Two unique individuals were given the opportunity to relive the last 10 minutes of a life-changing event transforming their inner perception forever.
Four shady characters are up to no good, one driving while three in the back of a white Nissan np200 bakkie with a canopy on top; discussing how they will rob the next student walking down Destiny street; a quiet road. They drove around the block twice and on the second round they spotted Veasna, a well-built caucasian girl who played hockey with the hockey stick hanging over her shoulder and wind blowing through her short brown hair and school uniform while fiddling on her phone and paying no attention to her surroundings not even the red flash of power.
The youngest of the four has so many doubts due to the fact that he doesn’t want to be there but is forced to due to the circumstance. Jevon, a matriculant, only came along because his friend Rene was experimenting with drugs for the day and it’s not what he agrees with. If you are familiar with small township customs majority of the community knows each other and often assists especially in relation to transport. Jevon thought it would be cool to take a ride with his brothers drinking buddies up to the shops on top of the hill while avoiding Rene’s drug adventure and it was a bit better than walking.
“Hey, young one,” Julius with his dark gangster-looking face called out bringing him back to the moment, “ Don’t worry we’ll be fast, grab and go”.
10:01,
Displays on the phone as they start getting ready to steal it from their victim. The driver moves the car slowly pass as though he is about to stop. Two houses ahead and Danisa, a tall dark skin subservient fellow jumps out and walks towards her and snatches the phone instantaneously and begins to run away yelling out “go go go” and the driver pulls away but Danisa misses the hand of Julius resulting in a tumble and roll. Veasna screams frantically at the top of her lungs alerting the neighbors around them and grabbing the attention of the uncle across the road. The driver brings the car to a screeching halt while Danisa was running to catch up and knocks his head upon entering as Julius pulls him in.
The uncle runs to assists Veasna and comforts her but she is too stunned,
“Are you okay, hey miss can you hear me, what’s your parent’s number?”
“00663 224 224 312,” she keeps stuttering the number.
The uncle shows her the digits he punched in and asks, “Is this it?”
Tears are pouring out uncontrollably as she shakes her head to indicate yes.
“Come inside let me make you some sugar water,” he says as the phone is dialing.
Shivering all over his body Jevon is petrified at what just took place and scared to say anything worried about what would happen to him if he did. Confusion filled his head as to why, why did they need to do it and the more he thought about it the angrier he became,
“Why?” He asked with his eyebrows pinched together and his golden honey skin tone flustered red.
“We needed cash, we broke and gangsters got to make a plan,” Danisa laughed as he spoke.
“That was wrong so wrong,” Jevon bursts out at him.
Julius starts shouting, “Don’t keep yourself innocent,” and pushed him on his chest backward, “we all sin”.
Jevon’s eyes went wide open in fear and immediately resorted to silence watching the houses flash into a single streaked line.
10:05,
As she stares at the time on the clock the uncle started talking.
“Your mom is on her way,” touching her shoulder, “and she called the police, don’t worry your phone is being tracked and lucky for you your mother is well organized so she will call the network provider and give them the IMEI number and will follow up with the police, I don’t know, it all sounds complicated but she’s seems to have a handle on things”. The uncle stares at his phone while speaking, “How are you feeling dear?”
“I don’t know what to say,” Veasna spoke with a quaver, “They came out of nowhere and surprised me and who still steals phones these days but the eyes of the guy in the back haunts me as though he was kidnapped and in shock just staring at me.”
10:07,
Two blocks away and they drove up the hill to a squatter camp where houses were build-up of zink sheets meant for roofing and wireframes for a fence barrier around them and different gate parts to complete it, a used tyre with a few bricks on the roof. The deeper you go in and you’ll find Rene’s house a drinking area called a “Shabeen” to purchase alcohol and that was the plan. Julius with his blonde tip black dreads first stared at the police van at the bottom of the road before he ran in and swapped the phone for a case of beers. Greeting as he went pass everyone he noticed Rene drooling from the intense drugs and was tempted to take a hit before leaving. The driver quickly spat away as soon as big head Julius climbed in and moved higher towards the top of the hill.
10:09,
Jevon looked at his watch as he lifted his head to the sound of the police siren with blue lights flickering. They started driving towards the shabeen and jumped variously out of the van with intent to harm, within a minute they dragged out the suspected perpetrators. Shouting could be heard all the way to the top as they argued fiercely with the officers. Guns pointing in every direction and the images got smaller and the sound fainter but Jevon could see Rene stumbling as he was being dragged out and thrown to the floor, through all the hustle and dust two shots were heard and one went straight through Rene.
10:11,
Jevon suddenly feels the world drawing close to him as he watches his friend bleed out. A sinking feeling from his chest to his stomach made him nauseous and he started to struggle to swallow, his eyes start burning and became blurry as he looked at the red light.
Goosebumps with a vigorous shiver overtake his body, humming in his ear coming from his head pounding. Disorientated and close to a fit, his body shakes while sweating as though he has a fever on the spot; grabbing his head and curling into a ball from the universal pressure on his outer and inner flesh.
