Whispers After Dark

Chapter 11

 She sat quietly, her legs in front of her with her knees above the ground. Her hands rested on her knees, scratching each nail several times before moving to do the same to the other ones. She stared at the ground, but now and then, she took a not-so-subtle side glance at me, turning her head to see my full face.

I didn't care what she thought about me right now. I was too busy watching Emily. She looked so happy chasing the little boys around, laughing out loud often, with her hands in front of her. The little children didn't seem to care that she was involved in the incident that previous day. I was glad she had made friends, but it was heartbreaking to know that we would have to leave so soon. Breaking the news to her last time had her shedding tears for a long time. She had caused a scene during dinner. Whether it was abusive adults, bullying children, or insufficient living situations, every orphanage in the past wasn't right for us. Now this place too. I wondered how I would tell her this time. Maybe during physical activity where no one could see the commotion.

The girl's watchful eye was turning to be slightly more annoying now. I wasn't easily irritated and the other girls had already passed their judgment on me, but this girl didn't hold the same disgusted look at me.

"What's 'yer name?" I asked, in hopes of breaking the silence.

The girl seemed startled by my question like she had never been asked that before. She stopped glancing in my direction and focused on the ground in front of her that she had been staring at the entire time.

"H-Holly," she stammered. Her hands moved to fidget with her pigtails now. She purposefully kept her eyes away from me, avoiding eye contact.

"Why don't you hang out with the older girls, Holly?" I knew the answer to my question but if any of the adults were watching, it would be plausible if I was speaking to someone since I had gotten back from my bathroom trip.

"Oh umm..." she thought hard about an excuse for why the other girls didn't talk to her. Unable to think of a believable reason, she was subdued by the underlying truth. "They don't want to hang around with me."

"Well, why don't you go play with the other kids?" I pointed at the older boys and the little children running around. It was a fairly basic question. She would never fit in with them, but I needed anything to keep this conversation going. After all, Holly wasn't going to contribute anything.

"I don' do well at sports," she whispered, nuzzling herself into her arms, covering part of her face.

She didn't seem like the athletic type, but I guess not a lot of children liked her. Taking a deep breath, I sighed. I was tired from sneaking around. Roy's lessons followed anyways and that was never going to be fun.

"Can I ask you a question?" She looked in my direction and stared deeply into my eyes.

I was shocked she wanted to continue our conversation. "Of course!" I exclaimed, a little too excitedly.

"Why would you get into a fight with Benjamin?"

"What do you mean?" I asked. Her question left me puzzled. Did she not hear about what happened that day?

"Why didn't you just stay quiet?" She was serious about her question. Her face stayed nuzzled into her arms, but her eyes maintained eye contact, not missing the surprised expression on my face.

I didn't quite understand her question but I was starting to get the jist of it. I looked out onto the field where Emily was enjoying herself. "My sister means everything to me. She's always been that cheerful little child I've had with me all along, ready to do anything with me." I showed desperation in my eyes and looked at Holly. "I would protect Emily if it is the last thing I do. She's always really bright and laughing and when she-" I hadn't realized I was going on a rant.

Holly looked at me with kind eyes. She giggled a little before revealing the rest of her smiling face. "You're a really nice older brother, Charlie." Her smile showed no fake emotions. She was genuinely speaking from her heart.

I got a bit flustered. Looking away, I could feel her gaze set on my face. The awkward moment was brief as Mrs. Chamberlain called the children inside to freshen up and get ready for Roy's evening lessons.

There was no call down to Mr. Chamberlain's office this time. Just a boring old lesson by Roy. The dimly light classroom was gathered by exhausted children, awaiting their meals and sleep. I tried my best to appear attentive, afraid that any signs of wandering away in my thoughts would draw suspicion to my earlier activities. The events during physical activity had left me on edge, and I didn't need any more attention on myself than necessary. Acting more focused made me less susceptible to being called out for a question.

Emily, who had spent the afternoon chasing and being chased by the other children, looked utterly exhausted. Her French braids were coming undone, and her eyes were half-closed as she tried to keep them open. She stifled a yawn, and I couldn't help but find her adorable in that moment. Despite my worries about everything that was going on, I couldn't help but smile at her sleepy demeanor.

Roy droned on about a history lesson, but his words seemed to blend together in a repetitive stream of words. The other children slumped in their chairs, their heads bobbing as they fought to stay awake. Elliot's head was already leaning against the table. He was lucky Roy hadn't noticed yet. The room was filled with yawns and fidgeting, and I could feel my eyelids growing heavy. The battle against drowsiness was common to every child in the room. Each face wore expressions of boredom until Roy passed a glance at the class, and a wave of discreet nods followed to make him believe that everyone was indeed understanding the content.

With the ring of the bell, Roy was interrupted mid-sentence. Unable to speak over the sighing children, he gave in, and the children scattered themselves out the door to get ready for supper.