Haiiiyyy… It’s been a long time(If you don’t remember me, I have changed my username, just browse through my selectedbecause I deleted most of the others stories or look at my unchangeable profile picture to find out). Nag-hehesitate talaga akong ipasa sa PL ‘to. Dahil alam kong walang magbabasa(most likely).
This next story you are about to read is a novel(or supposed to be one). I’m still deciding whether or not to add any sexual act on this plot. But since this is a sex site, we’ll find out tin the next chapters. But not on this one.
Just a Peek
Part I: The New Home
Brrrr…. The ground trembled as the train approached. It was another full one; same as usual, especially on this time of the day. The train slowly came to a halt on the busy station, its screeching wheels against the tracks echoed in the dark tunnel – only to be muffled by the noise from the crowd waiting for its very arrival. As soon as the doors opened, people came rushing both in and out.
In the panicked crowd, a mother and child try to squeeze in and push their way out of the train. A sea of people joins them in their short journey. The child, being the small and fragile figure that she was, drowns in the wave of the crowd. Her mother holds on to her, but not without its consequences though. The child can only let a teardrop flow down her cheeks in silence as she is dragged along. The disorderly flow of the passengers pulls her apart. All she saw ahead was her bruising arm along with the coats and bags pressing against her. She squirms her way in to keep up with her mother.
As soon as the train left, the crowd nearly disappeared. It allowed her to observe what was around her: an old, dirty station. It was like what they had then back home. There were notable differences here and there, like the train back home only comes once every two or so days compared to the ten-minute time difference on this station. Considering the busy schedule of this station itself, it was just as badly maintained as the one back in B—. Although, being underground, this one was darker with its neglected “fluorescent” lights flickering. There was water dripping from the pipes overhead. It was quite a walk from the train to the stairs that led outside the subway, but it wasn’t long as new commuters started filling in. The child’s mother, still frantic, ran up the staircase dragging her daughter with her. Her child was desperately tries to keep up with her mother’s pace. The child’s short legs could barely reach each step of the staircase. As they approached the last few steps, something catches the attention of this confused child – a child; it looked as if he was about her age, staring downward into the dark subway tunnel, holding a rusted crutch and sitting on one leg quietly, its face is covered by a hood.
They moved on, as expected, with her mother leading the way. But curiosity builds, the enchanted daughter kept looking back at the other child she saw earlier.
“What the heck are you looking at? I’m gonna be late!” snarled her mother. With one quick yank at her tiny and bruised arm, it was all over. All she saw was what was ahead of her. Her attempts to take a peek behind her were all in vain. The sinking staircase of the subway station made it impossible for her to take a quick glimpse at the child again.
It took a moment; she looked down at her feet and sobbed quietly. With her free arm, she wiped the tears off her face. Things stirred differently as more of the city’s dazzling atmosphere filled her seses. Her eyes flashed at the sights around her. Tall, brilliant skyscrapers, noisy roads and dizzying shops stood in place the mountains, trees and streams she used to play in. Everything was different, even the people. In the city, everyone’s always in an incomprehensible, inexplicable rush. The subway station where she just came from itself is a completely different scenery from what she’ seeing right now. The bright morning sun basks on the city’s tall buildings. Sunrise isn’t as beautiful as she remembered it to be.
Her eyes rolled around, it seems like she was not alone with her fate. There were children she walked pass by. Many of which are tied up to their parents as she is.
A couple of minutes passed before they reached their destination. They’ve already walked a couple of blocks from the subway station. The child looked anxiously as they stood in front of the entrance. Two large doors waited for them. She looked up and high, the building seems to pierce the sky. Her mother brought her in with her as she strutted into the lobby.
As they walked in, the enclosure only reminded the child of what she used to call home, of what they called a “workplace” – how far different it was. Those leaky, wooden ceilings became solid concrete. The muddy dirt she walked on turned into glistening tiles. Even the moldy walls and doors turned into concrete and glass. Back home, her playmates where anything but people: much less ones dressed in corporate suits. Everyone they walk into either say “Good morning Ma’am!” or “Is that your baby? How adorable!” Her mother only replies with a smile and a nod.
