The Unknown

Ivan, Part 16

"Mom please don't leave me. Don't go away.", I sob and reach out my hands to hold hers.

"Don't call me that.",she steps away from me. Her eyes red due to anger," You are not my daughter. You...you are the reason my daughter died. You are a murderer. You are her murderer. I will never forgive you. Never."

"Please, Mom. I'm not a murderer. Don't leave me alone.", I cry but as I turn to look at my mother, I see that she is silently moving away from me, her eyes digging into my soul, hatred dripping from them. She moves farther away and soon the darkness engulfs her. 

"Mom? Don't leave me... don't... please don't leave... come back... please.", I scream so that she can hear me.

"Hey, it's okay. ", I hear a soft, soothing voice. I turn around to find it's source but my surroundings start to blur.

Suddenly I feel something cold against my cheek. I  open my eyes slowly only to find a pair of dull blue eyes looking into mine.

"Are you okay?", I hear the same soft voice.

"Huh?" I blink my eyes several times to focus them. These eyes look so much like Arden's but the voice... A hand comes to rest on my shoulder and I jump backwards, alarmed by the sudden touch. My back slams into the side of the bed and I groan due to the pain caused by the impact, massaging the area with my hand.

"I.. I didn't mean to hurt you." 

I look at him more closely. He is a human. A human being on this planet!

"You are a human.", I mutter matter-of-factly. He has a pale, oval-shaped face. His pale blue eyes are glancing apologetically at me. I notice that his black, curly hair are neatly styled. He might be over six feet from what I can tell. He is wearing a white polo shirt matched with blue jeans. 

"I think I am, yes.", he speaks, his smile fading a bit due to my comment.

"I'm sorry. It's just that there are not many humans here and I..."

"It's alright. I am Ivan.", he comes close to me again...to hug me? I try to act to be comfortable but just as he is a couple of inches away, I intuitively move further backwards, the furniture digging into my back. Ivan stops, probably sensing my discomfort.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to...I thought this was the way people on earth introduced themselves. That's how I met new people. I'm really sorry.", Ivan speaks as he moves to a bearable distance in a small voice, the tip of his ears turning a bit red.

"Oh no, there's nothing wrong with hugging people.", I stand up from my comfortable position on the floor. "I'm just not accustomed to this type of introduction. Shaking hands with people would be a much better way to introduce yourself.", and much more comfortable too.

"Like this?", he holds out his hand to me, smiling like a four-year-old learning a new thing.

"Yes. You're quite good at it.", I praise him and shake his hand," I am Nia. It's nice to meet you, Ivan."

"Beautiful name.", he beams like a proud child.

"So is yours."

"Thank you."

"How long have you been here?"

"Quite some time. Elitsa brought me here when I was four."

I utter a barely audible 'oh'. That is a huge amount of time.I can't blame him for his social interaction skills then, can I? She wouldn't have brought a four years old child for experimenting, would she?