The Crystal Dolphin (part 3)

"Nathan was happy.
He was sitting next to the little window of the airplane, and also admiring the cloud's carpet under the airplane.
The sky was extremely blue like a swimming pool. Suddenly, the boy started to wonder how would it be if some fish could swim on that sky, like it was ocean. He imagined if they would jump, if they would be chased by starving dolphins and sharks. It was a funny scene in his head.
- Did you know that your uncle Ricardo is a lawyer, Nathan?
He looked at his father, who was sitting on the seat on the corridor's side.
- Yes - he said - But how does he work, exactly?
- He is hired by people who want to defend themselves before Justice - Paulo explained - He argues with the Judge about the reasons why his client is innocent.
- And who can hire lawyers, daddy?
- Anyone - he said - If a person is going to be judged, he or her has the right to ask for a lawyer.
- But what if it's a robber, daddy? - Nathan questioned, with creased brow - He will be lying, because he actually did a bad thing. He is not innocent.
- Even so, he can ask for a lawyer.
- But it's not fair - the boy protested - A robber does bad things. How can you defend someone who is wrong?
- Listen to your father, Nathan - Soraya intervened - He knows more than you.
Paulo leaned his head back on the seat and closed his eyes. Nathan got angry. His father said something that didn't make sense to him. A robber does bad things and must go to the jail. A lawyer should defend good people. It seemed to be a difficult job. Nathan wanted to ask uncle Ricardo later about why he had chosen this profession. He was his mother's older brother, so she might knew something about it.
The pilot's voice said that they were getting close to their destination. Nathan stretched his legs. His eleventh birthday would be at the house of his favorite uncle. Uncle Bruno lived in a city called Natal. It was a warm city full of beaches, and Nathan's cousins lived there, Taísa and Renata. And there was also their dog, Lumus, a Golden Retriever. Nathan was in love with that dog.
Suddenly, Nathan felt pain on his right hand. Soraya had grabbed his hand and was pressing it very strongly. He tried to free his hand, but he couldn't. He looked at the little window and noticed that there was a lot of clouds around the airplane. He saw some drops running along the reinforced glass, and suddenly the sky vanished. The airplane was entering a big and grey cloud. Nathan noticed that the airplane started to suffer some turbulence. His father stayed with his eyes closed, but his mother pressed his hand with more force. She closed her eyes, and started to breathe like an asmatic person.
- Mommy - he said - What's wrong?
She didn't answer. She didn't even move.
- Are you afraid? - he asked.
Soraya forced herself to open her eyes. Her whole body was tensed. She felt like there was nothing between her and the distance she was from the ground. She shouldn't be afraid. She didn't want Nathan to be afraid because of her. But she was afraid. Suddenly, she noticed that the boy had leaned his head on her arm and used his free hand to cover hers.
- You don't need to be afraid - he said - We're almost arriving.
She didn't know what to say, so she just stayed in silence. She hugged her son while the airplane was getting out of the big cloud and starting to descend."
...

- Laila.