10:01,
Jevon is breathing heavy and clothing soaked in his sweat as he looks out the back of the bakkie and sees Destiny street again as the car slows down he jumps out before it can stop and runs towards Veasna fiddling on her phone and not paying attention. Meanwhile, Julius and Danisa were distracted by a red flash of power.
“Hey hey, watch out!” Jevon screams and bumps her over.
“You rude troll what’s your problem,” Veasna responding with an angry tone.
Danisa bangs on the top of the canopy and goes after him but tumbles and rolls upon exit.
“Hola boy, take the phone,” he shouts out as he struggles to get up.
Jevon starts screaming frantically, “Help, help” looks over to the uncle and throws a stone at him missing his face.
“What’s your blady problem” The uncle screams at them, “I’ll beat the hell out of you, hey what’s going on?” he noticed the bakkie reversing and a nefarious scene unfolding.
“Stop it, stop what you doing?” the uncle opens his gate.
Danisa stares at Jevon and Veasna with a stern face and grabs the phone and turns and knocks his head against the bakkie. The driver took that as a signal to drive and screeched away dragging Danisa’s feet along the tar as Julius' short arms struggle to pull him in.
“Are you okay?” Jevon tried to comfort Veasna
“What’s your parents’ number?” the uncle asks
“I got to go,” interrupts Jevon.
“Wait, what just happened? they stole my phone” shivering Veasna explodes with the realization.
The uncle on the other hand is dialing the police while Jevon is running after the bakkie and Veasna grabs her hockey stick and quickly follows suit.
“Do you know those guys?” complaining behind him.
“No, maybe, in a way but I do know a shortcut through the squatter camp I need to save my friend,” Jevon says as his pace picks up speed.
10:05,
Staring at a clock in a small zink framed shack with a small table from which Rene picks up his glass of beer and walks out to sit in the yard with his heading spinning from the drugs and alcohol. He fought with his best friend about changing his habit in order to break away from his suicidal talks. Frustrated and annoyed with his thoughts he grabs his head firmly with his elbows on his knees staring at the ground and decides to sniff another dose of drugs.
The uncle gives a vivid description of the white Nissan bakkie while explaining the scenario he witnessed, described the action of Jevon as a kidnapped victim fleeing from his captors and describing Julius and Danisa as though he was an artist.
10:07,
The two of them weaved through the maze of shacks with Veasna holding tight onto Jevon’s hand. Out of breath from the rush and hustle Jevon notices the bakkie in front of the shabeen.
“W w where are we going?” Veasna stutters as she tries to catch her breath leaning against a rusty old windowless VW beetle.
“We already here, just stay behind me,” said Jevon as he pushes through the back door to come face to face with Julius.
“You blady snitch” Julius shouts as he reaches for his back pocket. Jevon immediately tackles him down through the front door.
“My phone,” Veasna screams as it lands on the table and cracks.
“Get out of my house and stop your nonsense” the dealer starts shouting at all of them.
Jevon quickly gets up and grabs Rene to drag him back through the house but Julius has him by the belt and pulls him back out. Veasna throws a bottle at him but knocks Rene instead causing him to stumble and drool all over the ground.
10:09,
The police officer stares at his watch and listens to the radio of a white Nissan np200 with a canopy that seems to match the image up the hill with perpetrators similar to the report. Without hesitation, he flips on the lights and siren and swings into the road.
Julius takes out the gun and Danisa sees the police van heading towards them and beats of the divide "go go go,". The driver pulls away with haste further up the hill.
Jevon picks up Rene and continues to drag him into the house but Julius fires a shot that goes through Rene's hand causing them to stumble over the table.
The police officer brings the van to a screeching halt and jumps out viciously with guns pointing in every direction.
“Drop the gun, drop the gun!” the first officer screams at the top of his lungs for everyone to hear.
“On the ground; lay on the ground,” commands the second officer as he moves in closer.
During the whole chaos, Jevon and Veasna make their escape through the back door. Rene gets thrown into the back of the rusting old VW beetle; crying and whaling as he stares through the hole in his hand with blood gushing out. Veasna jumps in the front seat and starts wrapping the hand while Jevon attempts to push it down the hill.
10:11,
Julius gets fired through the chest for resisting an arrest, as though in slow motion, the bullet heads towards Jevon as he was staring at Julius sinking to the ground and Jevon drops his head to push the beetle down the hill. A red flash of light catches everyone's attention and Jevon feels and hears the bullet pass through his hair.
The car starts to roll down the hill and Jevon clings to the back screaming “Hold tight”. With no brakes or method of steering, it seems as though they are destined to crash and they did, into an ambulance on route to an emergency call.
The impact was on the back end of the ambulance causing the VW to spin twice while they all screamed in the moment of panic. In silent unison they stare forward with blank faces.
Jevon whispers, “who would have thought we’d survive, miraculous right”
“I had a dream about this” Veasna replied.
They all breathe out as the 10-minute rush ends.
