The Tale Of Alice And Robert

"Hei. Are you alone?" A young girl's voice could be heard as I was hugging my own knee alone.

I didn't think there was somebody else around this place.

Lifting my head a little, I peeked at the one who talked to me.

A little girl with a slight curl at the end of her hair. Her hair was not long, only reached her shoulder. There was an air of maturity on her young appearance.

Her face was close to mine, so I jerked back a little because of the surprise.

"Ack!" I screamed a little as my b.u.t.t touched the cold and wet ground.

"Ah! Are you okay?" The little girl lent me a hand as I fell to the ground. Even if it was not her fault, her expression said the otherwise.

Shaking my head, I showed her a wry smile and answered, "Nn, it is fine. It is not your fault anyway."

I stood up and patted my pants to clean some dirt. As I looked back at the little girl, I just realized that the little girl was much younger than me.

She was around two head shorter, so her age should be younger a few years than me.

"Hey… What game are you playing earlier?" The little girl tilted her head while she touched her chin with her finger.

Her sparkling eyes and interest made me believed that this little girl was definitely younger than me.

But hearing her question, I was confused.

[What am I doing?]

Didn't receive the answer, the little girl asked another question. "If you are free, do you want to accompany me? Let's play together!"

Not waiting for my answer, the little girl pulled my hand as she went to the children's playground.

It is a small playground with only a slide, a pair of swing, and a sandbox. Since the playground's location was not far from our meeting place, it didn't take a long time to arrive.

"Hahaha, what should we play for now? Swing? Or slide first?" The little girl's tension was high, making me felt bad to remind the wet playground.

It was a little weird to play on the wet playground, but I didn't want to dampen the little girl's mood. I might play along as well.

"Since there is nobody, this playground is ours now! Haha!" The little girl crossed her hands while looking at the empty playground.

"Ahaha…" I had a wry smile as I was pulled by the little girl.

…

"Hey… in the end, what is your name?" I pouted at the little girl as we were playing in the sandbox.

This was not the first question she asked the little girl. She was a mysterious girl, unlike her cheerful mood.

She wore a clutch on her right hand as her right leg was disabled. I didn't see it at first, but I realized it as she pulled me to this place.

I wanted to ask, but I refrained since it was not a good topic to talk. So I wanted to ask about anything else. But she never answered when I asked for her name.

"Fufu, it is fine, isn't it? Isn't there something you wanted to ask?" The little girl stood up in leisure while holding at her crutch. She stood in front of me and asked, "There should be something made you interested earlier. But you hold back because you care about my feeling, isn't it?"

I was surprised by the little girl's sharpness in front of me. Not only that but also the childish atmosphere around her disappeared as the little girl grew mysterious.

She smirked a little with confidence filled herself.

"For example… This leg?"

"… Er-"

Shaking her head, the little girl shrugged her shoulders and continued, "Well, I am sure that you will ask this question. Look! This crutch is very eye-catching, right? And my way of walking is also weird, right? All in all, my existence is an interesting subject, isn't it?"

Even though the little girl had an attractive smile on her face, I could feel some sadness in her tone.

"No, I am not interested."

"Fufu, it's okay. Let me tell you a story then." The little girl sat on the swing.

"There is an old tale, a folklore. There was a lady, a married lady that was having her child. She was born to a loving family and married to a loving husband. She was blessed every day and filled with happiness. Her smile was beautiful, a kind woman." The little girl began her story with her eyes closed and swung her left leg.

"But, every happy time would come to the end. Even though she was surrounded by light, there was also the darkness following her. With the happiness, there was also envy and jealous."

"Akin to Icarus's complacency of his wings that was made out of feather and wax, the happy woman was used to her happiness every day and never be vigilant toward the people with the bad intention toward her."

I cut her story a little. "Icarus?"

"Ah, you didn't know? It is only a story about someone that was daring enough to challenge the sun's might. Of course, his end was not good." The little girl giggled as she continued her story.

