Divided heart

20. mother

"Those closest to us should understand us best, yet they are often the ones who inflict the deepest wounds."

-Sin-

Heil screamed in frustration inside his glass bubble. He was struck thousands of times, yet unable to break down the prison of his subconscious. He watched Sin offer a string of compliments, deceiving his father into drinking alcohol laced with Dyphenhydramine sleeping pills on the circular balcony.

The bastard's stupidity went completely unnoticed. He chuckled happily as Sin handed him glass after glass of the cursed drink. He thought his alcohol tolerance was so high that there would be no problem. Even when his 13-year-old child attacked him. Marvel thought he would be able to handle it easily.

On the fifth glass, Marvel stood helpless, feeling the world spin drastically. The intoxication shouldn't have happened so quickly. He glanced suspiciously, sniffing the bottle as Sin sat silently behind him. Sin snatched the bottle from Marvel's hand, then kicked the man with all his might. Marvel tumbled, losing his balance as Sin kicked him again.

The man's body fell into a free fall, unable to fight back or reach for anything. His brain worked very slowly due to the overwhelming drowsiness. Marvel's head hit the rocks that Sin had previously scattered just below their balcony. Blood flooded the area, accompanied by hysterical screams from the residents of the Marina apartment.

Sin smirked, turning his head a full 360 degrees. He took out a handkerchief, wiping his fingerprints from the glass bottle of liquor to ensure no trace was left, and placed the bottle on the floor in a specific position. Before that, he poured the remaining liquor into a glass, splashing the bottle with the cursed liquid to make it look as if it had spilled due to Marvel's clumsiness.

Sin then quickly climbed to the ceiling and waited there, until people arrived and forced open the door of apartment number 20, which was locked from the inside. Perfect. They would think Marvel had fallen due to his own carelessness, or, if they were more observant, they would assume Marvel had committed suicide due to the sleeping pills in the alcohol he had consumed.

Until then, Heil's vision was obscured by his long sleep, shrouded in guilt for having killed his own father. Sin had fulfilled his promise to Heil, eliminating the bastard who had destroyed their happiness.

***

Heil woke up that morning, staring at the ticking wall clock. He checked the wall calendar with an anxious face. It was Sunday. A week had passed without him realizing it. Sin had stolen that time. He examined his body. Strange, how had he returned?

His mother turned, making Heil jump back a step. They were lying on the floor asleep. Dirty tear tracks ran a long path down his mother's cheeks. Had seeing his mother cry brought him back to consciousness? Heil gently stroked her cheek.

His mother opened her eyes, smiling gently at her son's face. "Heil, thank you for comforting me last night. Without you... I wouldn't have been able to get through it."

Heil's throat tightened, a lump of anxiety lodged there. If only his mother knew who was behind Marvel's death and Aldo's disappearance. Would she still thank him?

"We'll both go on living our days as before. We'll start all over again." Tears flowed. His mother tried to appear strong in front of Heil, but losing two family members at once had hit her hard.

"Today we'll pack up their things. You'll help me, won't you...?" His mother gently stroked Heil's cheek. Heil nodded. He would do anything to make this woman happy again.

They got up and prepared to pack the belongings of the two men. Aldo's belongings were few, but Marvel's were quite numerous. Heil put Marvel's clothes into a large cardboard box. Then he sealed it with tape and dragged it towards the door. His mother said that any suitable clothes would be donated.

The clock showed 12:00 noon. Seeing his mother's exhaustion, Heil took the initiative to buy instant noodles. He didn't want her to tire herself out by cooking. The boy ran down the stairs while his mother continued to clean the dust on the floor and cobwebs from the ceiling.

He yelled again for his mother, but no one answered. Two packages of instant noodles fell as Heil saw his mother descend from the open ceiling hatch. Her face was expressionless. Like a robot, her hands trembled as she dropped a box of medicine labeled DYPHENHYDRAMINE in capital letters.

He saw it, he must have seen Aldo's bones there. Heil clutched his chest in fear.

"Mother... I... this... " how could he explain everything?

