Salvagars

12. Moms

Arlon opened his eyes slowly and he saw a very bright sky, where the sun was shining so brightly. He was shocked and immediately sat in silence. He found himself waking up in a beautiful garden. It was a very foreign atmosphere to him. It is surrounded by a stretch of grass and green grass that is rather moist, with a little touch of camomile flowers scattered irregularly but able to give the impression of being so beautiful. The wind whirlwind adds to the incredible calmness and coolness. As far as the eye can see there is only the sky and grass, until it is invisible where the end is. The garden was beautiful but too quiet.

He recalled the moment he and Marvin fell into a dark hole. But after that, he doesn't remember anything. He began to check other parts of his body, maybe there were injured or even broken, and it turned out that everything was still complete without a scratch. He immediately stood looking for where Marvin was, but did not see the slightest stick of his nose.

"Marvin!", call him. No reply was heard, except from the reflection of his own voice. "Marvin!", call him again. He waited a while but there was no reply. Because of the sun, he could hear the sound of the wind blowing. He felt sure there he was alone. He began to feel desperate.

He chose to sit back and remained silent for a moment, trying to digest what had happened. Is this beautiful garden the basis of the dark hole, or is it just a hallucination. His head was very painful and heavy. It was like spinning uncontrollably. His consciousness had not recovered a hundred percent.

"Arlon.", call out a voice that sounds so familiar, so gentle and soothing. Arlon turned to the source of the voice and found the figure he had admired and loved all this time, standing while looking at him with a smile.

"Mother!", said Arlon with a face that was sumringah. Suddenly his headache just disappeared. He stood up and hugged his mother tightly. Mother also welcomed his embrace lovingly while kissing his forehead several times, although Arlon was already taller than his mother. There, Arlon immediately cried like a baby.

"It's been.. Mother here", said the mother, patting Arlon's shoulder gently. Arlon's embrace felt tighter, as if he did not want to take it off even for a moment. Tears unceasingly drenched Arlon's cheeks. It started as hard as it didn't. It's been a long time since he cried after and so freely. The last time he realized that his father could not come back again and had to accept the fact that he had become an orphan.

The woman invites Arlon to sit down, trying to calm her down. He also opened the basket from the wooden woven he carried, with a beautiful blue ribbon decoration dangling, just like he always carried. He took out a piece of chocolate bread and gave it to Arlon.

Arlon's eyes immediately sparkled to see him and immediately devoured him greedily from his mother's hands. In fact, less than a minute of bread was gone. His mother laughed at his behavior, while gently stroking the child's head just like her. Arlon was unaware of how messed up he was as he devoured the bread.

Now, his mother took out a medium-sized bottle from the basket and gave it to Arlon. So thirsty, Arlon immediately took the bottle and drank it. It turned out that the bottle contained her favorite drink since childhood, a thick mango juice without sugar. For a long time he did not enjoy a moment of eating as beautiful as this, considering that the accompanying he ate was usually only wild animals. They spend time laughing. Suddenly he stopped his drinking when it was almost half over.

"Mom why did you just show up now? Mother where have you been? I miss ma'am!", said Arlon annoyed. The woman just smiled as she closed the food basket she was carrying. "Especially the same stuffed bread and mango juice made by the mother. Other people can't make it as good as you make it" Arlon said with a sad face.

His mother was unable to speak. Only a smile is thrown. Arlon could clearly see her mother's water was so sad, worried yet happy. Because he knew he couldn't do anything. Arlon sipped his drink again, this time with a slower and relaxed rhythm.

"You know if the story is still the same as it used to be. Always excited", said the mother with a small laugh. Arlon could only smile in embarrassment. "Silence, my friend is safe. He is fine", said the mother in a relaxed tone.

"Then where am I, Mom? What's this on.. Heaven?", asked Arlon while looking around. For him it doesn't matter if he has to die now, the important thing is that he can be together with his mother. This may even be the most awaited thing for him.

She just smiled, still giving no answer. She looks so beautiful even though her face is a bit pale. Her hair was blacker than the last time she saw her when she was 6. His body was also sturdier and fresher, unlike the one he remembered last time, limp and extremely thin. His body was fragrant, reminding him when he fell asleep in his mother's arms after playing.

"This is where mommy's resting. Beautiful, right?", said the mother slowly while looking at the beautiful place with a blank look. The silence lasted long enough.

"That means I'm already... dead?", asked Arlon cautiously. His mother just shook her head slowly.

"You still have a lot of tasks in the world that you have to complete" replied the mother still with her soothing smile.

"I want to be here! Let me take care of you!", said Arlon, holding his mother's hand, which was colder than before. She hugged Arlon and brought her lips to Arlon's ears.

"Mother here is fine. I'm calm, I'm happy" said the mother very convincingly. This time, he whispered more quietly, "Mother sure, your father needs you there."

Arlon was surprised and let go of his mother's embrace. He was silent for a moment. He looked into his mother's eyes, making sure what he heard was not wrong.

"So, you mean, you're still alive?", asked Arlon in shock. Mother simply smiled in silence, making Arlon convinced that her conjecture was correct. "Where is he now?", he continued. Slowly the mother began to fade, Arlon tried to reach back the mother's hand but could not. Increasingly, the mother just stayed a shadow and eventually disappeared.