"And her good days ended. What awaited her was disdain and loathing. The loving family turned into a stranger, while the loving husband turned into an abusive husband. Not only that but also he was having an affair with some other woman out there and he didn't cover it at all. It was as if he was proud of his own conduct."

"She was scorned in the village. She became a plague and sign of bad luck for the villager. All of her previous friends disappeared from the woman's life."

"The blessed woman turned into a cursed woman. Her life was filled with darkness. And moreover, her child was not even born yet at that time. She was filled with grievance and tears covered her night every time she remembered her happy days, her old days. But she had to persist, for the sake of her unborn child. Her only hope and reasoning in this life."

"A day turned into days, a month into months. The day of her child's birth came close. She will protect her only sun, but alas, the heaven didn't allow it." The little girl shook his head a little.

"Her child was thrown by her husband under the downpour in the night. The child's fate? Of course, the child wouldn't be saved. The child was only a husk without any filling. The woman fell into despair. Without any hope, without any sun, she had lost everything. She was unwilling to leave her child alone, thus she accompanied her child along to the underworld."

I was confused by this story since it had no any relationship with my question earlier. But something inside me told me to not disturb the little girl's story.

"… But who would have thought that the woman would turn into a different entity? Her regret and grievance tied her soul in this world, unable to accompany her child and moved on."

"Bit by bit, the villager would hear a story about a white dressed woman with the destroyed face that was holding a child corpse. She would wander around to search for her child. And she would always 'bring' any child she found back."

"… So, is it a story about a ghost?" I couldn't hold my question any longer.

Nodded her head, she continued, "Yes it is. Since I like the story in an orderly manner, I should begin it from the very first, right? Hehe." The little girl flashed an attractive smile at me.

"So, why are you telling me this story." I knitted my eyebrow in annoyance. I never expected that this girl would trick me.

"Of course the story isn't finished yet. That folklore has a lot of similarity with many urban legends around the world. Almost in every country, there is always a similar urban legend like that. Do you know what is it?" The little girl had a mischievous smile on her face as she was waiting for my answer.

"… Is it a kidnapping?" I was unsure of my answer, but I couldn't find any other answer other than that.

"Ding dong! You are right!" The little girl laughed as she jumped down from the swing. She still had her balance even though she was using a clutch.

Taking a few steps toward me, the little girl continued, "A story about a child kidnapping. Of course, there is a lot of variety in that detail. Some say that the child will be eaten, and some others say that the child will be taken to the other world. Their world, the world of soul. The world where the living and the dead was split apart."

"Wait! Is that even considered as a kidnapping case? Are you talking about something like a ghost or what?" I tried to interject the little girl's story.

"Kidnapping, in Oxford Dictionary, is an act to abduct and hold them captive, typically to obtain a ransom. Is this what you mean earlier?"

I nodded my head

The little girl continued, "It is definitely true, but the meaning in this dictionary has already simplified and specified. Hummm, let's see. If I am going to say that a kidnapping is an act to take someone, whether the kidnapper knows or not about the victim, to fulfil the kidnapper's wish and d.e.s.i.r.e. How is it?"

Seeing the little girl cheeky smile, I couldn't help myself but scratch my cheek as I had a wry smile pasted on my face.

"Even so, there is always an exception in the middle of exception. There are some who should not exist in the world of the living while some other would be lost in the world of the dead. Some was a fate while the other was by a coincidence."

Climbing the slide step by step, the little girl had to be careful with each of her movements because of her handicapped leg. As she reached the top, she continued, "That's right. I was kidnapped by them, the unknown existence that should not exist in the world of the living."

"It's a lie, right?" I retorted because I didn't believe her story at all. Ghost? Demon? A mythical being? All of it was only a made-up story, a fake story that would never become real. No matter what.

