CHAPTER 12 : TOGETHER IN LIVE AND DEATH

Very hypocrite to say he comes here to save Vianka so he could be hero, once more, for her. It sounds like he's some kind of God for his sister. Well, he's not a God. He's just somebody who cares…cares with a promise that comes from his mouth.

As he walks under the trees, the shadow of his youth returns. Remembering the moment when he did some promise he made…at the time when he's just an innocent small kid that didn't know a thing about pledge but dares to say it….

***

Vianka become less talkative since the river's incident…

They hide the real story from their parents by telling them that they were lost chasing butterflies. It made them went far away from home and didn't realize until it's too late. Sometimes terrace field can be tricky because it all looks the same and confusing big city kids. Their parents can't accept the reason and the two are scolded. Even so, that reason is much better than saying Vianka almost drowned. The twins received their punishment with no argues and the next three days they were busy to paint grandpa's fence as the punishment.

Vianka usually very excited to get such a job, something unusual for him because most of the girls prefer sewing or playing dolls other than painting. But this time she didn't crooning or smiling when she swept the paintbrush to the bamboo row which had been tied each other.

He had already tried to warm her mood by telling a joke or being nosy but when it's only met with silence he gave up then. While doing this detention he was more than surprised to see grandpa sitting more often on the front porch and smiles at them.

"I think he's watching over us," said Lev who can't stand to see this odd scenery when the old man came into the house before lunch on the second day of detention.

"He knows the truth…" Vianka finally opens her mouth.

"What do you mean? How?" Lev surprised to hear that."Did you tell him?"

The girl shook, "He warned me to be careful if I want to swim on that river next time."

"That means he was there?"

"I don't know ..."

"I'm sure he was. He can't say such thing if he doesn't know about the accident."

"Well...it could be..." Vianka shrugged.

"God ! I hate him for that."

"Why?"

"Vianka, it's crazy. If he was there and he saw you drown, don't you think he supposed to help you? Instead of let me doing it by myself."

"What happened if he did? So you wouldn't try?"

Lev staring at Vianka,"Eventhough a hundred adult were jump into the river to help you, I'm still swim for you."

She looked at Lev and suddenly sobbed, "I have nightmare since that horrible accident."

"What kind of nightmare?"

"I'm drowning in that river and the stream start spinning, just like tornado and dragged me into it. I screamed but no one heard. The river had turn me around and round until it threw me to the some kind of a burrow that located under the earth. Suddenly appears an awful yellow eye…a pair of it…with a growling noise and seems ready to attack…"

The guy hugged Vianka, "Ssshhh, no one will hurt you. It was just a dream."

"What if you fail to hold me, Lev? What if the stream was too strong and dragged me before you came?"

"That's not what happened, right?"

"I'm afraid, Lev! I don't want that happen again."

"Okay. I promise that we're not going to that river again as long as we're here."

"I've been thinking for two days and I realized what make me afraid when I'm drowned is not death…"

"Then what is it?"

"I'm afraid I can't see you anymore."

"My God, sis!" I don't want to lose you also. So I swam there to help you."

"Which, I didn't expect you're succeeding."

"Me neither. But believe me, we'll always be together. "

"Can we?"

"We were born together. We die together. "

Vianka laugh, "Don't be silly. Even if we are twins, we may not die together."

Lev replies the laughing, "Yeah, right ! The important thing is we always together."

"You've promise?"

"Sure…together in live and death."

Vianka smiled when Lev hooked the pinky promise as a symbol of affirmation. It was the sweetest smile he's ever seen on her sister. Smile which able to remove the blanket from her fog face during these two days. And after lunch, she's back on her cheerful act that makes painting job more fun and easy to do.

***

Remembering his youth, suddenly it comes back to him that Vianka did say something about a pair of yellow eyes and living under the earth. He didn't noticed what was that before, until now he realized that what mention by Vianka at that day was something that gonna be happened today. Does her dream was some kind of a sight of a future that this tragic day will come for her?

Lev doesn't know much about that…but one thing for sure…he had to keep his promise no matter what happened…and that's was something he does right now…