Loving A STRANGER

The child was stunted and carried his head low as if he was ashamed that he was alive. It obviously didn"t make it easier for him when people stared, and it made Kylie angry to see Ethan staring at him.

Perhaps this child evoked some childhood memory of Ethan"s, but it didn"t matter to Kylie. "She nudged him and hissed in his ear, "Stop staring. It"s rude! You make him feel uneasy,"

Ethan took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Dora saw his reaction to the boy, and the smile in her eyes quickly disappeared. She hunkered down and spoke to the little boy. "Hey," she asked him, "how old are you?"

The little boy looked very scared and quickly hid behind his mother"s leg. The boy"s mother looked down and said, "He"s seven years old."

Dora took out a sugar candy and offered it to the boy, but he turned away, as he had most likely been trained to do. Dora sighed and looked at the boy"s mother again. "What grade is he in?" she wondered.

The boy"s mother frowned and said, "He can"t go to school. He is too afraid of what other kids would think when they saw him…"

Dora nodded and asked if he"d had a bad experience with children in the past.

"Not just children," the boy"s mother replied, "but adults can be pretty cruel too. None of this is his fault. He was hanging out with his father one day when a car swerved at them suddenly. His dad pushed him out of the way, but not fast enough. He was injured. His father was killed. And the driver was drunk. He staggered out of his car, fit as a fiddle. What my boy saw that day would likely haunt him until the day he dies. Unfortunately, he blamed himself and left a big scar on his memory," 

"He is convinced that if he hadn"t asked his father to play that day," she continued, "that none of this would have happened. He is a smart boy. Sometimes I think he is too smart for his own good…"

"What happened to the driver?" Dora wondered.

"He got thirty days," the mother complained, "and they allowed him to serve his time on the weekends. It was nothing more than a slap on the wrist!"

Dora sighed and said, "The system is f.u.c.ked if you ask me."

"No doubt," the mother agreed.

"This must be very hard for the two of you," Dora said. "I cannot even begin to imagine how hard this must be for you." Dora stood up and handed the boy"s mother a business card. "I know a good psychiatrist. If you or your son need to talk about this or think he needs medication, call him. He did wonders for when I was sick. There is usually a very long waiting list, but he will make time for you if you mention my name."   

The boy"s mother looked at Dora and said, "Thank you. You are too kind. This will be a big help to my son,"

Dora smiled slightly but, when she turned to Ethan, she saw that he was still staring at the boy, and her smile melted from her face. "Lord Ethan," she wondered, "are you ok? Why are you still staring at this poor child?"

Ethan shook his head as if to shrug off a daze. "Sorry," he said as he turned away. "I didn"t sleep well. I was actually just lost in a blank stare. I wasn"t intentionally staring at him." Ethan looked at the boy and said, "I"m sorry if I upset you."

The boy"s mother smiled and said, "Don"t worry about it. He usually reacts this way if someone stares at him,"

People came in and out of the elevator on every floor as they descended. All the while, Ethan stood silently in the corner with a gloomy expression on his face. It wasn"t until he was back in the car that he returned to his regular self. He looked at Kylie and said, "When I first arrived at the troupe, I knew nothing, and I was often bullied. Dora was the only person who saw past my awkwardness and helped me through it. If I didn"t perform well on the stage, they would not give me food. Dora was the one who taught me how to perform and, while I was learning, she stole food for me. She was a good friend to me. I love her, but as a sister."

Kylie held Ethan"s hand tightly and leaned her head on his chest. She knew that, at the moment, the best way to comfort him was to listen silently and say nothing.

"The first time I took the stage," he continued, "I vomited all over the place. She was the one who took care of me and helped me clean up my mess."

Kylie listened to his words and to his heartbeat. He was so strong now that she couldn"t imagine him ever being helpless. She couldn"t help but feel a little jealous of Dora. After going through such a tragic moment in their lives, there would always be a bond between them.

Ethan felt bad about the situation. If he were able, he would meet every desire of her heart. The only thing that she wanted, though, was something he could not give her because he had already given his heart to Kylie. Ethan sighed and ran his hands through her hair. He smiled and said, "I love you so much, honey. I only have you,"

Ethan bowed his head and kissed Kylie on her forehead. "No matter what happens," he said, "I hope that you will never leave me."

Kylie rubbed his arm and said, "Even if you tried to drive me away, I would never leave your side. Wild horses couldn"t take me away."

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