The meeting

A cry behind the darkness

-Hurry up, Peter, it will get dark while we are still in the house, The sun has begun to set (Peter's mother, Mrs. Laila, said as she was about to leave).

- I'm coming, Mom, I'm going to catch up with you now. The shoelaces always keep me up. This, what a naughty start to the weekend!!.

- Leila Peter, if you delay any longer than that, I will leave, (said Mr. David, Peter's father, while he was in his car holding the steering wheel and begging them to leave quickly)

Mrs. Leila got into the car, and as soon as she sat, she remembered the gift she would give to her sister on the occasion of her marriage, as she forgot to bring it while she was leaving the house, so she called Peter to bring it while he was leaving the house.

Meanwhile, the wedding was about to start, and Soumaya, Leila's sister, would not complete her joy until she saw her sister beside her, supporting her on this important occasion, which is her wedding.

Peter came out with the gift in his hand, complaining about its heavy weight and commenting, "Why is it too heavy to lift? It's really unbearable."

- mother, my aunt, was very happy when we called her. This is the first time that I saw her happy in this way. My joy is no less than her happiness (Peter said it with a childishness and innocence that radiated from his eyes, the joy mixed with fear that he felt passed like lightning).

Yes, my son, we are also excited about your aunt’s wedding. Today will be all about celebration and fun, because she really deserves it. She deserves more than that (his mother said it in a tone of poise that hides her excessive enthusiasm and open joy, because she is her sister and finally she chose her life partner when she was close to forty years of age. )

Peter added, out of his love of sweets :

- Mom, will they also give us that big cake that we see on TV?

The mother could not hide her laughter, so she giggled automatically as she looked at her smiling husband, who answered him after he noticed that the road was empty while he was looking at him.

- My beloved son, even if that cake was not there, we will have to expose them then because they know that my son loves cakes, he loves cream very much. .

The son smiled at his father's joy and said with fake seriousness with a laugh:

-We will handcuff them until they give me my rights

His father answered him, turning towards him, regaining his seriousness:

- I do not advise you, my hero, so there is no need to make noise or disturb anyone, as long as it was at that wedding.

Do not worry, father, I will be a calm and polite boy. Then he added:

- I am excited to see my uncle Ahmed's children, as I have not seen them for a long time

- I trust you, my son. I just wanted to warn you and remind you so that you do not make a mistake last time at your cousin's circumcision ceremony, so that you repeat the same mistake at the wedding as well. Just be careful.

A headache pierces his ears - A whistling makes him lose his hearing for a moment - His innocent features froze, as he could hardly comprehend the course of his events. Wasn't he discussing with his parents inside the car? How did the truck hit it? Is it a nightmare of the nightmares he hears? He only felt himself jogging towards his mother, whose features were covered with hot blood running beside her head while she was semi-conscious and her breathing slowed little by little, while she groaned with pain that burned and squeezed his heart.

- Mom, Mom, please stay awake, I'll save you. Don't close your eyes, Mom

Laila Bohn smiled, she could hardly feel her soul until she was leaving, so she muttered faintly, her eyes tearing, feeling that she would leave him alone, she would leave Peter in this desperate world that has no mercy for old or young

- It's okay son, I'm fine just promise me you'll take care of yourself and remember...

He interrupted her with a painful gasp, hiding his head in her bosom, then he closed his eyes, which exploded with abundant tears, trying to take a deep breath quietly, and his mother continued her words with great difficulty and sorrow overwhelmed her:

Listen, I might ascend to heaven, I'll wait for you to grow up to catch me baby, just be patient and enjoy your life, all this sadness you're living now will pass and you will move on with it and never forget that I love you

These were her last words. Peter raised his head slowly to smile in front of his mother's eyes, who took her breath away, her eyes becoming sunken, leaving her son, whose cold and dark looks swept away this destiny while he was in shock.

He started looking for his father, looking here and there, and finally found him lying next to a lost oak tree as well, growing by the side of the road. You see it alone, waiting for a savior. Peter glanced at his father and rushed towards him, seeing him panting in the hollow of his motionless body and his pale face while he had put his fingers on his nose. His father felt for a while sensing any breath entering or leaving, and his heart, which he felt, would stop at any possible moment... He found his father's breath stopped and did not make a movement, his breath stopped a while ago, his heart no longer beats, he too lost his life.

The child quickly collapsed, no longer believing what happened overnight, he started asking questions and repeating them to himself, is this life or is all this not real? Am I dreaming or am I in this tyrant world? I want a voice from my mother and a movement from my father. Is this impossible anymore?

He didn't feel himself except when he opened his eyes with difficulty, to find himself in a place covered in white and cold, still feeling dizzy. Her anxiety and sadness for him, he looked at her questioningly, until his thoughts came to his mind about what he had lived through from those harsh events that happened to him a while ago, her little ones shouting mom, dad, then he regains his balance, then he quickly falls and asks the nurse about his parents, while he still understands their loss (begging if It was only a dream, but a nightmare.)

- Tell me that my mother is waiting for me to get up and get stronger again, she is outside right?

- The nurse's eyes were filled with anxiety mixed with great sadness as an answer to him, so she tried to calm him down as much as possible with the help of anesthesia in order to stabilize his psychological state.

