Statue of Freedom

05 Faith in the Goddess of Freedom

"Please!" Pieter grabbed on Breta's shoulders. He looked at her with miserable eyes.

"You fool!" Genevieve shouted. "You don't know anything! Don't ask questions! You're just making her more annoyed. She doesn't want to tell you!"

"But..." Pieter stopped yelling.

"Stop, Pieter!" Lina finally yelled after watching all this happen. "She reduced pain from me. We should thank her."

"Breta..." Pieter lowered his voice, looking into her eyes. "I..."

Breta hugged Pieter. "It's... ok."

Pieter accepted the hug without a word. Genevieve also shut her mouth. She was staring at them with sad eyes.

...

It was the next day. Genevieve and Breta has came back to the City Park. Another new day has arrived and it was time for them to get ready.

"Genevieve,..." Breta said as she climbed up the cube shaped stone surface which she always stands on when it becomes 5 o'clock. "I wish Pieter comes back tonight."

"Don't be greedy. You just had a fight with him!" She yelled. "What's the point? You don't get anything when you go there. No present, no food... Why? Why are you trying to visit him so often?"

"Cuz... I like it." Breta replied in a quiet voice.

"What?"

"Because.... there is something... that attracts me. Makes me want to go there."

Genevieve looked at her, making a face like she doesn't understand why she is visiting just because of that attractive sense.

"Please, Gene. I've never felt that type of feeling in my whole life. I don't know when I will get that feeling again. I don't know how."

"..." She still started until she opened her mouth. "You..."

"Huh?"

"...Nothing. It's nothing." She then changed into a form of the bird and sat on Breta's fingers. They both stood straight and tall.

The clock ticked to 5 o'clock. The managers of the City Park started coming in. The citizens came in, too. But hidden in the pile of people, there was a peculiar high-schooler standing in the middle. Breta knew he was Pieter in one look. But she couldn't move. Or else other people might notice. Pieter already knew that. So he just gave a simple smile at the statue, wandering around her.

But Genevieve didn't understand why he was here. Was it because he missed her? Breta went to his house at eleven-thirty. She came back at about 12 o'clock. It was 5:10 and in 4 hours, Pieter has came back to see Breta. Why? Genevieve just didn't get everything. She didn't know the true meaning of 'love'. She has only felt it once, when she and Breta first met. Now she felt like that love was passed to Pieter.

She flew off from Breta's hand to Pieter. "What are you doing here?"

"Genevieve?" Pieter noticed. "Get back on Breta's fingers! Other people might notice!"

"I'm small anyways. I'm the sub-part of this statue. No one will notice if a small bird is gone."

"But you're still part of the statue. It can't be complete unless you're on it." Pieter's words touched her heart. But she didn't want to admit that her heart shacked because of him. She didn't want to admit that she was opening her heart to him.

"Don't go so deep. Now, tell me why you're here."

"Just a quick visit before school starts." He replied. "I still have 4 more hours left."

"Does he ever sleep? He came back in 4 hours.' She thought. But then she noticed other people walking towards the statue. Just incase, she flew back on Breta's hands.

"Hey young man," A man spoke to Pieter, stepping towards him. "What are you looking at?"

"Who are you?" Pieter asked. "Why do you care?"

"No, just passing by. We're complete strangers. I just had interest at what you're looking."

"The Statue of Freedom?"

"Yeah. Why are you staring at it?"

"Just..... I don't know."

"This beautiful Goddess is known to let you free from anything," The man started speaking. "She can rescue anyone from stress, pressure, sickness,..."

"She's famous in this city." Pieter added.

"She represents London."

"Do you... believe the Goddess of Freedom actually exist?"

"Pfft. Hahahaha!" The man laughed out. His old-man-laugh vibrated the park. "You're a funny man. It's just a statue. It's just what mankind made up. You are really a funny man." He then walked away from Pieter, continuing to walk where he was about to go before talking to Pieter.

Then Pieter also turned around, and he went off to school.