Through the Eyes of a Child (Michael/Child) Ch9, 9/12 [WIP]

[art_junkie]

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Title: Through the Eyes of a Child
by art_junkie

Disclaimer: im stealing them! they all belong to me, muahahaha (XD)
Rating: Child..
Summary: This fic tells the story of young Michael- from getting out of the pod and being separated from Max and Isabel, to being bounced around in foster care, and meeting them again years later. After reading The Lost Child i couldn't help but write a story on little Michael, hehe. This follows the basic storyline of Roswell, but i changed a few things (like no pohlman ranch)
I hope you guys like





SURFACING


At first he could barely see anything. No spots, no shapes, nothing. His eyes would hardly open as it is. The world was a dark bundle of nothingness to him.

He sat there, feeling nothing, seeing nothing. After a while he began to feel the softness under his fingers from the ground, and this stunned him. He brought his hands to his eyes trying to understand where this sense of touch was coming from, but it was too dark to see. He put his hands to his face. He felt something. After a few moments his eyes widened in surprise as he realized he was feeling himself. These bumps were a part of him! Excited, he carried on prodding himself, as if familiarizing himself with his own face. All of a sudden he jerked his face back from his hands, glaring in the dark, as water gathered up in his left eye. He had poked himself.

Deciding to explore other things he reached his hands forward and grasped at the surface in front of him. Gooey. Turning his head sideways he tried to focus on what was in front of him, but it was to no avail. He looked up and sideways but it seemed that there was only darkness. Frowning, he leaned forward and tried to see through the surface. He could see a faint light beyond the gooiness, and deciding that he liked the look of that hazy brightness more than the dark cocoon he was in, he put his hands back on the sticky surface and started to scratch his way through.

Soon enough- he knew not how long, as time meant nothing to him, just as it means nothing to a new born child- he had made a hole in the gooey covering. Light. He could see light. Wasn’t it pretty? Eager to see more he scratched faster and soon he had made an opening large enough for him to step through. Doing just that, he got out slowly- he was quite unbalanced- and surveyed his surroundings. He seemed to be in a big hole. All he could see was shapes, and a few more gooey round things resembling the one he had just come out of. Ignoring them he walked towards the light at the end of the tunnel.

Holding his hands out he tried to catch the brightness. As he walked faster and faster the brightness became bigger and bigger, soon he was surrounded by it. His eyes widened as he looked at the sky. Such a contrast it was from the plain desert he could see below. Squinting he could see many little boxes far away in the distance, all similar colours. The bright rays of the sun shone down on them and he was amazed. He had never seen so many boxes or colours together. The colours assaulted his senses, and it was all so bright that he had to blink and look away. Turning back to the cave he crinkled his forehead and weighed his options. In or out?

A small mischievous grin appeared on his immature face and then turning around again, he started to climb down the rock in front of him towards the shiny colours.



*****
to be contd..

[art_junkie]

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xmag- thanx for the comment! Well it really did inspire me...





2. EXPLORING


One by one he climbed down each of the rocks, glaring at them as they left light scratches on his naked gooey body. Sitting on a rock he looked around. There was nothing to see but plain desert land everywhere. Where had the boxes gone? After all, those boxes were the reason he had come all the way down here.

Standing up and stomping his foot on the hot sand he started walking around. He was thrilled to see that his feet were leaving marks in it. A big grin broke out on his face and he started running around in circles, his footprints creating an array of patterns. Getting on all fours he tried to make prints with his hands as well, but the sand was too hot. Ouch! Frowning, eyes closed, he concentrated on the ground. His hands started glowing and soon the sand didn’t feel lot at all! It felt much cooler. Clapping his hands in excitement he carried on making patterns.

He crawled and rolled about on the floor until his eyes met those of another creature. Turning his head sideways he examined it. It was a bright colour- quite different to the sand- was the size of his arm and had a small tail. It was shuffling forwards and backwards very fast. He figured that its feet must be hurting because of the heat. Going towards it he poked it with his finger. At first it walked backwards in fright, so he made noises, trying to sooth the confused creature.

“Num num um”, he tried to speak to it, but words felt funny on his tongue. Either way the lizard heard him and came closer. Putting the funny looking thing on his hand he carried it over to a rock and put it in the shade. Now cold! He thought and smiled.

