Chapter 5 The Cold

Daimon threw a wet sand patch at me, which hit me square on the face before sliding down. I glowered at him and he simply laughed. Ruth, Jack and Ase were laughing so hard that they rolled over on their stomachs. It was hard to stay mad at all of them at the same time. Especially Daimon. Even now that we were older and no longer kids, he couldn't get over the old games and would always try to get us going too.

Ase's laughter was cut short when a sand patch hit her right across the face. She glowered, rushing after Daimon and tackling him to the ground. I had found my voice back when I saw this, doubling over and letting the laughter spill from my lips.

"Hey, Melissa. You didn't tell us how it went with your dad." Ruth said, keeping her gaze down and her hands rubbing the hem of her dress.

Though we had been playmates, it was safe the shyness was embedded in Ruth. Among all of us, she also seemed to be the one with a lot of issues bothering her though she never revealed it. In our little group, Daimon was the genius, I was the idea woman, Ruth was the one who sometimes awkwardly tagged along or brought supplies-it all depended on her mood really-, Jack was the adventurer, always looking for something new and Ase was the craziest among us. She... Well, she certainly had a place in our hearts.

"I haven't told him anything," I said with a huff, walking towards the river to wash my dress that was covered in sand. There had been a little adventure he had thought up, to look around for rare rocks and give them to the adults for sale.

"Oh... is Melissa still a little shy to ask daddy for permission?" Ase teased, her eyes twinkling.

I glared at her as much as I could, knowing anything more might make her laugh rather than get her upset. "I'm not scared to ask, I'm just not ready to tell him about it."

"You have to tell him soon though. If you're not coming along, we might have to cancel it." Daimon said beside me, making me smile and look down at the water.

"Cancel? We're not cancelling anything for her." Jack scoffed, "If she can't ask, then it's her loss."

I chose not to say anything about the little trip, choosing to stare at my reflection in the water. The conversation soon shifted, taking their attention away from me and to other things. I was grateful to Ase for changing the topic because Jack and Daimon might have started arguing. They had all grown on me over time, especially Daimon. I could only hope he hadn't noticed how I was staring. The last thing I needed was for everyone to misunderstand the way I was looking at him.

"Let's go, Melissa, It's late already." He said to me, giving me his hand to take which I did. "What are you staring at?"

"Not your dumb face. I'm still going to get back at you for what you did earlier, you know?"

His eyes glinted as he smirked at me, "I'd like to see you try."

I waved at them, hating that we had to leave each other but not having a choice. The sun had gone down now and I was left with no choice but to head back home. It was a short trip because I felt a sudden need to rush home. Even with how tired I felt, a voice kept calling to me to hurry and get into the house. I listened to it and ran past the fields, the breeze leaving goosebumps on my skin.

When I finally reached home, I saw dad sitting by the door, his head lowered and his hands on his head. He looked like he wished to be anywhere but here. There was a far off look in his eyes and they looked glassy from the light reflecting in them. I couldn't understand what I was to do so I walked up to him and sat by his side, putting my hand in his and holding on. Even if I couldn't make him feel better, I had to make him know I was there for him and he wasn't alone.

Moments after I sat by his side, he looked up at me with sad eyes. "Hey, Mel. Did you have fun?"

"Yes, daddy. I had fun, but what's going on? What do you want me to help you with?"

He exhaled for a while, keeping his eyes down again and looking at his hands. "It's your mum. She isn't feeling so well and it just keeps getting worse."

At the sound of his words, the tremors in his voice couldn't be neglected. It showed that he was scared and more than anything, he felt helpless. Like there wasn't much he could do for her. He had bitten his nails so much he had torn them into the skin, he had chewed on his lips so hard I could see signs of cuts on them. Just like he didn't know what to do, I didn't either. Rather than sit still without lending him any form of support, I stood up and hugged him to my body.

The tears he had been holding back burst out in a second and he clutched onto my dress. I knew I had sand all over it from cleaning up in the river and from Daimon's game, but he didn't mind any of it. He pulled me closer, rubbing his head against my belly.

"You hugged me just like Mila would." He whispered against my dress through choked sobs.

I knew this was how mum hugged him, but I hadn't expected it to have such an effect on him. It hurt my heart so much to see him in that kind of situation because he was always the one being there for us. It had never occurred to me that he might be in a situation where he'd depend on me too.

"Let's go check on your mum." He said, rising to his feet and pulling me along with him.

On getting to the room, I saw mum staring straight ahead. I walked up to her, wondering just what had happened within the few hours I had left the house. It hadn't been that long, I thought, looking at the state she was in. I took rushed steps towards her when she beckoned me to her.

"I need to tell you something. It's about your destiny," were the first words she said to me.

"What are you talking about, mum?" I asked, feeling confused the more she stared ahead in a daze. Unsure, I looked back at dad who looked just as worried as I was. "You need to relax."

"And you need to listen." She said, her eyes unmoving from whatever she was staring at. There was a lost look in them and she spoke with a weird tone, one, unlike the way she normally spoke.

"What do you want to say, Mila?" Dad voiced from behind me, rubbing my shoulders to keep me calm.

"On the day I delivered you, Melissa, I had visions. I wasn't sure what they were and it seemed they were locked away for a reason." She said, "Until now. I remember everything I saw on that day and I must tell you what I saw for you to fulfil your destiny."

I gulped, nodding and waiting for her to speak further. I had no idea what destiny she was going on about or if she even knew who she was speaking to. It didn't matter though, I just had to listen. After all, that was all she demanded.

"In my visions, I saw you, Melissa. You were grown up and you had your hands on a dragon."

At the sound of 'dragon', dad had let go of my shoulders to look at mum. "Dragon? Are you sure you saw a dragon?"

Mum chuckled and turned towards us, "I know a dragon when I see one. I did see them through most of my childhood. Melissa treated the dragon kike it was her pet. At some point, she even mounted it and rode it without a care in the world. There, she looked genuinely happy. Like nothing could take her away from that joy. Then I woke up."

Dad and I stayed quiet even after she stopped talking, mulling over her words and trying to see the reason behind her words. It was hard to understand why and how I would be a dragon rider when everyone in Daneland treated it like a forbidden subject. That was how I had grown up to see dragons because even dad barely mentioned it for too long. Even now as he thought, the pain in his eyes was imminent. He couldn't stop thinking and I didn't know what to do about him or her.

"Melissa, you need to fulfil your destiny," Mum said, reaching her hand over my cheek and caressing it. "Don't be daunted by the fear of our world, you are brave and I believe in you."

I covered my hand over hers, tears streaming down my cheeks because I had questions. Questions I needed answers to. Questions I knew dad couldn't answer. Just as the thoughts in my head ran amok, her hand grew limp in mine and a tear slid down her temple.

"Mum? Mummy?" I said, clutching her hand to myself and struggling to keep my emotions under control.

Dad gently pushed me aside, grabbing mum and placing her head on his lap. "Mila? Wake up."

She wasn't responding to my calls or dad. Her eyes were still open and the tears still spilt on the sides of her face almost like she had kept them all in. I couldn't hear anything, but I watched as dad bowed himself towards her, his body wracking and his mouth open in noiseless wails. I watched as our neighbours rushed in, leaving me to wonder where they had been hiding all along. The scenery before my eyes soon changed as my body was pulled away from my dad and back into the living room. They were saying things, their mouths moving, but I couldn't bring myself to listen.

Whatever the destiny was, it had stolen my mum from me and I was not stopping until I got answers to what I was searching for.