1. Guru

I am just like any secondary school students out there, with all the damned dreams and hopes and ambitions, but never work hard for them; with great imaginations, only to realise that I am living in a boring world. Carrying the heavy bag to school everyday, just to think when it is time to go home? Will teachers give homeworks? And will I get punished for any stupid reasons?

One month before the school reopens, something extraordinary occurs, which changes my life...

I think I'd better introduce my family first. My father is doing his own business, but then I don't know what kind of business is he doing lah. What I know is that he will be busy from the morning and only be at home in the evening. My mother is a primary school teacher. My primary school is the one where she is teaching, so whatever shits I did there will went to her ears eventually. In the end, when I had finally became a real good boy, I entered secondary school. I have an elder brother, I call him Da Ge (Big Bro). When I was studying in Form 3, he went to university. Since then, my family has been a lot more quiet due to the absence of quarreling between two of us, followed by mother's scolding, and maybe followed by caning sound. Okay, so why a good boy like me still quarrel at home? Because sometimes for some little minor things, we would start fighting. For example, he used my plate when having meal; after meal who supposed to wash the dishes; or who was going to switch off the light during bed time. In school the condition is different, because noone dare to fight with me, as my mother is the disciplinary teacher.

The year-end holiday still has one month left, and after that I am going to be in Form 4. This holiday is different from the past years, because this year I had PMR exam, so during this holiday I do not have any homework. So everyday I spend my time in front of my computer surfing internet. Sometimes my mother would ask me to do some house chores. But what I do is just simply finish the job and then continue my time with my computer. Since she also holiday, she would just scold me and then redo the house chores if I done them not too perfectly.

So duringthis holiday, I have read a lot of news ranging from gossips, unexplainable things, and dirty jokes. Since I still don't have driving license, it is hard for me to hang out with friends. But one fine day, mother suddenly bring me to go out. Along the way she keeps complaining that I am lazy and whatsoever shits, while other people's children can help the parents do house chores......

I don't know where my mother has brought me to. It is a residential area, with a lot of terrace houses. Then I start thinking, she wants to visit her friend also need to bring me along? Won't be so stupid right? Or is she coming to find a girl for me? Or she is bringing me to see my real father while the father living with us is not my real father? I think my life is not so... dramatic.

Inside the house is quite dark, look like this place is not a place for holy people like me. Don't know why my mother bring me to this place.

"Mother, why are we here?"

"Diam lah, you just have to sit quietly."

After one minute and twenty-three seconds, a white-hair red-face old man came out. When mother sees him, she greets him cheerfully, "Hey Guru I am the one who called you yesterday for fortune telling." Now only I know, the reason why we are here is to get this stupid fortune telling thing.

Mother follows him into a room. After not too long only she comes out, but her expression tells me that she just had something bad. I think the fortune teller just told her some bad news. I never know that my mother does believe in all these things. Nowadays there are many cheaters who act as fortune teller or bomoh or whatever job, and I think this old man is one of them.

Then mother asks me to go in. Fine, I don't want to argue. I go in there, the old man is sitting behind a big red table and he asks me to sit in front of him. And then, he stares at me for damn long, and he is like kind of enjoying it. I start to worry if he is gay and phaedophile. I get my fists ready, if he starts anything weird then I will give him some punches.

But I was wrong.

After don't know how long he looking at me, he suddenly asks me, softly, whether can help him or not. Looking at his age, I think if I decline then maybe he will get too frust and get stroke and die, then I will be a murderer and my future is gone. So I agree to help him.

Mana tau he suddenly jumps happily, which makes me shocked and learn that old man can still do something exceeding movement limits. He says, "I want you to become my apprentice."

"Uncle, I thought I am here for fortune telling?" I think he got crazy already.

He smiles and says, "I find out that you are talented, so I want you to be my apprentice."

Faint. Since when I am talented?

Before I can do anything, he grabs both my hands, and then I can feel warmth flowing into my veins. I try to take my hands away but fail to do so because he grabs me very tightly. As time goes by, I feel my head getting heavier and dizzier, like a lot of things have just stuffed into my head. Finally he lets go my hands.

"Okay, now, my student, I have passed you my strongest skill."

I don't know what the hell is happening. What I know is I am very dizzy.

"Now, try to close your eyes, and whatever you have in your mind will appear in reality. Try it!"

What? Nah I don't care. Now I just know that I am really very dizzy, so what I have in my mind, is to eliminate this dizziness.

Then, just really suddenly, the dizziness is gone. I don't know this is just coincidence, or this is really working.

"Now you see, my apprentice. I want to have... an apple." and then... An apple just appears from nowhere in his hand. What is that? Is it magic?

Then he asks me to try. Okay then. I think I want to have... RM50 notes.

Suddenly I feel like something is in my hand. OMG, there is really a RM50 notes in my hand!

The old man... maybe I shall call him Sifu, then says, "See, you just succeeded. But remember, this skill will slowly increase its level as you practise it. At first you can only get some small things, but as the level gets higher, you can get more things from whatever you thinking."

Waa, feel like playing some online game where I need to level up ya?

He then sigh, and says, "Last time when your Grand Sifu taught me this, I used about 3 years and 5 months to learn just the basic. I then trained very hard, and until today only I have mastered it well. But then I am already old, it has not much use to me already. Luckily I meet you today, and also luckily my level is high enough to pass the skill to you straight. So now I do not need to worry that it will disappear someday..."

Oh, you needed your whole life to learn this thing, and I just used 5 minutes to learn this? Wow, I think I am really talented like what you said.

"So now, do you have any question?"

"Sifu, about my future..." I still remember I am here for fortune telling.

Mana tau he laughs at me "You just master what I taught you, then your future is in your hands. Do I still need to tell you anything about your future?"

Okay, understood.

Back at home, I stay inside my room practising this "skill" I learnt. It is hard to believe, that I can make things that appear in my imagination comes to reality. I just imagine a RM50 notes, and then it will appear in my hand! Am I dreaming? But as I keep trying and trying, the notes get more and more, until they are enough to make a blanket. Hey, if I continue doing this I would be a millionaire! I then change my target. I imagine a Body Glove T-shirt I wanted to buy few months ago. But then what comes out in my hand is just... the collar.

Then I think, maybe my level is still low, so I fail to make the shirt come to reality?

As time goes by, only I realise that I have learnt something really useful. For me it is like magic, so I would just call it magic from now onwards. Just like when PMR results come out, my results is ..... like shit. Then I use this magic, to change my results to 8 A. My teachers and friends are shocked to see this. While my mother... Well, she is just too happy until she cannot even stop smiling. And she says, the fortune teller was very accurate.

Then I wonder, if my sifu told her this good news, why she looked like she just received bad news?

But then, only I know the secret lies behind this. It is me who change my future. My life has its new episode starting from now...


ps: I think the translation is bad, cant really bring out the meaning and the jokes. sorry.