His mother walked past him in a panic, silent, ignoring Heil's presence.

"Mother..." Heil said softly, taking his mother's arm.

His mother turned, staring stiffly at Heil. A single tear fell from her right eye. She breathed rapidly, brushed Heil's hand away, and walked out again.

Heil saw disappointment etched on his mother's face. He bit his lip and knelt, hugging himself. Crying silently. Did his mother hate him now? Would his mother listen to his explanation?

Fearful, Heil was afraid his mother wouldn't speak to him again and would ignore him. Furthermore, Heil was afraid his mother would hand him over to the police.

Strangely, however, Heil's fears never materialized. His mother returned that night. Heil heard her open the door silently. Her footsteps slowly approached Heil, who was huddled under a blanket on the floor.

His mother gently stroked Heil's head, causing the boy to unexpectedly sob.

"I brought dinner, come on, get up," she said softly.

Heil was silent. Surprised, he got up and looked deeply into his mother's eyes. "Aren't you angry with me?" he asked, confused.

His mother weakly shook her head, smiling sadly. "The food will get cold if we keep talking." She took two lunch boxes out of a black bag and handed one to Heil.

They ate in silence. Occasionally, his mother wiped food from Heil's lips. There was no conversation that night. Heil wasn't ready; he didn't want to make his mother cry again. He would wait for the right time to reveal everything.

Unfortunately, there was no right time. Every time Heil tried to start a conversation, his mother would change the subject abruptly, pretend not to hear, or do something else to avoid it. Yet every night... Heil was haunted by the woman's weeping. Although his mother's cries were muffled, he could still hear them.

They say the sea is always calm before a great storm. That bad feeling accumulated every day. Heil knew, but he could do nothing. And that afternoon... a devastating storm struck the boy's life, shattering his sanity.

His mother stood silently near the kitchen table when Heil came home from school. The blue sky outside didn't even attract her somber gaze. She turned, tears tracing long lines down the wrinkles on her face.

"Forgive me," she said softly. She turned to look deeply into Heil's eyes, as if wanting to etch her last memory.

Heil's school bag fell; he was about to run and hug his mother. But he stopped when he saw shards of broken glass liquor bottles scattered on the floor.

His mother stepped on the broken glass without flinching in pain. She continued walking towards the bright light outside, leaving a trail of red on the wooden floor.

No! Don't! Heil couldn't hold back his scream, too shocked by his mother's behavior.

The wind blew the beautiful woman's short hair. She leaned against the railing of the circular balcony, her shoulders shaking with deep pain. Hurt, her heart hurt. She squeezed her chest with all her might; she couldn't hold it in any longer.

"Stop... please stop...!" Heil's tongue felt numb. He was crying now, his feet rooted to the spot.

His mother began to climb, standing on the balcony railing. She turned again, looking at Heil with tears streaming down her face.

"Forgive me, son. Mother..." The mother sobbed uncontrollably. "....Mother can't take it anymore. Forgive me...." The woman bit her lip. "Live your life... and don't," she sobbed again. "Don't let them find out, bury all the bad memories, forgive Mother Heil."

A final smile touched the woman's pale lips; she released her grip and fell from the height.

Finally, Heil could scream, so loud that his voice became hoarse. He continued screaming like he was possessed, a sharp dagger piercing his heart.

If only he had tried harder to explain everything, Mother wouldn't have left him. It was his fault, his negligence, because of him... Mother chose to die. He was the one who killed his mother.

His world shook violently. Guilt gripped Heil so tightly, making the child feel choked. He stood trembling, controlled by another consciousness. He continued to walk dazedly, descending the fifty-seven steps. Walking like a robot, while panicked screams echoed in the apartment.

His consciousness began to fade. The sky suddenly turned black. The wind blew stronger with drops of rain falling, wetting the earth. The child walked steadily towards the highway. He kept walking and kept going. Mother said he had to live.... he had to live...

The blare of a horn woke Heil, momentarily. A car sped towards him. A bright light blinded the child. Then everything turned into total darkness.