"Xander.." Maria called as she walked into the room, her face was plastered with a smile
"Xan.." she was about calling his name a second time before her eyes caught him sitting on the wing back chair facing the window
he was wearing a grey sweatshirt with a black joggers ,his blond hair was packed neatly in a man bun ,his legs folded and was swirling a glass of red wine .she knew Xander only drinks when something is bothering him and she happens to know what he was thinking ,was she being selfish ?? but she just wanted to protect the child ,the woman in the white robe said they are the last protector of the special child
she moved to where he was sitting and placed her hands on his thigh gently ,he flinched and looked at her
" I know what you are thinking but we should atleast give it a try , don't you think this is fate ?? I also know you are worried about my safety ,t-the strange woman assured us that nothing will go wrong " she knelt in front of him and cupped his face "look, this is an opportunity for us ,we have a child and we can now live happily as a family " she smiled softly " please ,I want to keep this child " tears was brimming down her cheek as she pleaded " shush ,don't cry " He wiped her tears with his thumb and kissed her tenderly " we will keep her and protect her ,OK??" he could not bear seeing his wife cry ,if keeping that child will make his wife happy then he is ready to make that sacrifice ,maria looked at him with wide surprised eyes "R-really ??" she wanted to confirm if she heard right ,Xander nodded with a smile .She hugged her husband tightly and ran out of the room when she heard the baby crying
'Ohh God,I hope I am not making a big mistake' Xander prayed silently
after spending a few days with the baby he found himself falling deep in love with her, she is like a magnet that attract love and affection
" urwa wra da"xander looked at the little girl playing in her craddle ,she was wriggling her hands as she looked at Xander with her bright green eyes
" awn,so cute " he pinched her puffy cheek and laughed " uh" she pouted and threw her hands out
" she wants you to carry her " maria laughed as she stood beside Xander pushing him forward to the child "d-do you think she has taken a liking to me" he pointed at himself in a childish manner
maria placed her hands on her mouth to stop the muffled laughter and nodded
" ohh" he turned back to the little girl and lifted her from the craddle gently " da ba ba" she seem pleased and rested her head on his chest
"awnn, you two look adorable" maria brought out her phone and took a picture of them
" what should we name her" xander asked startling maria from her thoughts
"HUH"
" I said what should we name her " Xander repeated his his question with a raise of an eyebrow
"ohh, I was thinking we should call her Alexsis"
"Aleksis ??" His wife really wants to name this cutie pie such weird name ?? why not something beautiful ,something cool ,why Aleksis ???
"it means The helper of mankind" she smiled as she looked at the baby " ever since palanimma left her with us and told us she is a special child ,the name keeps popping up in my head ,I don't know why but I want to call her aleksis the protector of mankind " she turned to her husband and held his hand ,her mouth was curved in a slight smile " from this day onwards she will be known as Aleksis Xander our daughter and we will protect her with all we have " she took little aleksis in her hands " do you hear that ?? you are Aleksis the protector of the world " she said
little aleksis pupils turn cloudy white and returned back to it's bright green after hearing Maria's word
Xander saw his wife fierce eyes ,he knew she will fight and die for this girl ,he did not know what the future holds for him ,his wife and daughter but he could only hope for things to be rosy for them
"mum!! "aleksis screamed like a lunatic as she ran out of her room with an incredible speed flapping her hands in the air and crying heavily
Maria caught her just before she could fall
aleksis was already eight years old she had beautiful face with high nose,full red lips ,her black curled hair flowed down to her waist and brilliant green eyes she was getting more beautiful each day ,she's super smart for a 8 year old which sometimes displeased her parents. aleksis was no respecter of man or woman ,she says what's on her mind without caring if you agree to it or not
but she has a kind heart just like the woman in white described her ,she would cry if she sees anyone in pain and would donate her savings to the less privilege.
" mom, are you even listening to me??" aleksis shouted ,she was here crying for her life and her mother was busy laughing at a private joke, is death not a serious issue ???
" hmm.. yeah baby " maria chuckled nervously
fresh droplet of tears fell off aleksis eyes ,she shook her head frantically as if saying no to something ,Maria was taken aback by her daughter's action ,aleksis is a strong girl ,she does not
believe in crying for trivial things infact she hated weakness ,maria couldn't help but wonder why the young girl was weeping profusely
" w-hy are you crying ??is anything the matter ??"
aleksis wrapped her hands around her mother and enveloped her in a tight hug ,now something is definitely wrong,
"Aleksis??" Maria was getting anxious
" I don't want to die"she sobbed silently
maria stared at her ,wide eyed.she couldn't believe what she heard the only word that registered in her brain was 'Die'
d-die ??? you don't want to die ?? she was stammering, this is unbelievable ,
aleksis nodded her head "mum ,I really don't want to leave you and papa alone ,if I die I won't have anyone to play with and i will never be able to see aunt Ferrera and Leo again " she sniffed "please don't let me grow old now"
" G-g-grow old ??" maria gaped ,the young girl slowly nodded yet again ,Maria was speechless
" why would you speak such nonsense ,huh" maria was getting angry ,death?? why can't this daughter of hers ever be optimistic for once ?? she felt like scolding her
" i am not lying " aleksis retorted sharply ,she took a step back from her mum ,she suddenly wished her dad would just come home ,he would surely believe her and even comforted her before she die
" come here dear " seeing her daughter 's scared face she knew the girl was damn serious about dying .she walked toward the frightened girl and knelt in front of her " you are not growing old any time soon ,maybe in the nearest future but not now " she said firmly " mum will not let you die ,Ok ?? now get that stupid thought out of your head "
"but I already have white hair just like grandma and old people die after some time ,right?? a-a-and I ....am already old that means .....I will have to die soon " her eyes widened at the sudden realization
"...."
