neera!" Gunpope called out to her.
Maneerattana didn't seem to acknowledge anyone's presence and surely ignored Gunpope too. Gunpope bit his lip and looked his younger sister, Arida, who shook her head in disbelief.
"Hey you!" Arida called out.
This time, Neera ran up to them both and grabbed their hands, asking that they go dance and play with her.
"Uh...Nee, we're going to go shopping," Gunpope told her. "So, I think you should stop dancing around now."
"Come on, get in the car." Arida took Nee's hand and led her to the car but when Da opened the door to the back seat, Nee backed away and shook her head. The frightened expression on her face told them that there would be problems.
"No, no, no!" Nee frantically screamed.
"Arai wa," the servants and maids exchanged puzzled expressions.
"Get in the car," said Mali, one of the maids. "Khun Da opened the door for you already."
Yod opened the passenger door for Gunpope and then got into the driver seat himself. Neera was still staring at the car and the frightened expression had not wore away.
"Go ahead, get in." Gunpope slightly pushed her towards the car but she backed away even further this time.
"P'Pope, I don't think this will work out," said Da.
Just then, a black Range Rover pulled up behind the black Mercedes-Benz sedan. Khun Ying Amara got out of the car and stared at the crowd in front of her house.
"What are you all doing?" she asked them.
"Uhh...P'Pope and I thought about taking Neera shopping na ka," Arida told her mother.
"Then why is everyone standing outside?" Khun Ying's eyes rolled onto the maids and servants, who all had their heads down, hands crossed at the waist of their uniform pants. "Go inside and do your work."
They all nodded once and went back inside. Afterwards, Khun Ying looked at Gunpope, who was standing near the front of the car, his right hand was on top of the passenger door as if he were about to get in.
"Ta Pope," she began. "Explain clearly."
"Uhh...I had intended to take Neera shopping because Nong Da told me that it would be better if Neera had her own clothes," Gunpope explained.
"Ohh, okay." Khun Ying motioned for Neera to get into the car. "What are you waiting for? Get in the car."
"Uhh...Mae ka," Arida began. "Neera is scared of the car."
"Arai na?!" Khun Ying was slightly surprised. "Why?"
"To make a long story short, she had a bad experience with moving vehicles," Arida replied.
"Why so difficult?" Khun Ying shook her head. "I don't understand. If you don't take the car, how are you going to get there? Walk?"
"I can fly," Nee replied.
"Hah?!" Khun Ying's voice was higher this time. "Ta Pope, Da, I don't think this woman is normal."
"I told you!" Neera said happily. "I tried to tell them so many times that I am not normal but they won't believe me. I told you I am not a normal person. I am an angel, an angel!"
Gunpope gave a fake cough and Arida looked uneasy. Khun Ying Amara, on the other hand, was totally shocked.
"Where did you two find this girl?" she asked her two children. "I don't think her condition is normal at all. She may have escaped from a mental institute."
Arida's eyes widened. "Yes! Why didn't we think of that, P'Pope! P'Pope, I think we should check the mental institutions around here to see if there is a case of a missing or runaway patient, na ka. You never know, Khun Mae maybe right."
Gunpope nodded and smiled. Why hadn't he thought of that? Poor girl, he thought. He wondered how long she had been in this deranged state. At least she wasn't suicidal, which was a good thing.
"Aow la, go ahead and if there are any updates, make sure you guys call me," Khun Ying Amara told her children.
She shook her head and stomped up the steps into her house. Gunpope and Arida turned to Neera, who smiled brightly back.
"Nee, let's go," said Arida.
Neera's smile suddenly turned into a frown and she backed away from the car again.
"Nee," Arida called.
"If you don't get in the car, I'm gonna have to be mean to you," Gunpope told her.
"Do it, P'Pope," Arida urged, knowing exactly what her brother meant.
"I'm gonna count to three and if you don't get into the car, I'm gonna put you in it," said Gunpope. "1...2...3!"
Neera broke into a run but Gunpope had quickly caught her and lifted her into his arms. She wasn't heavy and at all but her struggling to break free made it difficult for him to hold on to her.
"Stay still," he shouted. "If we don't go shopping for your clothes, then you will have nothing to wear. You can't just wear Nong Da's clothes forever!"
"I don't want to get in the car!" Neera screeched at the top of her lungs.
"I said stay still!" Gunpope exclaimed.
He could feel sweat dripping from his face now. Arida opened the door to the backseat for her brother and announced that she would go grab something quickly from the house. Finally, after much fighting, Gunpope was able to get Neera into the backseat of the car; however, she was still struggling to break free, causing Gunpope to accidentally fall over her. Their lips had touched and Gunpope's heart began to beat very fast. Their eyes met and Gunpope could feel her heart pounding too.
"OHO!" Yod exclaimed.
Then, Gunpope untangled himself from her and got up, closing the door afterwards.
"Lock! Lock it!" he yelled at Yod.
There. Now, she wouldn't be able to get out and break loose. Gunpope took off his black jacket and rolled up his shirt sleeves just as Arida descended the few steps of doorway.
"What is that?" he asked her, trying to catch his breath.
"A rope just in case we need it when we come back," Arida replied. "Let's go."
Gunpope nodded and got into the front seat while Arida joined Nee in the back. Finally, Gunpope thought. He didn't think things would be this difficult when he brought her home last night.
Gunpope was silent all the way to the mall. The accidental kiss replayed over and over in his mind. For some reason, he kept thinking about it and couldn't seem to forget it at all. On the other hand, Arida and Nee were having a blast in the backseat. Yod had come up with the brightest idea of turning on the radio, which seemed to bring a joyful mood to Nee. The two girls were now dancing in the back. Gunpope stared at Nee in the mirror and smiled. Had she not felt anything at all of the accidental kiss?
