Chapter 4- I wanna fight

“I am going to the wrestling academy and I am gonna become a pro-wrestler and there’s nothing you can say or do to stop me!” Wilson shouted at his mom.

 “If you go to that school against my wish, I will disown as my son and you must never step foot in this place ever again!” His mother screamed at him.

 “Why don’t you want me to fight?” Wilson asked once again. He must have asked her a thousand times since he clocked sixteen a week ago. But, like all the other times, she did not say a word and just looked at him with a blank expression.

 “Fine! Goodbye!” Wilson said wearing a calm look even though he was already crying inside. A part of him wanted him to immediately leave and chase after his dream but another part wanted him to listen and stay. So, he waited for a few seconds hoping against hope that his mom will say something to give him a tangible reason to give his dream up and find another one. She was still his beautiful, loving mom afterall. But sadly, she said nothing and so he left. He took his few belongings; a few clothes and trousers, all his savings, a sharp new dagger, a sword and a clean pair of dull-grey, fairly used gauntlets made of the toughest metal in the world. He had gotten those gauntlets as a birthday gift from the only merchant the village had produced and they were his most prized possession. There was a limit to how much a poor boy from a poor village could have anyway.

He walked out of the house to see almost all the villagers regardless of their ages waiting outside with various expressions ranging from anxiety to sadness, on their faces.

 “Are you really going to leave?”

 “……And never come back?”

 “What about your mother?”

 “………She has lived all her life for you…….”

 “…….You really will abandon her?”

 “……… She might die…..”

Wilson just looked at them, shook his head and began walking away. The people followed after him all the same asking questions in a bid to persuade him to stay. Nobody wanted to leave without planning to return.

 “…… You should at least try to return every now and then!!......”

 “……... Don’t you care about your mother at all?”

 “…… Can you hear that? That’s her voice! Listen to how loudly she is crying!......“

 “……….. You can feel her pain but just listening!.....”

 “………She will have a heart attack at this rate!.......”

 “……….She might become mentally traumatised…….”

 “………. She might die for real….”

 “……. She might go mad from the pain she’s feeling!”

 “ I hear people like that are usually aggressive….”

The focus of the conversation kept changing while they were persuading him. Wilson could already see the outskirts of the village in front of him as well as the merchant who volunteered to take him to Forest city where the academy was located.

 “……. You remember that son of the chief from the other village that ran mad? I hear he became like that because his fiancée left him for a richer city boy. So, he became depressed until he eventually became aggressive, losing all hints of sanity.……..”

 “She might actually become like that? Poor Sylvia! She loves her son too much!”

Wilson heard that part and hesitated before stepping forward to speak with the merchant.

 “Ah, Wilson!” Wilson was shocked. He had not expected to see the village head conversing with the merchant. But then, on the other hand, he was the first son of the village head.

 ‘I shouldn’t be so surprised to see him speaking with his own son. That is very normal.’ Wilson thought to himself.

 “I heard what happened! You should not be so hard on your own mother! I will tell her you promised to return some time. So, you better do! Unless, of course, if you wish her to go to her early grave! She is your mother no matter how you try to view it and she has done her best to bring you up alone.” The village head paused before signaling to the other villagers to leave. He continued.

 “You see, when my son told me he wanted to become a merchant and travel around the country, I objected. He left anyway and he could have decided to never come back after becoming successful, but he did. He’s the major reason our village is developing faster than the other villages. His coming back made me view things from a different perspective and realize that life in the city does not necessarily change our children for the worse. So, all you have to do is become successful and come back home to your mother to help change her point of view. My son will help you till you get to the academy but the rest will be up to you. I hope I am not making a big mistake of supporting you! My son has made all of us proud. You can as well. Follow your dream through and through but do not  forget your home and your mother. I will do my best to take care of your mother!”

 “Thank you, village head. I promise to make you proud and return home when I can!” Wilson bowed down till he was bending at 900. He entered the carriage of Dale, the merchant and they were off on their way. He looked back and saw the village head smiling and waving, so he waved back and smiled at the thought of him final going to the third most famous wrestling academy in the country of Planetria.

He smiled and closed his eyes with his heart brimming with joy and worry for his mother and his future. He drifted to sleep after promising himself to become successful and come back for his lovely mother.

He was finally on his way to the academy, a preliminary to fulfilling his only dream- becoming a popular pro-wrestler.