They eventually reached the front desk. The daughter can barely see what was beyond it. All she can do was stand there and wait as they talked.
It wasn’t long before they left. Her mother headed to the elevator with her, seemed to be in a mood worse than before, when suddenly:
“Wa-wait Mam” said the woman behind the desk. She walks to them. The child and her mother stop then turn back.
“What is it now?” asked the mother, seemingly annoyed.
“Sorry ma’am, but your daughter has to wait here.”
“Ha? Are you fucking kidding me? It’s 9am and you expect my child to sit here and not shit herself?”
“I sincerely apologize mam but –“
“But what?”
“It’s written company policy. Section: 4a, Allowance of Visitors. ‘All children at the age of 18 below are not to be allowed into restricted sectors (from 2nd to succeeding floors) during office hours. If desired, children are allowed to stay in the lobby as long as no disturbance is committed. Refer to Section 4b of Allowance of Visitors agreement for Bring-your-children-to-work-day.”
“Well, I guess she’s going to be your problem ‘til lunchbreak,” replied the mother. She then kneels down to her child who stared blankly up on her.
“Baby, momma’s gonna’ work for a while. I’ll be back later to pick you up. We’ll have lunch aaaaanywhere you like. Be a good girl for momma.”
The child only replies with a reluctant nod.
“Now where did I put your doll…” said the mother. She then opens her purple shoulder bag and looks in it. She soon pulls out a stuffed doll. It seemed to be a very special one for her child as the daughter’s eyes light up in excitement.
The mother then kisses her daughter’s forehead and stands up.
“Take care of her for me. I leave the rest to you,” her mother told the woman. She then hands her another bag. And with one final glimpse at her daughter, she left.
The woman took the daughter by the hand and walked her to the bench near the doorway. She lifted her up to the seat and like what the daughter’s mother did earlier, she knelt in front of her.
“Just stay here little girl. Your mama’s gonna’ be back okay?”
The girl hesitantly nods at the woman. The woman then smiles.
“You are just adorable. What’s your name?”
“E-Emily…”
The woman lets out another smile and stands up. She bends over and pats the child’s head, “Well Emily, Mama’s gonna’ be back soon okay? For the meantime, I’ll be watching you from that table.” She said, as she points to the front desk where she conversed with the child’s mother.
The child once again nods, she then asks: “W-What should I-I call YOU? W-What’s your name?”
“I’m Jane. Call me Jane,” the woman replies, and then turns away. Her heeled shoes tap against the glazed tiles as she walks to her desk. Emily then raises her two legs up on the bench and sits quietly with her doll in her small arms.
Jane, the woman on the front desk, can only wonder what the child was thinking as the time passes. Her short glimpses to her give the same image: Emily staring out on the streets. She knows nothing about the girl other than it was her boss’s daughter. What puzzles her the most is how the child acted in front of her mother. It was all and the same when the girl sits alone on the bench: quiet. The child has barely moved an inch since she sat down. Truly, Jane could only wonder what the child was thinking.
Three hours and thirty minutes passed by. Emily just sat quietly, sometimes hugging or patting her doll but mostly staring out to the streets of N— through the glass walls.
Another minute passed, the silent lobby became busy again. Employees, both men and women, filled in the empty corridor. The glass doors swung in and out relentlessly as the employees rushed to have their fill. From a distance, Jane was relieved as she saw Emily’s mother approach her daughter. She can see Emily jump down from the bench and walk away with her mother out into the streets. As she is assured that the child is safe, she leaves her desk for her substitute to fill her in.