Gunpope finally brought himself together when they reached their destination. He ordered Yod to stay put in the parking lot until he they were ready to leave. Arida grabbed Nee's hand and followed Gunpope into the mall. Arida dragged Nee and Gunpope into Guess?, where Arida picked out a yellow, polka dotted casual dress for Nee and insisted that she tried it on right away.
"AHH! So cute!" Gunpope could hear Arida squeal from the fitting rooms. He shook his head and looked around the store. A white sequin dress caught his eye and picked it up from the racks. Then, he put it back because he suddenly thought it would be awkward that he picked out clothes for a woman.
Never before had he picked out clothes for a woman, even his younger sister, Arida. Usually, he'd just take Arida shopping and let her pick out what she wanted. Why, suddenly, did he just pick out a dress from the racks? Gunpope let out a sigh and massaged his temples. He felt definitely out of his mind.
"P'Pope!" Gunpope heard Arida call.
"Krub," he replied, turning around to see Nee in that beautiful, white sequin dress that he had picked up earlier.
Apparently and unbeknownst to him, Arida had picked one up too. Neera was smiling brightly at him and Gunpope's jaws had dropped. He did not blink. Suddenly, he choked and gasped for breath because he had forgot to breath too. She had took his breath away.
"P'Pope!" Da snapped.
"What?" Gunpope acknowledged.
"I asked you how she looks," said Da.
"Oh, uh...uhm...fine," said Gunpope. "Take it."
Arida shook her head in disappointment and dragged Neera back into the dressing room.
"He's so tasteless," he heard Arida tell Nee.
"I can hear you!" he called to them.
"It was meant for you to hear so take notes!" Arida shot back.
Gunpope laughed and shook his head. Whatever, he thought.
About an hour later, they left Guess? with two large bags, one for Nee and the other belonging to Da. Gunpope held their bags for them as they went into another store. It seemed that Arida was having fun, judging from all the laughter and jokes coming from her and Da. However, Gunpope still had to prepare for the worst, in case Arida gets hyper, which would be likely to bring upon embarassment.
Around noon, Arida announced that she was hungry and claimed that Nee was hungry too.
"Why didn't you say so, Nee?" Arida asked her.
"What do you mean?" Nee asked.
"I heard your stomach growling while we were trying on clothes in the last store," Arida replied. "If you're hungry, you should let us know."
"I've never eaten before and I didn't know that meant I was hungry," said Nee.
"How do you not know you're not hungry?" Arida asked.
"Because angels don't eat," Nee replied.
"You're...
"Okay, let's go eat," Gunpope interrupted, afraid that if they go on any further, there will surely be a scene. "I'm hungry too. So, what do you girls want?"
"P'Pope, why don't we go eat sushi?" Da suggested. "I want to eat a lot of fish so my skin will be beautiful and healthy like Nee's. You don't know how beautiful her skin is."
"Okay," said Gunpope, feeling a little bit awkward.
"Nee, besides eating healthy, what skin products do you use?" Da asked. "I want to go buy some for myself so I can brighter skin like you."
Neera smiled and confidently replied that angels don't use body products.
"Nevermind," said Arida, helplessly. "I shouldn't have asked."
"Let's go," said Gunpope.
Arida grabbed Nee's hand and followed Gunpope to the upper level where the restaurant was. They were seated right away and with the exception of Nee's bewildering expression of the fish tank at the front, their dining experience turned out better than Gunpope had initially expected. Nee tried everything Gunpope and Arida ordered and even asked for seconds of every order.
"Oho," said Arida. "You're so tiny yet you eat so much."
"It's good!" Neera beamed at the sibling pair. "I've never had it before! It's very delicious!"
It turned out that Nee ate even more than Gunpope.
"You sure ate a lot," Arida said to her as they were leaving the restaurant.
"I think it's better that I do so that I don't have to be hungry later," said Nee.
"By then, we'll be having dinner already," said Arida. "Humans eat three times a day."
"Oh," Nee nodded. "Angels don't eat at all...and I don't like feeling hungry either."
Arida couldn't help but laugh. Then, she turned to Gunpope and winked.
"What?" asked Gunpope.
Arida gave her brother the duh look. She mouthed the word 'car' to her brother a few times until it actually clicked for Gunpope.
"Oh!" he exclaimed. "Right...but, do you think it's okay?"
"What is it?" Nee asked them, unaware that they were going to tie her up for the convenience of getting her in the car.
Arida didn't want to risk Nee running away again. She pulled out the rope and to their surprise, Nee did not move a muscle when they tied her hands and feet.
"What are we doing?" Nee asked them.
Gunpope picked her up and headed towards the exit to the car while Arida grabbed the shopping bags and followed.
"NO!" Nee bellowed at the sight of the car.
Yod opened the doors for them and this time, Gunpope was able to put Nee in the car without a hassle. When in the car, Arida untied Nee, who was upset that they tied her up without warning.
"I told you it would work, P'Pope," said Arida.
"That's not nice," said Nee, frowning at them.
Gunpope chuckled. "This is the first time I've seen you frown."
"It's not funny," Nee said in a babyish tone.
She sat back in her seat and folded her arms, looking out the window. Arida sat forward and tapped her older brother on the shoulder.
"Are we going to the mental institution now?" she whispered to Gunpope.
He glanced at Neera, who was still staring out of the window, and shook his head.
"Why?" asked Arida.
"Because if there was a patient that escaped, mental institutions wouldn't keep quiet about it; it will be broadcasted on the news," said Gunpope.
"I guess that's true," said Arida. "Well, what are we going to do?"
Gunpope cleared his throat and sighed. "We'll have to check her into one if no one claims her missing."