Generasi Bintang (EN-Translate)

"Lila, hold on, my friend… Hold on…" Ayla's voice cracked amidst her sobs, trembling with desperation. Deep down, she knew—Lila might not make it. "The ambulance… The ambulance must be on its way…"

"Ayla, listen to me carefully…" Lila's voice was faint, broken. Her breaths came in short, shallow gasps, as if she were battling against time itself. "I feel heat spreading through my body… my legs, they're stiff—I can't feel them anymore. My breathing feels… cut off. Maybe… maybe it's my lungs or my heart… about to stop beating." She paused briefly, struggling to catch even the faintest bit of air, her chest rising and falling weakly.

Ayla gripped Lila's cold hand tightly, her own trembling. "Lila, don't say anything more! Save your strength," she pleaded, her voice thick with tears.

"Ayla, remember this…" Lila managed a weak smile, her lips trembling as she forced her words out. "I… Lila Navarro, am an investigative reporter." Her gaze turned hollow, her eyes staring blankly into the encroaching darkness. "I've… been poisoned…" And then, with her final breath, silence fell.

---

Flashback

In a small underground apartment, a mother knelt on the cold, cracked floor, holding the hand of her frail, young daughter. The child's wide, questioning eyes stared up at her mother, searching for answers she dared not voice aloud.

"Mom, do we still have a place to live?" the little girl asked in a voice so soft it was nearly drowned out by the hum of the old generator in the corner.

The mother didn't answer. Instead, her hand tightened around her daughter's tiny fingers, as if afraid to let go.

Lila Navarro, a single mother, lived in a dark, cramped underground city. Alongside Andin, her daughter—weak from sickness and hunger—she faced a grim reality that left no room for hope. Survival felt like an endless journey through a road riddled with despair and hardship.

Though her grip said otherwise, deep in her heart, Lila felt herself slipping—giving in to a life that offered nothing but suffering. For herself, yes, but more painfully, for Andin.

In the dimly lit room, Lila sat in silence, her thoughts tangled in the bleakness of their situation. Her head drooped onto the thin mattress where Andin lay, a mattress hardly worthy of being called a home.

Facing her daughter's frail form, Lila was consumed by an overwhelming sense of helplessness. There was nothing she could do—no escape in sight. Every corner of her life was shadowed by defeat.

But just as despair threatened to crush her, a small, frail voice pierced through her thoughts. Andin, too innocent to comprehend the weight her mother carried, tried to speak.

Her tiny fingers felt the warmth of Lila's trembling grasp. She looked at her mother with wide eyes, filled with a mix of innocence and trust. Her cracked lips moved slowly, and in a voice barely audible, she asked, "Mom, do we still have a place to live?"

The question was so simple, so pure—yet it felt like a dagger to Lila's heart.

Slowly, Lila opened her eyes. Her head, heavy with exhaustion and guilt, lifted. In the quiet, their gazes met. Lila's tired, sorrowful eyes locked with Andin's, which still held a faint spark of hope.

"Mom, is there a place above ground that's brighter than here?" Andin's soft voice cut through Lila's foggy thoughts.

Lila forced a faint smile, though it was more a shard of hope she clung to than a true expression of joy. "Yes, sweetheart. There's a place where the sun always shines, and the sky is blue."

Andin's eyes lit up briefly. Her weak fingers shifted slightly in her mother's grasp. "When… when can we go there?"

Lila's tangled thoughts suddenly seemed clearer. Tears welled in her eyes, unbidden, carrying the weight of emotions she couldn't put into words. As her lips began to curve into a faint laugh, she was startled by a sudden, heavy breath—a sound like the groaning hum of the old generator in the corner, sputtering back to life.

"Someday, Andin. Someday," she whispered, her voice hoarse, barely audible. She didn't know if it was a promise or a prayer—perhaps it was both.

Andin gave a small, weary smile, her eyes fluttering shut in exhaustion. To her, her mother's words were enough to quiet her doubts, if only for a moment. But for Lila, that promise became a haunting weight, one that demanded she find a way out of their endless darkness.

Lila held Andin's tiny hand tighter, but this time, it wasn't out of regret or despair. This time, her grip was full of determination.

Lila Navarro, a single mother fighting to raise her daughter, Andin, now found a new sense of hope. With her heart full of courage, she resolved to face whatever lay ahead—even if it meant walking through the darkest of paths.

---

Flashback End

"Andin… The world is cruel, but you must be stronger."

But what if the future breaks apart? What if life crumbles into pieces? What if the world itself collapses?

The light rain fell softly, carrying a quiet greeting from the heavens to weary souls. The earth offered its solemn farewell, cradling the departed in its embrace.

Andin's body trembled as she stood, watching the coffin slowly sink into the earth's embrace. Her mind drifted, lost in an endless tide of questions about life—questions that no one seemed able to answer.

"I've fought, Mom. I've tried… but now, how do I keep our promise?"