“So, where does my baby want to eat?” asked the mother. However, the child doesn’t reply. She instead did what she has been doing when she arrived: look around and observe. The mother just smiles as she sees her daughter finally taking interest in her new home. She brings her daughter to her favorite diner. It was one of those trailer car types, the ones made of steel and rid of wheels.
She made sure that they get a seat nearest to the window. She brings up Emily to sit beside her. As soon as they sat down, Emily crawls up to the window pane and once again, stares out into the streets. The waitress arrives to take their order. Emily’s mother just looks at her daughter once more.
“Just one Kiddie Meal for the kid and hot soup for me,” she tells the waitress.
“What do you think?” she asks Emily as the waitress leaves. The girl just turns her head back to look.
“About what?”
“About your new home of course dear.”
“This is your home?”
“Well, of course not dear,” answers her mother with a giggle. “We’ll be getting home as soon as work’s done.”
Emily turns her head back to the window. Her mother smiles once more and puts her hand on her daughter’s shoulder. With a soft squeeze, she tries to comfort her daughter.
“…But this is where you’ll most likely be growing up.”
Her daughter remains silent. It took a few minutes for their order to come. But Emily spends the entire time to wait just to watch the streets. As she does, the early afternoon sun seems to disappear as the streets darken.
“C’mon baby, let’s eat,” said her mother. She reluctantly sits down on her meal. Her mother smiles. She closes her eyes and clasps her own hands together.
“Bless us O Lord, and this thy gift which we are about to receive from thy bounty through Christ; Our Lord, Amen…” the mother then opens her eyes again, “Time to eat!” she exclaims.
As she reaches for her soup, Emily asks, “Mom, how come you didn’t do the Sign of the Cross?”
Her mother smiles and giggles again. “It’s a long story, baby. When you grow older –“
“Why not now?” insists her daughter. “Papa said that we have to do the Sign of the Cross when in prayer ‘cause we open up our moment with God.”
“Well, Mama and Papa have different views. Different beliefs means some practices have to be different. It’s a long story, I promise to tell you when you’re older.”
Just as she said those words, the steel roof of the diner rustles with noise. As they look out, the rain was pouring, pouring down on the streets. Trickles of water stream down the window.
“Well, what do you know… rain on this time of the year,” exclaims her mother.
Just as they are about to begin their meal, water starts to drip from the ceiling and onto their table then splashes onto their food. Emily’s mother calls the waitress’s attention.
“Uhm… Excuse me, could we get a new table? Your roof seems to be taking a leak on our food.”
“I’m so-so-so sorry Ma’am. We’ll just get you a new one,” replied the waitress as she sent the meal back to the counter. She then leads the pair onto a new table.
“I’m so sorry again Ma’am, can we get you anything else? We’ll have a new one served in a few minutes,” apologized the panicked waitress.
“What I’d like you to do… is fix that damn roof!” replied Emily’s mother. “I’ve only got an hour for lunch and my kid here is hungry.”
“No I’m not,” answered Emily.
“Yes, you are.”
“No, I’m not. Anyways, Miss Julie is it?” asked Emily as she peers her eyes to the waitress’s nametag. “You can go, just please get our order.” Emily says calmly. Her innocent voice seemed to relieve the waitress’s nervousness.
“Emily, what’re you doing?”
“Why are you being so mean to her?”
“Well, if I don’t correct them, they would never learn,” replied her mother, gesturing her hand towards the waitress.
“It’s not her fault that the ceiling was dripping.”
“Maybe not, but it’s their store. It’s their responsibility.”
“Mom, do you have any idea on how many people are dying from illnesses everyday just because they simply don’t have a roof? Or a home to take shelter from the rain?”
“No, but what’re you trying to point out?”
“What I’m saying is, we are here; under the comfort of a roof, sheltered from the rain. One shouldn’t make a big deal out of a leaking roof, much less if it isn’t her home… unlike those who suffer from getting soaked and sleeping cold every night. They would consider a place like this their castle.”
