BAD LOVE - English Version

17. The children's Day, Vicky and this feeling

Anjali's POV

"What is that?"  I asked myself when I approached the courtyard.

Outside the orphanage, tables and chairs were lined up in a row. Food, such as sandwiches, cakes, drinks, plates and cutlery, were to be seen on it. Pretty ribbons were tied to the chairs and each had a colorful balloon flying in the air. But not only that. Nearby I discovered a small stage with a stereo system. A large blanket which was covered with a few pillows was spread  out on the grass in front of it. As I was looking around, someone suddenly put his arm around my shoulder and I was startled for a moment.

"Surprise!"

"Vicky, what are you doing here? I thought you are at work and would show up here later."

I looked at him in confusion. I thought he would have gone to work this morning.

"No, I took the day off." He had a big grin on his face.

"Did you organize all this?"  I asked him, stunned.

"Not everything. The idea came from me but the staff and the sisters helped me with it. Since it is such a nice weather, I thought we could organize a small children's feast outdoors. We're going to eat here and not in this big stuffy room. After lunch,  the tables then become painting and crafting tables and the children can play outside. I also bought new games and toys for them. On the small stage, there will be music playing and later we are going to make a sing and dance contest. In the end the winner will also receive a prize. ..."

Vicky just couldn't stop talking. I would have liked to have said, "Hey, breathe."  but I let him keep talking. I wanted to keep looking at the glow that his eyes radiated with joy. It was only when the children stormed out that I turned my eyes away from him.

"Wow!"  The little Kids were amazed.

"Hey, guys! Look, there's cake, too!"  Little Arjun called.

"Oh, yeah. I got cake, cookies and candy, too. I know you're against of to much sweets but, pleaseee, make an exception only for today."
He begged me with a slightly lowered head, folded hands and pouting mouth.

"Hmm."  I crossed my arms over my chest and gave him a little evil look.

"And what about the last time? I've seen you how you were secretly giving the kids extra chocolate."

He looked at me as if I had caught him in the act.

"You knew it? Sorry."
He apologized and lowered his head even deeper.

Seeing him like this I had to grin and then I couldn't help laughing.

After lunch, I painted and made garlands and windmills with a few children. A smile appeared on my lips as I looked over at the large blanket. The kids climbed on Vicky's back and he played horses with them. I was amazed how quickly they had taken him to heart. Especially the little ones. When they started screaming, he lovingly took them in his arms and like magic they stopped crying.

"We're done, Ms. Anjali!"

"Huh."

I was so fixated on Vicky that I forgot my group.

"You did great. They have become very beautiful."

The children had the idea to decorate the tree, which was growing near the entrance, with their homemade garlands. So I went into the room where the craft things were and grabbed what I needed. A little later I returned with a ladder that was not too big and placed it in front of the tree. Carefully, I climbed the ladder and asked Jimmy to hand me his garland to attach it to the branch. But I couldn't reach the branch, so I climbed another rung. Suddenly I felt dizzy and struggled to stay on the ladder. At that moment I closed my eyes and only thought of the impact I would feel when I hit the ground. But instead of hitting the hard ground, I landed on something softer.