cold soul || rsl

1

I turned around to see the balloons. I liked the pink ones, those were the best. They reminded me of gum. I thought of something I could promise mom I would do, if she bought me one. Perhaps cleaning my entire room, or maybe tidying the shoes in her closet. While I stopped to think about that, I noticed that mom was gone. Tears filled my eyes and I sobbed, terrified. She had warned me I could get lost if I didn't keep up to her pace.

Normally, I hold her hand when we're with a lot of people, but today she carried a huge pile of books in her hands. Not getting lost was my responsibility.

But I did get lost. Where would I sleep? I looked nervously at the people around me. The Arts and Entertainment Festival had brought people from everywhere to our small town.

Wiping my tears with my hand, I started looking for a police officer to help me find my mom.

"Don't cry, I'll help you."

I frowned and studied the boy standing in front of me. His short blonde hair and big but friendly eyes looked concerned. I've never seen him before. He didn't go to my school. Maybe he was a tourist. Whoever he was, I knew he couldn't help me. He was just a kid as well.

"I lost my mom." I said, feeling slightly ashamed that he caught me crying.

He nodded and let out his hand for me to take.

"I know. I'll get you back to her. It'll be fine, I promise."

Swallowing the knot that had formed in my throat, I thought about his offer. Could he help me? Two pairs of eyes looking for a police officer would be better than one, I guess.

"Um, if you could help me find a policeman so we can look for her it'd be great." He smiled at me as if he thought this whole situation was funny. But this wasn't a joke and nothing about this was a motive to smile.

"I really know where she is. Trust me." His hand was still held out, waiting for me to take it. Frowning, I thought of all the reasons why this couldn't be a good idea.

He couldn't be much older than me. He was probably seven years old. But he looked so confident and sure of himself. Besides, he wasn't a strange adult. He wouldn't kidnap me.

"Fine." I finally said, sliding my hand in his.

His face seemed to relax. I hoped he wouldn't get us lost. "Where are your parents?" I asked, realising that maybe they could help us.

"Here, somewhere." He answered. "Come with me." His voice was soft, but firm. It reminded me of an adult's voice.

I remained by his side while we struggled to walk through the crowded place.

"There she is." The boy said once he stopped walking, and pointed his finger towards the block in front of us.

Effectively, my mom was standing there, and she looked really mad. She had a scared look on her face whilst she held onto people's arms, frantically talking to them. I realised she was looking for me. Feeling the need to calm her down, I let go of the boy's hand and started running towards her.

Her big brown eyes landed on me and she sobbed, and then she started calling my name. "Maddie! Maddie! Maddie!"

My eyes opened and I was greeted by the fan hanging off the ceiling, the sun was shinning through my window and I could hear my mom frustratedly knocking on my door.