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Butterflies fluttered from flower to flower, mobile rainbows as they spread the small yellow bumps to the other. Sharing is caring! Two of them flapped in front of one another and danced, or were they playing? That looked like fun!
Lou turned to his father who sat in a large chair that stood plain against the steady stream of bright white sunlight that beamed down on them. “Daddy?” he asked, eyes equally as green and welcoming as the leaves that extended from the flowers in the garden around them. His dad continued to talk onward, only stopping for a moment to take a rather winded breath.
He tugged gently at the mauve robes that spilled over the chair, “Dad-” He glared down at the boy. “Somebody escort this boy if he won’t keep silent.” Lou bit his lip then tried again, “Daddy, can we go play? With the butterflies? They’re so happy! Look!” He turned and pointed to find the butterflies had gone and left nothing but the golden speckled flowers behind. “Oh.”
The man sent another glare Lou’s way. Be quiet or be gone. He picked himself up and headed over to the field of flowers where he sat just at the very edge so that the leaves tickled against his bare knees but did not crush any of the life. A small line of ants marched out from the end of the grass and the five year old scooted back as their line formed his way.
“Hi there,” he whispered through cupped hands at the black dots. They paused and he noticed his shadow had cast over their path. Lou wiggled back and leaned until their way was clear again, whispering an apology. He wondered what they did, if they had had a good day, if they were hungry.
A glance around. No food for an ant, unless….the table was filled with sweets. He slipped up to the table and grabbed one without anybody noticing and returned to his bug friends. “Here,” he whispered again and broke off a few tiny pieces for them then placed them on the ground.
They broke their line for a second or two then got back in line again and headed towards the food. Lou extended a finger with a small crumb towards one of them. A few of them turned away but one approached him. He held his breath until the ant took the piece, a smile lit up his face.
“I’ll name you, Leslie. After my daddy.” The ant scurried away to join his friends, now balancing the crumb on his back. He sat up, resting himself against his bent knees, eyes aglimmer. “You can be Liota. That’s my sister.”
“You look like a Spirit.”
“Oh! You can be Nirvana!”
“What do you think about the name of Jacov? Andrea? Nikki? Ahmed? Nubi?
He giggled and continued to name every ant as they made their way towards their home and out of his sight. As the last one disappeared, he waved them goodbye, whispering ‘see you laters’ to each by name, too caught up to hear somebody call another name.
“Lou Royal? I’m here for him.”
The boy stood up and dusted the gray bits of floor off his pants and knees and turned to greet the new voice. That was his name, right? Or he sure hoped so.
A girl about his age with hair red as the cherry tomatoes dangling from a vine beside her and eyes brown as the bark on the trees stood in the garden entrance.
“Did you want me?” It didn’t take his father glaring at him again that reminded him he was supposed to keep quiet.
The girl frowned and stepped toward him,”You don’t remember me?” He looked down and scratched at the back of his head. “You came back.” It lingered more like a question, his eyebrows furrowed and left a crease between them.
Her shirt felt warm and soft and good and her arms felt twice as much and melted Lou into them. “Of course I came back, Lou.”
Lou. That’s my name. “Can, can you say that again?” He whispered into the fabric. “Say what?”
“My name, say it again. Please?” She leaned in and long strands of hair tickled his left ear. “I’ll always come back, Lou Royal.”