░22░ Grey's Secret

After Iris went inside the market to do her part-time job, Grey immediately grabbed Lucius' hands and dragged him inside their house after looking at the back of Iris walking towards the market. Grey sensed something after he looked at Lucius and that was his sad eyes, he felt that he was sad so he needed to divert such feelings. So he held his hands and dragged him inside

Even at such a young age, he never lacks such understanding because that was what his family had thought of him. That everyone had some problems on their own that's why they became who they were. It's not like they became like that just because of themselves but they became like that because of something that triggers them

As a young child, he knew very well that his parents, as well as his sister, work their jobs just to have some food and money to buy them food and necessary things for a living and he understands those. Sometimes he saw other people come to inexpensive stores to buy something after being toured inside the market whenever his parents had free time or his sister. After seeing that, he had a little envy to them but he never showed others

He just hides them with a smile on his face and appreciates the little things he had because he knew that at the end of the day what matters most is family than material things. His elder sister never know what he truly likes because he keeps saying things that he likes apples or simple clothing but deep inside he wanted more yet he never even once said those

Because deep inside him they can only afford little from the status that they had. Being a commoner was never his problem and never a status that depicts their fate but only a challenge to him that he must do better to make his family proud

Going back to reality, after Grey dragged Lucius inside the house he led him into the living room and instructed him to sit there for a minute. After Lucius do so, Grey immediately ran to his room and took his diary full of drawings and words that could barely be red, as Iris was teaching him to write and read every time they had free time

Apart from taking his diary, he took some of the extra papers that Iris always gave whenever she had free time buying them for her little brother. That made him suddenly smile from taking the colored paper beside his diary and run as fast as he could towards their living room. Yet, when he twisted his ankle and was about to fall to the ground was when Lucius caught him in time lifting him to the air as his diary and papers he was holding had fallen to the ground

That scenario gain a wide-eyed expression from Grey as he was lifted above by Lucius. Then he immediately landed Grey on the ground

"Be careful," he said with a soft voice making Grey hug his other legs and caressed his face to it

"Yes, elder brother!"

'Elder brother? That's new but I never thought I would like to hear it. I guess they were such a loving family’

He thought as he gently patted Grey's little head and smiled sadly at him

"Alright," Lucius said as Grey stayed a little longer hugging his leg while closing his eyes and smiling

'Maybe he likes to have an elder brother after all. Just for today or when I'm already recovered enough I'll be his elder brother for a while'

Lucius thought as his sad smile was not yet fading after thinking such.

A few seconds later, Grey immediately let go of his hug and picked the fallen notebook he had as well as the colored papers. After doing so he instructed Lucius to sit in his previous position earlier before saving him from falling as he beamed in front of him

Making Lucius smile sadly in return

"Brother Lucius, I have a secret to tell you, and please don't tell my parents or sister about it. You know I could only speak what I truly feel to people and that's you to people other than my family," Grey said as he seriously talked to Lucius who was now seriously looking back at him in return

"Well, everyone has their secret to keep but if it burdens you then don't hesitate to tell me. You're still little but you hold secrets already," Lucius said who was now again smiling sadly at Grey – in response Grey only pouted. For a reason Lucius immediately patted and caressed the little brown hair head of Grey

"Yeah but promise me that you'll never tell my family about it, brother Lucius," Grey said while pouting making him more adorable to look with his now slightly messy brown hair like his mother and his pale skin with chubby rose cheeks

Lucius chuckled upon hearing such words come out of the adorable child that he's talking to. He can't believe that he, as a child, also had kept secrets from his family. He can only think that Grey was a respectable child who had grown up from a well-respectable family

"Yeah, I promise," Lucius said as his sad smile was replaced with a genuine smile making him unconscious about his expressions because of Grey's adorable expression

"Pinky swear?"

