*Bruno*
I didn’t know what went through Lucia’s mind when she saw the kids. She thought I was holding them hostage and using them to work in a drug house. I wanted to laugh at what went through her mind. I hugged the childrens. Their warmth bathed me. Hugging these childrens was one of the things I loved doing best in this life. They were lovely kids. Lucia froze where she stood. She probably wasn’t expecting them to come to hug me. She had misunderstood, and I understood perfectly. I counted the children, making sure all twelve were here with me.
They were all here, but one person was still missing. I raised my head and searched around. I knew Tina did not like to be around the crowds at all times. She liked to be at the side, watching as other children got close to me. But I didn’t want that. I wanted to be close to all of them. Especially Tina. She has been through a lot at a young age, and all I can do is draw her closer to me.
I called out to her. She was leaning on the wall. Her back straightened when she heard her name. I knew it wasn’t out of fear. She smiled when our eyes met, and I returned the smile. I opened my hand, inviting her to come to join the children who were still holding on to me as if they were afraid I’d run off if they let me go.
She took slow steps until she joined us. After a while, I released them. A woman walked out. “Welcome, welcome,” she said with a smile. The children stayed by my side. Some held my hands, and we walked side by side inside. I motioned for Lucia to come with us. She still has a stiff look on her face. But seeing the children smile, she couldn’t help but smile too.
We walked inside.
It was more like a house than an orphanage. It has very few children. I had bought the house and had it renovated. I wanted to make good use of it instead of leaving it to waste away. I thought of something to use for a long time before finally deciding to help others with it. Lucia’s eyes wandered around.
She was sitting opposite me, but I couldn’t help but stare at her from time to time. An older lady walked inside. She supported herself with a stick, on her head was gray hair. “Son,” she said when she entered. The children were released. They didn’t need a word from me. I walked towards the woman and hugged her, careful not to kick her can away.
“How have you been?” I asked, supporting her as I led her to sit on one of the sofas.
“I have been fine,” she says. I sat down on the sofa next to her. Her eyes fell on Lucia. “I see you brought someone,” she said, and I nodded, “this has never happened before. It means she is a special one,” it sounded more like a statement than a question.
A small smile appeared on my lips, “she is,” I agreed with her, my eyes on Lucia, whose cheeks were red. Was she blushing?
“How has your health been? Have you been taking your medication?” I asked to be sure. She coughed and took a deep breath, “You keep forgetting that I am an old woman. A very old woman who is so close to her grave. If I don’t take my medicine, you may have met my dead Body lying at the entrance,” she says. I knew she was trying to joke to emphasize how important her medication was to her. But I didn’t like it.
“Don’t tell such expensive jokes,” I said. “You still have a long time with us,” she wanted to laugh but ended up coughing. “You are not going to die,” ‘Not yet,’ I added in my head.
“You don’t have to be afraid of death; it is something we will all experience regardless of our class. It is the only fair thing in this world,” she says.
Alecia has always been like this. She hated twisting things and would rather go about it head-on. “What is her name?” She asked. She turned to Lucia like she had made a mistake, “I should be asking you,” she said, “what is your name?”
“Lucia,” Lucia said, trying to hide her smile. Alecia nods. “You are a very beautiful girl,” she says. And Lucia muttered a word of thanks, “Bruno is a very good man; please take care of him. He may seem tough on the outside, but within, he is just like any man,” she said.
I began to wonder how she knew I was in love with Lucia. I never said a word, “Seeing as he brought you here, It means you are very important. You are not just the first lady he is bringing here, but also the first person,” she says slowly. Her voice was very low.
Lucia nods.
Alecia went on to say other things.
I tried to keep up with the conversation. It mainly involves the things we like. She didn’t ask how my job was. She knew I was a mafia lord, and she didn’t mind. She may be old, but she takes care of the children as if they were hers. My eyes moved to Lucia from time to time.
She was no longer looking at us as she seldom before. She was having her own time with the kids. Their laughter filled the air. I was glad She was having a good time. The lady I had seen outside earlier walked into the sitting room and helped Alecia into the house.
Lucia didn’t seem like she wanted to go, so I decided to spend some time with her. I leaned back into the wall. She watched the children while I watched her.
