Epitome of a Hero

Familiarization

“You said Mom left after I was born.”

Tricia said as she stared into the old man’s eyes.

And as she did, a fang of pain revived itself on my soul, thinking about how the King said that my mother had died all because I was born. I know this feeling… I know what it feels like to blame yourself for every bad thing that happened in your life.

“Maybe if I hadn’t been born, you wouldn’t be alone… and wouldn’t be so lonely…”

Why do I have to hear… all of this…?

My heart was breaking as I hear Tricia speaking to her father and as seconds pass by, it was like torture. The old man sat closer to Tricia and held her hand by the table. “Don’t ever think of that! You are the best thing that happened in my life… Your mother and I just have a lot of things to figure out about ourselves at the time you were born but that doesn’t mean less of our love for you.”

“Most of the time, I still hear you crying on your own…”

Tricia said and I can feel our eyes about to pour the rain of the storm that was building inside our heart.

“Why were you crying if I never burdened you…?’

You’re wrong Triz… This man is different from my father… He loved you truly…

I know she knows that but I also know that once you have cursed yourself with this burden of blaming everything onto yourself, it is very hard to remove.

“I loved your mother, Triz… You may be young to understand but—you can never unlove someone you have given your life to, you can’t take away a piece of your heart even though they left.”

What may be her reason of leaving?

Tricia started to cry as her mind became filled with too much question and as I was spectating everything from inside her body, I knew what she was thinking of, she thought she was born out of an accident rather than of love like what her stories have.

Well kid... Sometimes, reality sucks more than living inside your head…

“Don’t you hate her for it? For leaving you? For leaving us?”

The old man’s brow showed that he too, was taken aback by her question. “I-I… I was mad at first… but your mother had her own reasons for leaving… And I may not be the right one to tell you this… but she had always been there whenever you needed her… she never really left you… but she ended what was for me and her…”

She never... left…?

Tricia began to wonder what her father meant but automatically she began asking what it was about.

“She loves you, Tricia. And I do too… I am very sorry if I cannot give you the perfect family which you so deserved…” The old man began crying but he held it very well even though some of the tears were attempting to escape his eyes. I suddenly remembered how cold my father looked at me and it made me feel so sad to see the old man crying. He is so different…

And from there, Tricia began to cry as well, I knew she didn’t want to see him cry like this nor wanted to hurt him. I was able to move her body once again and I had only thought of one thing, I embraced my dad and he did the same.

“You don’t have to cry alone, dad,” we said…

She and I… had the same thoughts. We held the old man in our arms as he cried, and it was just like for the first time—the old man cried in front of her daughter... a feeling that he had been keeping for a very long time.

You know he never failed to raise you, right?”

“I know…”

Tricia answered and I felt her hold him even tighter than before.

****

The moment earlier was long but Dad just ended the emotional burst by us eating and him watching a movie of Avengers in the television. I laughed when he impersonated Banner and there I knew, that the hearts of these two were kind of freed from their own locked emotions.

“Thank goodness…”

I sat down the grass on our back yard. The flowers we both and planted here were fine but the one we brought as seeds didn’t have any sprout just yet. A flush of relief went through me when I remember how tensed I was earlier when I watched the two—I never had anything like that…

“Don’t you ever try to kill yourself again, Triz. You don’t know how many of them will be broken if you do…”

I huffed and my hairs rose up from my arms when I felt her beside me, and even saw her beside me--- smiling before she was gone again.

What was that…? My eyes were still wide as I looked beside me where Tricia was once present.

“You look scary.”

A voice popped up near the fence making me jolt from my position. I turned to my side and stood up immediately, only to see Michael standing near the fence, dressed with his normal short and shorts.

“Why aren’t you in school?”

“I should ask you the same thing,” he answered.

“I was sick yesterday. So dad told me to lay low for a while so I could fully recover.” I went near the fence so I could get closer to him since the wind was kind of harsh today, causing our voice to fly away with it. “Why didn’t you go to school today?”

“I felt like it.” He said carelessly as he stared at me without any sort of emotion in his face. Why is this dude so poker?

As I got closer to the fence, he placed his palm on my forehead leaving me stunned. IAs I looked at him, I realized that he didn’t tie his hair today and it was draping down behind his nape up to his shoulder blade, I guess. His lips looked dry and his eyes got bag underneath it.

“You are already fine---“

His words were cut when I also placed my palm on his head, leaving him quite shocked.

I knew it. He was sick too, such a coincidence.

“You still have fever! Have you been drinking any medicine to ease that down?” I scolded him, feeling like a mother hen.

He gently slapped my hand away and rolled his eyes on me. “Take a chill pill Damian. I’m fine.”

He called me by my name again. It kind of made me happy. Rather than frowning and rolling my eyes back, I felt an urge to smile at him and as I did, he looked kind of satisfied.

“Do you want some porridge?” I asked and he shook his head, but he looked like he just forced himself to do it so I held onto the sleeve of his jacket from the fence and dragged him until he I am close to the door in our backyard. He complained but I terrorized him with my look so he obliged.

“I’ll meet you at the front door.”

I went inside the house and Dad was enjoying the movie. “Hey dad, do we still have some porridge for the sick?”

“For the sick?” He chuckled and he pointed to the stove.

“My friend is here, from the neighbor. Turns out, he is sick too.”

I explained as I went the kid by the door.

“Neighbor? Sarah’s kid?” he asked surprised as I grabbed the doorknob, seeing Michael standing in front looking embarrassed.

“Yea, I guess he is,” I said and I immediately heard his footsteps trail behind me.

“I-“ Michael looked hesitant once again, immediately turning around so I grabbed his by his hoodie before he could run from me.

“Eat!” I commanded and he once again obliged, forced by me to go insde the house.

“Michael?” My father asked him and he looked so familiar with him. I looked at the kid beside me and he looked so shy that I could laugh at him right now for being different.

“Hello, Mr. Marcus,” he greeted and I was left muted with them knowing one another. Michael said that he never talked with Tricia before then why is the atmosphere so familiar… Is he lying?