| A little ficlet... thoughtful and a bit sad. Duo's Episode Zero maybe? LITTLE BOY The little boy pressed his hands against his empty stomach, trying to ignore the cramps that reminded him how long it was since he had eaten anything. He sat quietly in the dark shadow of a wall, watching the house opposite. Another little boy was visible through the window. He sat at a table with a book in his hands. Behind him the fire glowed and wall lights shone down on him, gleaming in his dark hair. The cold, hungry boy in the alleyway concentrated as hard as he knew how. He was that boy in the warm room, seated before the fire. The woman who walked through the room was his mother, and when she touched that other boy’s hair lovingly as she passed, it was his hair she caressed. That loving gaze was directed at him. Now she was teasingly pulling the book away and he could see the other boy laughing and protesting. She set a plate on the table, a plate piled high with food, and a glass filled to the brim with milk; she kissed the top of the boy’s head and gestured to him to eat. It was no good, he couldn’t pretend he was eating that food – the hunger hurt too much. Not just the hunger for the good food, but the hunger for someone to love him, to care for him, to reach out their arms and hold him tight. He pulled himself up from the cold ground and walked back into the shadows. The end. -> Back to Duophile's fanfiction |