The conversation seemed to have reached the ear of other costumers, as they turned to look at Emily and her mother. Emily crawled up back to the window pane while her mother just reluctantly smiles in shame.
“Your father raised you well,” whispered the mother to Emily’s ear as she puts her hand through her daughter’s hair.
Emily just responds with a murmur: “You have no idea.”
Her mother sinks back to her seat. They wait for a couple more minutes. When their meal arrives, both of them eat as silently as the way they walked to the office.
Right after they paid the bill, Emily’s mother took an umbrella from her bag and rushed into the pouring rain. Soon enough, they were back to her office.
It was the same routine, her mother left her with Jane. At least for the next four hours she sat quietly, staring at the now rain-drenched streets of N—.
Clock struck 5pm when the lobby once again was filled with noise. Her mother rushed to her, and with one quick swoop, she picked her daughter up in her arms.
The heavy rainpours have degraded into small drizzle showers spread across the city. Even so, Emily’s mother wouldn’t take her chances. She proceeds to carry her daughter all the way to the subway station. Their hastened pace made it a much shorter trip.
They soon reached the stairs which led down to the subway – the one they just walked through earlier this morning. As they descended, Emily catches a glimpse of the same child she saw earlier. She failed to take a peek of his face, as to the dim light was coming from above which made the figure almost nothing but an eerie shadow. Adding to her dismay was the number of people walking between them. Nonetheless, she was absolutely sure it was the kid that caught her attention that morning.
It was almost the same scenario she left around 9am that day. Only this time, her mother was carrying her. Yes, it was as stuffed and crowded as before and probably more. But this time, she was in the arms of her mother. She could feel other pressing on them. But again, she lies safely in the protective clutch of her mother. This was the first time that she felt such care, such warmth from her mother. It didn’t take long for her… to fall fast asleep. As they walked in, there was one man who was kind enough to let them have a seat.
“Nice kid you got there,” he said as he stared down at them while he stands. This man was different from nearly everyone else on the train. He wore a big, thick, grey jacket. Around his neck was a stained yet crimson red scarf. He wore a fuzzy dark blue bonnet covering his hair. Only a few lockets of his hair are visible. Other than his thick, curly beard that reached all the way down to his neck.
“Thanks!” Emily’s mother replied.
The train doors slide shut. After a few seconds, the train moves, rocking everyone who was standing in it within its motion.
“She seems to be a lucky kid,” said the man. But Emily’s mother just bows her head down; she knows more than enough of what her child has been through. She may know what it was but not how it felt like. But still…
“I see, going through something eh?”
The mother only nods, the man then chuckles and smiles.
“Well, she is lucky indeed. I wish me boy could meet her.”
“Why, where’s your son?” asked Emily’s mother.
The man lets out another chuckle and one deep sigh. “I guess you could say he’s in a better place.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know. I-I-I –“
“Don’t be, it wasn’t your fault. I am all to blame… Besides, if you was in my wife’s position. Would’ya leave your beloved son to his drunkard father? Bah. I didn’t think so too.”
“Wait you mean –“
“Aaand no, he’s not dead.”
“Do you know where he is?”
“Well, he’s with his mother now. He’s out there somewhere beyond my arm’s reach.”
“I see, but again, I’m sorry about –“
“And again, don’t be. He’s my son. I know it sounds rude but he’s none of ya’ business. He’s my responsibility but I gave him away. Anyways, I’m not whining. I’m done with it. Nobody wants to be pitied… Respect is what every single living asshole on this pathetic, dying planet is fighting for. They may be terrorists, feminists, activists, even those goddamn celebrities and politicians or whatever shit they want to be called. All they fucking want is respect. But lemme’ tell you one thing: unless you’re rolling in some pile of dogshit pile of money, your opinion doesn’t matter. No matter how much of your shitty life you have given, no matter how much you’ve dedicated to what you do, there would always be some greedy bastard out to take it all away. Whether or not they are inanimate is beyond me.”