maria took a wisp of her hair 'silver hair?? could it be the new change in shampoo ?? who was she kidding?? ,she knew this was one of her magical powers but how would she explain this to the girl pacing round the room talking frantically to herself
" calm down ,this must be the effect of the new shampoo we bought the other day ,remember ?? "she could only pray in her mind for the smart girl to believe her and stop staring at her with a suspicious eyes
" really??" aleksis asked worriedly, maria nodded
" Ok, I will stop using the shampoo " she said fiercely and stomped her feet " thanks mum ,I love you " she kissed maria' s cheek and skipped out of the room
"Ohh God ,what should I do ?? why this sudden transformation ?? " she slumped on the bed tiredly
her curly silver hair grew down to her waist and aleksis looked like a fairy tale princess ,the first day she went to school with her silver hair ,the school was in chaos all the students wanted to take a look at the walking angel.
aleksis was embarrassed and hid in the toilet through out the day she could not understand why every one was gaping whenever she passes by,who wouldn't fall in love with such a beautiful face she quickly became famous at school
the teachers saw her as a distraction to the other students ,she quits studying in public schools and only took homeschooling with private tutors
after Xander died in an accident maria became depressed ,she would lock herself up in her bedroom all day only coming out to check on aleksis briefly or for something else aleksis was getting worried ,she knew what her mum was going through even as a little girl she clearly understood the fact that her beloved father was no more ,she didn't want to lose her mother
"mum ,please open the door ,I promise to be a good girl and not trouble you " aleksis cried as she banged on the door to maria's room , "I am scared mum ,please do not leave me like dad "she shouted and slumped on the floor
maria could not bear hearing her daughter screams
" its okay dear ,mummy won't leave you alone ,dad failed to keep his promise ,he said we will be a happy family and have our happily ever after but he lied ,h-he left me ,he left us " the mother and daughter cried as they comforted each other that night ,Maria knew she have to be strong for aleksis ,she needs to be with her daughter ,her husband may have failed in keeping his promise but she will never go back on her words
she made up her mind to forget the past .
...
Alexsis was shocked and speechless ,she suddenly felt a throbbing headache she could not believe what her mother said ,was her mother playing a prank on her?? maybe the sickness is taking its toll on her ,she searched her mother's face for a hint ,any hint of playfulness but she found none instead her face was full of pity,sorrow and regret ... she was not her mothers' daughter??was that why she was different ??
" i am so sorry we kept this secret away from you for so long,we only wanted to protect you "
maria' s voice kicked her out of her thoughts and her gaze flickered ,can she hate her parents for hiding the truth from her??no, she was not their biological child but they treated her with love gave her things every normal child wished for ,her mother is her best friend she listened to her every complain and comforted her when she was sad ,even if she looks for reasons to hate them she still would not be able to find any complaint against them
" No mum,I am grateful to you and dad for caring and loving me all step of the way ,what could I have done without you?? I am the lucky one ,I ...I ..am sorry that I could not do anything for dad nor for you "aleksis voice wavered
she gently hugged her maria 's frail body " I am soo sorry "she wept and tightened her hold on her mother " I feel useless ,I can't even do anything to help you " aleksis blurted out frustratedly she knew her mother was dying but she could not do anything to stop it ,useless !!! her mind kept poking at her
" you are not useless ,you are a source of joy to us,a light in our darkness and we are very lucky to be given the opportunity to care for you " maria patted the girl's head softly " your father and I are very proud of you ,discover your true self and save mankind one day the world shall need you and I am pretty sure you would be ready aleksis " maria body shivered ,her breath was weak ,her pale face turned white and her body became cold " till we meet to part no more my dear daughter " she looked at her husband picture which was placed at the side of the bed
"mum!!!" aleksis screamed as maria finally closed her eyes " mum please wake up ,you can't leave me " she cried out embracing the dead woman close to her heart
"No " she frantically shook her head ,her mom cannot die,her mom was her only bestfriend ,who would she run to when she needed comfort?? who would laugh and joke with her without judging her clumsy attitude?? she have no friends,no family ,no confidant . aleksis wept loudly ,she is all alone in this world
"what is the essence of saving a world where no one respect and care for you?? what is the essence of having powers when I can't even save you, mom ??I don't want to live here anymore" she complained and then wondered if her mother can actually hear her from the great beyond
she knew this was reality ,her mother is never going to come back even if her tears turn to blood
maybe this is good ,maybe her mother can finally find peace ,maybe the pains she have silently endured will be eased ,just maybe her father will be waiting and they can finally live forever without fear of death and separation .
after a while of staring at her mother's peaceful face ,she packed her bags and walked out of the house
aleksis braced herself for what is to come in the nearest future
her mother had said she is the protector of mankind and a woman in white gave her to them
aleksis huffed
she don't care about the woman who claimed to be the goddess of the moon nor does she wants to save the same mankind that neglected her existence ,let the so called mankind be their own savior ,she ain't gonna be some lame sacrificial lamb for any damn mankind