The sun reflected through the water, as the little boy watched his dad, looking at the fish. This small time in the morning wasn't like usual. His dad wasn't like usual. His dad looked anxious and worried, unable to bridge the silence between them, still watching the water. Then, the silence severed as his dad tried to find his courage.
"You're only young but you have to know."
The boy looked with his big innocent eyes at his dad, not daring to ask. His dad took a deep breath, like a drowning man trying to surface.
"We have to leave soon."
"But..." The boy swallowed, his tears coming on, but he faltered. He didn't want to cry. "I just don't want to leave this place."
"I know, son. I didn't want to leave this place either, but... You know, you're only 7."
"I'm 8!" The boy said.
"Well, you're still a boy, so..."
"It's just that everybody's leaving."
"I know... But we have no choice."
"I know, it's just..."
"You know, there's nothing I love more in the world than you."
"I love you too, dad."
"I'm really sorry, my son. But we have no choice. To be strong."
The boy looked up, sobbing.
"I know you're strong, like your mother, you're just so strong. But, you know..."
"I want to see her." The boy said.
The dad looked through the water, shaking his head. "They won't let you."
"I can try!"
"But you'll be caught."
The boy stepped back, still looking at his dad. He looked at the water, as if his mother's presence would appear through water itself. And, soon, tears streamed down his cheeks, and fell in the water. The water reflected them, just like the boy's heart.
"But I will try to see her." He said, stronger than his fears, willing to look like his father.
"You're a strong boy. I can tell."
The boy wiped the tears away, and as he did, the sunlight that ran through the ripples made sun rainbowed rays across the water, like memories of the past, as the boy walked out of the pond. The quiet place remained silent, but the boy's memory wouldn't forget. The sound of the pond's sadness would live in his mind forever.
The boy's feet were sore as he knocked on the gate. It was afternoon, and the sun hid behind in the trees, as the boy looked for shelter. He was sitting on a bench, facing the gate, in front of a house. He could hear two people in the house. They were talking. He wasn't sure why he was there. He didn't know the people that lived there, and he doubted if he would actually see his mother. But he just didn't want to go back home, much less to his father, who was like the tree in the forest that hid danger.
A woman opened the gate. She looked at the boy with a gentle gaze as she looked at him, and at the water-beaded shirt he was wearing. It was getting dark quickly, and the boy was beginning to shiver.
"You look like you're freezing to death."
"I'm not." The boy was still.
"Well, you look like you're freezing to death. Let's get you inside."
The woman looked at the boy. He looked at the ground, and the woman could then see his shivering arms. He didn't say a word, and she spoke nothing as she looked at his face. The boy looked at the woman with distrust, and she could see it.
"He looks scary." The boy said, as they began the walk to the house.
"He does. I think I should just... call the police."
"No. They'll take my dad away to jail."
"Okay..."
The woman opened the door of the house. The boy looked at her, and she noticed his wary yet worried eyes, searching for the danger of danger. She wanted her boy to be safe, and she couldn't do anything, except call the police. The boy looked at her with pity, wanting her to know that he was willing to do anything for his father and mother, willing to protect them from anything. The boy didn't want to hurt anyone.