The Fountain Girl

Chapter 2

The girl had wet, brown hair and crystal-clear blue eyes. The single blue bow in her hair brought out her eyes, the single simple yet effective way of bringing out her beauty. She was grasping my leg with her small fingers and murmuring softly, "Bad man, bad man, bad man..." She couldn't have been older than three.

I turned around to face her, and knelt down. "Are you okay, little girl?" I asked her in a calm and relaxing tone. She nodded her head, and ran forward into my bosom, stretching her little arms around my chest. I let her calm down and pull away from the embrace before asking her, "You know where your parents are?"

She shook her head.

"What about someone that takes care of you? Uncle? Aunty? Grandpa? Grandma?"

She shook her head again. Maybe she didn't understand me.

I glanced around for people that might be looking for, I don't know, a little girl perhaps. But everyone seemed to be minding their own business.

She stretched her hands outwards towards me, like she wanted me to carry her. "Ah, fine."

I started walking out of the park and toward my house, with the girl on my back. I would consult my parents when I got there. Meanwhile, I tried to understand more about her. "So... What's your name?"

"An...Anna..." She fumbled with the words, like she had just learnt to say her name. I also wanted to ask her how she had come to the fountain, and many more questions, but I wondered if such a young girl could possible comprehend such a complex question. I tried basic questions.

"Anna, what do you like to do?" I asked her.

"Draw..."

"I like to draw too! We could become best buddies!" I exclaimed. She giggled and I laughed too.

The sky was pitch black and scattered with stars when I had come to my house. I stepped on the plywood porch and knocked softly on the door. No one answered the door. I did it again, but louder. Finally, my older and obnoxious brother, James, flung the door open and held the door open for me. "Thank you," I said. Him holding the door for me was probably one of the kindest things he had ever done for me.

But this was too good to be true. James and flung his fist against the front of my head the moment I stepped through the door, forcing me to stumble back outside. I almost fell on my back, but then I would have crushed Anna below my weight. And James hadn't seen Anna clinging to my back yet.

I willed for the top half of my body to fall forward instead of back, so that I would be landing on my stomach instead of my back. I felt like I had crushed every single rib in my chest. I groaned as I tried to get up, but to no avail. I presumed that Anna was sitting upright on my back. She gasped and her voice sounded genuinely concerned for me, "Okay? Okay?" She asked.

"I'm... I'm fine..." I lied.

I looked up at James, still leaning on the door in the doorway, his mouth agape as he looked at the young girl sitting on my back, probably scowling at him.