Breaking the Barriers • BrightWin

One

Dream

He was breathless. Gulping, Win pulled himself out to the man and straightened his posture. He went wide-eyed when he noticed that the man's shirt got enfolded with paint, and instinctively wiped it out with shaking fingers as he panicked, certainly not realizing that his hands got stained as well.

"Sorry, Sir!" Win apologized in fright. Barely noticing that his hand was now resting at the man's iron-clad chest, he looked up at him and saw how his eyes were hard and intense; looking angry as ever but fought hard to contain it.

Couldn't hold his anger any more, the man grasped Win's arm so tight. His nails dug through Win's pale skin making him groan in pain.

When he realized it, he slightly pushed him, but it didn't turn out as how it was supposed to be as the younger fell his bottom on the hard concrete surface and scraped his arm on his easel.

"Bright!" A voice thundered, making Win shut his eyes tightly.

Win grabbed the sore spot in his arm with his other hand, wishing for the pain to stop. He vaguely noticed the pattering sound of the feet approaching as his attention was at his arm. He scanned his eyes through the crowd and shame washed over him when he realized that many had witnessed the scene.

"Hey, are you okay? Are you hurt?" The voice was still loud, but it wasn't shouting anymore and sounded much closer.

Eyes slowly starting to fill up with tears, Win lifted his head at the voice's direction. He mentally assumed it was from the man in front of him but to his surprise, it was the man he conversed with earlier.

Why would I expect that? He has no heart. Win thought to himself.

"Why did you do that?" The man asked in a serious tone of voice. Before Bright could even respond, he carefully went to Win and helped him stand up, eyes apologetic and full of guilt. When he looked back at Bright, it instantly turned sour, as if vexed by his action.

"So you're gonna help him first before your friend, Off? He did this to me first!" Bright glanced at Win with a disgusted face.

"You knew it was an accident." Off turned to Win and offered him a slight bow as an apology. "My apologies, my men were chasing a thief."

After Off said that, Win suddenly got alarmed as the thought that it might be his friend transpired.

"Why are you suddenly kind to that man? He's just nobody and... filthy." Bright shrugged while looking at his phone screen, wiping out the paint in his face.

Bright's words stung through Win deeply. It was venomous, like a poison coursing through his veins. It was yet again rubbed against his face.

The gap between the rich and the poor. The state of humiliation and discrimination they has to suffer. The thought that they're not worthy enough to receive respect and opportunities; undeserving to be treated as human beings with dignity that everyone else deserves.

He heard a faint of chatter and laughter. It disgust Win so much. He could see people, but he could see no humanity.

It makes him want to throw up that the society has made it a norm to make fun at poor people's plight. Not to mention the irony of these people, the so-called believers of God, to attend the sacramental mass only to mock the unprivileged outside the altar.

Society is all about multiple standards in all respects. One for the poor, weak, marginalized, and those for powerful and rich people.

Somewhere inside Bright, he felt guilt-ridden at what he did. He knew he was being irrational and there were no reasons to justify it, but he was so fed up by his anger that he became impulsive with his actions and turned illogical with his words.