Wounded Existence

2 | Where am I?

Disoriented, yet very curious, the young boy fights the sun's glare in his eyes to absorb his surroundings. There are so many people, and each and every one is seeking something, be it items on the stands or the coins in someone's pocket. Not every exchange was fair; some can hardly even be called exchanges, and a few unlucky ones lost their coins without their knowledge.

Although stuck to the wall because of his weak body, the young observer felt oddly comfortable; the warmth of the sun made the pain slightly fade away. Being able to ease up his focus away from pain endurance, everything became just a little more clear. The various sounds coming to his ears began to make sense and a clear distinction formed between the rattling of coins, chopping of meat, footsteps, and the voices of the people near him.

Although he mainly focused on his visual and auditory inputs, a mixture of various odors forcibly entered his nose. Something sweet, something salty, maybe even spicy, many of these smells made him feel weaker as they pointed out that his stomach was empty. But there were many others that instead caused the immature boy's nose to seek a way to escape.

Even for the boy, it was clear that there was a divide between the people at the stalls and the ones who approached them. It wasn't just about their individual goals at the moment, but also the way they displayed themselves, either by their way of speech, clothes, or simple body movements.

This realization sent a jolt to the boy's mind, he remembered the idea of merchants and common folk. While still unaware of his past, with this information, he quickly understood his standing in society. The rags on him and the weak state of his body were a clear giveaway that he not only isn't anyone important, but there is also no one who can help him.

Observing further, a few people stood out from the crowd, they had various oddities about them. Some even among the merchants appeared to be more impressive, while on the opposite side, some common folk seemed to be even poorer than the majority.

The person in front of the young boy, although it was hard to tell from his back, was someone who resembled a merchant. That man was different from others near him, something about the way he carried his voice was just different. On the left hand, one of his fingers carried an expensive-looking ring, this object as if trying to pull the boy closer glowed with a faint light.

On the other hand, there was a small group of individuals trying to hide themselves in the crowd. Just like the damaged boy himself, they had only rags on their bodies and looked quite weak. Frantically searching for something or anything on the floor that could resemble food, forced the boy to prepare his expectations of his future.

"Get lost, you dirty trash!", yells a tall merchant that is bothered by a certain group of people crawling on the floor.

"Please... Give us some time! We're just so hungry.", begs a red-haired man on his fours.

A conversation not too far away catches the attention of the young boy, which he attempts to copy, "...Hungry, so hungry."

"You're bothering my most valued customers here! Just go die if life is so hard for you!", the tall merchant spits down at the red-haired man.

The small boy continues to copy, "Go die.."

"You damn, bastard!", the red-haired man barely contains his rage.

"Fucking leave!", someone near the tall merchant yells.

"Yeah!", another person supports the last speaker.

"You're bothering us all!", a third individual curses the small group of beggars.

The young boy following the conversation talks to himself, "Leave... why?"

With everyone in the crowd agreeing, they forcibly escort the group of beggars. This sight twists the boy's face to that of pure disgust. Yet he knows there is nothing that he can do, they would just drag the boy with the rest of the beggars.

"HEY!", a loud yell, accompanied by a slam on the table shakes the air near the young boy.

Terrified of the noise, the boy collapses down to the floor. His body flexed and eyes focused on the cause, the boy remains motionless.

"Did you think I wouldn't... huh?", a gravelly voice of a man turns soft as his facial expression shifts.

Both remain motionless while they stare at each other trying to understand the situation. The boy realizes, that the man he is fearing so much now is the merchant that had stood out before.