Teoloprukunin sits cross-legged on the floor in front of me. He begins chanting at my knee, while stirring a greenish liquid in a small black bowl with his finger.

"Haaaak" he spits into the mixture and stirs some more. A handful of potion is rubbed on my knee before I can blink. The potion and his saliva are sinking into my wounds.

"Ha la ekiu Hal la eiku. Ha la ekiu Hal la eiku." I have no idea what he is chanting or what it means. Neither does Budi.

Relax to the rhythm. Let yourself go. The pain dissipates, then disappears. Medicinal or psychological? Who knows. I smile, in gratitude, and he hugs me before continuing his chores.

But I can't free my mind from the image of his saliva invading my wound. When no one is looking, I run down to the river, wash my knee and smear more Neosporin over the wound. The throbbing returns.

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