Always with You

Briseis mother looked at her as she called her and her mother's eyes immediately brightened when her mother saw her.

"Yes," replied her mother. "I've been waiting for you for a while, my daughter. You are going home late from school these past few days. I'm worried about you."

"Yes mom," said Briseis and went straight to their closet then looked for clothes. "We finished our school project. The deadline is tomorrow."

"Is that so," said her mother. "I'll serve you a food. Wait a minute."

Briseis immediately blocked the bedroom door.

"I'm okay. I can serve myself," Briseis said. "I know you're tired so go to sleep."

Her mother smiled and hugged her.

Briseis felt her mother's warm embrace that relieved her tiredness.

She hugged her back as well.

"My daughter," her mother said to her. "You grew so fast. Always study hard my dear, so that you can get out of this poverty. I'm sorry. My daily income is not enough to give you a luxurious life. But I will do everything so that you can finish school my dear. "

Her mother let go of the hug.

Briseis holds back her tear.

She smiled at her mother.

"Don't worry," Briseis said. "I'll make sure I lift you out of poverty. Soon."

Her mother smiled back at her.

"All right," said Briseis. "Rest now."

Then her mother walked back to their pallet.

Briseis couldn't help but look at her mother's bandaged in her left foot. She was run over by a truck when her mother was selling on the side of the road. What's worse is the driver run away. They didn't have enough money to treat his mother's foot, so they wrapped it in cloth and put leaves on it to temporarily cure it. They approached an albularyo hoping that it can give a remedy to her mother's pain.

The albularyo also told her that if her mother's wound did not heal, he would have to amputate her mother's leg.

She was so hurt when the albularyo told her this, and she knows her mother was so hurt more than how she feels, and she didn't know how her mother can still smile at her sweetly even after what happened.

"Sleep well after you eat," her mother told her. "Don't overdo everything my dear."

She nodded and left their room. As soon as she closed the door, tears flowed. She did not know what sin they had committed in the past life to punish them like this.

Their lives are very hard right now. They are so poor. Fortunately, she is a scholar at their school, so she was able to go to college. In contrast, her brother, who is in the fifth grade of elementary school, only spends very little money for his pocket money because he attends a public school.

She suppressed her crying so that her mother would not hear her. She promised herself that she would lift their family out of poverty and live in the mansion.

She could never forgive people who abandoned them when they needed help, especially his father, who left them two years ago and exchanged them for another woman.

These are the reasons why she agreed to steal the book at their school. She believes it will help them get out of poverty.

She wiped the tears from her eyes and changed her clothes. Then she went to the kitchen, which was just in front of their room.

She opened the pot, and only a cup of rice was there with a piece of dried fish.

She took a plate and began to eat. Fortunately, they don't have an assignment today or even a test. She can rest earlier.

Briseis shrugged her shoulders. She didn't know why but she felt something had gone wrong with it. She also started to turn his neck a little because she feels stiff. She did not know what causes it.

She just took a spoonful of food and ignored it.

She couldn't help but look in the direction of her bag. It seemed that her bag has eyes staring at her. She slightly patted her face because she was a little bit drowsy.

Maybe she is just tired. She murmured at her mind.

"Pssst."

Briseis frowned and stopped eating. She heard a whistle that she did not know where it was coming from.

She rolled her eyes at the little house and was surrounded by the thought that there is a person outside of their house peeking at her. It is possible because their house is made of bamboo, and it has small holes where you can peek.

Their light is still on, and she is so visible to the person outside if someone does this obscenity.

She just ignored it and ate again. She pretended she hadn't heard it, but it whistled again louder than before.

She looked at their door and saw that She forget to lock it.

She quickly stood up to lock their door. She thought that the evil creature outside might come in and kill them.

She had put away the food and washed the dishes. She would have turned off the light when it whistled again. She immediately turned around. On the strength of the whistle, he thought that this whistle did not come from outside but from her bag.

Her heartbeat is beating faster. Her bag was empty, containing only school supplies, so she wonders how the whistle is coming from there.

Even though she was scared, she slowly approached her bag only a few steps away from him.

Every step she took, her sweat is dripping. The surroundings were warm but the seat falling from her forehead is cold.

When she got closer, she slowly reached for the bag. She stopped when he heard loud breathing behind her.

Its breathing could be heard in his ear as if it were just close to her.

Courageously she looked at it, but she saw nothing but their still wet sink.

She immediately turned off the light and entered their room, and then he locked it.

She looked at her mother, and she was sound asleep.

Briseis lay down on the pallet next to her brother. She could still feel the strong beating of his heart. That's also the breathing they heard with her friends in the library earlier. She could not restrain himself from cringing. Her mind was asking what creature it was or he was just so sleepy that is why she is imagining things.

At the thought, Briseis did not realize that she fell asleep.