But she wasn't offended as she asked back, "Why did you not believe? Is it because you yourself have never experienced it? Are you similar to John? Is it John, Judas, or Matt? Nah, I don't care. I am not a Christian anyway." The little girl shook her head and continued, "Will you only believe after I show you some real-life specimen in front of you? The one you can touch and feel? Are you sure that you will not freak out?"

The little girl's smile grew eerie as she continued her sentences, but all of sudden the eerie feeling around her disappeared as she continued her story.

"But it is real, you know. A story about a child that was kidnapped, no, a child that was saved from her cruel parents. The poor child was taken into that foreign being's custody, to the world of the dead."

"No need to worry, the world of the dead is not as fiery or scary as a hell. It is quite the opposite. It is a place that was surrounded by many kinds of tree. It is a place full of tranquillity, with nothing corrupting it. Of course, if you can forget a bunch of flying innards, decayed corpse, or even skeleton, it will be a good place, you know?"

I was speechless by the little girl's explanation because of her jumping explanation. How can you think about flying innards or even a decayed corpse? Usually, a little girl on her age would only think a skeleton as something scary.

Is it the movie? It is a movie's fault, isn't it? Damn you destroyer of the young's purity!

As if she didn't know what I felt, the little girl slid down while she held down her skirt and enjoyed the excitement.

Patting down her skirt, the little girl asked me, "Want to go for some walk? I am a little bored."

I looked up at the sky, the sunny sky without any rain like the earlier time. Nodding my head, I answered her, "It's good. Let's go."

As we left the playground area, both of us was surrounded by a variety kinds of tree. The place was filled with tranquillity as both of us left the park.

What greeted us were a two-storey building in a row. If not a two-storey building, it should be a one-storey building. The house on the surroundings had a trace of age, similar to what many called with traditional or classic. But summing it up, it was a bunch of old house. Far behind the houses was a chain of mountains, filling every side I saw.

The little girl didn't stop at all as she went in one direction. I didn't know whether she knew about the surroundings or not, but I didn't object as I chased her from behind.

The buildings around here were mostly built with wood, while some were built in a simple manner, some other were carved in an exquisite manner. Grass grew on the side of the road with an uneven road. The road itself was as wide as two cars form rows.

"Even though there were a lot of stories about the abducted people, whether it was a child or an a.d.u.l.t, there is also a story about a child that was taken into the foreign being's custody."

"One, one, two! One, two!" The little girl hummed as she was skipping and humming. She was avoiding good tiles and touching the soles of her shoes to the cracked tiles.

Her action was childish even though her speech was akin to an a.d.u.l.t.

"Similar to a human's nature, there are a lot of different natures of the foreign being, a mythical entity, a ghost. While some have no bad intention, the other sure will have one." The little girl turned around and lowered her body a little to look at me with her big and wide eyes, as her face went closer to mine.

"… Do you see it?" The little girl asked, but I didn't understand at first. I was puzzled and only realized the delicate feature on her face, and also her large-

Eh? I was surprised by what I saw. I was not sure of it, so I kept looking at it as I observe something different, something unique and unusual.

The little girl curled up her lips as she straightened her back. Her expression grew serious as she covered her left eye using her right hand.

"My right eye will lose its light at certain times. You can say that I am used to be blind on my right eye." Said by the little girl while her right hand made a V-sign in a horizontal position and she put it as her right eye would be in the middle of her index finger and middle finger.

Yes, it was what I saw from her eyes. I saw that her right eye was different from the left one. Her right pupil didn't have any reaction toward me even if I was right in front of her. The little girl's right eye was similar to the blind disability.

My grandfather once was afflicted with the cataract. It was a healable disease with some operation, but I had never heard anything about a little girl that was afflicted with this eye disease.

Is it the same disease or different? Is it only a coincidence? Or-

The little girl turned her back to me and interjected the content of my question in my mind, "If there is no fate, then it is a coincidence. But all coincidence is decreed by the fate itself. So tell me, is it a coincidence or something else is lurking behind it?"

