Trust Fall

Part 2

Even though I told my mom that I'm going to Grayson's, I could never go to see him after what he did today. I walked towards Seven Eleven as I hear stores pulling down their metal roller gate, and the locking their doors with a key. I hear the shopkeeper looking through their chain of keys and mumbling, "Nope" "Not this one" "Should be that one" "Found it" Suddenly, the shopkeeper's phone rang, and he scoffed and answered, "Hello?"
    He puts the key inside the keyhole.
    "Yes, yes. I'm closing the store"
    He twists the key.
    "I'll be home in 30 mins."
    He stops and rests his hand on the door.
    "Hey slugger! Papa will be home in 30 mins and we can play hide and seek again!"
    He takes the key out.
    "See you later slugger!"
    He walks away.

    I almost walked in Seven Eleven, and buy my typical dinner, cup noodles. I fill the cup with hot water and put my phone on top of the cover to trap the heat in. I look around, and see 2 young children with their mom. The boy goes, "Mommy I want this pack of maltesers!" The girl goes, "Mommy can I have this pack of gum?" The mom's clothes are ragged and dirty, and she is carrying both her children's school bags on her back, looking utterly exhausted. She anxiously looks at the price tags and mutters to her children, "I'm sorry sweeties, I can't afford it, next time, next time." She hides back her tears as I listen to her take  a deep breath and hide her ashamed face. I can't help but feel sympathy for her, as I stare at her rueful face. A tear of sadness comes down her face as she wipes it off with her sleeve. A look of sadness appears on the boy and girl's face, a look of dismay that pierces through the mother's heart like a knife.
    I look away, and continue eating my noodles, as the 3 of them leave the store. After I finish eating my noodles, I walk out of Seven Eleven, and onto the main street of Sham Shui Po. I hear the honking of the cars, the beeping of the traffic lights, the chattering of pedestrians. But I still feel lonely, even with countless people around me. Suddenly, something catches my eye. A woman with a 5 year old son, selling tofu.
    "Mommy, can we go home now? I'm sleepy", the boy begged her mom with innocent eyes. The mom looks around, worried, probably looking for customers. "Just wait a bit more, I know you're tired." She continues to look around, and shouts, "Tofu! Cheap and Delicious!", with an anxious tone.
    I don't know if it is an instinct, or kismet, but I walk towards the store, and ask, "Hi, can I...have some tofu please?" She looks up to me with the most genuine smile, the one smile you can't buy even if you're a billionaire. Suddenly, I felt fulfilled, knowing that I helped someone. The little boy looked at me with innocent eyes, and shined his most adorable smile. I didn't even like tofu, but it was the action that mattered. I sprinkled the sugar on top and scooped up a bit, it tasted scrumptious.