Whispers of Hope ✓

CHAPTER 46

JOSHUA'S POV

After sitting and silently just watching Kiaan paint in that small hut, he told me he'd go back to his mumma then coz he had to drink medicine and eat. I just found out then that he was having fever and so I was again mesmerized at how he could handle his sickness so well like a really grown man. I was to go and walk him back to his mumma but my secretary called and informed me Layad was crying. I was worried all of a sudden coz Layad don't cry that much and when I got back to the hotel we were staying I only found out that she was having menstrual pains. Jeez, women and their menstruation. I had to call back Mr. Joy for suddenly leaving and explained my situation, luckily he was kind enough to consider telling me it's okay coz he also left me hanging with the foreign sponsor a while ago and again, the meeting was postponed.

"Tito Joshy, can we go and take a tour on schools here?"

All of a sudden Layad came to me the next morning and pestering me on going to school. It's not even a school where she's going but she wanted to see the difference of her school and Shimla's school so as always, I lost by the near end of the conversation. I then told my secretary to search for the nearest school around the hotel for us to not travel long. A moment later, my secretary came back with three lists of nearby school and of course, because Layad is very much agitated to tour just because her period is done, she told us that we'd go visit all three schools my secretary told me. I left the two fighting over the schools again and just went to shower and prepare. "You two just prepare coz we don't own the day together. I will have to meet Mr. Joy this afternoon and I must meet him today at all cost. We cannot postpone the meeting any longer than we already did."

"Wow, this school looks more like a temple or church rather, Tito." Layad comments upon stepping out the car and sighting the wholeness of the school. Layad walked first as I gestured my secretary to follow her. Luckily we got permitted to visit from the head of the school coz the school was rather conservative and accepts few visitors. It wasn't a private school but it was a religious school. I then followed the two as Layad happily pointed on random things, designs, building and even students commenting on them one by one. and then Layad suddenly went and joined a crowd of students singing and jamming in the little playground. They were singing a Christian song and Layad for sure knows a lot of Christian and worship song. She's a part of our church's choir team in the Philippines that is why. I smiled as I watched my niece enjoying and playing around some kids, she was becoming more and more open to anyone unlike before. A moment more lately, we left the school after giving gifts like fruits, religious story books for the kids, some art materials and even some clothes for both the teachers and students. We decided to prepare gifts for the schools we were to visit after doing some researches and it was Layad's idea; I wasn't against it; I was proud even at Layad for having such a good heart.

The next school we visited was very much private and it was so wide. It was looking very foreign and according to researches, it was built by foreign architects so that explains why the furniture and building was very westernized. "I like this school Tito, it looks very luxurious. But it's so wide; kids will get tired going back and forth to their classrooms if the school is this wide." We just chuckled at Layad as she resumed to get mesmerized by everything we pass through. Suddenly my phone rang, it was Mr. Joy. I told my secretary to watch over Layad as I went and answered the call. "Yes, Mr. Joy?"

"OH yes Mr. Isabella," he again apologized from yesterday's event and reminded me about the meeting this noon. I just said okay and told him about my tour in the schools after that he told me about sleeping over at the orphanage. "Oh no, I'm sorry Mr. Joy if I have to decline the sleep over. I have a little girl as my company here so I can't just bring her over, she's still a kid."

"It's okay, you can bring her over. Since she's also a kid, she might want to come and make friends here coz am sure she's bored if she just came along with your business trip here." Mr. Joy had a point so I ended up agreeing to him. When I finished the call and got back to where I left Layad, I saw her in the middle of some little boys. She was shouting at one guy in front of her while covering one familiar guy behind him—Kiaan? "How dare you bully him? What's so wrong with having no father? At least he has manners and respects everyone with just his mother; look at you all having perfect family but your attitude and behaviors stinks like your parents don't even teach you well about manners! Back off!"