All it took was a stormy evening and a plate of mashed potatoes for them to fall in love. It isn’t just an ordinary love story, but the kind of story that makes your heart jump with joy. A boy with bright, beautiful eyes, one with big dreams. He had brown skin, the brown you would not get your eyes off, and the teeth were so white that they dazzled before the shiny dinner plate on the table before him.
She read her papers according to which the boy was fourteen, but he looked younger. The innocence was unmatched, and the way he was silent, holding the folk with a white knuckled grip, lost in his thoughts, made it clear that something was wrong. It looked like he did not belong here, so the woman asked him how he got here. The answer was brief but surprising. He said: ‘I walked.’ The woman was shocked. He walked alone, all the way from Haiti? There were countries in between!
Tears fell from his innocent face when asked if the experience scared him, and he nodded a bit and said yes. She realised that the boy was to be taken home at that moment. She needs to make him feel loved because, although she was not his biological mother, she couldn’t miss the chance to be her home and safe space.
It was months ago on the shore when she first met him. He was dressed in a blue shirt and khakis, fighting the waves to get his flip-flops. How free-spirited the little boy was, instantly caught the woman’s eye, while everyone around was making fun of him. When he was done retrieving the flip-flops, he looked shy, returning to the table where they all had pizza.
On the table, he shared a few things he loved, including riding buses, selling shoeshine for a few pennies, and travelling hundreds of miles alone. The little boy could do so much; it left everyone speechless. Many noted him in the village, including the family, where the woman observed how tired he looked and how he wore oversized shoes. Moreover, there was a spark in how it was all about laughter, sharing smiles, and gifts whenever they met.
One odd night, the couple saw him stranded, which led them to conclude that the boy had missed his bus. This created fear in the couple, so they decided to take him home. Surprisingly, the boy was all set to go with them for the first time. While they were in conversation, a man suddenly appeared asking for protection money, to which the husband replied about the boy’s whereabouts.
It was the night when the truth was revealed. The boy’s mother, too, was there, living in extreme conditions. A dilapidated sack was all they had, so she bought the little boy’s clothes and requested the couple take him with them, as she believed he could live a better life this way. Although the couple was unsure about where they would be in the future, and a lot was happening, they could not say no.
Who falls in love and chooses to walk away?
So, the little guy now lives with them. He is learning his survival skills and does most of the work alone. The couple is determined to teach him to be kind and confident for as long as possible, as he is also a part of their little world.