Peter understood her reactions and realized the loss of his parents to plunge into a deep sleep caused by the d**g. He no longer wanted to wake up. He wished he had also died with them to join them in heaven. Can he live without his parents? They were the most precious thing he had in this miserable life, in which he no longer sees anything but oppression and misery. He is now alone after his life was full of vitality, his life was full of bright and refreshing colors, but now, he sees that it has become gray, black and white only, struggle He was running around in his mind and thoughts that were going to separate his head from his body. She quietly entered the room to find him lying on his bed with a face full of pain. Her eyes teared up at that moment and she advanced slowly, so she passed her gaze warmly on him until she stopped beside him and then sat down on the edge of the bed to embrace his small hands that are not without small scratches, while she passed her hands over his head slowly and tenderly, remembering her wedding. What was supposed to pass in all happiness and joy turned into a shock that changed the course of the fateful events of the night, until she left the wedding and those in it to run towards her surviving nephew, who was left alone. She let out a deep sigh, trying to expel her pessimistic thoughts and wipe her tears that spilled without feeling.

Here he opens his eyes again, but he feels warm hands holding his hands, he finds her dear aunt. His eyes widened, and his thoughts focused on her. He raised his arms, weakly hiding his body in her bosom, and smelled her scent, perhaps he would find in her his mother who passed away at the speed of lightning, and he wept:

- I want my mother, my aunt. I missed her, but I missed them so much

He said it with great sadness that dominated his innocent features, so his aunt stood up to tell the doctor that he had woken up, trying to hide her tears from him, and to collect her thoughts while he had lay on the pillow with weakness and fatigue, looking back at the room with a mind out of place, interrupted by the sound of the door creaking as it opened slowly, steps he felt but not His aunt, furrowing his eyebrows, traces of tears still on his cheek, only to be found by an angel, no, not an angel, did she come to take him back to his parents?

She is a girl with long flowing hair on her shoulders, which hides most of her features, with innocence and hesitation merged with confusion. The girl advances towards him, trying to correct him to give him a beautiful smile, no less than the beauty of her soul. He slackened, so that his features slackened as well, and he realized that she was a seven-year-old girl. Perhaps that smile that did not leave her gave him a feeling, even a little bit, of comfort, so that he would initiate questioning her quietly mixed with some regret:

- Who are you?

So she spreads the tufts of her blonde hair innocently behind her ears to show her features more clearly, and her eyes.

- I, too, am sick here, and I am receiving treatment in the room front from yours. She contented herself with this answer, and she concealed from him the fact that she heard his screams when she woke up. She just wanted to reassure her. She was aware of this new thing, and her curiosity, which had not cooled since dawn, was satisfied.

- Oh, I see. It's not a very pleasant place to be, is it?

- No, it's not. But the doctors and nurses here are doing their best to take care of us.

- That's good to hear. Are you feeling any better?

- A little, yes. The treatment seems to be helping.

- Well, that's great. I hope you make a full recovery soon.

- Thank you. I appreciate your kind words.

- Of course. Is there anything I can do to help?

- No, no, I'm fine. Thank you for asking.

- Alright then. Take care, and let me know if you need anything.

- I will. Thanks again.

The next day, Peter tossed and turned in his bed, his sleep troubled by a recurring nightmare that he couldn't seem to shake off. In the dream, he was back in his childhood home, the one he hadn't visited in years. But something was different this time. The house was darker, colder, and there was an eerie silence that filled the air.

As he walked through the familiar hallways, Peter could hear whispers coming from the shadows, and he felt a presence following him, but he couldn't quite see what it was. Suddenly, the whispers grew louder, and the darkness began to close in on him, suffocating him until he couldn't breathe.

Just when he thought he couldn't take it anymore, he woke up, gasping for air, his heart pounding in his chest. He sat up in bed, sweat pouring down his face, trying to catch his breath. The terrible traffic accident, the hospital, his aunt, the angel girl, It took a moment for him to realize that it was just a dream, a nightmare that he had been having for weeks now.

He rubbed his eyes and looked around his small apartment, the one he had rented after moving out of his parents' house. It was nothing like the old family home that haunted his dreams. The walls were painted a cheerful blue, and the room was filled with the comforting hum of the air conditioning.

But the memory of the nightmare still lingered, like a dark cloud hanging over his head. Peter got out of bed and walked to the window, hoping that the cool night air would calm him down. He leaned against the frame and closed his eyes, trying to push the memory of the nightmare away.

Suddenly, he felt a soft touch on his shoulder, and he opened his eyes to see Maria standing beside him. She was wearing a long white dress, and her hair was flowing in the breeze. Her eyes were a piercing blue, and she looked at him with concern.

"Are you alright?" she asked, her voice soothing.

Peter blinked, wondering if he was still dreaming. But Maria was real, he could feel the warmth of her touch and the gentle breeze that surrounded her.

"I-I'm fine," he stammered, trying to collect his thoughts.

"You had a bad dream, didn't you?" she said, her eyes full of compassion.

Peter nodded, feeling a sudden sense of relief. It was as if Maria had read his mind and knew exactly what he needed.

"Come with me," she said, taking his hand. "I'll show you something that might help you forget about your nightmare."

Without thinking, Peter followed her out of the room and down the hallway. They passed through the living room and into the kitchen, where Maria stopped in front of the refrigerator. She opened the door and pulled out a carton of ice cream.

"Here," she said, handing Peter a spoon. "Eat this. It always makes me feel better when I have a bad dream."

Peter looked at her in disbelief. Was Maria real or just a figment of his imagination? He took the spoon and scooped up a bite of the ice cream. It was sweet and cold, and he felt a sudden sense of comfort wash over him.

He looked up at Maria and smiled. "Thank you," he said. "You're a lifesaver."

She smiled back at him, her eyes sparkling in the dim light of the kitchen. "I'm just doing what I can to help," she said.

As they sat there, eating ice cream and talking, Peter felt his fears and anxieties begin to fade away. The memory of the nightmare still lingered in the back of his mind, but it didn't feel as overwhelming as it had before.

He looked at Maria beside him and felt a sudden sense of gratitude. "What would I do without you?" He said.