Turning around, the little naked boy continued to explore his surroundings. Or he tried at least; there really wasn’t much to explore. His head had started to feel hot and there was water running down his face. He decided that the darkness of the cave wasn’t that bad after all, so he started his way back. Up, up, up the rocks. He was almost there when a bright flash of colour behind a rock caught his eye. Manoeuvring his way over to the rock he reached out and touched the bright thing. It didn’t move like the creature on the ground, in fact it seemed to be attached to the ground. Wrinkling his forehead in confusion the boy pulled at it and it broke into his hand. It was soft, and had leaves on it.

“Fowwar...” he mumbled. He wasn’t sure how, but somehow he just knew what it was.

Carefully he brought it to his face and stuck his tongue out to lick it. Hmm. He put the whole thing in his mouth. It was funny tasting, but not bad. Deciding he might need more for later he reached around the rock, picked up some more flowers and went back up to the cave. Just before he went in the little boy placed the broken flowers under a rock for safekeeping.

He had just reached the inner cave when he heard noises. He was not alone. Squinting in the dark, he hid behind a medium sized rock and waited. Soon enough he saw two sets of legs walking towards him.


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to be contd...

[art_junkie]

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simplyshiny, nibbles2, and April thanx for the comments! I write well? Really! *beams*.. I know i just want to cuddle him up too.. stay tuned, worse times are coming up for little Michael

yes i did make the banner myself, im glad you like it!- the font is called Vaguely Repulsive http://abstractfonts.com/search/vaguely%20repulsive by the way.

I just wanted to add that i saw Samurai Girl yesterday, and its actually pretty good! Brendan Fehr is really kickass as the samurai master! You guys should check it out if you have time, its a 3 part mini-series, about a japanese girl who finds out some prophecy and then starts doing kung fu (okay, so that much was obvious ) lol, im not so good with the reviewing...





3 - PURSUIT


He stayed there, hidden behind the rock, for it seemed that they hadn’t seen him yet. His adolescent mind was full of questions. As the two figures came closer and stood at the mouth of the cave, a ripple of energy passed through him. It was as if he could feel them without any actual physical contact. He felt like he knew them, like they were a part of him in some strange way. He couldn’t explain it but he felt a strong force drawing him towards them. Confused, he stayed hidden and watched them. He needed to know whether he could trust them.

He watched them standing around for a while. They didn’t seem to know what to do or where to go. He took this time to look at them, like really look at them. The taller one looked much like himself; they shared a similar build, but the other one looked completely different. While the male was dark haired, the female was light-haired and small-framed. Not to mention she looked different down there too, he thought, looking down at himself. Shrugging to himself he turned back to look at them.

Now the dark-haired boy was nodding to the girl and gesturing for her to follow him down the rocks. They seemed to have the same idea that he had. But instead of going down there to play and run around, they walked slowly, cautiously, studying their surroundings and deciding what to do. Or at least the male did, the female just looked around as if she would rather be inside the cave doing nothing. The little boy followed them vigilantly, watching them from a ledge. The two did not communicate with one another through words, only gestures and they honestly seemed as perplexed as he himself was. He was beginning to think they were stuck in the same situation as he was. Maybe they came out of those other gooey things?

He decided he would show himself to them as soon as he was completely sure they would not hurt him or try to take his flowers.

He watched as he saw the dark-haired boy hover his hand above many rocks, as if testing them for something. Stopping in front of one he placed both his hands on it and closed his eyes. What is he doing? The little boy wondered craning his neck. His eyes opened wide in astonishment as he saw the dark-haired boy’s hands begin to glow silver, and soon enough a spring of water had started pouring out of the rock.

They had glowing hands like he did! Wow! He thought, watching as they washed themselves clean in the water. Still, he was doubtful about whether they needed to know he was there. Would it help him somehow? Could they help him figure out what was happening and where they were? Seeing their smiling faces whilst they splashed each other with water he couldn’t help smiling himself. At once he decided that they could maybe help him, and hopefully in the process he could get some of that water, and if they couldn’t help him it was alright, because they didn’t look dangerous at all.