I was speechless by her logic.

"Okay, my turn has finished. Now about you!" The little girl turned her body around and shot an interested look at me. Her eyes were sparkling as if she was waiting for an interesting story like her. But my story was akin to a disappointment, unlike her magical and mysterious story.

"I am a junior high school student, and at first, I was planning to go to a big city's senior high school." I started my story, my boring story.

"You are a high school student! How small!" The little girl was surprised by something that was my sore heart.

But I don't like a point where a grade school student talking about my height, so I rolled my eyes at her. "You are still a little girl, so don't talk to your elderly about her height, you know?"

The little girl was confused as she tilted her head a little while rapping on her chin in a repeated rhythm. "But you are a junior high school student, isn't it? If I count my age, then I should be around your age, you know?"

I froze up in my place while I was looking from top to bottom.

"The story?"

Sighing in my mind, I continued, "You know there is no senior high school in this town, right? So I was thinking that I should go out of this town. And not for any random senior high school, but rather a good one. I don't know whether I could go to college, but I should have a better chance over there, right?"

The little girl continued to skip on the broken tiles as we together went to an unknown direction.

"My family is self-sufficient, but I don't know whether my parents could handle the burden or not. The fee for a senior high school is not cheap you know? And moreover, I would have to live alone at that city, so it is obvious for my parent to go against me."

I shook my head as I was reminiscing the earlier time. That time was not a good time for my family because it was the first time my dad shouted at me and mom cried. I understood their pain, their uneasiness, but I wanted to choose my own path.

"I know both my parents are right, but I myself was not wrong either. We are standing on the opposite side of the magnet. In the end, I made an offer, or something similar to a bet. If I could gather enough money for my senior high school, my parents would allow me to take the test entrance. If I failed, of course, I would stay in this town. I won't say anything as I don't have any regret anymore."

I saw another person walked on the other side of the road. It was the second person after this little girl that professed herself at the same age as myself.

Even though it was not a rural place, people would only come out at some appointed times. Thus it was normal for me to not see many people around this time.

"And? The result? Did you win?"

Shaking my head, I could only have a wry smile. "Even though I was doing good with the gathered fund thanks to my part-time job, I couldn't pass the entrance exam."

I remembered when I didn't see my examinee's number on the passing board. I fell into despair as I couldn't hear any voice from the rejoicing examinee on my surroundings.

My parent didn't say a word while my younger siblings didn't understand anything.

I wanted my alone time, thus I went to the park. Every time I was sad, I would hide in the park as it would calm me down.

"Ah, we have arrived." The little girl went into a building.

Not only wide, the building was also had at least three floors. I knew this place as this place was well-known in this town.

"Why are we here?" I was puzzled as I was looking at the interior of the building. A clean white wall with some people wearing a white coat and stethoscope around their neck.

"Our final destination." The little girl didn't turn her body as she continued moving forward.

Even though I was puzzled, I just stayed silent while following her behind.

We went upstairs to the second floor and the little girl stopped in front of a door.

"Did you want to visit someone?" I blurted out my question without thinking.

The only girl only shook her head and stayed silent. I did the same as her while looking around the corridor.

There was nothing interesting because a hospital was not a good place to visit. Most people would come with their disease. Sometime they would leave with a good health, and some other would leave with sadness.

It is a gloomy place, indeed.

I could hear a faint sobbing from the other side of the door.

I think the little girl didn't want to disturb the people on the other side as it would be rude, I believed.

But… I wonder why I was familiar with this sound…

I looked at the room's door. There was a room number and the patient's name if it was occupied.

I was surprised by what I saw.

How was it possibly happen!

No! Impossible!

'Octavia Lee'

All of sudden, a surge of pain came as I saw the name on the plate, on the door.

…

I was crestfallen. My eyes were red as they couldn't afford to produce tears anymore. Even after I returned, my mood didn't improve at all.