The whole crowd in the train goes silent. All you can here are those clanging and rustling tracks against the wheels of the train. As everyone starts whispering and murmuring, the man just smiles and eccentrically laughs at himself. It wasn’t long before they reached another station. The whole crowd noised out again as the doors slide open.
The man then leans forward onto Emily and her mother and whispers, “One more thing: these days, when you go about preaching your ideals to people, no matter how real they are, they always laugh at you like you’re some dumb monkeying shithead.”
He lets out another smile. The train soon becomes more spacious, only to be filled to the brim again with another batch of commuters. A seat vacates right beside Emily’s mother.
“You don’t want me to sit beside you, do you?”
Emily’s mother hesitates to answer.
“Yeah, I know. I get that a lot. Who wants some crazy-ass bucktooth mumbling his ideals sitting beside them? Screw me if you ever meet one.”
The train falls silent as the doors shut. Once again, it moves its way.
“I just wish we could get back to the good old times. All they had to do then was pull out some wooden crate and stand on it in the middle of some dumbass crowd. Add that with some shitty speech where everyone can relate to and a voice loud enough for the whole fucking town to hear: you’ve gotten yourself a cult! Or an angry mob, and if the crowd’s big enough, a whole army of revolutionaries with their heads up their asses. I don’t know which is which but they both work.”
“I gave you my seat, and all I ask in return was for you to hear me out,” with those parting words, the man squirms his way through the crowd and finds the nearest inactive door he can lean on. There, he falls asleep.
Emily’s mother lets out a sigh of relief; she then waits… a few more minutes, a few more stations to pass. They finally arrive at her station. She then proceeds to exit the train. Carrying Emily in her arms, it was truly a quite different experience. She was used to going home by herself. Either that, or somebody goes along with her. But she never had to carry anything heavier than her own bag. She usually drove to work before.
The train was anything but crowded. It may have been already a few stations from her workplace. But it’s still within the range of the heart of the city itself. This station was pretty much as neglected as the earlier one. Although a bit less crowded, the atmosphere was not less suffocating. It took a while for Emily’s mother to slide, push and squirm her way in through the hectic crowd. She then walks up the staircase and out of the subway station. It was another few blocks of walking before they reached her apartment.
Emily was still asleep; her mother struggled to bring her in. She laid her daughter on a bed already prepared for her. There were few fixes here and there such as changing herself and her daughter. She just smiled at her heavily-sleeping daughter. With everything in order, she crawls to her room and collapses on her own. The apartment falls slowly into the silence of night.
The next day…
The sunlight peers to the wide, floor-to-ceiling high windows of the apartment. Emily’s room, faces the East. The mere presence of the sun was enough to wake her up. As she opens her eyes, she was surprised with what she saw. Seemed to be another world far from where she used to sleep. It was far wider. Its windows where far bigger than the ones she was used to. She panicked, and got up from the bed. She was about to jump for the door, before it all sank in. She turned back and finally saw what was truly happening. She walked up closer to the window. What she saw beyond her was something truly unfamiliar: The City. The apartment was high enough she could see half the city. Back in B—, when the sun was this high in the sky, it was time to water the crops or removing the weeds. She was used to being woken up around 3-4 am by the traditional rooster call.
The bed was indeed softer and bigger. The room was extremely spacious – unlike before, where she had to share the room with at least one random animal from the barn every night, but she didn’t complain. Hell, she’d give anything to spend a night with her only close friends. In this one, she feels the wide, unfilled space. Back home, she could only see a speck of the wide open spaces of their farm through her tiny, hollow window. Even that was changed; she sees nearly half the city. But all she sees are crowded streets and tall buildings blocking the rest of the city’s view.
