A New Beginning

• Jerrard Chan, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2021

The boy just stood there. Between two stationary steam trains. Surrounded by bustling commuters. Ignored by the whole world. His legs suddenly buckled and his whole body collapsed onto the ground. A heart-wrenching scream surged through his stomach and pierced through the air. Curious eyes flickered towards him, looking at his grubby face in disgust. He hugged himself tight and began to sob uncontrollably onto his lap; he tried to cry out all his feelings and problems. But it didn’t work.

Nothing could obscure the fact that he was an orphan.

Hours dragged on, the sun dipping below the horizon, conjuring a soft orange glow in the darkening sky. The boy was still stranded in the deserted station, rubbing his eyes with his tattered clothes. His legs were frozen in place, not responding to his demands. But his brain was whizzing away, questions plaguing his mind like demons.

Why did this have to happen to me? Why didn’t God tell me when they were leaving? I would’ve at least been able to say goodbye. I thought Mum said that God would reward those who are good.

The boy pulled off a necklace with a picture of his mother which was dangling around his neck. With the last of his strength, he hurtled it across the train station, listening as it came plummeting toward the ground.

All is gone.

The weight on his eyes was getting heavier, but he tried to fight back. However, soon enough, the only sound to be heard in the station was the boy’s faint snores, breathing in and out. In and out...

His mind suddenly brought him back. Back in time. He found himself standing at the end of a sidewalk. He was next to a man wearing a suit and tie and a woman with beautiful blonde hair. In between them was a boy who he recognized as himself. The man impatiently waited for a clearing of cars. But he couldn’t stand it anymore. He grunted and pulled along his wife, scrambling down the street. The boy didn’t budge, staring at the spectacularly flocculent clouds that floated along the vibrant blue skies. But then he saw it. A brown car. Speeding down the asphalt road. Heading towards his parents. He felt himself screaming at them, pointing at the car. They glanced back at him but by the time they registered his gestures, it was too late. The car crashed into them. Just like that. They were gone.

The boy clicked out of his nightmare, breathing heavily, examining his surroundings. The analogue clock in the station began chiming as midnight dawned upon the world. He breathed out a sigh of relief. Nothing was going to be the same without them. He looked up at the glass ceiling, lying down on the ground.

Sequin-silver stars twinkled brightly, like beacons of hope for all the lost souls in the world. The moon was nowhere in sight. It was the start of a new lunar cycle. A new beginning.