The Day Doom Knocked on Our Doors

Chapter 19: Some Funerals

"Why are you crying?" Asked a little boy.

"Am I? It's nothing." The lady, who sat under a huge tree, said. She painted a small smile to cover her grief.

She wasn't so sure where the tears came from. She had always been someone who is resolute. And it's not like this happened for the first time.

"If you say so." The boy, this time, cheerfully said as he peered down at her from where he sat on a tree branch. "We can share the tree for today. It seems like you need it."

"Thank you." The lady responded. She watched, as the boy floated in the air and then softly landed next to her.

"What's the story?" he asked as he sat on the grass. She can see the eagerness in the boy's face. She figured, she won't be alone this time.

"That young lad there," she started, pointing ahead. The direction she pointed at, held a funeral. "I put a red string on him before he was even born."

"Don't you put red strings on every single one of them?" The boy asked once more. The lady couldn't help but laugh at his response. The boy was correct.

She nodded, eyes fixed, on the people who pushed prince Hodong to his death. They had the impudence to attend the ceremony that would send him to afterlife. "Uhu. But the one I put on him is a bit stronger than the others."

"Why is that?" The boy continued to probe. "I'm not sure. But I think I liked his mother a lot, so I wished he won't end up like her. Meeting someone who isn't strongly her match."

"Aren't you the one who tied his mother's string to his father's?" The boy asked in confusion. The lady nodded in response once more.

With a sigh, she opened her palm and strings of different patterns, textures, and shades of red, appeared from thin air. "You know of snowflakes and its patterns right?" She asked back. This time, the boy nodded.

"It's like that. No two snowflakes has the same pattern. This," She started and paused. "is less complicated." She continued, handing the strings to the boy so he can observe them.

"The thin string, with the simple pattern is a string for lifetime friends. The shade is cheerful isn't it?" She said with a soft smile. "Uhu." The boy responded.

"And this one?" The boy added. Waving a silky string that's almost feather like in weight. It looks like it will easily break, yet its color is the deepest shade of red.

"That's what I put on him." She said. The boy can feel the melancholy in her tone. "It's the strongest string there is. And you can only put it on a few chosen people."

"And what did you tie to his parents?" The boy questioned. Curiosity written on his face. The lady couldn't help but ruffle his white hair. He is pretty much just like her. The inquisitive type.

"This one." She said, taking one string from the boy's hand. It's the color of apples. The texture is a bit rough. "This is for life lessons. I didn't really think they will marry. She has two soulmates. The other one was attached to the one she was supposed to marry and not the one who became her husband."

"It's still very complicated." The boy said, scratching his head. He returned the strings to the lady before he stood up. "Thank you for your story, but I best leave you now. I already took so much of your time." He grinned.