She slowly walks toward her door. The moment she opens it, she’s bedazzled by what stood in front of her. Everything in this house made her old one look like an anthill. She peeks out of her bedroom door slowly and into the unfamiliar “home” – she refuses to call it that yet. She looks out and turns her head to the right. There was the living room, with a large sofa and a really enormous TV set. The television they had back home was barely something more than a black box topped with an antenna. Beside it was a hammock which hung from the ceiling. As she looks to the left, she sees the dining room, a large glass table with a flower vase embedded with designs in the middle. It contained nothing more than two stems of orchids. She took her few steps forward and sees the entire apartment, or most of it.
“I told you, I can’t watch the baby for more than a week.” Emily heard an unfamiliar voice. It seemed to have come from the other room beside hers. It was a bit muffled, but nonetheless the shouting made it audible enough.
“I know, and like what I said before, I’m finding a nanny for the kids.” It was another voice that seemed to have come from the same room. This time though, it was familiar. None other than her mother’s
“The kids? You mean you already brought the other one with you?”
“She’s my kid. She’s my responsibility.”
“Exactly, but not mine. So either get a nanny for it or take it to work with you.”
“You know very well that the car is broken. I-I-I’m not used to this.”
“Well, tough shit. I ain’t going to be responsible with it.”
“She’s not an ‘it’.”
“And I don’t care.”
The loud discussion continues. Emily decides to lie down on the sofa for a while. Just as she walks up to it, another voice echoes in the room. It came from the hammock she saw earlier. She decides to walk up to it. She grabs onto the hammock’s side. She just smiled at what she saw: a baby. It was smiling at her with its arms reaching up and out.
Emily herself decides to carry the baby in her arms. It just held onto her and made all sorts of those cute baby noises. Emily cradles the baby. It smiles back at her and stares at her in the eyes.
“It’s okay, Ate’s got you…” she whispered.
Just then, a door opens. Emily raises her head up and sees that it was no other than the room where the voices were coming from. Her mother soon comes out, wearing nothing more than a bathrobe. What haunted the girl more was what followed her. It was a man, about six feet tall with a really muscular built. He wore nothing but a pair of boxer briefs. Emily’s mother looks at her and…
“Awww… look at you two. Getting along so well already,” happily exclaimed her mother.
“That’s your kid?” asked the man.
“Yes, her name’s Emily. And Emily, I’d like you to meet Franz,”
Emily just smiles at the man. Franz gives her a smile and a wave.
“Now that you’ve got Josh in your hands this early, you most likely heard all the ruckus back here,” said Franz… in a puzzling relaxed manner. Emily just nods in answer.
“What? Cat got your tongue?”
“Franz, please.”
“Well, your mother and I are just having a little discussion. I don’t even think about half the stuff I say.”
“He sure does,” added Emily’s mother.
“Well Emily, time to take a bath. I’m taking you to work with me.”
“Really? You’re taking her to work now? What is this some guilt trip? So you’d break my petty little heart and finally make me beg to have my share of her time?” says Franz as he takes a sip on his coffee mug.
“Nah… I’m taking an early break from work later. I’m going to show my little girl around the city.”
“No,” answers Franz. He then points to Emily and says “Listen kid, you get dressed. You, Josh and I are going for a little walk. Franz style.”
“I’m going to disagree with that. I want some time with my daughter today. Besides, it’s been a while,” exclaims Emily’s mother as she walks toward her daughter and Josh.
“Fine with me, I’m going to take my son out to work. We might as well get our own guy time,” said Franz as he takes one final sip of his coffee.
“Yeah, yeah. Just make sure you bring some extra milk and diapers.”
Emily just rocks the baby in her arms. She was unsure of what to do.
“C’mon baby, leave Josh on the cradle now. Papa Franz has got it all figured out. You go take a shower.”
Emily follows as what she is told and puts down Josh safely on the cradle.
“There’s a bathroom just inside your bedroom. You probably failed to notice it,” her mother says with a smile. “Go get ready, I have a nice new dress for you to try on.”
The girl just nods, still unable to weigh her emotions. But still, a drop of curiosity runs through her veins. Nevertheless, she rushes to the bathroom and rids herself of her clothing. Things work differently – even in taking baths. She was used to just jumping to the nearby river back home. She never experienced taking a bath from water that came from pipes.
