"MOM! MOM wake up! ...I'm scared" The little girl beside her is weeping loudly. If they had neighbors they will probably freak out but they never had anyone to rely on in this neighborhood.
It's quite lonely for a child to grow up like this, in an abandoned area with only a corpse of her mother for days now.
She still didn't stop crying, even though she deeply knew that her mom won't come back again... that she won't open her eyes and look at her with apologetical eyes like she used to when she hit her out of frustration, anger and even love.
She always used to say I don't want you to be like him. At first she asked her who he was but the reply was another hard slap so she stopped, not because of the pain of the slap but because of the pain she saw in her mother's eyes when she mention him.
But somehow she knew he was the one who did this to her mom... every hit was for him not for her.
He must be a really bad person she thought, maybe he took her candies onetime... But little did the girl know that he stole her mother's life.
***
Her cries stopped. It was not because her throat hurt, she heard something... someone banging on her door. She was relived and scared at the same time. She hoped her mom would wake up from the loud noise.
Mom always said she was too brave for a girl and one day she will get herself in trouble because of that...
She went to the front door telling the corpse that once used to be her mom that she'll be right back.
Even though she had a second thought on opening the door, she opened it. Days of being in the rotten flesh disappeared by the cool breeze but someone else also stepped in with the wind.
He was quite tall. She always wanted to be tall. He was in a full suite carrying a black flat bag just like secret detectives she saw in movies.
The stranger looked at her thoughtfully
"Can I have a cup of water please" at first she was taken back... she didn't know what to expect from a stranger but this was totally alternative,
She went to the little area her mom used to call the kitchen, only a table and a sink and grabbed a glass and filled it to the top and walked out to see the stranger looking at her dead mother.
She was debating in her head to ask the question but she knew it will hurt her for sure.
"You miss her?" he asked finally, looking at the little girls eyes. She was very skinny.
A thousand thoughts worked itself inside her mind, mom would probably blame her and she couldn't stop wishing she would come to blame her. She miss her a lot, her only family.
"A lot" she answered. The stranger took a sip from the glass, he made a weird face "Tastes kinda funny huh?" he said looking at the corpse.
He was a big problem for her. The way he acts and way he talked were all new... she recalled something her mom always said... New is bad.
"I don't think so sir" she answered honestly looking at the stranger who interrupted her crying
"Here drink and see for yourself" he offered
She took the glass doubtfully and took sip... It did taste a bit salty but she swear she washed the cup thoroughly
The stranger sat on the chair looking directly at her eyes making her nervous but as mom always said never show any feelings to outsiders
"Have you been to New York?" he randomly asked taking her by surprise
"I...haven't"
"You wanna go there? Its actually a cool place..."
She was in a topic she never imagined having with a stranger or any human-being. All she ever had was her mom and now she had left her alone.
"One day" she answered
"hmm..." the man said, the silence invaded them for a while. She didn't mind that at all it was a comfortable awkwardness but the weird stranger broke it.
"They should be close now... We should get going" he said looking at the watch on his wrist.
"Where are you going?" she asked curiously
"To a place hidden far beneath the reality, to a place where you'll find peace in war" he was insane she thought but she liked him.
"And we are part of it" he said again
He stood up and grabbed his bag then he held out his hand for her, at first she thought he was going to go for a handshake, a sign of farewell but she knew it wasn't the case by the look on his face.
She looked at her mom... somehow she knew this would be the last glance she spare for her. If only she could come with her...
Then she took his hand and he gave her a thankful smile.
Together they stepped out of the house leaving the mother behind...
YOU ARE READING
THE BARRIER
Science FictionThe Barrier that prevents destruction has been broken by them. Unknown has invaded the familiar and injected venom into the innocents. The fate of the Earth is in hands of a few teenagers that have become monsters by the betrayal. Can they win the b...