Even though I understood that I should give up my dream, my heart couldn't bear it.

I knew that mom and dad worried about me, but what could I do?

…

A filled form was placed in front of me. It had complete information about me, my grade, my junior high school. The only blanked space was the examinee's sign.

I was blanked out as mom and dad were in front of me in the dining room.

Both of them didn't have any stern expression like that time. There was no disapproval, there was no disappointment, there was only reluctance. Even though they were smiling, I knew how hard it was for them.

I cried again.

…

The private senior high school was different from that one. While the examination was easier, the school's fee was much higher. Of course, because the government didn't have any right to touch the school program, the school didn't receive any fund's injection from the government itself.

But I had to be accepted here!

My last chance!

My parents had given me their blessing, so I wouldn't want to fail them again.

…

I was accepted.

I should be happy, but my heart couldn't bear.

As I received the news of my acceptance, a reality hit me hard.

I never expected that my parents had to pay a high price!

Maybe for some people, it was not important, but I myself understood the price her parents had to pay.

My tears flowed as I already left my hometown.

No matter what, I must not fail both of them!

As I clenched my teeth, I vowed that I had to be successful.

…

It was already the first month after I arrived at this foreign city.

Foreign place, with a foreign people, and also far from her family.

Even though I missed them very much, I couldn't possibly leave my part-time job, right?

It was not a hard job, but a time-consuming one. If I didn't take care of my sleeping time, I wouldn't have any time for studying.

My life consisted of the school, part-time job, and study. The schedule already squeezed everything out of me.

Thanks to that, my school's life was kind of bland. I didn't have any friend as I was not a sociable person.

I just wished that I could have a good friend soon.

…

The first year after I arrived in the foreign city. This city was not as foreign as a year ago, but it was still foreign for me.

I was able to send a little money home along with a letter. Even if it was an era of technologies, my parents could only afford one for me. The old flip model phone, unlike the smartphone model that my classmates had.

I couldn't possibly pile up my phone's billing, so the only thing I could do was sending my letter.

I wished my parents were okay and they didn't have to worry about me all times.

I was used to my part-time job already. Even though it was a time-consuming job, the pay was good compared to any other job.

My grades were not very good, but it was still above the average class.

For my friends, I avoided writing about it in the letter. I didn't want them to worry about me.

At least with this money, I could relieve some of their burdens. Next year was my little brother junior high school's entrance exam, so these sums of money should be able to be of use to my parents.

…

The second year of the senior high school should be the happiest time of any other senior high school student, with the exception of me.

I was well-known as a boring girl in the class without any trait. But that was not the prime reason.

One day, an unknown man confessed to me. I was puzzled as I didn't understand anything.

I didn't want to accept but also didn't want to hurt anyone.

Thus answered, "Let's become a friend first. And if your feeling didn't change, ask me again."

Filled with disappointment and hope, the guy accepted my condition.

And that was the beginning of the hell.

…

Ripped notebook and all kinds of curse on my desk.

Expired milk was thrown at me while I relieved myself in the toilet.

Beating after beating from a gang of girl.

I am not a strong girl, but I had to be strong. I believed that a sun would shine and rainbow would appear after a rain.

And in the end, that guy said that he was disgusted with me.

'Even though you are the source of my misfortune.' was what I thought, but I held myself back.

I just wanted this pain to end as soon as possible.

…

I was walking alone in the middle of the downpour. It was already night, so there was nobody around here except for a few night lamp around the road.

The rain had washed the tears in my eyes.

I couldn't walk straight as my leg had no strength. From between my legs, there was a faint trace of blood. Even if the blood was washed by the rain, the pain from that place didn't disappear.

I was pained…

I was scared…

I despaired…

I fell into the bottom of the abyss.

…

It was already the first week after I skipped my school.

I didn't dare to go anywhere except the convenience store.

I feared the outside world….

I feared everything…

I… Miss my family…

…

Looking at the smiling mom and grinning dad, I felt my heart was healed.