As soon as she dries herself up, she exits the bathroom and covers herself with the bathrobe that was waiting for her by the door. Her mother meets her out the door, holding a box in her arms. She was already dressed in her working attire.
“C’mon baby, open it!” she said. Emily gives out a wide smile and takes hold of the box. She opens it and was taken away with what she saw.
It was a dress. The one she always stared at the dress store in the market back in B—. Her mother has bought it for her! She quickly puts it on and what do you know… a perfect fit! Her mother helps her dress up and headed to the dining room to have a bite to eat. She looks around; Franz and Josh are nowhere to be seen.
“If you’re wondering about Josh, he’s left with Franz,” said her mother as she took a sip of her soup.
“As you have noticed, we get up kinda much later than you used to do. That’s why we move faster.”
“Mom, I have a question,” says Emily. “Who is Franz? And why do you have another baby in your home?”
“Baby…” Emily’s mother hesitated to answer. “When you grow up, it’s a long, long story and I’d want you to understand all of it so you don’t go into conclusions.”
Emily just sinks to her seat. She doesn’t want to bother her parent anymore.
They finished their meal and headed out as fast as they can. It basically seemed like the same routine they did yesterday. Emily retained the same eerie silence that she showed before.
The same crowded train greeted them to work. Only this time, Emily was on her mother’s arms. Although she was not asleep, her mother still carried her. She just tightened her grip in response. Once again, they share the same fate – squirming around ‘til they find a good seat in the train.
They were quite early today. So they stood right in front of the line to the train. Another few minutes passed, the train roars through the tunnel and proceeds to slow down to a halt right in front of the station. Emily just observes. All stations seem to have the same atmosphere: crowded, and old. She just lays her head on her mother’s shoulder as they proceed into the train. Being early, it wasn’t as hard for them to find a good seat.
This time, Emily sits on her mother’s lap. As they wait for them to arrive to their station…
“I’m excusing myself from work after lunch. I’ll show you around the city if you want to,” whispered her mother.
Emily nods once again. It wasn’t too long before they finally reached their station.
The doors slide open. Emily’s mother carries her daughter once again in her arms. Emily just clings on quietly as they once again meddle with the busy crowd. They walked up to the staircase.
As they reached the top, Emily is surprised with what she saw. She lays her chin on her mother’s right shoulder… and there he was. That child she saw only yesterday: still sitting in the same position, not moving a muscle.
She observed the child as long as she possibly could. But once again, the sinking staircase made him disappear out of sight.
Her curiosity builds up even more. A few more blocks and they stood in front of the office once more. Her mother lets her down on the sidewalk.
“You ready?” asked her mother. 24 hours ago she had no idea what the whole place was. Now she stands in front of the office door expecting the same thing: to be left alone.
They walk in; Emily assumes her position and walks straight onto the bench. Her mother just laughs at what she sees so walked to Emily first. She helped her daughter sit up the bench. She gave her daughter her favorite doll and left her with a kiss on the forehead.
Just as her mother turns to leave: “Oh. I almost forgot,” she says. She kneels down to her daughter and pulls out something from her bag.
“Here’s a watch for my girl,” Emily’s mother said as she puts on the watch around her daughter’s wrist. “When the short hand strikes twelve, Mommy will be here.”
Emily smiles and nods again. Her mother left her once again with a kiss. She walked toward the front desk. She was surprised with what she saw.
“Uhh… where’s Jane?
“I’m sorry ma’am, but she called in sick today.”
“I see, did she leave anything for me?”
“Yes ma’am here,” said the new woman on the front desk. “… for Miss Jennifer Johnson.”
“Thanks, I’ll be heading up now. Tell me if Jane drops a call or something, okay?”
“Yes, ma’am!” replied the woman. Emily’s mother now walks up to her office. Her daughter is once again left alone inside the silent corridor.
