The Moonlight Boy | Ferry's Tale # 1

Signs (part one)

Spring in Goodharts was magical. The most delicate flowers adorned every front garden and their sweet scent filled the air ─ hyacinths, daffodils, tulips, and lilies-of-the-valley. Later, when the sun turned more generous, the lilac bushes and magnolia shrubs together with the climbing morning glories conquered every small, white fence, embracing it with their fragile arms of white, pink, and purple flowers.

Ferry was breathing every breeze of spring. Every ray of light, no matter how frail, was a new victory against the grey reign of the winter, a step closer to the much-beloved summer.

The snow and cold were now a distant memory. The streets were full of happy people, loud children, and a pleasant buzzing in which people's voices and laughter tangled with birds' singing and insects whirl. And that murmur was heard until late in the night. It was the laughter of those who took long walks on the alleys. Or maybe it was the chat of a dozen workers gathered in front of the tavern after a long day of work.

The hills, fearless giants watching over the town below, had put on their green attire. The playground was always crowded with small feet running all over, with laughter, and happy shouts. Ferry couldn't get enough of watching the spring commotion. For the first time, he was observing it outside his backyard.

Yet, the swing under the old walnut tree was still his favorite place in the entire world. The memory of the past years, between the white sheets swollen by the wind, was one of his most cherished memories. He loved the smell of clean clothes, of soap blending with the fresh scent of the evening, when the swing lifted him up in the air, making him feel like he was flying. From up there, he could see the forest, mighty and silent. The whispers he once heard had come to an end now.

But the lights were still purling between the trees, ever more alluring. His mother told him they were fireflies. But Ferry knew fireflies couldn't be visible from such a distance. The small lights were coming together, dancing in circles, hopping like small children, and sometimes they even had a shape. Most often, it was the shape of a star, and then that star exploded in thousands of sparkles, scattered by the light breeze he could feel, even if so far away. The forest,  as always, was calling him.

Yet even so, the more spring was gaining its rights, the more the forest was being avoided. The only advice the parents were giving to their children was to stay away from it. Other than that, they could almost do anything they wanted as long as they were home for dinner. Things were simple in Goodharts; and people intended to keep them that way.

Ferry enjoyed the spring with his good friends, Matilda and Ben. Now and then, he paid May a visit. That spring, May had been rather ill, catching a cold almost every two weeks. So Ferry was the one to help her catch up with school. The two children did their homework on the balcony of her room. There, more than any other place, Ferry felt the spring. During study breaks, they were sipping the lemonade May's mother prepared for them. Then, they made bubbles with the straws in the glass and laughed until their stomach hurt. Ferry was to remember those moments many years later when the perfumed memories of those afternoons were to bring him peace during hard times.

In Goodharts, almost every child had a bike. At the first signs of spring, they were taking out their bikes and wander the hills until the last drops of light were swollen by darkness.

"I can't wait for the bike race," Matilda said, shook by a shiver of excitement. "I'm sure I'll win this year."

"What race?" asked Ferry.

"Every year, the children are organizing a bike race," Matilda explained. "The rules are simple ─ you have to be over seven years old and, of course, have a bike. We gather around twenty children and go to the top of the hill. Then we have to go around the town by bike and stop at the finish line in the central square. Last year, Billy Pride won, of course, only because he had the fastest bike. His father buys him the most expensive ones. But this year, things are going to change. I'll take the time to train," she said stressing the words.