Pushing himself off the ground he stood on the ledge, looking down at them, chest puffed out to prove he was not afraid. His posture demanded attention. They both looked up from the pool of water at once, their bright eyes attached to his small form. He stared back at them, his gaze not wavering, his body not moving, as if to show them that they could not fool him, had they wished to.

The siblings slowly they looked at each other- it was as if they had some sort of psychic mutual understanding- and then started going back up the rocks towards the boy and the cave.



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to be contd...

[art_junkie]

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4 - COMPANIONS



The boy shrank back as the two pairs of eyes came up the rocks and continued to stare at him. Who were they? He couldn’t help but feel like he knew them. Suddenly he wasn’t so sure about them. They followed him through the tunnel as he begun to walk away, confusion evident on their small faces. The little boy was just about to start walking faster when one of them touched his arm. Suddenly a connection was made, and all at once he knew, he just knew that these strangers in the cave where not strangers at all. And the dark-haired one did have a glowing hand... Still he couldn’t help but be cautious. Stepping back suddenly, he broke the connection and stood back against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, looking at them intently with a quizzical expression on his face.

He just stood there, staring; knowing that he had to trust them, but not sure how to. The other little boy and girl seemed quite comfortable with each other, the light-haired one standing slightly behind the dark-haired one as if she felt safe behind him. He felt like an outsider. The dark-haired one looked at him for a few seconds, than smiled slightly, extending his hand forward to form the connection again.

Should I? The boy thought, but curiosity got the better of him and he clasped the other boy’s hand firmly. Their hands tingled and a slight connection was formed. They both knew what to do and extending their free hands forward they grasped the hand of the girl, and together the three formed a bond.

They saw flashes of things. Flashes so fast that they could not grasp their meaning, nor remember their contents. It was as if the flashes were to create some sort of subconscious awareness within them. They saw a distant land... Red seas, bright orange skies... All they knew is that they were different, that they did not belong in this strange desert land, and somehow they were all connected. They knew that their home was out there waiting, and they had just been pulled away from it. This feeling of emptiness was quickly replaced by the strong attachment they felt to each other. The boy felt the powerful link between them from the connection and he could not explain it, but he knew that they were a part of him, that he was a part of them, and that their bond was in their blood. He knew the mission just as they did, they had to get home. He felt how confused and overwhelmed they were by everything, and he knew then, that he could trust them.

Stepping back the dark-haired boy smiled again, a slightly worried, contemplating smile; a smile too mature for his age. The girl on the other hand, showed her acceptance of the stranger boy by nodding in his direction, and turning her head towards him thoughtfully. The boy stared at them for a beat or two, shuffling his feet, unsure of what to do. Then he turned around and walked out of the cave.

A few minutes later he was back, and without a word he walked towards his new companions and handed them both some broken flowers.


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to be contd...

[art_junkie]

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xmag- thanx for the comment, im glad you think so



5 - CHANGE


The newly formed trio went down the rocks to the desert below, communicating not by words but by gestures. The little boy felt comfortable with the other two, and led them to the place where the pink flowers are and helped them collect some to eat. He then took them down to the sand and showed them how to make patterns. Soon enough they had grown a strong attachment to one another.

By nightfall they had been playing and laughing all day, not a care in the world. But as the sun dipped lower into the sky the three noticed the weather begin to change. Coldness settled upon the plains of the desert and a slight wind blew through the air. The boy’s eyes were still not able to fully focus on objects, and it was the same for the other two as well. They huddled together and begun to walk away from the cave, unable to see where they were going.

They walked and walked for god knows how long, until the ground begun to change. Where had the soft sand gone? The boy wondered looking around in surprise. What were these pointy things on the ground? But he still carried on walking, not wanted to be separated from the other two amongst the darkness. He liked the brightness, and this was not a nice change at all. Suddenly they heard a growling sound. As if a big monster was moving towards them. He saw a big flash of light, and instinctively he pulled the dark-haired boy and the girl towards himself into a bush nearby. They fell one on top of him and he felt the ground scrape against his arm. Getting up slowly they peeked out of the bushes at the noisy monster. Peering closer boy saw that it was a big box. Not the boxes like those he had seen above the cave, but a smaller box. And this box had people inside it; creatures that looked like him, only bigger and different coloured.