"Yeah pinky swear"

As they both swear on their pinky fingers smiling at each other

"Here, read this brother Lucius! I kept all of my secrets there although my handwriting was not good as my sister. I hope you still understand them," Grey said showing Lucius his little and slightly torn up a notebook. Making Lucius grab a hold of them

As Lucius saw how he held the notebook that Grey handed him, he looked at it with such a sad pair of eyes because he knew that they can't afford to buy such expensive ones. Because the notebook was slightly torn with crumpled pages inside of it

'They're a family of commoners but the empire could have provided them better not like this’

Looking at the notebook, Grey was now folding the colored paper and continuing what they were doing earlier before

'If I was born like them, a commoner, would I still have a family I can call my home?'

He thought with the sudden unconscious sad smile lifting his lips upwards. While portraying such a sad pair of eyes looking and caressing the notebook that Grey had handed him. Upon opening it carefully, Grey looked at Lucius who was quiet as he opened his notebook only to beamed at Lucius as he looked how seriously Lucius focused his eyes on it

The first page was Grey’s introduction to himself. He made his introduction lightly and cheerfully for Grey himself to read, yet he never expected that he’ll be able to let someone read his own.

"Brother Lucius just wait. Do turn my notebook to the last page but don’t read the rest yet, okay?" Grey said as he stopped what he was doing and run carefully to his room again. Only to find a small writing material that he used to draw and write, then went back to their living room and went near to where Lucius was sitting

"And here," he said as he gently went closer to Lucius making his hands land on his legs and draw something in the middle of the two parents on the last page of the notebook making Lucius' curious to what he'll draw

Later on, he saw some figure, drawing of a family and there he already knew that they were Grey’s family. Then, he drew something with the same figure but only that the recent drawing had no hair. He was curious who he was pertaining to on the drawing. Then, when Grey beamed in front of Lucius, he slightly mess his gorgeous dark - hair by swaying his small hands to his. Then, he immediately chuckled

"That is you from now on, brother Lucius. You're a part of our family now - oh and that was a mark that you're already my brother and be ready to accept my silliness at times," Grey said beaming as he was holding the folded paper that he flew earlier after messing Lucius’ face. He was now in front near the window making the rays of the sun strike his whole figure

That scenario made Lucius felt warm suddenly and smile in return. He unconsciously smiled a genuine smile at Grey that he can never change anymore. For a while, he stayed quiet as he caressed his cheeks that Grey had drawn some again earlier and saw in his hands some thick ink making him chuckle

'This was the first time I felt something like this and the first time my emotions were slowly being unsealed. I never thought I would be a part of their family in the first place, I guess Victor is a very good man after all

With that, he gently turned the next pages of the notebook until he read some of the unreadable words that Grey tried writing and read something that made him serious about

'It was his diary after all' he thought as he seriously looked at the words

'Sometimes I was left alone in the house because both mom, dad, and sister had jobs to do but I never complained instead I always smiled at them and said I can take care of myself even though I'm scared'

He continued reading the writings in the pages and flipped them again as he reads the back of them

'I always said apples were my favorite food only to not to make them buy any expensive food just for me. I know sister was also coming late due to her part-time jobs and I don't want to bother them anymore'

'I wish our family would stay like this forever and even if we're not rich, I'm still proud of them'

'I wish sister and my parents, as well as me, would live forever happy and never change like the way we are’

'If by the time that we grow older than before, I hope we cleanse all of our negative emotions and live a happy life with our future loved ones'

Lucius reads all of them as he continues flipping the pages with a serious and unreadable expression. Grey, upon finishing what he's doin,. went near to Lucius and sat next to him

"Brother Lucius, everything there was my secret but I guess we still have one more unwritten. It's my sister's birthday tomorrow and I hope we could give her something as a gift. Do you want to go to the market later? I always save some money that my parents and sister gives to me even if it's small," Grey said smiling shyly beside Lucius who was now sadly smiling as he looked at Grey and put down the notebook he was reading as he patted his head and pulled him closer to him for a warm hug

"Yeah"