The Bitter Taste

Chapter 3

He knew he was going to have to walk to school again when the bus faded around the corner. He also knew this was not going to be the first or the last time he would be late.

School was tough on him, just as bad as home was. Kids did not treat him well there. He was invisible everywhere he went.

Now that he was finally noticed by Charles and Daniel, and he was in a world of hurt. He would have rather been ignored, remaining under their radar.

Standing to his feet, he dusted himself off, and looked down to see a hole in his worn shoe had emerged. He wanted to cry once more, curl up, and let the cruel world consume him entirely, but then remembered something important. It became his mantra in desperate times.

Remain strong.

His brother would have said this to him if he were here. He had always taught him in the hardest of times, you had to stay strong, because if you let the world pull you down, you may never be able to get back up.

With an enthusiastic nod to himself, Benji started his way toward school. He dried his eyes with his dampened sleeve and suppressed the tears still lingering in the corners of his eyes, forcing a weak smile.

He continued the course, not paying any mind to his surroundings as he crossed the street, focusing on the cracks in the pavement. He always made a game out of it and was careful to step on every single one.

When he reached the curb of the adjacent sidewalk, he stepped up, and approached the line of shops he saw every day. Only today they were different.

The once vacant shop situated in the middle of a bakery and an antique store, now was a candy store named 'Candied Dreams'. The sign placed in the window claimed their candies brought dreams to life, and made wishes come true.

Benji was immediately enticed and stepped up to the window, peering into the blue-tinted glass, thinking of how he had never had a dream of his own before.

Narrowing his eyes, he stuck out a stiff lip. A red 'closed' sign was swinging with the autumn breeze. Pressing his nose to the glass, he felt a chill rush down his spine as his eyes wandered, surveying the shop. They were taunted by the wonders held within and he wanted so badly for the store to be open.

Vivid mystical colors covered the tall dark walls. There were a number of tables, displayed with candies otherworldly to him. His mouth salivated as he remembered the last time he tasted something so sweet.

The day before Noah disappeared, he came home with a small bag of butterscotch. A day he would always remember. They got sick to their stomachs, laughing until dawn, careful to talk about everything.

He could still smell the aroma, and the taste of candy lingered in his mouth. Thinking about it brought back the way it stuck to his molars all night.

His parents were not a fan of sugar, so candy was not something kept in his household. It was rare he got to taste it and knew since this shop opened; the rules would become stricter.

"Excuse me?" a gruff, male voice resounded from behind him, snapping him away from the memory. "What are you doing?"

Benji turned toward the voice in embarrassment, meeting eyes with a mysterious man. He looked him over, noticing a simple grey vest tucked into a purple buttoned shirt.

The man appeared to be normal, however, something about him was off. Maybe it was the comb-over white hair, showing signs of his balding head or perhaps it was his tall composure. Benji also swore the color of his hair reminded him of the snow he saw last winter, but nothing compared to his bizarre eyes.