The Unplanned Journey
Sarah, listening to her daily music from their music player sent across seas, heard a soft knock on the door. As she glanced through their ultramodern well-designed window, she saw Eva face down, trying to follow the movement of the insect on the ground.
She stood to observe her for a while before opening the door to let her inside. "Good afternoon mum," Eva greeted as she saw the door opened. "Afternoon… it seems you are home early today." Sarah added while closing the door. "Yeah! Austin and I decided not to meet at our usual spot today so we could rest for the big day ahead." Eva uttered, while taking her backpack, and sat on the chair close to her mum.
Eva called out Lily's name as she stretched herself in the chair. "Your sister is not back yet, so stop calling her name aloud" Sarah responded, while lighting the kitchen stove. "Hmm, doesn't she return before I do?" Eva asked while moving towards the kitchen to take a bite of the apple on the table.
"So, haven't you stopped this behavior? Hmm!" Sarah moving towards the sink fixed at the left side of the kitchen. "Help me wash the vegetables".
Lily called out Austin's name, when she saw him walking close to the junction that rift the road into two, having the oak tree as the midpoint of the road. "Austin, Ausin." As she saw no movement towards her direction called on to him again.
Upon hearing his name being mentioned, Austin turned and saw Lily ten steps behind him. He stood there for a while, making Lily catch up. "I have been calling you for five minutes." Lily uttered upon reaching five steps from Austin.
"Oh, my attention was placed in a different space time." Austin responded, wearing the charm smile of a phoenix, complimented Lily on the role she played during the performance.
"Oh, that play, I was even shocked on how I performed, because wanted to run when the day transpired." Lily responded, moving her head in a shy manner while carrying sunshine on her lips.
"It was Eva who gave me words of encouragement to do it." Added while moving both hands towards her shoulder, to position the backpack.
"Oo! Nice, then I can see the reason why her face was beaming with light of joy, as she watches you perform." Austin murmuring, gazed at the depth of Lily's eyes, while moving his head.
"Can you escort me home?" Lily added, pulling her right hand out, making it ready to be held.
Austin held her hand while they tramped the road to her house. Lily informed Austin about all the comment that she heard after the play was over. But, kept on repeating the sensation she felt, as she pulled him and their eyes got engaged.
As they got closer to Lily's compound, Austin bids her goodbye while turning to navigate his way home. "Won't you say hi to Eva and mum?" Lily asked, standing with a muddle filled her face.
"Oh, nah! We planned not to meet today, so with that being the case, I just don't want to spend much time today, because I'll spend tomorrow as if it was my last day on earth in your house." Austin responded while turning with an angel smile.
"Okay-oh!" Lily responded while heading to the gate, walking lackadaisically, as if she was in no hurry to reach the door.
Austin started reminiscing on both the picture and his dream, as he trod the road with his hands in his pocket. "Was it a coincidence I dreamt of the woman in the picture?" he started questioning himself like a criminal in the witness stand. "Why did Jake seemed extremely shocked as he saw the picture." He continued, as he walked with confusion filled him from his body to his soul.
Mary noticed a change in Austin's movement, as she saw him on the road leading to the gate. She quickly washed her hands and got closer to him; the moment Austin entered. "Is something bothering you, my prince?" She asked as she placed her left hand at Austin's shoulder, wanting to know the reason for the wild eyes and shadow clouding his face.
"I'm fine mum, don't worry." Austin articulated as he raised his head like an ant pushing a pen.
"Are you sure you are alright?" Mary asked, raising Austin's head with her hands at his cheeks. "Yes-Ma." Austin responded, giving her smiling eyes. "I have to eat and rest, to be fully energized to enjoy the day ahead," he uttered while take a seat at the dining table.
Mary handed Austin his food, while tracing her fingers through the strands of his hair to gently unravel the knots of his thoughts, as she sat beside him. Mary then heard, a sound from the telephone upstairs, the moment she stood and made an attempt to close the kitchen cabinet. She quickly went to receive the call, wondering who might be calling at that moment of the day.
"Hello, please who is this?" Mary asked placing the phone at her left ear, in a confused manner. "It's me Peter, I won't be able to come home this evening," Peter answered. "Why? What is wrong with your voice?" she added, sensing a load of tiredness filling his throat. Peter answered the questions and elucidated the cause of drowsiness filling his voice. He then added there will be an emergency travel which he is part of the crew to depart.
"But you assured us this morning you will be present on Eva's birthday, to make Austin happier…" Mary moving her right hand across the edge of the wall close to the telephone stand to ease herself from the unplanned journey.
Peter, noticing heavy flow of sadness in Mary's voice started to tease her. Mary then started showing signs of happiness in her voice and action, after exchanging words for a long period of time. "I have to go and check on Austin…" Mary, bidding Peter goodbye as she hung up, placing the telephone on its stand. She then made her move to go downstairs.
Her mouth got wide opened as the length of the ocean, as she saw Austin's head lying on the dining table. "What is going on in the head of my son?" She tried calling him, noticing he was already driven to the land of dreams at that moment.
"Has he forgotten the way to his room? Or, was he waiting for me?" She added while tapping on his lap to bring him back from reverie land. Austin raised his right hand as a response as he felt the touch of his mum as if called in the dream land.
Mary decided to tap him for three consecutive sequences, upon realizing the movement he showed after the first tap. "Was it just by chance, or an action he's performing in the dream world?" Mary questioned herself as no movement came again, after the first one. There was a change in the position of Austin's head as he felt the second tap from Mary. "Won't he wake-up and head to his room?"
Upon tapping him for the final face, Austin raised his head filled with undiluted dream hanging at his spin. "Mum, I saw you talking to dad on the phone." Austin asked, making ready to navigate to his room. "Yh, he won't be here on Eva's day." Mary answered, turning in a worried manner which made Austin murmured words of dissuasion in his mind, as he noticed the look on her face.
Traveling his way to his room, he remembered the picture he saw at the dried wooden board on his way home. "Why did Jake behaved as criminal caught in his act, when he took a deep glance at the picture." As he entered his room, he heard wind blowing like a war in the heavens. "Will it rain today?" He added while turning to search for his blanket which he stopped using since the day he met Eva.
Hearing chanting night birds and flowing fountains in the sky, Austin got closer, to close the window next to his bed. Then a sudden heavy wind burst into the room, making all the blanket firmly placed on the bed, and the sheet which contains his thought and words on the mirror table, flew like an aircraft in his room.
"What kind of wind, is this?" he wondered as he quickly closed all the windows on his walls, and threw his body with all his might on the bed, making a heavy sound like a plane crashing into the sea.
"What's that sound form Austin's room…" Mary added moving towards her room. She then turned and went to Austin's door. "Are you okay?" Mary asked while calling Austin's name twice with trembling heart. "I'm okay, I just threw my body on the bed." Austin answered the moment he heard her voice bouncing on the wooden door like a ball kicked on a wall.
As he heard her footsteps miles away from the door, Austin then embarked on his daily evening task, playing the soul music on his phone to help him sleep deep. As the songs played and the wind danced in harmony, he fell asleep while holding his phone.
A sudden wind raised the locked pale glass window positioned at his feet, while the song playing on his mobile, kept repeating these words, "Traveling home," as if, there is a glitch in the matrix. The mobile kept on echoing those words, then a heavy darkness fell upon the room, covering every corner of the room while erasing all the paths of light.
Austin feeling uneasey on the bed, opened his eyes. His heart fell into the bottom of his stomach, moment he noticed a dark figure emerging from the right side of his wardrobe.