Reality of Eternity

Chapter one

                                    -Roman-
"Roman!" He cries out as I tackle him to the ground. "Let me go!" He speaks against his laughter, struggling as hard as he can to break free.

This was our routine, every day since I met him at daycare. We may go to the same school, but we still find a way to see each other every afternoon. We always have, and I can't imagine it being any other way. My first memories are centered around doing things with Beckham, and I want the rest of them to be the same way. He's my best friend, so I guess that's normal.
We have a small group of other kids who tag along on our adventures some days but is usually just the two of us. The woods surrounding our town have always been empty, and I spend all my free time exploring them- with or without Beckham. My mom always teases me and says they're calling me home.

"Hey Roman, we should have your birthday party here!" Beck excitedly proclaims, motioning towards the clearing we were wrestling in.
"I dunno, I don't think daddy will like that very much" I say with a sigh. "You know he doesn't like us coming out here."
He frowns and his eyebrows knit together, as he tried to come up with a solution.
He's always been the problem solver, the one who can almost always fix the messes I always get us in.
"Maybe we could ask your mom and she could convince him!" He shouts, his icy blue eyes opening wide.
He may be a year younger than me, but intelligence shines through him.

"Roman? Beckham! It's time for supper, you know you're supposed to be back home before the sun starts to set!" My mother's voice is full of worry, the ever present concern that we will get ourselves hurt or lost no matter how many days we spend our here.

"Coming mama!" I shout back, frowning at how fast the afternoon flew by.
"Are you gonna stay for dinner with us?" I ask, hoping Beck will stay for just a little while longer. "I'll get mama to ask, so you don't have to!" I plead.
"Okay." He says, his lopsided grin showing me he's not ready to leave yet either.

"Mama pleeeeeaaaasseeeee!!" I beg, hanging on Beckham's shoulder for emphasis. "We are having fun and I don't want him to go yet!!" I whined. 
"I'm sorry honey, but Beckham's parents really need him home tonight. And besides, we have a special dinner planned, just as a family. Maybe he can come over this weekend, and I'll see if his mom will let him stay for both days. How does that sound?" She sounds just as sad as I feel.
"Yeah, I guess that's fine." I say without looking at her. I  don't feel much like eating anymore.
"It'll be okay baby, the weekend is only one day away. It'll be here before you know it!" She says forcing a smile, trying to make me feel better.
"Yeah I gu-" I start to speak but I get cut off by a knock at the door.
"Beckham? It's time to go sweetie" his mother poked her head around the door, giving a warm smile with she caught my eye.
"Hey Roman! Sorry we have to rush home so quickly, I'm sure you'll see each other again tomorrow just like always." She stated, the smile never leaving her face. "C'mon sweetie, your dad is waiting for us."

"Bye Roman," he says, wrapping his arms around my neck. "I'll see you tomorrow okay?" He's not smiling anymore either.
"Yeah." Is all I can say back.

The door closes, and I'm ready for it to be tomorrow already.

                          
Mama sets a white plate down in front of me with two triangles of pizza on it, and my appetite immediately vanished. We only order pizza when something bad has happened.
"What's.... going on?" I half whisper, trying not to worry before I know what's going on.
"Nothing honey, pizza has always been your favorite! Don't you want your favorite?" She asked, her smile looks out of place on her face that doesn't match up.
"We only have pizza when something bad happens.. what happened?" I ask again.
"I told you baby. Nothing has happened" she says. "We just wanted to have dinner as a family."
She's smiling again.
Across the table, my dad sighs.
"Audrey, he already knows something's up. Let's just tell him okay? Then we can focus on enjoying the night". His tone is brisk, the muscles in his jaw clenching.
"Tell me what.." I whisper, my heart beginning to race.
"Your mother is.... sick. There's not much time left." My dad says, looking tired.
He instantly looks exhausted.
"Not much time left..?" I ask, not fully grasping the reality of the situation.
"There were no signs. She went to get her persistent cough checked out, and that's when they told us." His voice was low, like he was struggling to speak.
"Told you what?" I ask, full blown denial setting in. Begging him to say anything else.
"She has cancer, Roman." I could see the tears in his eyes. My mother is facing the other way, so I know she's trying to hide her own tears.
"It's called Metastatic Non Small Cell Lung Cancer. It's spread to her bones now, there's nothing they can do but try to make her more comfortable. Six months is what they told us she has left.
"So what can we do?" I was grasping at straws and I knew it, but the idea of a life without my mom terrified me beyond words.
"We found a nice boarding school just a few hours away. They have dorms and everything, and even have a music program you could get involved in." It was mother's turn to speak, her voice shaky and raw with emotion.
"I don't want to leave her.." It came out more of a whisper that was barely audible, even to me.
"It will be okay, baby. You'll still come to visit every weekend and we will always have something fun planned. We will make sure of it. We just don't want you to have to see me go through everything. I want you to remember me as I am now, not how I am in the next few months." The fake smile on her face made my stomach turn.
"But..." I was running out of breath. "I don't care about that! Mom, I don't want to lose you... isn't there anything we can do?!"
Daddy slams his fist on the table, something he doesn't do often and yells "Roman! Don't you think we've tried?! We've tried to find treatments, medicines, anything. Do you think I'd just let her die without at least trying first?!"
"Honey, stop." My mother says softly, but sternly. "He's just a child. He's not been told any of this information and he's been bombarded with all of this. It's sudden to him, of course he's going to ask questions."
My father sinks back into his chair, looking exhausted and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Just support your mothers wishes, Roman. It's harder for her than you could imagine, more so than it is for you."

Being told not to ask further questions, and my mind still reeling I ask, "What about Beckham? I can't just leave him.." My voice sounds artificial to my ears, too loud and a little too shrill.
"It's only a few hours baby. You can still come see him sometimes and plan time at his house or ours."
She's trying to be understanding, even with her situation. Yet still, I can't stop the tears building.
"I can't leave him! Not when you're leaving me too!" I'm shouting now, tears running down my cheeks, and my chair crashing to the floor as I jump to my feet.
"Roman where are you going?!" My mom calls out behind me.
"Get back here young man!" My dads voice sounds weak and broken, but I don't listen.
Slamming the back door, I make a diagonal run across my back yard, racing across the street and into the woods.
My only thought is heading to the one place I truly feel at peace.