The dark-haired boy looked towards him and at once he knew what he was trying to say. He shook his head, no, but the dark-haired boy urged him towards the box. Getting up and pulling the scared girl with him they slowly emerged from the bush towards the people, who had by now gotten out of their car and were looking around anxiously. He could not understand their speech, but he could sense their worry and confusion. Especially the long haired one.

“Can you see them? There were children! Little naked children! We must find them, come on honey, search...”

They calmed down once they saw the boy and the girl holding hands and walking towards them. The people looked at them, and then the long-haired one crouched on the ground and opened her arms to them. Halfway to the people, the two stopped and turned. They looked back at the bush with pleading eyes, silently telling their brother to join them, the little girl opened her mouth but no words came out. He knew she was trying to call him, but the little boy was too scared to go to her. He wanted to, he wanted to go with them, but his feet froze. He could not move. The only thing he could feel was the pain in his arm where he had hit the ground.

He remained there crouching on the ground as the other two got into the box with the tall creatures. He saw the tears of his sister gleaming in the moonlight as the box roared to life. He saw his brother press his face against the window trying to look at him. He saw them leave, the lights of the box fading into darkness as they moved too far away for him to see anymore.

He still could not move.



*****
to be contd...

[art_junkie]

6 - ABANDONED


He didn’t know how long he stood there. It could have been a few moments or hours. He just stood there staring at the place where the box with wheels had disappeared. He snapped out of his revere when he felt something wet hit his stomach. It was then that he realized water was running down his face from his eyes. Sniffing he wiped the tears off his face and stood up. His legs were numb. His brain felt foggy. He could not think or understand what had just happened, all he knew was that they had left him. He was alone.

The little boy looked around in panic. Where was he? It was too dark for him to see. He felt like the darkness was closing in and there was no one to help him. He felt claustrophobic. He stood up and started walking, hands stretched out in front of him, trying to find some sort of shelter from the cold. He walked and walked and found nothing but a big round rock. Leaning against it he tried to hug it, thinking that would take the cold away, but it didn’t. Glaring he let out an anguished cry and hit the rock with his hands a few times. On the last smack a bolt of energy shot out of his hand to the rock. He fell backwards due to the force, and stared at what he had done. There right in front of him was a hole in the rock, just the right size for him to fit into. He crawled into it, his energy drained and his arm in pain. As the dry wind blew, he curled himself into a ball, and lay there shivering.

His mind could not understand what exactly had happened. Where had they gone? To the boxes maybe? Would he ever see them again? They had meant to be together, he felt it in their connection; they were supposed to look after each other. Why was he even here? Why was he in the gooey thing anyways? Where was his home? The mission was to go home, he had felt it in the connection, but.. Where was home?

He thought so much about it that he spent all night just trying to comprehend what happened and what it meant. By the end his mind was so tired and confused that he started doubting that he had met the two at all.

His stomach growled and he grasped around the rock, “Fowwar?” he said softly, his voice breaking, as he found none. “Fowwar..” he mumbled sadly, his small voice carried away by the light desert breeze as he lay back down and closed his eyes. More then anything he wished he could go and sit inside the gooey shell again, at least that had been warm. He thought of his new friends. He wanted them back. He had not known them long but in that one day he had gotten used to the dark boy’s shy smiles and the girl’s friendly laughs. He thought of the day they had spent together, laughing and playing, throwing sand on each other and rolling about. He fell asleep near dawn, the memories of their one day replaying in his adolescent mind.

He was too young to know the feeling of abandonment, yet there he was, a little boy of barely six, left in the middle of the dark desert, alone; his tears shining silver in the moonlight.



*****
to be contd....

[art_junkie]

Thanx for the comments! Life doesn't get much easier for Michael too soon..


7 - WANDERING

Over the next few days he just walked. Walked and walked. This little boy, so far away from civilization, and so alone, did not know what else to do but walk. He had gone back to the cave only once, to collect his bright flowers and to drink from the spring that the dark-haired boy had sprung from the rock. After that he just walked. He was on a mission, and that mission was to find home.

He knew that now.

He was too young to put together a plan, or to realize that the cave many be a good place to start searching for signs that many take him home, all he understood was that home was not in the cave so it must be somewhere else. Before leaving the rock formation he looked back one last time and saw that the mouth of the cave had shut itself. Just like his arm when it had started bleeding a few days ago, he thought, shrugging it off as no big deal.

