The secret

Vivian was 13 years old, a playful and full of energy little girl, living with his parents and grandparents in the countryside.

It was a sunny day when, playing in the yard, she heard a scream coming from inside the house. Fastly, she threw up the ball and rushed in, where she would've found out that a disaster had just happened.

She found her mother screaming terrified near her father’s moveless body. She couldn’t believe her eyes what a scene she was assisting at.

She started to shake her father’s body which seemed lifeless. Then, she grabbed her mother’s arm, shaking it also and screaming at her:

“Mom, what happened? What’s wrong with daddy? Have you called an ambulance? Why he’s not moving at all?”, yelled the little girl, through tears shocked about the terrifying scene.

Her mother, Marie, wiping her tears, calmly said to Vivian:

“We can’t call an ambulance anymore Vivian, your daddy died. There’s no way back, he took some pills and suicide. I’m sorry, daddy died, and we can’t do anything at all!”

“No, mom, no, it can’t be true, nooo! Call an ambulance, police, something, he must be alive, we’re losing time. It can’t be true! Please, mom, please!”, said Vivian, desperately to her mom.

Marie announced the authorities and sat beneath her husband awaiting them, drowning by tears.

Vivian kneed and stared at her dad’s lifeless body, wondering, and hoping that it is nothing but a mistake, that her mother was wrong, that…despite taking pills, her dad still be alive.

It didn’t last a lot and in while since Marie’s call, the authorities appeared. An army of customed people spread around the house like it was a parade.

Two young boys from the ambulance came and rushed into the moveless body. Tried to resuscitate Noah’s body. With no result, it seemed. While assisting the whole scene, in her mother’s braces, the two paramedics gave them the sad news. Her daddy really died.

“I’m sorry, he took too many pills from a deadly substance. There’s nothing we can do. He is dead and doesn’t react to any stimuli. I’m sorry!” said one of the paramedics.

Vivian kneed, bursting into tears terrified by hearing of those terrifying news.

“Why mom, why him?”, Vivian said.’

Marie said: “I don’t why he did that, mommy’s here! I’m so sorry, my little one!”

In fact, like there wasn’t enough, the whole scene, they both were questioned about what already happened.

Whilst the policeman was trying to determine where each one of them was situated at the fatidical time.

As you already know, Vivian was in the play yard trying to score some goals, where she often used to play with her father. But her mother, her mother stuttered, making Vivian skeptical about what was just happened.

Vivian has been told that her father died, due to recent events from his job. People were getting fired. He was fired and couldn’t accept the idea. That is the reason for Vivian’s father’s suicide. Or that was the story her mother told her.

That night Vivian couldn’t sleep at all, she stayed in her mother’s arms and cried, hoping that it’s just a nightmare and that in the morning she’ll get up early, as usual, sneak to her parent’s bedroom and throwing into her parents’ arms, till the clock awaken all for good.

Such a great memory had Vivian. Finally, she fell asleep and dreamed of herself in their parents’ arms, tickled by her daddy while asking Marie to do something good for breakfast.

But she woke up, not in her parents’ white sheets this time, but in a hospital as she felt sick, having a feverish temperature which doesn’t seem to drop during the night. Her mother Marie brought her to the hospital since Vivian wasn’t responding when trying to awaken her.

She caught flu which cumulated with the pain of losing her father, resulting in low energy, restlessness, fever.

Little Vivian was devastated and moreover, she couldn’t accept that her father was able to take his life, since he was a hero for her. A costumed hero who was always finding solutions for anyone’s problems.

Noah was a lawyer, a well-reputed lawyer who fell madly in love with his secretary, Marie, and got married sooner than anyone expected as they got Vivian, their only child. They all lived a happy marriage and a happy family life. He, an involved parent, having all sorts of activities with Vivian, her, a housewife now, trying to juggle with house duties and Vivian’s classes.

While being in the hospital, Vivian insisted to see her father for the last time and say “goodbye” to him:

“Mom, please, I need to see daddy for the last time, you can’t forbid this to me!” said Vivian while being still in the hospital.

