Mrs. Felix sat on the couch in her bedroom, looking dejected, while staring at her son's end-of-term grades sent through mail by the school management.
The thought of Michael repeating a class for the third time broke her heart terribly, but she was never going to allow any patched promotions like she did in the past
"This boy doesn't value everything I am doing to prepare him for the future, or does he think I will be here forever? Does he think he is getting younger?" Mrs. Felix muttered and sighed heavily as she stood on the couch.
She walked around her bedroom, thinking of what else to do, when the thought of her late husband crossed her mind. Mrs. Felix reached his picture frame sitting on the bedside drawer, and she stared at it for a while.
"Felix, you shouldn't have left Michael for me to raise alone. He is not making me happy, and I am doing my best." She stuttered and wiped the tears that rolled down her cheek.
For a moment, she thought about the beautiful memories they shared as a couple and wished he had never left when he did.
"I have to do something about the situation before things get worse than they are," she thought, gently placing the frame back in its spot.
Mrs. Felix turned on her PC again and sent some mail before returning to bed at midnight.
The next morning, Michael stepped out of his room late and noticed that none of his mom's cars had left the compound. It was very unusual because Mr. Felix, despite being the CEO of a company, always resumes at 8 a.m. like every other worker in the company.
"Is my wristwatch faulty?" He asked and reached for his phone to confirm what the time was.
"10:26, my watch is correct. Did she order an Uber?
Michael decided to check on his mom in her bedroom, and upon getting to her room, the door was locked.
He knocked several times, but his mom didn't respond or open the door, so he dialed her number to ask for her whereabouts.
While calling, he walked back to the living room with his phone on speaker, and Mrs. Felix didn't answer the call.
Michael tried again several times, but the calls only ended without a response from his mom. He started getting worried and quickly called his mom's secretary to be sure if she was in office.
"No, we haven't seen Madam today. I have tried her phone number twice, but she didn't pick it up," the secretary replied.
"What could be happening?" Michael became troubled as he checked everywhere in the compound before returning to his mom's room.
He called her number again, and this time he heard the phone ring inside the room.
"She will never leave her phone at home," Michael stuttered, and fear gripped him immediately.
"Mom! Mommy! Mommy!! Please open the door!" he screamed while banging on the door continuously.
Tears poured profusely from his eyes as he knocked repeatedly.
"Uncle, I don't know what's happening. I can't find mom," he stuttered while on call with his uncle Barry.
"Keep calm and explain everything to me," Uncle Barry replied.
"There is time for that, please just come over as soon as you can. I will get help to open the door," Michael replied, ending the call immediately.
Every effort to get the door open was futile, and Michael was left frustrated. He flung the iron bar he was holding and broke into tears.
"Mum! If you are in there, please answer me. Please open the door," he cried as he kneeled in front of the door.
Some minute passed and michael rushed out of the house to seek help from their neighbors, and upon returning, they were about to force the door open.
At the sight of Mrs. Felix laying lifeless on the floor, Michael screamed and rushed to lift his mom.
"What's wrong with her? She's not moving." He stuttered while moving her head back and forth.
"Please help me; she mustn't die. She's the only one I have," Michael kept screaming and crying.
The neighbors put a call across to a nearby hospital, and while waiting for their arrival, Michael noticed there was a small letter just beside his mom.
He quickly took it and opened it. He wiped his tears and read quietly.
"Son, I really wish I could stay longer to help you despite all the troubles you have put me through, but that won't be possible. I did my best, and it's time for you to navigate through life alone. Everything I did was to prepare you for this moment, but you never took life seriously."
"The wealth you see will be gone in a jiffy because of the loans I already took from the bank. I am sorry, I left without saying goodbye."
"No! No! This can't be happening," Michael screamed, and he started begging his mom after reading the note.
"I will turn a new leaf and do everything you want." Michael made a lot of promises before the ambulance arrived.
They were trying to lift Mrs. Felix from the ground when Michael heard her voice.
"Michael, it's almost 7 a.m. Aren't you going to school today?"
"Mom!" Michael said this and turned around slowly.
He wiped his eyes because his vision was blurry, and upon seeing his mom, he screamed.
"It was a dream." Michael started crying while staring at his mom.
Mrs. Felix sat on his bed and patted him on the back.
"What is it? What are you crying about?" She asked.
"I had a dream, and you left me," Michael replied.
"I am not going anywhere now, but I won't be here forever," Mrs. Felix replied.
"You have to take life seriously, face your studies, and make me proud."
Michael felt a huge pain in his heart while his mother said those words, and that was the moment that changed everything for him.
He took his education more seriously, and Mrs. Felix was happy again.
