Their Elemental Curse: Uncovering

Chapter 4

*Beval Hernandez's POV:

The time was around six o clock in the evening. It was near the time to start cooking for dinner: spaghetti with meatballs, and marinara sauce on top. Nothing more, nothing less. Easy and quick to make.

I sighed as I poured the sauce into a pot and stirred. Cooking was my passion, but doing it like this, in this type of environment did no good for it. Everyone around me was overwhelmed, depressed or burned out. We were cooking the same several meals we had for the last couple of years because of low resources.

Everyday, trying to feed hundreds of people breakfast, lunch and dinner took a toll on us. This was like having a full time job, but you're not getting paid for it.

I didn't think the stress was going to end anytime soon. The thought of spending an extra few years in the shelter made me feel nauseous. We didn't have a choice and I hated that. Sometimes I wondered if we would've been better off dead like Mohammed and Shimizu than be in here dealing with this mess.

My body began feeling hot and I started to feel a bit disoriented. I tried to relieve myself by practicing some breathing techniques Gaia told me about.

Out of the blue, a young teenage cook of mine came over to ask me a question, carrying two boxes of different types of pastas in her hand.

"Chef Beval, can we use angel hair pasta? We always use spaghetti noodles and I think we should try something new."

"Susie, please leave me alone" I responded in fatigue, looking at her for a only a second as I kept mixing. "I don't feel so good right now. I'm feeling a bit lightheaded."

"Are you okay, Chef Beval?". She took a closer look. "You look a little pale. Do you need to sit down? Should I call Nurse Gaia?"

It seemed as though my body had given up settling for all of the mental agony that was placed upon me for years. Next thing I knew, I collapsed onto the floor. The spoon that was in my hand made a puddle of sauce on the light gray marble floor inches away from me.

I could hear Susie screaming and running for help as my vision started to blur. I could barely speak, I could only give out moans and groans as I laid there.

"Beval?!" My father rushed over, along with my mother. He grasped my shoulders and shook me. "Beval?!"

"Go get Gaia!" He said to another female cook nearby.

"Should I get Isabella too?" the female cook asked him.

"No, Isabella is with child, she doesn't need this type of worry on her! Now go!" he responded before the cook quickly made her way. 

My mother talked to me in Spanish, soothingly trying to comfort me as she held me in her arms.

"Beval?" I heard my father say before I slowly closed my eyes. "Beval?!"

Suddenly, everything went dark.

I opening my eyes. I was laying on my back. The sky above was a rich light blue, white clouds were drifting by slowly. Buildings and Skyscrapers stood high above.

I was in utter peace, peace I haven't had in years, the feeling it was pretty odd to me. When I realized I was laying on something rough and hard, I sat up and looked around. I was on a sidewalk in the middle of a downtown city. I was in my hometown of San Francisco. People were walking passed me, but not one person noticed me. Everyone was happy, joyful and laughing. Not one sad person in sight.

On a nearby billboard, I saw what looked to be a middle aged man in his forties with a big smile on his face. By the way he was dressed, he must've been a politician or someone important. The man was mixed raced, maybe white and middle eastern. His hair and eyes were dark brown, he had an olive skin tone. I didn't see his name anywhere, only a quote at the bottom that said "making the world a better place, one country at a time".