AMACon 3: Oikos - Children

Eros - Chapter One

WRITTEN BY:

Forever_Rimaine

(this is a prequel to Agape from the Home compilation)

MARCH 1981

Richard walked quickly out of the school yard and into the pebbly dirt road leading to the Church of the Holy Trinity. His hands were filled with warm loaves of freshly baked bread, donated by the bakery right beside his school. He takes the freshly baked bread after school to the orphanage everyday, a charity pledge of the bakery for continued good business. Today he also bought two sugared doughnuts, hoping to share them with Sister Charmaine.

Sister Charmaine with the golden tawny eyes fringed by long, thick eyelashes, the winsome smile and a stubborn cleft on her chin. She was an angelic, serene presence in the orphanage for kids abandoned by their families and deposited at the orphanage doorstep, sometimes in the dead of night.

Richard met Charmaine during the Harvest Festival, when she was not yet a novice. Then, she had long wavy hair, her slim body clad in a simple white dress. He asked to dance with her and she laughed, because he was only ten then, while she was already fourteen. But sweet girl that she was, she indulged him.

Since then, they became good friends. She entered the convent with a sincere desire to be a bride of Christ, to serve the sick and the needy, the poor. She was now a novitiate focusing on community work, assigned to this orphanage to teach catechism to the children here, and to be a temporary mother to them.

Throughout this journey, Richard was a dear friend to her. He was four years younger but he offered her friendship and support, with his old soul wisdom that surprised her sometimes. It was a beautiful friendship, Richard felt the stirrings of puppy love for Sister Charmaine, the pure innocent love of a child that didn't expect anything in return. He was happy enough just to see her everyday.

It was half past three in the afternoon, the road was empty and quiet. Impatiently, he trudged along the road, passing a canopy of trees with its branches forming an arc of shade above him. The sun was still shining brightly but a gentle breeze was blowing. From a distance, dogs were barking. He finally saw the church steeple and quickened his pace all the more, eager to see Sister Charmaine. He promised to help with taking care of the kids at the orphanage, at least until it was time for the angelus.

At last, he arrived at his destination. As he enters the church grounds, he takes out his handkerchief and mops it over his face and neck. He takes out a small bottle of cologne and splashes it over his neck and arms, and straightens the collar of his school uniform.

At twelve, Richard Faulkerson Jr. was slowly turning into a heartbreaker, inheriting the height and other Caucasian features of his father's side. He had dark brown hair and chocolate brown eyes with thick lashes women would die for. His fair skin and lean body were a frustration, he would have wanted to be darker-skinned and more muscular, he wanted to grow up quickly for Sister Charmaine.

She sees him and her eyes light up, making Richard catch his breath. Sometimes, he dreams that they were of the same age, that they would grow up together and he would marry her someday. But his pure heart is accepting of his fate, he understands her vocation. He is as spiritual as she is, and believes that God has plans for him, different from Sister Charmaine's path. She taught him that belief, that the Lord has a path, a special plan of each and every one of his creations.