Emily could hardly stay put anymore. All that was in her mind now was the boy she saw yesterday. Who he was, where he’s from and why he’s still there. She looks at her watch. It registered 9:15am. She just sinks back to the bench waiting for the next hours to pass.
As she waits, curiosity slowly turns into anxiety; anxiety builds and turns into frustration. She decides to look at her watch once more. It was 9:56am. She decides to find out the answer to her question and jumps from the bench. She did all she can to push the heavy glass doors. As soon as she is out, she runs to the subway station. It was a straight shot along this street. For the next minute she came about dodging other people, coffee shop tables and hotdog carts.
Emily sees a familiar sign on two steel, green posts. And between them was a yellow sign embossed with capital letters which read “SUBWAY.” She reached it soon. As expected, the boy was still there sitting as quietly as ever. Emily takes her time to catch her breath and slowly descends down the stairs.
She sits as closely as she can beside the boy. It was past the rush hour. Very few people came by the station compared to the usual time she and her mother does. Just as she was about to sit nearer the boy…
“Who are you and what do you want?” the child asked. His voice reaffirmed to Emily that he was about her age.
“Nothing, I just wanted to ask you something…” replied Emily.
“Ask away, I’ve got forever to piss away anyway,” answered the child.
“Why are you here?”
“Well, I have nowhere else to go.”
“Don’t you have a home?”
“Define your ‘home,’ and I’ll give you my answer…” the child replied while till staring into the dark subway. Not giving a glance on Emily.
“Hmm… It’s where you live. Where you sleep or stay when it’s raining out.”
“If then is what you call home, then you are in mine.”
“What do you mean?”
“If I’m not mistaken, you have been observing me for quite sometime haven’t you?”
“O-o-only since yesterday.”
“Well said. You are in my home. This is where I live, sleep and stay when it’s raining. If that is your definition, let me be the first to tell you that you are quoting out of context. I have yet to find my home. A home is where you have somebody who loves you, who accepts you as who you are, who treats you like family. Yes, family. My home is my family.”
“I-I guess,” replied Emily. “Where is your family then?”
“Like I said, I have yet to find my home. I have yet to find my family.”
“Don’t you have parents? Or siblings?”
“I’m not sure. Maybe once in my life I did. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here.”
“I feel your pain. I lost the most important person in my life once –“
“I said I had parents. I never said I had a family.”
“Why are you staying here? Why don’t you go into the tunnel? It’s a bit safer in there you know, from the rain and the cold.”
“I used to stay inside the tunnel… until the new security guards kicked me out. This is the best shade and warmth I can get. So I’m not complaining.”
“If that’s the case, why are you staring into it?”
“Well, I can’t very well see what’s in front of me now can I?”
“You can’t?”
“Ha, I’m blind.”
“Blind?”
“It means I can’t see.”
“What do you mean?”
The child just lets out a chuckle and a grin. He lowers his hood and then removes his smoked, worn out glasses and turns his head towards the girl’s voice. Emily’s heart races with what she saw. A pair of eyes with grey pupils gives her a horrifying glare. Across the boy’s face was a huge scar. There where wounds and blisters scattered around his face.
“Now do you get it?” the boy asks as he puts his glasses back on.
“Y-yeah. I think so…” hesitantly replied Emily.
“Well, I guess I can be nice to you then.”
“W-What are you talking about?”
“You’re obviously too interested in what I am which makes you a bit more tolerable than those damn pretentious TV reporters who pretend they care but run away from interviewing me once they see my face. And you are waaaay too young to be one of those kidnappers from child-abusing syndicates.”
“W-w-what did you say? I-I’m sorry but –”
“Nothing, let’s start fresh, I’m Bryan…” said the child. He extends his hand and offers it to Emily. The girl smiles and shakes with Bryan’s hand.
To be continued…
Spoiler: Mahaba ‘to.
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