Marie, arguing: “You can’t see your father, now you’re too weak to attend the funeral! Please, understand that!”

“But mom,” Vivian said.

“No but. Listen to me, it is not the right time, you can’t come! One day you’ll understand my decision!”, said Marie in a louder tone.

Vivian was devastated but at the same time, she thought that her mother knows the best.

“Perhaps it is better so, I can’t see you again without being alive, daddy! Please forgive me, I’d rather prefer to remember you as my hero, as always!” thought the little Vivian watching the hospital ceiling like her father was up there in the skies

The days passed by, and Vivian finally went home from being hospitalized but she continued to torture herself for not participating in her hero's funeral as it was the last chance to say “goodbye” to her daddy.

Somehow, she was blaming Marie for not allowing her to see her father for the last time but deep inside she knew she couldn’t handle seeing her daddy in a box, buried two feet underground.

She still had nightmares of seeing her dad’s dead body, lying in the bedroom, the pill bottle falling on the floor, the people trying to bring him back to life.

The little child, kneed every single night before going to bed and asked God to take care of her daddy up there in the skies and that, if possible, to dream how she’d sneak to that bedroom and find his mummy and daddy, throw over into their arms, tickle each other, laughing till’ out of breath and be happy again:

“Please, send me that dream again, and then, I promise, I’ll be able to handle any nightmare that will come again!” said the poor child while praying

Marie heard her little girl while praying and opened the door and grabbed her hand and said:

“We have to talk, my little pumpkin!”

“What happened mom, I haven’t finished my prayer yet. It can wait? Said little Vivian

“Ok, I’ll wait. Sorry for interrupting! Marie said

The little girl continued her prayer and asked God also:

“Please, if it is possible, I’d like to see mummy happy again, either someone else will make her happy, please, just make her happy again!”.

After finishing his prayer, Vivian grabbed her mom’s hand and said:

“Yes mummy, what happened? Did I do something wrong?”

Marie answered: “No, no way my little pumpkin. It’s just, I don’t even know how to say it”

“Say it as it is, that’s how you thought me”, said the little Vivian

“Well, you know that when making something bad and you confess it, that should be half forgiven. I just hope you’ll forgive me at least a quarter, not even a half.” Said Marie drowned in tears.

“Mummy, what is it? You’re scaring me!”

“I don’t even know how to say it…I don’t know!”

“Mummy, what happened”? said Vivian confused

“Oh my God. Hope you’ll be fine after hearing these!” said Marie trembling

“Mummy, say it, it can’t be worse than losing daddy. So, knock it out!”

“Ok. You know you’re asking God for a year that you could dream again your daddy happy, and all of us gathered in our bed, thickening each other, waiting for the clock ringing? Well, it will happen soon!”

“Ok mom, so what’s that terrifying in a dream that you’re shaking like being at the North Pole?” said Vivian smiling

“Oh, my dear, is just that, you won’t live a dream, it will soon be reality!”

Vivian, poker-faced:” Mom, I don’t get it! What do you mean? Say it once for all!”

Marie:” My dear, your father is alive, he staged his death. He is now at your aunt’s house near the forest.”

Vivian, astonished: “I can’t believe it, mom, it is real? Am I dreaming? Wait, what happened? I don’t get it!”

“You know he was fired; he wasn’t, he was forced to accept resignation to not be accused of dilapidation as he took money from the law firm to solve a forbidden case. And that was his way out. An extreme solution but it was just a bluffing like he’d say”. Marie explained.

“And you tell me these over 6 months? Are you both crazy? I’m falling asleep on a wet pillow each night and it is “just bluffing”? Vivian replied

Marie: “I’m so sorry my dear, please forgive me, I didn’t even know how to handle all this situation! But trust me, he has a plan, as always do. I’m so sorry for all! Could you forgive me one day?

Vivian:” I have nothing to forgive you for, today you made me happy! Daddy’s the one who must ask for forgiveness, he had his reasons for sure! When we’ll go to see him”?