SALL (Death Note)

Chapter 13

    There once was a young woman, only in her 20s, who lived alone in a small, lonesome house, placed in a field way out in the middle of nowhere in England. She was hidden, her location purposefully left unknown to almost everyone out there. She lived alone with only her young son, who was quite quickly growing up. It seemed to her that it was only a few hours ago, he was barely able to walk; and now, at only 5 years old, he was sitting at the table studying his third language, and before that he was studying ancient mayan culture. He just picked up on everything, at such a young age. The woman smiled at her boy, and looked down contently. She knew her time would be up soon, and she at peace with that. But she was worried for her child, worried about how he'd grow up. His father had already died the year before, would he be okay losing another parent?

    She heard a knock at the door, and turned her head towards the sound. He was here, finally. Most of her was grateful that the man was here, but the rest of her was filled with sadness. She knew that if he was here, it was almost time.

    She walked over to the front door of her home, staring at the white paint peeling over the side. She gently rested her fingers over the paint, and it seemed as though time had stopped as she stared at something that had been so meaningless to her for so long. It was just a door, but she knew that this would be the last time she would see it. The last time she saw anything in her home.

   Tick...Tick....Tick....

    The soft sound of the hand of the clock on the wall moving seemed to break her trance, and she was brought back to reality and time. She shook her head, as though to shake the thoughts of negativity from her mind. She quickly removed her hand from the cracked paint, and set it onto the doorknob. She turned it, and the door opened silently. There stood an older man, looking to be in his 50s. He smiled gently, his face soft and calming. The woman stepped aside from the doorway to let him into her home. He did, and she gently shut the door behind him. 

    The two of them walked into the kitchen without a word, with only the sound of their footsteps piercing through the silence. The house seemed empty, despite there being three beings inside. 

    The young boy looked up from his textbook, and stared at his mother and the man. He nodded a greeting, and promptly went back to his studying. His mother bit her lip and forced a smile, trying desperately to keep herself from shedding any tears. She looked at the man, and parted her lips to whisper.

"Thank you for taking my boy..." Her voice came out a quiver, and she looked very pale. Though she was strong, she broke, and silent tears came flooding from her eyes. She folded her arms and leaned against the wall. She tried to ignore the wet feeling of tears that were streaming down her cheeks, hoping that if she pretended they didn't exist, then they would cease existing. 

   The man smiled softly, placing a hand on the woman's shoulder, "It's my pleasure," he said in his calm and soothing voice. The young woman hugged him tightly; this man was like a father to her. He looked down at her and quietly spoke. 

    "It's going to be okay, I'll take care of him, you don't have to worry about him." He whispered, and paused for a moment, "I know it's hard, but he will be okay and he will be safe, I promise."

    The woman nodded and pulled away, and wiped her tears away. She smiled through her pain, and walked over to her son. She bent down to his level, and smiled gently.

    "You be good for him, okay?" She whispered softly, kissing her son's forehead. "He's gonna take good care of you, I promise." The boy looked up at her blankly, looking as though he didn't know nor care what was happening. But she knew her son, and could see past his blank stare. She knew he was scared, and didn't want to leave. She leaned over and hugged the boy, who didn't move. But after a moment, as though he was considering what he should do next, he wrapped his arms around his mother and squeezed tightly.