Love VS Death- Introduction

-7 years young-

I was huffing around the house grumpily trying to display defiance. It wasn’t working as I wasn’t truly mad, mostly annoyed. My parents just didn’t understand. How could I leave all my friends. We were mates for life, blood brothers. How many oaths and promises I would be breaking by leaving. They didn’t get it. I sighed out loud and my mother walked towards me. She was still beautiful for being so obviously tired. I knew she hadn’t been sleeping. I had heard her and Daddy up late at night, fighting.

That definitely made me sad because I didn’t like to see either of them sad, especially mum. She was small and pure. I loved them dearly and it hurt my own heart to see them arguing. They had explained to me why this move was happening but I couldn’t understand it, or maybe it was that I didn’t want to. I looked up into her eyes as she made her way to sitting. She smiled lightly at me, the smile looking natural but strained. I smiled slightly back.

“You okay?” she asked.

I nodded my head.

“You sure baby? I know this is hard for you, and I’m truly sorry, but you do understand that this move is a good thing right?” Mummy explained soothing.

I nodded again looking down sadly. I understood I just didn’t want to believe. She put her arm around me and kissed the side of my face numerous times making me giggle, and then she began tickling me, continuing my laughter. After I was giggled out she kissed my forehead and said “I love you Hayden”

“I love you too mum” I whispered.

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The flight was long. I asked mummy so many times if we were there yet or at least close, each time she would reply with a “not yet honey or almost, we’ll be there shortly”. That wasn’t true though because by the time we finally landed it felt like we had been flying for forever and when I walked out of the plane I nearly fell down because my legs had turned to jelly. Mum came and helped me up and I wiggled them around to make them work again. We then walked to get our bags; mum was in a rush so I trailed after her. She found a car and we got into it. I got to sit in the front seeing as Daddy wasn’t with us yet. The roads and traffic was different here and mummy said some naughty words when she was driving to our new house. When we pulled up outside a house I first scrunched my nose at it then took another glance. It was cool. Two story and all white. I liked it. Not like I liked our old home but this one was bigger and had lots of grass.

I jumped out of the car and looked around trying to stretch. I saw lots of houses that looked the same, they all had grass out the front of them like ours did and each looked to have a white picket fence. Our house back home didn’t have one of them. Weird.

I looked to the other side of the street and saw a house with lots of kid’s bikes out the front. Maybe I might make friends after all. Of course I wouldn’t forget about my ones back home but these ones could do until I got back there. Some ran outside all of a sudden but stopped when they saw the truck that had followed us here. It was big and very cool but it wasn’t like the one Daddy had given me for Christmas.

I looked at the kids as they looked at the truck. Mummy came to stand beside me and pushed me over to them with her following. I looked up confused and she smiled.  The kid’s eyes moved to us as we walked closer.

“Hey kids, is your mum home?” My mum asked.

One answered, saying she was inside and my mummy walked closer to the door, I followed but then she stopped, she smiled again kneeling down.

“Why don’t you stay here and play?” she said.

“No” I answered shaking my head.

“Hayden” She said moving her head to the side and turning me to face the kids. She kissed my cheek before walking away.

I huffed and moved towards them, realising they were mostly all boys which was good, aside from one which was a girl. What’s a girl doing with a bunch of boys I wondered? They were looking at me as well. One boy came towards me first. He was bigger than the others.

“What’s your name?” he asked

“Hayden, yours?” I said

“James, these here are Daniel and Luke, my best mates, Lewis as well, Logan and his little sister Scarlett” He explained, saying the girls name nastily.

I nodded and slightly waved my hand saying a small “Hi”.

“You talk funny” Lewis, I think said.

“Not from here are ya?” Daniel asked.

“Nah he can’t be, listen to him” Luke spoke.

I shook my head, “No we just moved from America”

“Ive never been to America” the girl said quitley.

“Of course you haven’t shorty” James said meanly again and pushed past her to stand in front of me.

He was taller than me and it was a little scary to have him right in front of me.

“We don’t like Americans in our group”

I looked around confused. What was he talking about? Im not in any group.

“How would you know?” the girl yelled at him “We’ve never even met one.”

“Shut up short stuff” he yelled back at her.

She wasn’t even that much shorter than him I thought, she would surely outgrow him. As he said that he pushed her face away with his hand.

My dad had always told me to never hurt people. Especially girls, violence was never the answer he always said.

I moved to James and pushed him away, thinking Dad would be okay with this because I’m helping someone, a girl.

“Don’t hurt girls” I said.

He pushed back at me harder, I nearly lost my breathe but it came back quickly.

“Why?” he said smiling.

“You’re bigger than her” I said back

“Yeah and I’m bigger than you as well” he said punching me in the face.

I have never been hit in the face so it was a shock. I heard my mums voice and another lady yell something but my head hurt and my eyes where closed so I wasn’t sure. I heard the boys run away. Mummy came to me and picked my head up and put it on her lap. Her hand brushed my forehead, it felt nice.

“Are you okay Honey? What happened?” she asked fussing.

“Umm, I’m going to get you water and ice for your head Baby, hold on”

I heard mummy leave but someone was still holding my hand, I opened my eyes and saw it was the girl. Scarlett.

“Thankyou” she said smiling

I smiled back at her and from that moment, looking into her big brown eyes I knew immediately, right then and there that she was the love of my life and I would protect her no matter what