The Weeping woman

Cinco

' Come on! Mama will be furious! Diego!'

' Alright, alright! I just want to look at this frog!'

Averting my gaze away from Alfonso's frantic face, I glared into the amphibian's eyes as it stared into mine. 

' I want to take him home ' 

Alfonso shook his head, ' Whatever! Just hurry up, will you?' He shouted as he anxiously glanced between me and Anita, who was already a few metres away from us 

The River frog continued to glare at me, and silently, it began to croak

 ' Want to talk to me now?' 

The frog whimpered. After another croak, the frog began to hop, farther and farther away from where I stood, subtly being enclosed by the grass that grew close to the river. A psysiological reaction similar to camouflage. 

Rebuffing Alfonso's desperate cries, I took off towards the flowing river, still desperate to catch the frog. 

I've always wanted a pet. I often presented Mama with the pros and cons of keeping a pet. But Mama was convinced that our regular play schedules would interfere with the caring for the animal, which would eventually leave her to care for the animal, a mere chore that would be considered the last thing on her mind. A frog wouldn't be too much of a burden to her, anyway. 

Frantically looking out across the river, I unexpectedly locked gazes with a woman across the river, a woman who was so beautiful. A beauty with no parallel . A beauty so striking and radiant as the iridescent rays of light.

A beauty so familiar..

Soft, but surprisingly sturdy hands grasped my shoulders as a sharp cry rang through my ears..

                                                              ****************************

" Dad? Dad! Wake up, wake up! You're dreaming again! " 

Groggily, I stared up into the Rosalina's face, clarified in the brightly lit room.

Sitting up from my bed, I glanced around and was surprised to see Mama and Uncle Alfonso also in the room.

" What time is it? "

" Dad, it's like, Four O' Clock in the morning, and you were screaming in your sleep " 

" We thought someone had broken in or something " Mama slightly opened the curtain as if to emphasise that thought. " There aren't any cracks or signs of breaking and entering, though"

" I...I " couldn't pull myself together. " I had a dream! A horrific dream, a nightmare! I REMEMBER  everything that happened when I was five years old! EVERY SINGLE THING!" 

Mama stared down at me during my moment of hysteria 

" Everything?" 

" YES!" 

Mama then averted her gaze and stared uncomfortably at Rosalina.

" Dad? What was the dream about? " 

" Nothing, nothing! Just common nightmares people have, such as failing a quiz and showing up nude in public...." 

I could not tell her the truth, about what I saw when I was only five years old. Five years old and venturing with my Brother and Sister.

" Dad, please don't lie to me! I'm fifteen years old! I deserve to know everything! I'm not five anymore!" 

Mama placed a hand on her shoulder " Rosalina, it's too horrific for you " 

" But I deserve to know! I'm worried about Dad " 

" Rosalina....those stories they tell are in fact....true. Since I was five years old I knew that they were" Rosalina flinched. I squeezed her hand " Those stories propelled me to move to Idaho with your Mother. Not only do they frighten me, they propelled me to be very cautious of your whereabouts....I'm more overprotective, especially towards you, my only daughter, the only child I have left. " 

" So, what happened, Dad?" 

" I was trying to catch a frog that day, and I stumbled across her. She pointed a finger in the opposite direction, where the path back home was, as if she was telling me to go home with Alfonso and Anita. And then, she began to wail"

" Isn't that a bad omen, Dad?" 

"At first, I thought it was. But since nothing happened to anyone, I was convinced it wasn't. Until that day.... Your Mother.... Your Brother and Sister...." 

" I know, I know. Dad, don't bring that topic up " 

" ¡ Ay! Hijo, what if that was an omen that determines what happens in the future? " 

" Could possibly be"

" Dad, do you think, that man was right? Anyone who would hear the wail would be greeted with misfortune? Is her wail truly a bad omen?"

" I refuse to believe that, Rosalina "

" Then what? Mom, Alejandro and Fiona? They were just a mere coincidence?! " 

I gazed into her Hazel eyes again, ironically beginning to twinkle again.

" No, they weren't just a coincidence"

" Diego, you're going to have to know, sooner "

"What do you mean?" 

"Those stories, I believe them. Everyone in town believes them. You can't go back to that river"

"Mama, I'm thirty seven "

"That isn't the point! You are my son! You stay under this roof, you follow my rules! Diego, please! Don't go back!" Tears began to stream down her face " I'm scared for you. I'm scared for your welfare! These stories have been the talk of the town!" 

"Okay, okay! Mama, calm down. I promise I'll stay safe, okay?"

"Good. Now, we need answers from an expert....an expert on these folk tales"

"Um....there should be a few pages on the internet regarding this"

"No! Never mind the internet!"

Mama inspected the floral print out patterns on the curtains as she rummaged through her mind for even the most irrevocably and unnecessary source of answers, 

"Do you know La Esméralda?"

"Her? The fortune teller?"

"The psychic. She lives somewhere in town. You visit her today at Ten. Understood?"