I realized that mom and dad's body grew thinner and a few things in the house disappeared. I didn't ask as I understood the reason.

I ate mom's cooking while listening to dad's rambling about the neighbourhood's story.

It was akin to two years ago before I left the town.

A warm meal, a warm family, a warm house.

Why… Why did I have to leave this place? Why did I have to insist?

…

Looking at the flowing water under the bridge, I made my decision.

Life is flowing like a river's water, they will move forward without turning back, without any care about what was left behind nor its surroundings.

But I was different. No matter where I went, my family would be tied with me.

I don't want to implicate them.

Thus, I chose this.

Regret? Yes, I have.

I regret that I left this town.

I regret that I left my parents.

I regret that I left my happiness for a fleeting dream.

I touched my belly and c.a.r.e.s.sed it gently.

No need to be scared, because Mom will accompany you.

No need to fear the unknown, because Mom will never let you go from my embrace.

And then, I jumped.

…

Tears flowed as I was frozen.

I have remembered everything. I c.a.r.e.s.sed my belly as my gaze was fixed on the door.

I moved my gaze to the little girl that became shorter. No, I was taller than before.

"Looks like your time have moved, right?" The little girl asked with a gentle expression toward me.

I nodded my head as I returned my gaze toward the room's door.

"Go on. Say your farewell."

I didn't answer as I moved forward to the closed door. My body went through the door as she arrived at the scene of her grieving's family.

Mom wept as Dad hugged her tightly. My little brother was not here, it should be because he had to take care of our younger siblings.

Indeed, a hospital was not a good place to visit, right?

As I saw mom's sobbing, I felt a heart-wrenching pain in my c.h.e.s.t.

"Wh- why!" Mom asked while looking at my body, my cold and without life's body.

Dad patted Mom's back while he listened to her every word.

"Why did this girl have to shoulder this burden! Why didn't she tell us!"

"Why! She is such a good child! Why!"

Dad didn't say anything, but I could see his trembling body.

Tears were swelling in my eyes as I saw their fragile figure.

Have I done the wrong thing? Have I failed them again?

I was confused! I hesitated!

But in the end, I went closer and tried to hug them.

Our world was already different. While they are in the world of the living, I am in the world of the dead. Even though I stayed in the world of the living, I couldn't do anything for them.

It was no matter even if I couldn't really hug them tightly, I just wanted to hug them. Wishing that I would alleviate part of their sadness, telling them that I am fine.

I don't know how long I hugged them, but I think it should be the time for me to leave.

But I should say my proper farewell to her.

…

"Done?" The little girl was sitting on the bench while swinging her left leg.

I nodded my head as my answer. I had a lot of question, but I didn't know where I should start it.

The little girl smiled with a gentle expression toward me.

"I know you have a lot of question, but my story will not finish even after your time has come. So, I will tell you the good and simple one."

She picked her clutch and stood in front of me.

"My right eye sometimes loses its light, and that sometimes is not working right now. I am looking at you, right?" She continued while pulled up her bangs and closed her left eye.

"If there is no fate, then it is a coincidence. But all coincidence is decreed by the fate itself. So tell me, is it a coincidence or something else is lurking behind it?" She spun around using her left leg as the pivot.

I was silent as I remembered that the little girl had said the same sentences before.

"The day almost set now as I should be going home right now. I will let you ask one question. Just think of it as my farewell gift."

After contemplating a while, I asked the little girl, "… Can you tell me your name?"

The little girl faced me, lifted the hem of her skirt a little as she lowered her body.

"You can call me Alice." The little girl turned her body and walked away.

I looked at her disappearing back. The little girl stopped in front of the stairs, turned around and waved her hand at me. "Bye bye!"

I was surprised as I didn't realize when she left.

I waved my hand at the empty place.

"Bye."

…

(Author's Note: It is tiring to write a 5.5k words in one chapter)