He needed to find his home.

Home. It was the only thought that sustained him. He had to go somewhere else to find it, and once he found it, and once the other two found it they would all be together and they could play.
Home can’t be far, he reasoned, because otherwise how would he have gotten in that cave?

And so he walked and walked.

The days were hard on the little boy, for it was hot, and he was famished. Try as he might, he could not do what the dark-haired boy had done to that rock. All he could do was blow them up and put holes in them. Frustrated he ate flowers off the ground, and learnt to deal without water. The little boy had learnt many new things about this strange dry world. He learnt to tell when nightfall was coming, he realized that little creatures were drawn to him and he learnt that the spiky tall flowers on the ground weren’t for eating. They just hurt him.

The nights were easier. He would blast holes in large rocks and sleep in them on windy nights, and on normal nights he would cool the sand and lay on it. This would give him the chance to look at the stars. Gazing upon them, he would at once feel comforted. He did not know why, but he felt like they were all there for him, he would look at the stars and imagine he wasn’t alone.

After a few days of walking he came towards a funny shaped thing. Rock? Tower? He wondered. Squinting, he tried to focus better. Well, it was big like a rock, but it was also shiny, the colour of the flowers he ate, and underneath it were a few small boxes with wheels! Stepping slowly towards it he felt the cold marble surface under his feet, at once he looked down and something on the floor caught his eye. Surprised he leaned down to take a better look. There was a boy staring at him from the ground! He craned his head sideways and the boy copied him. He lay on the floor and the boy came closer. He soon realized that this wasn’t another boy but somehow it was him stuck in the ground. He decided he should try and help himself out of the floor. He was just about to, when all at once he felt dizzy and lost consciousness.


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to be cont'd...

[art_junkie]

xmag - I'm not sure what he actually remembered.. but i imagine something like this happened!

okay, i know Maria was in no way part of Michael's past.. but, i kinda just really wanted to write this, so it's a bit of fluff i guess.. XD




8 - ENCOUNTER


Waking up he felt warm; he had been covered with some sort of cloth.

Unable to open his eyes because of how tired he was, he just lay there, snuggling deeper into the warmth. Out of the blue he heard some soft noises. He could not understand them but he could feel their confusion and slight worry. Where they feeling that way for him?

“Poor thing, look at him, he’s dehydrated!”

“But mama why was he nakey?”

“Well I don’t know sweetie, he looks lost.”

“But mama, where’s his family? Why is he at the petrol pump?”

“I don’t know.”

“But mama...”

“Shh, look he’s waking up!”

Opening his eyes he was met with the gaze of a pair of bright green ones.

“Hello! Im Maria who are you?” Staring at him, the eyes blinked at him and then frowned. Suddenly they were taken out of his view. Moving his neck he saw that they were attached to the very excited face of a girl, much like the light-haired girl from the cave. Except, he noticed, that this girl was covered in colours, like the people who took his friends away, not to mention she was radiating a lot of energy. So much energy, that he felt it flowing through him in waves.

“Mama I don’t think he can speak!” she said to another creature- one that looked like her, but was larger and covered with different colours. But it was the little girl that interested him.

He watched her, her hair bouncing as she spoke and she amazed him. How was she so full of energy? He wondered in awe. Maybe she had glowing hands too! All at once her face was in front of him again and she was speaking to him. What was she saying? He frowned.

“Ma-ree-aa. Maria.” She repeated a few times and pointed to herself.

Confused he tried to copy her words, “Mee-yaa” he said, and felt a sudden trill go through him as a big grin appeared on her face.

“Mama! He said it! Did you hear him? He can speak!” She got up and clapped.

Sitting up he stared at the two with interest. They looked at him with smiling faces. All at once he remembered what he was doing on the floor and looked around. There it was. Right on the floor was the copy of himself that he had to get out of the ground. Frowning he tried to pull ‘himself’ out. Nope, that didn’t work. He decided that he could use his glowing hand to blast through the shiny surface. He was going to do just that when he heard a small sound.

The bouncy girl was looking at him and giggling. “No, no, there’s nothing there! It’s you reflection!” He frowned, not understanding what she was trying to tell him. Sitting beside him she peered onto the floor as well. “Like a mirror, see?” The boy looked in surprise; there she was!

