A Boy with No Where to Go

The Meeting

Emily was a businesswoman by nature. Ever since she had been a little girl, all she could think about was how to get the kids at school to give her their money. She would often bring treats and sell them at a price or hire kids to make things for her to sell and split the cut. It was no surprise to anyone when she began to get her own business started after she got out of college. While the people around her were getting married, she was making deals and partnerships with other people. Some of her friends had even tried to get her to go out on blind dates or on double dates, but she would always ghost them. She never thought about having any kids. She never really cared for anyone.

One day, while she was rushing to work, it began to rain. "Looks like the forecast was wrong about the weather," she mumbled to herself. Quickly, she dug inside her purse and pulled out her emergency umbrella. She had learned to always bring one with her just in case. Emily quickened her pace in hopes of getting out of the rain quicker. As she watched, something caught her eye in an alleyway. She stopped walking for a second to get a better look at what it was. Then, she gasped. 

A boy sat against one of the walls of the alley. He looked like he was trying to stay dry from the rain, but was failing at it. His body shook as the wind pelted him with more rain. As Emily watched the boy, she could feel something wrench in the pit of her stomach. Her mind told her to continue to walk and that someone would more than likely help him. As she looked around her surroundings to see if there was anyone that would, she lost hope. The only person on that street now were a few couples and some of the elderly. Emily looked down at her watch and saw that she still had some time before she needed to be at work. She looked at the boy and sighed. 

Silently, she walked towards him and held the umbrella over his head. He looked up at her with a dull gaze. His emerald eyes looked lifeless. His brown hair was disheveled and clung to his skin. His worn out jeans and black sweatshirt were doing nothing to prevent the rain from soaking his skin. Geez this kid is worse off than I imagined. Emily thought to herself. He looked down at his feet to get away from the pitying look she was giving him. She got down on one knee and made sure that the umbrella covered both of them. "Are you okay, kid?" she asked. The boy made no response. He simply continued to look down at his pale feet. "Do you have a place to stay? Where are your parents are they nearby?" she continued. 

"My parents are dead," he mumbled. His voice was rough. However, Emily was just glad that she was able to get him to talk. She smiled at him to try and get him to trust her. 

"I'm sorry," she said in a soothing voice. She looked down at his arms and saw how thin they were. "Would you like me to take you somewhere that way you can get a bite to eat?" He shook his head. However, the growl of his stomach made her think he was just trying to be stubborn. "Come on, I'll take you to get some McDonald's. That's what kids like you like to eat, right?" she asked him. He shook his head again, but his stomach only growled louder. Emily sighed and looked back at the time. If she didn't leave soon, she'd be late. Suddenly she had an idea. 

"Take this," she said as she handed him the umbrella. He grabbed onto it and watched as she left. The rain still poured as she ran through the street to the nearest McDonald's she could find. There, she ordered some food for the boy to eat. It took a while for the food to come out. Quickly, she made her way back to the boy and handed him the food. He stared at the food with a hungry gaze. Before he ate, his eyes flicked up to Emily who simply smiled and motioned for him to dig in. 

In mere minutes, all of the food and drink she had bought him was scarfed down. The boy looked satisfied as he leaned his head against the cold wall of the alley. The rain had stopped sometime while he had been eating. Emily took the umbrella back from the boy and shook it out before putting it back in her bag. Suddenly, she got a phone call from her secretary. "Give me a second," she said to the boy. He stared at her as she answered the phone. 

"Hello?" she said into the receiver. 

"Where are you?" a male voice came. Emily glanced down at the boy before replying. 

"I'm...uh...not feeling well," she lied. She began to cough into the receiver. There was silence on the other end of the line. Then, there was an annoyed sigh. 

"Will you be able to come back to work tomorrow?" he asked her. 

"No," Emily told him, "I think I have the flu. I'll be back next week." Emily kept her eyes trained on the boy as she spoke to see if he would get what she was trying to do. The boy just kept giving her a confused look. 

"Well get some rest, I'll see you next week," he said. Emily thanked him and ended the call. The boy's face. He showed no expression. 

"Would you like to come over to my place for the time being?" she asked. He scooted away from her. "What is wrong?"

"I don't trust you," he told her. She sighed and stood (she had been sitting next to him while he had been eating). "Well if you ever need a place to stay my door is open for the week. After that, I'll not be able to take you in. Before I leave," she reached into her purse and handed him a business card. "This has my number on it. If you're ever in an emergency call me." He nodded and looked down at the card. With that settled, Emily walked back to her apartment. She didn't know why she had done so much for that kid, but she felt contempt with herself. 

After she had gotten back to her apartment, she went straight to her room, turned on her tv, and began to relax. Even if that kid doesn't come, at least I'll be able to get a small break from work.