Chapter - 1.3

Next day,

When the boy woke up, he found his sister missing from the room. Well, it was a normal thing for them. The boy was usually in bed till after the breakfast was over. Leaving the bed, the boy washed up before leaving the room to look for his sister.

Outside, the whole of the orphanage was bustling with chatters. As he walked through the corridors, the boy soon found his sister, along with other kids, gathered in the garden. A few trucks were parked outside the church, and the kids, along with other people from the church, were busy unloading them.

As soon as the nuns spotted the boy, they couldn't stop themselves from whispering to one another.

"It happened again," one of the nuns whispered.

"He surely is the benefactor of this church," the other nurse nodded, "But I am worried about after he leaves. How will the church sustain itself?"

"I am sure God will take care of us," the nun said as she folded her hands and prayed to the god.

"I hope so," and the other nun did the same.

The boy could clearly hear them despite them trying to keep it down. But since there was nothing for him to do here, he decided to leave.

But as soon as the boy had taken a couple of steps back to his room, he was stopped by a voice. A few boys wanted to make some trouble.

"Hey, where are you going? Aren't you going to help? How the hell do you manage to gobble on your food when you know that you haven't even contributed an iota..." The large, fat boy in the front, most likely the uncontested leader of this group, called out loud. His end goal was to create a negative ripple against the boy.

"I said stop..." but before the fatso could complete, the boy got bored and decided to leave. The fatso had expected the boy to flip and try and pick a fight with him. But contrary to his expectations, the boy listened to him rattle for a good ten seconds, and when he got bored, he decided to leave for his room.

"... Look at them," the fatty continued, pointing towards a group of young kids who stood there with bread and eggs in their hands, "Even if it's hard for them, they are trying their best to help more than anybody else. Yet, you..."

Slowly, the bad boys made a circle around the boy. It was like a battle formation taking place.

"Move aside," the boy side glanced at those surrounding him and said without a tinge of emotion in his tone. His face was deadpan, and the tone scared the boys.

"You... Do you think you are better than everyone else here? All of us are doing our best to help around the orphanage with whatever we can. But you, on the other hand, are the only one mooching off on our hard work. Don't you feel ashamed? Do you think it's fair to others?" A bit intimidated, the fatty took a step back and yelled at the boy. He was trying his hardest to garner support, but till now, only his lackeys sided with him. The other children were in a pickle to decide on their stand.

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"Step aside," the boy asked one again, "I won't say it twice."

"What will you do?" The fatty decided to leap forward despite the dreadful feeling he felt in his heart, "With that puny body of yours, do you think you can take on all of us?" The fatty smirked.

"You want to know?" The boy, on the other hand, still looked calm and cool.

"What's going on?" Just as everyone was anticipating a bloody conflict to break, a voice stopped everyone.

"Reverend mother!" The children and others greeted in unison and paved the way.

"Why are my little lambs so restless?" the head nun, with steady steps, walked forward. Often referred to as the reverend mother, the head nun looked around, smiling at her children.

On hearing the head nun, the fatty was the first one to jump up the line. This was the perfect opportunity for him to establish his dominance over the other kids.

"Reverend mother... Everyone here is always doing their best to help out in the church... Everyone, except for him. And when I asked him to..." The fatty started to complain but was interrupted.

"I am sorry," the head nun put her hand over fatty's head and said, smiling, "But who are you to decide what the others are going to do?" The fatty was over the moon when the head nun stroked his hair, but by the time she was done, the fatty was left bewildered.

"He has been exempted from any duty whatsoever of the church or the orphanage. It's up to him. If he feels like it, he will help you. But if he does not, you can't force him to. I don't recall giving you the authority to force someone against their wishes," the head nun spoke her words calmly.

"But reve..." the fatty, on the other hand, was not convinced. He wanted to argue but was interrupted again by the head nun.

"I am sure my words were clear enough," there was a slight change in the head nun's tone, "The last time I checked, I was the one in charge here. Now enough with all the ruckus, get back to whatever you were doing," the head nun dispersed everyone and turned towards the boy, "And you... You follow me."

The young boy nodded, but as he followed behind the head nun, he was stopped by the fatty.

"You are lucky that she got here," the fatty whispered in the boy's ears.

"She was here to save you, not me, moron," the boy said and walked away from there, not wanting to waste any more time on the fatty.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the head nun's office,

This was the second time he was here in two days. And without any reservations, as if it was his own room, the boy went ahead and sat on the worn-out sofa in the room.

"Tea?" with the teapot in her hand, the head nun asked.

But the boy shook his head, refusing the offer.

"There was no need for you to hold back," adding a couple of cubes of sugar to her tea, the head nun said, "Ahh... nice, just perfect."

This took the boy by surprise. He could guess what she was referring to, "Is this something you should suggest? You being the all caring and forgiving, optimum of all virtues."

"Balance is everything. Whenever the equilibrium shifts, you need someone to restore the balance," sipping on her tea, the head nun said, "Not that you could have actually done it."

"You know what? Let's talk about why I am here. I am sure you have not asked me here to hear your preachings." The boy waved his hand, bringing an end to the conversation.

"Well, that's true," the head nun nodded, "But it wouldn't hurt you to listen to me once in a while."

Then putting her cup on the table in front, she adjusted herself, "I had a visit from our mutual friend. You are going to leave the orphanage, I hear."

"I don't know," the boy shook his head, "He did not tell me anything."

"Is that so?" The head nun rested her chin on her hand and thought for a while before continuing, "I think it should be best if you hear it from him. But let me warn you, the place you would be going can be more dangerous than anything you have come across till now."

The head nun was concerned about Alex a lot. The boy was only about fourteen this year, yet he would frequently venture out in this harsh world on his own, which, though good for the orphanage, scared her. Initially, when the boy started going out, he would come covered in cuts and bruises, in a terrible state. The head nun, in order to keep it under wraps, would personally tend to him, keeping him away from everyone's eyes. But as time went by, he managed to come unscathed but still, she worried about him and what the future held for him.

"I can take care of myself," the boy said, "If there is nothing else, then..." and with that, he stood up to leave.

But before he could reach the door, he stopped. He wanted to say something but was hesitant. Finally, making up his mind, he decided to say it.

"If... If something happens to me. I hope you..." Without looking back at the head nun, the boy spoke, but he was interrupted.

"She is just not your sister. She is my daughter as well. You shouldn't even be saying this to me." The head nun spoke, assuring the boy.

"Hmmm..." nodding, the boy left the room.

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