The Blind Boy | on hold

04 | through his eyes

kane | atalanta

I wake to the sound of Mum's soothing voice, her small hands shaking me gently, waking me up softly. "Kane? Honey get up, you have to go to school."

I groan and roll over, opening my eyes and seeing the familiar darkness. I get up too quickly and almost fall off the bed because of my carelessness.

"Whoa, watch out!" Mum scolds me, exhaling lightly. I nod and get up from bed, feeling quite disoriented. Thankfully, I know where everything is now so I don't need her help to navigate.

I hear her footsteps leave quietly, the floor creaking ever so slightly, the small breaths escaping her mouth. I can hear the curtains rustling ever so slightly, and the wind gently entering my room.

I move slowly to the corner of the room and collapse onto a chair and wake myself up. I can't do anything if I'm not fully awake. I close my eyes, before shaking my head and prying them open when I feel sleep trying to take over.

When I'm finally fully awake, my senses feel brighter so I walk in the direction of the bathroom door. I grip the handle tightly, before closing it shut behind me.

I do my business and hold onto the sink, turning it on. I wait a while before washing my face and brushing my teeth. I run my hand through my hair hoping it looks presentable enough so that Atalanta will be impressed.

Wait, what?!

No, not so that she'll be impressed. So that Mum will be impressed. Yes. Definitley.

I get out of the bathroom when I start feeling a bit claustrophobic, imagining images of her in my brain.

Once again, I wonder about her.

I bet she's stunning, to fit her beautiful voice. But what colour would her eyes be? Blue? Green? Brown? And her hair? Long or short? Curly or straight or wavy? What about the colour?

All I ever do is wonder. It's a sad life, but you can't change it. You just have to learn to live with your flaws. For me, that's slightly difficult but I'm getting there.

•

It's almost impossible to do anything at school. Not because of my unfortunate blindness, but due to my other problem

If I were any regular blind boy, maybe with time I'd be able to learn how to write properly and stuff, but no, I just happen to be diagnosed with ADHD too.

I can't sit still. I don't know why. I need to be doing something, not just sit there in darkness. The only time when I actually feel at peace is when I'm playing the piano.

Music is weird for me. I mean, I couldn't learn how to write but I learnt how to play the piano? I'm not sure how that happened.

I just remember that one day, Mum told me that the piano was her favourite instrument. She always wanted to learn it in highschool, but then she had me and was compelled to drop out for a while until she got settled.

Naturally I felt guilty because, due to my birth, Mum wasn't able to pursue her dream. I don't know how I did it, I just worked so hard, learning the keys, that one day I sat at the piano, put my hands on it and played.

And it worked.

❁

The first thing I hear when I exit class, is her.

"Hey, Kane!" Atalanta's swoon-worthy voice says, and I turn in her direction.

The worst part about being blind - other than being blind - is that my other senses are even more alive. I can hear the most minute details, the other kid's trainers squeaking across the polished floor, the whispers, and noises I could live without hearing.

"Yes?" I say, readjusting my black shades across my eyes.

"Uh, so you know how you asked me to collect songs? Well, I did, but then I showed them to Mr Lykos and he said that he already had a song chosen for us to sing and we have to sing that."

Ugh, I could listen to her all day. I should probably pay attention to what she's saying.

"Okay. So I'll meet you after school?" I ask quietly, tapping my feet nervously. I need to get away from here before I burst into tears.

"Okay." She replies back just as quietly, and I nod, spin on my heel and head into the toilet, and lock myself in a cubicle.

I start crying. Quietly, though. I've never been like this before. I have never had this overwhelming desire to just open my eyes and see before.

But now I do. I just want to see her. Even for a second. I just want to see her. Even if she doesn't turn out to be what I expect.

I just want to see her.

But...what about our saviour?

My saviour. I wish I had a better name to call her but unfortunately, I don't. My first day of school, I was beaten up by some jerks. It was horrible. I was ready to give up. I thought I'd lay there forever, wanting to call for help but afraid to do so.

And then a girl came. She helped me up. It amazes me that people with kind hearts still exist to this day. the world is cruel. But somehow, a rare nice girl helped me out. And I've liked her ever since, without actually knowing her name.

Now there's Atalanta. How can I like both?

thanks so much to my bestie xxBruhItzMehxx for making amazing covers for all my books! i hope i get to use them :)