Chapter 15

Oliver stood watching while the only person who had been kind to him vanished into the crowd of people. He didn't understand why she abandoned him, he shouldn't have proposed anything to her, or maybe he should have explained himself better; he knew that nothing good came out of his mouth, and that's why he had to keep quiet most of the time.

The sound of the ship setting sail made him jump; he covered his ears with his hands and turned around to see how one of the huge ships began to move forward. People are gathering, and the noise increases making him nervous; he was not used to many noises and many people; he really hated it.

Would that be the boat that Chrystal Daly bought? He would not go up; whether it was or not, he wouldn't do it. It wasn't the first time he found himself alone in a difficult situation; he had to face it, even if he was scared to death. He could not afford to give up; he had promised his mother that he would escape and live for her, for both of them.

Many people could reference where he could go; if only it weren't so complicated to address people, it might be faster. He should have taken that map.

From one moment to the next, the same crowd pulled Oliver out of the harbor to the outskirts again; now, he was admiring the sunset in front of his eyes. The boy forgot everything for a moment, enchanted by the beautiful view, the water glowed with the orange-pink color of the sky, the sun was hiding on the horizon, spreading its last rays of light to the clouds. It was the most beautiful view he had in years; it felt like the first time he saw a sunset with his mother from the huge window.

"There's the south, then, at my back is north. Chrystal Daly said the gold star was to the north, towards the sunrise."

A little twist in his heart watered his eyes; he thanked his mother for teaching him important things like the cardinal points, the hours, and those sunsets. His mother was fascinated by watching the sunrise and sunrise; Oliver enjoyed the sunrises best because the darkness dissolved with the sun's rays making him feel safe.

This time it didn't matter how fast it was getting dark; there was no fear of Mr. Craig arriving and finding him near his mother; there was just peace of mind in Oliver, something that didn't happen often.

"I must find a place to spend the night and continue to the north when the sun rises again."

When night reigned, Oliver turned his back on the harbor, vowing not to return to that place so close to his hell. Fiddling with the paper in his hands, he walked to nowhere like days before. He could tell that even in the darkness, people abounded in the streets, artificial lights dazzled his eyes, and sounds were less noisy. Oliver was used to the fact that no one could do anything but sleep or remain silent until the next day when the fire was over. It was quite comfortable to fall asleep, so it seemed because there was always that tense air.

He didn't know how long he was walking, moving away from the place where he had started and looking for a safe place to sleep until he passed through an alleyway and something passed quickly under his legs, sending a shiver down his spine. The thing was still behind his leg, growling. Oliver carefully turns around, not knowing what it could be, looking down to find a furry creature. He turned his head a little to find its shape until he saw its pointed ears slightly raised and a long tail; when he made eye contact with the animal, he saw terror and stress in the poor creature's gaze. It was like seeing himself reflected.

He spreads out a bit to better appreciate it with the help of the light from the pole, leaning down to be at its height. Bones clung to its fur, and the smell of garbage reminded him of how emaciated he had arrived at the outside world.

He would help them the same way Chrystal Daly had helped him. He tried to show a smile by raising his hands to show that he had no intention of harming it. As he moves his hand towards its head, the creature becomes alert, growling and showing its fangs, to which Oliver moves his hand away a little and doesn't separate his sight from it, transmitting confidence. Minutes later, he manages to stroke its battered fur, soft and slow caresses as his mother and Annette used to do, it was a good exercise to relax, and it worked with that small and defenseless creature.

"Don't be afraid; you're safe. "

In his life, he had said such words, but there was always a first time. The creature tried to lie down but groaned in pain, and Oliver moved his hand away again, searching for the wounded area, finding a cut along its left limb.

"Come here, you stinking dog!" children no more than ten years old came out of the shadows, chasing the thing that had come out first, stopping when they saw the chestnut with the animal.

"Get out of the way, you vagabond!"

One of the boys pushed Oliver slightly while another grabbed the dog's fur, drawing a yelp out of him with a growl.

"What are you doing?"

Oliver looks frightened at the scene, remembering how Mr. Craig cruelly grabbed his hair, shaking and throwing him to the other corner of the room, just like those brats were doing with the creature.

"Stop, you're killing him!"

He wasn't used to yelling, but the situation warranted it. Why were those children hurting an innocent being? I mean, they looked pretty small for there to be much evil in them. Oliver runs up to the creature and shoves one of the three vandals, getting between the furry thing and the abusers. The kids don't waste their time throwing their rocks at Oliver to kick him several times until they leave.

The brown-haired boy coughs a little, touching the injured areas, looks towards the creature, and gets up quickly as he can't see if it is still breathing or not. When he reaches it, he lets out a sigh when he sees that it is still alive. He carefully carries the animal as far away as possible from the alley until he reaches a desolate park with good lighting.

The place where he took a seat had a different texture than the street and rocks, it stung a little, but it was soft, strange. He stopped paying attention to that detail to take a better look at the little creature that had fallen unconscious. He went back to check him completely, and tearing a piece of the huge T-shirt, he bandaged the injured paw. He leaned against the lamp post, placing the creature... what had the children called him? Ah yes, dog. He placed the dog on his lap to give it some warmth so that they could fall asleep halfway across the park.