Day of grief

5 years ago . . . .

Although the day had started in laughter and joy, it ended with despair and grief. For no one could ever have comprehended the misfortune of one family in particular . . . .

For on this day there had been a terrible, destructive storm. However, it was not just any ordinary storm. For it had appeared so spontaneously that it was as if magic had been it's creator!

...****************...

It had started off as a warm sunny day, the sky was a clear blue, the sun a dazzling yellow orb in the sky, and there was a cool summer breeze that blew from time to time.

And on this beautiful day there was a little girl and her father. They loved to play down by the calm river, that resided round the back of their quaint home. Hovering over the calm river was a cute, small stone brick bridge, on the other side of the river was an array of colourful flowers in a luscious field.

Everday, the father and daughter duo would walk to the field on the other side and play until the orange glow of the setting sun would appear in the sky.

However, on this particular day, as they were happily playing in the field, they're joy gradually shifted to despair and grief.

At first it started off as being a light rain shower, but it rapidly began to grow stronger and heavier.

"Ray, I think it's time to go home now!" anxiously exclaimed the father.

"Ok Papa" replied Ray.

The little girl and her father started to hurriedly return home, but as they reached the small bridge the little girl slid on the slippery mud and fell down the bank which had been made slick from the incoming storm

Struggling to hold on she tried to pull herself up off the bank of the now raging rapids!

"HOLD ON RAY!!! YOU'RE GOING TO BE OK I PROMISE" the father yelled over the ever-increasing downfall from the heavens.

The father swiftly went to where little Ray had fallen in, crouched as low as his weak and feable body would allow and reached out with all his might to save his little girl.

Ray pulled herself up as much as she could before she reavhed to grasp ahold of her father's reassuring hand.

Nearly, just a little more and then she will be safe. Then a scream! She had missed her father's hand and slipped into the jaws of the monstrous rapids!

Momentarily it had felt as if time had stopped or the father as he watched as his little girl fell, into the raging abyss.

But as quickly as she had fallen his body seemed to move without hesitation and within the time it had taken for her to fall into the rapids, he was already in the water grabbing ahold of her.

Out of nowhere her developed a strength that would outshine even the greatest of deities, it would only last a few moments but that was just enough time to be able to get his offspring to safety.

In turn sarificing himself to the ever-increasing waves of despair and grief. 'At least she is safe now' he thought to himsel, knowing that this would be his last moments alive in this world.

All that was heard before he was dragged beneath the surface was a faint voice strangled with screams of fear.

...****************...

"DAD!" a strangled voice screamed off in the distance.

A woman rushed to her back door snatched her rainoat grom its peg, hurled on her wellington boots and propelled herself ouy of her house, toward a river witb a small bridge and what seemed to be a young girl standing by the side of the raging river.

Drenched by the rain the little girl staggered towards the woman. The woman vould see that the little girl was crying and screaming...

Before she even asked her daughter the woman already knew that something dreadful had happened but didn't want to accept the thought of it being true.

First, she looked around to make sure, but he was nowhere to be seen. To find out what took place she would need to calm down her daughter who was now in her calming embrace.

"Calm down Ray, tell me what happened!'' the woman's voice was sweet and gentle. She had big, beautiful eyes that were as green as a glistening jade and lips as red as the colour of love.

"W-we were p-p-playing..." the little girl stuttered. "I-I fell in the river, dad caught me b-b-but... But he fell in instead! T-then it started to rain heavier, and the lightning and thunder I-I-I..."

"Ray go back to the house, quickly go call and ambulance"

"But... But..."

"No buts! NOW RAYNA!"...

That was the last time me and my mother talked to each other that day. We never saw my father again, well not alive at least...

They found his lifeless body after the storm passed at the other end of the, now calm, river that was in the middle of our strange and deranged town.

For at least a month afterwards, I sealed myself in my room, as I could not stand the thought that it was my fault as he sacrificed himself to save me, but also that in an alternate universe it would have been my lifeless body that they had found instead.

But one thing didn't make sense: why did the storm grow stronger as he fell. Was this a sign... 

I guess that is just one of the many unsolved mysteries that exist here in hauntington; our creepy town was named that since so many deaths had taken place within its borders, and it is believed that those who die here aren’t able to leave and so haunt the living.

However, it isn’t surprising that someone would die under weird circumstances in our dark corner of the world, this is because many do still die…  

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***