Between Dreams And Distance

Chapter 2: Different Roads

The first light of dawn spilled through Anthony's window. He rose from bed,washed quickly and began packing.

Today was the day,the day he left everything familiar behind.

From his window,the city was alive. Horns blared,buses and taxis swerved, people hurried to work. But inside Anthony's chest,the noise was quieter, heavier.

He descended the stairs to breakfast.

“Morning, Father. Morning Mother.”

His father responded warmly but his mother was silent,her lips pressed tight. Anthony walked closer.

“Mother?” he said softly.

Her eyes brimmed with unspoken pain. When she finally hugged him,her voice broke into sobs.

“Don't worry mother,” Anthony whispered, forcing a smile. “I'll call you every night, distance won't take me away from you”.

She kissed his forehead, but she couldn’t say more. The moment felt like goodbye already.

Time was running. He skipped breakfast, grabbed a slice of bread, and headed out. His driver loaded the luggage into the car. Anthony stood outside the white-painted house that had been his home for seventeen years.

But his eyes weren’t searching the walls. They were searching for her.

And then;she appeared.

Sophia walked quickly down the road,her yellow top was glowing in the sunlight,her steps rushed but was hesitant. Anthony's chest loosened .

“I made it,” she said out of breath.

“I couldn’t leave without saying goodbye.” He smiled.

They stood close and their eyes were doing what their hands couldn’t.

“You'll meet new people, girls much prettier than me,”she teased with a cracked voice.

Anthony chuckled. “I'm not going there for girls, I'm going there to become someone.”

“And you will,” she whispered. “You’ve always had a way of turning dreams into something real.”

Then silence followed but it wasn't the soft silence of last night,it was heavier,the kind that comes before distance.

“What about you?” Anthony asked.

“I’ll write my exams next year,” she said.

“I want to study medicine, to become a doctor. I know it won’t be easy, but I’m ready.”

He smiled and nodded. For a moment,it felt like their futures were two trains on different tracks.

“Promise me something,” Sophia said suddenly with her eyes wide.

“What?,”Anthony asked.

“Don’t let school change your heart. Remain who you are.”she said.

Anthony squeezed her hand. “Only if you promise never to stop dreaming.”

She nodded but her tears betrayed her.

The driver’s voice broke them apart.

“Sir, it's time . We are late.”

Sophia whispered, “Go,make us proud.”

Anthony stepped into the car and as it drove away, Sophia stood waving and smiling through her tears until the car left her sight

She walked home pale and quiet. Even her little dog couldn’t draw a smile. Her mother asked what was wrong, but Sophia only shook her head.

Meanwhile, Anthony leaned back in his seat and memories of Sophia started replaying in his mind and it made him chuckle to himself.

“Sir, you've been smiling since,”the driver said curiously.

Anthony shrugged, “Just memories.”

The journey dragged on. Hours passed, traffic slowed them, and by evening they still weren’t at school.

Anthony sighed, looking out the window as darkness fell.

“Daniel,” he said, “find the nearest hotel. We’ll spend the night there.”

But even as he said it, a strange unease prickled his chest. Something about the night ahead felt different.

He noticed the road was very quiet, pedestrians receded as if it was an abandoned road.

Daniel glanced nervously at the empty road ahead.

“Sir this doesn't feel right,” he muttered,his hands tightly fisted on the steering wheel.

Anthony looked out the window again,the streetlights around the area blinked weakly,and the shops that lined the roadside were closed.

Anthony hadn't gone through this route for months and also not this hour,he felt a hollow feeling gnawing at his stomach.

“I think we should turn back,”Anthony suggested.

But before Daniel could reply,a loud bang echoed behind them. The car waved and Daniel struggled to gain control to avoid crashing through a street light,he managed to pull the car to the side of the road safely.

The moment they stopped, Anthony's uneasy feeling worsened. The night air was thick and heavy with a silence that pressed against his ears. So he stepped out,gravel crunched beneath his shoes. Daniel bent to inspect the car if anything had gotten damaged but he was astounded and he muttered under his breath and that's when Anthony noticed it.

A figure was standing and watching at the edge of the road.

“Daniel,”Anthony whispered sharply. Daniel looked up,his face was already pale as more figures emerged from the shadows, walking slowly into the dim light. There were five of them and they were dressed in hoodies with their faces hidden.

“Hand it over,”one of them spoke with his deep,cold voice.

Anthony's heartbeat thundered. “Hand over what?”he asked with a trembling voice.

“The bag,”the man snapped, pointing at Anthony's suitcase.

Daniel straightened.

“We have nothing you want,just let us go.”

But the men were closing in and they surrounded the car. Anthony's mind raced,he thought; The bag?His luggage only carried clothes,books and a few personal items. Why would they want it? Unless..

Then something flashed in his mind. The envelope. His father had given it to him a few days ago and he instructed him saying, “Keep this safe, don't open it until you get to your destination”.

Meanwhile, Anthony had been too distracted and absent minded to ask questions but now his pulse quickened. Could this be what they wanted?

Daniel whispered urgently, “Sir,get back in the car.”

But it was too late because one of the men brought out a knife and the blade was sharp as new while another yanked the car door trying to force it open.

Anthony's chest tightened once more,he glanced at the bag in the backseat. Should he give it up? But why would his father entrust it to him if it wasn't that important?,he said in his thoughts.

The hooded man growled, “Last chance.”

“The bag, or your blood. Choose!!.”

Anthony caught his breath,he gripped his fingers. He wasn't sure if it was fear or resistance but something inside him refused to surrender.

Suddenly and unexpectedly, headlights were flashing in the distance. A police car was approaching fast and the men were in shock.

“Go,Go!”,one of them shouted. And in seconds they melted back into darkness, they vanished quickly as they had appeared.

Daniel didn't waste time,he dragged Anthony wasted back into the car and slammed the locks. The approaching police car slowed but it was impossible to tell if it was a friend or a foe.

Anthony's chest sighed as he stared at the bag. His father's words rang louder than ever; keep this safe.

But he said in soliloquy.

“Safe from who? And why?”

But he and Daniel realized that the road ahead was no longer just about school, instead it was about secrets and danger and Anthony had just walked into both.