Bonding

“Dad! Help me here! They’re ganging up on me,” I yelled to my father as my enemies chased after me. He didn’t wait a second before running towards me and blocking those chasing me. “Hide, son, I’ll handle this,” he commanded. I quickly hid in the tall grass, filled with fear and anxiety about what might happen between my pursuers and my father.

I wanted to close my eyes because of what I was seeing; how they were hurting my father with their weapons. One had a balisong, another had a gun, and impressively, one had the ability to use magic. Thankfully, my father was wearing armor that protected him, and he was a skilled warrior in our kingdom, which gave me some reassurance in his abilities.

I waited for a chance to help my father. He punched the guy with the gun in the jaw, making him drop all his weapons due to weakness. Disarmed, he quickly ran back to their castle. Only two opponents were left facing my father, and I knew it would be easy for him because, in previous battles, he always faced at least two enemies. “You guys are nothing! You only bully rookie warriors because that’s all you can handle. Now that you’re facing a veteran, you fall with one punch? You’re all talk!” my father taunted his enemies.

I couldn’t help but laugh at the frustration on the faces of the two opposing warriors. However, I could see their anger towards my father, and they didn’t let him laugh for long. The sorcerer cast a spell on my father, but it didn’t affect him, while the one with the balisong threw it at my father’s knee, causing him to kneel. “Don’t be so cocky! Now, because of your arrogance, you’ll be the one to end!” the sorcerer laughed loudly. They removed my father's helmet and prepared to strike him, but this gave me the opportunity to attack them with my long scythe, killing them both as I struck their necks.

As they took their last breaths, my father approached them and said, “What was that again? Don’t speak too soon? HAHAHA!” and with that, their souls left their bodies.

One of our strategies, my father and I, was to deceive our enemies into thinking they had defeated him, so they would focus on him and give me a chance to strike. This tactic was effective in the battles we fought together.

“Let’s go home to the castle and rest,” my father invited as he helped me stand up, overwhelmed with mixed emotions: exhaustion, fear, anxiety, and of course, joy from our victory.

When we arrived at the castle, we ran into one of his friends. “Oh, you’re back. Perfect timing. The leader says we should prepare for the final attack in the war,” his friend said. It looked like we were going straight to attack the enemy camp, hence the final attack.

“Son, they’ve captured the monster’s heart from the forest. Are you ready for our next assault?” my father asked after his friend left. “Yes, Dad, I just need to rest to regain my strength,” I replied. “Dad, what if I make a mistake and cause our defeat, will I be expelled from our camp?” I asked worriedly. This was only my fifth battle, and it was the hardest one I had experienced. Usually, battles lasted only three days, but this one had stretched to seven days, and we were just preparing for the final assault. It was difficult to defeat the enemies because, like earlier, they were good at escaping when their lives were in danger. I had a feeling they might outsmart us in the end, leading to our defeat.

My premonitions often came true. “I know you have a bad feeling about what’s going to happen, and I also know your premonitions are usually right. But, son, believe me and pray that for the first time, your premonition is wrong. Because if not, this might be the last time we hug each other.” My father hugged me tightly and held my hand, saying, “Even if we lose, you will never be the reason. And if they expel you from our camp, I will go with you. I will always be with you because we will protect each other. But son, we will win, don’t be afraid.” My father’s words gave me comfort. “I am the best warrior in the world, so just chill. This is basic for me,” he joked. With only a few hours left before we went into battle, I closed my eyes to regain my strength.

“Red! Don’t go in there!” my father shouted, but it was too late. The walls closed, trapping me inside. I couldn’t do anything but wait for help from our team because if I moved, I might step on traps. I knew it, I was going to endanger our group. Instead of attacking the enemies, we would waste time rescuing me from this room full of traps. It seemed my premonition was right again. I shouldn’t have come along.

As my thoughts consumed me, I heard the footsteps of enemies. They must have found out I was here. I picked up my long scythe, trembling, afraid to stand, and prepared to fight, not knowing the outcome. The first figure I saw was the guy with the gun who had escaped earlier. “You again? HAHAHA! You’re really a trouble magnet,” he laughed upon recognizing me. “What now? Your skilled father isn’t here to help you. Did you hug him tightly earlier? That will be your last because your life ends here! HAHAHA!”

I tightened my grip on my scythe, tears falling as I lost hope, surrounded by five enemies. As they prepared to charge at me, we heard a crash as the room's pillars fell, and my comrades, along with my father, entered.

“If you hadn’t run earlier, you would have known not to speak too soon,” my father mocked, and the battle began. My father approached and hugged me. “I told you I wouldn’t let you be alone,” he said. We then joined our comrades in the fight. I hadn’t noticed that these five were the last remaining warriors from the enemy camp because my father and the others had defeated the rest outside the room. Soon, our group killed the last five warriors. After defeating them, we burned the enemy’s base and declared our victory in the war. “Thank you, son, for believing in me earlier,” my father happily said, hugging me tightly.

After waving the flag declaring our victory, my phone died. “Dad! I can’t play anymore! My phone shut down!” I yelled to my father on the second floor of the house, where he was staying because the signal was weak downstairs.

I went upstairs to repeat what I said. “Dad, my phone is low on battery. Let’s play again tomorrow,” I repeated. “Yeah, I heard you. You don’t need to keep repeating it! You’re like a broken record,” he replied irritably. “I’m leaving now, tell your mom,” and he began getting ready to leave for work.

While he cleaned his shoes, I mentioned what was happening to me at school. “Dad, there’s a group of boys who always take my lunch money at school. Can you help me tell the teachers? They don’t listen to me,” I complained. “What’s that, Red?! Can’t you defend yourself? I didn’t raise you to be weak. Maybe I should stop giving you lunch money since you just let others take it. Maybe they should have been my child instead,” my father angrily responded. “I’m sorry,” I said briefly, afraid of him.

There wasn’t a moment when I was with my father that he wasn’t angry, except when we played games. I was happy when he protected me from enemies, even if it was just in the game. I felt his love as a father because that was the only time he was kind with his words. His words always comforted me when I was afraid of making mistakes in the game. It was scary because our defeats affected how he treated my mother and me. If he didn’t hurt us with his words, he would hurt us with his hands.

“Dad, can I have a hug? I won’t see you for a long time,” I said softly. He only came home once a month to sleep and play.

*slap*

“I’ve been irritated with you, Red! Stop with your drama, damn it!” my father shouted after slapping my cheek. He then left, slamming the door.

“It’s okay, Red. Just be happy you got to bond with Dad,” I whispered to myself while rubbing my sore cheek. When the pain subsided, I took my phone and plugged it into the charger.