Prickled?

The weather was warm and slightly humid when the Son sauntered into the kitchen.

“Mom, can I ask you something?”

“Sure. Just sit here and ask while I prepare the dinner.”

As he sat, he realized that his mouth quickly filled with saliva as he sniffed the luxurious smell of herbs and roasted chicken.

Brushing away the thought of the feast he’s about to savor during dinnertime, he looked towards his Mom and asked.

“What is the meaning of prickled? I couldn’t find the exact meaning I wanted from the dictionary nor the net.”

Piqued by such question, the Mom brushed away bread crumb from her fingers and sat opposite the Son. “Hmmm... now that is one really interesting question. So tell me, what kind of meaning are you looking for to be exact?”

“Well, I was at school today and I didn’t see Sara who usually sat beside me. Initially I thought she might be late but it turns out she was absent for the whole day.”

“And then what happened?” asked the Mom looking straight into his Son’s innocent eyes.

“Well, initially I was worried about her getting lost as she walks to school you see. After that, I was worried that something might have happened to her. Like she fell sick or something.”

“It seems that you genuinely care about her then. But you still haven’t told me how the prickled word came about.” enquired the Mom.

Fiddling with the embroidered fringe of table cloth, the Son spoke in hushed tone now. “After that, I sort of imagined that Sara skipped class so that she can play with Tom because his Dad just bought him a new tricycle. She did tell me that she would really love to ride on it you know. And I realized that I couldn’t concentrate in class whenever I thought of it.”

“And when I told Dad about it, he said I’m feeling prickled over something. So what is prickled Mom?”

Clasping her hand over the Son’s hand, she explained to her Son as simple as she could.

“Son, you’re feeling prickled because it shows that you care deeply about her. It is a heartfelt reaction and there’s nothing to be ashamed of ok?”

“But Mom, I feel bad even when I thought about it. How can that heartfelt reaction be good then?” prodded the Son further.

Patting the Son’s head, the Mom smiled as she said, “Well, you feel bad because you assume she skipped class so that she can have fun riding the tricycle with Tom. In other words, getting prickled because it shows that you care for her is good… but it is good as long as you don’t assume anything okay?”

Feeling his own cheeks warming up with the rebuttal from his Mom, the Son nodded his head silently.

“Now now. Why are you having that sour look on your face? Come here and let me look at my precious Son. Just make sure that you don’t assume and clarify things with Sara when you see her back in class alright?”

Nodding excitedly, the Son’s frown slowly but visibly turned into a broad grin. All the while reminding himself that getting prickled is good after all, as long as he doesn’t assume things.

As for Sara, he hoped fervently that she is alright and he can’t wait to see her back in class tomorrow.