“Mama, come here!” The girl said, pulling her mother towards her. She towered above them, looking down wondering what her daughter was up to. But the boy understood- it wasn’t real. Everyone who stood under this big box-tower could see themselves! He smiled as the little girl made silly faces that reflected in the marble. He copied her making her laugh again. He was just beginning to enjoy himself when he felt himself been lifted off the ground abruptly. Someone was helping him stand up, whilst wrapping the cloth around him.

“Oh you guys have finally arrived. We got him to wake up, but he seems lost. He hardly said a word and it seems like he has no family around.”

“That’s fine ma’am, we’ll take care of it from here.” That voice had come from behind him, but he didn’t like the tone of the sound. Where the little girl had sounded anxious, and the bigger woman had sounded soft and caring, this new voice sounded stern. Turning around he saw that it belonged to another creature that looked like a bigger version of the little girl. She looked down on him, smiling slightly and speaking to him, while gesturing to a box with wheels. She wanted him to go inside. Maybe she was going to take him home? Slowly he walked towards the box.

“Mama, will he be alright?”

“I’m sure he will dear, they’re going to take him to foster care.”

“But... Can’t we take him home?”

“You know we can’t sweetheart.”

“Awww... I like him, he has funny hair...” The sadness radiating from the little girl almost made him stop walking towards the box; maybe it was dangerous? But... what if it was going to take him home? He needed to go home. So he continued to move.

Once inside he peaked out at the bouncy girl, what had she said to him? Mee-ya? He wondered what that meant. He saw her wave at him through the glass, a sad smile on her face. He raised his hand as she had done, repeating the gesture.

He kept his face pressed against the glass until the little girl and her mother were too far away to see.


 

[art_junkie]

tequathisy - thanx for the comment.. yes, it is really sad what Michael's going through..




9 - SURROUNDED



Bright colours. Flashy lights. People everywhere. He stared out the window in astonishment as they zoomed through the city. He was surrounded by objects and colours. Overwhelmed. But that’s not what he was thinking about. He smiled while staring at the passing buildings in awe, he was finally going home! They brought him to the big boxes that he had seen when he got out of the cave, and they would help him go back home. He was ecstatic.

The box slowed down in front of a strange tall building. Getting out, the stern lady told him to follow her. Stepping out slowly, he looked around apprehensively for a moment, then one by one, placed his feet on the cold steps and started walking towards the big door.

Inside was not bright. There was no colour, or if there was it all looked the same to him that he hardly saw any of it at all. There were a few people walking around, and none spared him even a single glace. No, this wasn’t home. But then what was it?

He was taken to a room and sat down on a chair. Looking around he saw many other creatures that looked like him sitting around. Some of them peered at him, others just carried on playing with their colourful things. He was amazed; so many little children running around, speaking funny dialects. Some where small, some we big, some were light coloured and some where dark.

A boy came up to him.

“Hi. I’m Jamie. What’s your name?” The little boy said, his red hair shining in the light. The little boy watched as the red-haired boy extended his hand forward just as the boy in the desert had done. Should he touch it? If only he could understand what the boy was saying. Cocking his head, he decided to touch his hand- maybe he would get flashes from him too! So he put his hand in the other boy’s hand. Nothing. Not even a spark. He frowned as the other boy shook his hand up and down for a few second then let it go. This boy was just like the little girl he had met at the shiny box.

“I’m eight! How old are you?” He said, peering at him. “I see you don’t like to talk. Well, want an apple?” he held out a red round thing in front of the little boy’s face. Taking it, the little boy brought it to his nose. He had learnt that smelling things could tell him if they were good or not. This smelt very nice. Watching the red-haired boy put his apple in his mouth, the little boy did the same.

His eyes widened as the fresh taste of the apple exploded in his mouth. It tasted good. Almost too sweet, but good enough for now.

“Come on, I’ll show you where the rooms are.” Moving away from him the red-haired boy moved towards another big brown door. Turning around he gestured to him.

The little boy looked around for a while, unsure, then apple in hand, he briskly walked over to the tall red boy and followed him into the hallway. It was better to have someone around him notice him, than being all alone in a room full of people.