Paralyzed

El plan

Once they were inside the house, Javier threw Andrés to the ground and began yelling at him. "WHY AND HOW THE FUCK WERE YOU OUT THERE?!?! DON'T FUCK WITH ME, BOY!!"

Andrés, with tears in his eyes, answered quietly, "I was hungry, so I got out to get food. Then on my way back, I saw the toy store and... and... and..."

He didn't even finish his sentence when suddenly he felt a blow to the side of his face. He fell down, touching his face; it was wet, sticky, liquid and red—blood. Andrés turned to face his dad, but Javier hit him again, this time on the side of his mouth. The boy tried to explain himself, but his father kept hitting him, harder and harder each time.

"YOU RUINED ME, YOU LITTLE PIECE OF SHIT! WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU WANT A STUPID TOY?!?!?" his father roared.

Andrés, on the ground and trying to stay awake, managed to say, "The... the... the... to... toyy... wasn't... ffoo... ffoorr mee..."

"Then who was it for?!"

"My brother."

After hearing that, Javier became angrier and grabbed Andrés by the neck, pinning him against the wall. The poor boy tried to fight him off, but he was too weak to do so. His father pointed his finger at him and said, "Listen to me, boy, he is not your brother. He's only your mother's trash."

Javier stayed silent, waiting for his son to respond, but Andrés couldn't. Javier squeezed harder and demanded, "ANSWER ME, BOY!"

Andrés, through a gag, managed to say, "Yes, sir."

Javier let go of his son. Andrés fell to the floor, coughed up blood, and tried to stand on his feet, but his legs gave out the second he put weight on them. His left eye was so swollen he could barely see his dad walking, and as for his jaw, he couldn't feel it and could taste blood in his mouth. When he heard the door slam, he knew his father was gone. He curled into a ball and started to cry. He didn't cry because of his injuries; he cried because he felt hopeless and miserable. He cried because he wanted to see his brother. He wanted to feel loved again; he wanted to feel safe again. He longed for the warm and cozy feeling of coming home to a family.

Andrés, still on the ground, crawled to his bedroom, closed the door, and fell asleep once again in front of it. The next day, he didn't even wake up; his little body was so exhausted he didn't even try to get up. He only opened his eyes to look at the clock.

The day after that, he woke up with a major headache. He was dizzy and felt nauseous, but he managed to crawl to his window, open it, and get some fresh air. The breeze felt cool on his face; it felt good. He looked over the village and noticed he could see the toy store from his bedroom. This made his day. He grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil and started to observe the perimeter of the toy store. He watched the employees and the customers. He took note of the opening and closing times, the blind spots, and the areas to avoid. He paid attention to every single detail; he didn't want to miss his chance. Days passed, and Andrés stayed in his room, observing and analyzing.

Then, one day, he decided to analyze the inside of the store. Andrés took his notebook—well, more of a sketchbook—but he also grabbed an empty shoe box, put them in a backpack, and was ready to go. But when he was about to open the door, he froze. His heart started thumping hard and fast, he began to sweat, and he was shaking. Andrés was afraid to leave his bedroom; he didn't want to bump into his dad. He didn't want to get beaten up again. He was terrified.

Andrés took a couple of seconds to breathe, then opened the door. He walked very slowly and quietly, trying not to make a sound. When he reached the living room, he saw his dad sleeping on the couch with a bottle of whiskey in his left hand. Andrés tiptoed across the living room without making a single noise. He gently opened the front door and closed it behind him.

After closing the door, Andrés made sure to be far away from his house before letting out a huge "WOOOOHOOOO!" He was finally free—free from his dad, free from the walls, free from everything. Andrés had never felt better; he skipped and danced as he walked to the toy store. Then something, or rather someone, interrupted his daydream. It was Alicia.

"Why are you so happy?" Alicia asked.

Andrés blushed and stammered, "I... I... I..."

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" Alicia teased.

"No! He didn't. Besides, I don't even have a cat. I can't have one."

"Why?"

"Because I'm allergic to them!"

"Oh, then why were you so happy?" the little girl asked.

"I was on my way to the toy store," Andrés answered.

"Oh... Lucky."

Andrés noticed something in Alicia's eyes—something he couldn't quite describe—but her expression encouraged him to say something he never thought he would: "Would you like to come with me?" His face turned as red as a tomato.

Alicia looked back, smiled shyly, and said, "Yes."

The two children walked side by side to the toy store. When they arrived, Andrés didn't go directly to the dinosaur; he walked around the store, pretending not to know what he was looking for. When he finally came across the dinosaur, he took out his shoe box and placed the toy inside. It fit perfectly. Alicia, standing behind him, asked, "Why is the dinosaur in the box?"

Andrés looked at her and smiled. "It's for my brother. I've never met him, but I really want to, and this is my hello present."

"Oh, that's sweet! What's his name?"

"I don't know; I've never met him."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"Don't worry; I'll find a way to meet him."

Andrés put the toy back on the shelf.

"Why did you put it back on the shelf?" Alicia asked.

"I don't have any money. I'll come back tomorrow." He added to himself, "More like tonight."

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Alright here's chapter 2 hope you enjoy it as much as the first one 😉 I can't tell you how much I'm surprised by your reaction to this book thank you so much! Don't worry chapter 3 is already on the way

Cheers
O