My short stories

The stranger of the shadows

"Those who have seen the bad know it well. Those who haven't just pretend..." ~Rose4eva789

~~~

Deep within the dark alleys of Burmina, there lived a simple young man without a true home. When one fateful day robbed everything from his life, his lover, his child, his home, he was forced to take refuge in the streets, in the warm embrace of darkness, his new home.

Of course, there were always people who noticed him. Walking straight on without a second look, whispering to the friends they were with, things like "what a failure," "He brought it on himself," and "I'll bet he brought disgrace to his family."

The sad thing was, it was all true to him. He did fail his family, he failed to save them. He did bring it upon himself, he wasn't there in time to save them. He did disgrace his family, they didn't support him when he told them what happened, calling him "bad luck".

That was his story, until one day when he noticed someone trying to steal a lady's purse. The poor lady was screaming for help yet no one dared to come closer to the thief, in fear of being attacked themselves.

He knew what it was like to lose important things, so without a second thought, he covered his face with his hood and a mask and came to her rescue. He fought off the criminal until they became unconscious. He turned back to the trembling lady, returning her purse, and began to return to the alleyways.

However, he was stopped by the lady, who held onto his wrist and said "Thank you, kind sir. Please is there anything I can do to repay you?"
The man chuckled, saying, "I am beyond being able to accept anything from anyone. I came to help, that is all, and now I will return to my home."
"The alleys?" She asked in a worried tone.
"One gets used to them," he shrugged then proceeded to leave, this time managing to not get stopped.

Now rumours go around about 'the stranger of the shadows'. There had been many times when he came to save another in distress. Many times where he refused any kind of reward, claiming he was undeserving of it. Until one day the same lady he had saved a while ago had returned, desperate to find him. When she did, she refused to listen to any of his words against himself and brought him home, "from one broken soul to another, allow me to give you a shelter" she had said, and wouldn't take no for an answer.

How stubborn, he had thought, and how kind... smiling for the first time in years...