One of the children raised a toy airplane and went around with it and said he was the pilot. Lucia’s smile widened when she saw him. He took the toy plane to her. “Your airplane is beautiful,” Lucia complimented.
The boy smiled from ear to ear.
“Do you think I am also a good pilot?” He asked. Lucia nodded. “Yes. You did very well,” she says. “Do you want to get in? I can take you around,” Lucia’s eyes widened for the briefest moment.
“Of course. But I can’t fit in this plane. It’s a bit too small,” she says. The boy looked down. He held the plane with both hands. His blue eyes were a bit sad. “If you buy a bigger one, I promise I’ll sit on it and allow you to take me to the end of the earth.” She said.
“Really?” He asked.
“Yes,” Lucia said, nodding.
The little boy could not contain his joy. He leaped around for a while, then came back to stand in front of her, “I’ll buy a big one,” he looked around. His eyes stopped on me, and he half ran and half jogged. He stopped in front of me.
He put his hands together, “Please buy me a big plane,” he pleased. I smiled. “what will I get in return?” I asked.
“I’ll be obedient. I would always listen to grandma and would always do my homework,” he stopped listening and looked up at me as if waiting for my final decision.
“Fine,” I said. “I’ll buy you an airline when you grow up,” I said. He ran around the room. “I’m going to become a pilot when I grow up. I’ll drive a plane around,” he said. The other children stopped what they were doing to look at him. He was now standing in front of Lucia again.
“Wait for a few years, and I’ll come to take you with a bigger plane. I can’t fly a big plane now because I am too small. When I become as big as he is, I’ll fly a plane,” he said.
“Fine, I’ll wait for you,” she said. Other children began to gather around her.
“I’ll treat you when I grow old. I want to become a doctor,” one said. “Me too,” another raised his hand.
“I want to become an engineer,” the other said. They all kept saying what they wanted to be. Lucia enjoyed listening to them. They seem to like her.
As usual, Tina was on one side. I walked to the site close to her. “Did you become more reserved over time? Or you are still not comfortable being here,” I asked.
She shook her Head. “I am very comfortable here,” she said. “Then that means it’s the latter,” I said, and she smiled.
“I enjoy watching the children,” she says, “they are cute,” she added. I smiled. Tina is just thirteen years old. She may be reserved, but when she speaks, she sounds so much like an adult. Well, that’s what is expected when a child grows up alone. “I get along with all of them fine. I’m happy around them,” she said, putting one hand over the other.
I nod.
I had seen Tina on the street for the first time. She was homeless-a young homeless orphan roaming around the street. Society wasn’t friendly with kids like that, so she had little of nothing. So I took it upon myself to fend for her. I wanted to give her the best. So I gave her food.
I watched her for some time. The thing is, I have a lot of enemies, and at first, I thought maybe she was sent by one of my rivals because of the way we met and the way she acted. So I watched her for some time. But not without sending her food each day.
When I was sure that she was just like every other young girl, just that she was a bit unlucky, I took her in and brought her here.
I spent some more time with the children before leaving. Lucia didn’t seem to want to leave the childrens. I promised her that she would come with me each time I visited them. They hugged us one more time before we stepped into the car.
They watched the drive away. Lucia kept turning and turning until the gate closed, and we could no longer see them.
The ride was silent at first.
“I’m sorry I misunderstood you,” Lucia apologized. I didn’t hold it against her. Anyone could have easily thought like that, so technically, it wasn’t her fault. “I understand,” she smiled.
I could tell that her perception of me had shifted a little. I noticed she had been busy asking all the children what they wanted to be when they grew up. It made me wonder about life; she had never asked that question.
“What was your dream career when you were younger?” I asked her. She didn’t expect me to ask.
She was silent for a while as if she was thinking about it. “Why do you want to know all of a sudden?” She asked.
“You could have just answered the question,” I said. “I can decide to answer it or not,” she says. I missed this side of her. This rebellious side.
I think this was the first side I fell for. The side who spoke back at me. The side of her who wasn’t afraid to look me in the eye.
“I didn’t have the time to dream of a career or the future. My dream was always about eating. And it was the same thing, to be able to eat at least once,” she says. That part seemed like a very difficult part for her to speak.
She smiled, “How about you? What was your dream?” She asked me.
I repeated her question in my mind.
What was my dream?