Ember Without Light

"Go on, get lost, before I call the police!"

Nellas's eyes narrowed as his gaze fell upon the scene that was unfolding a few feet away from him.

A woman, in her early thirties, was arguing with a red-haired girl, who was sitting on the ground with her legs crossed, and her head bowed low.

The red-haired girl was wearing rags, which could barely be called clothes, it only covered the bare minimum, leaving her legs exposed.

Her hair was disheveled, and her skin was covered in dirt.

She was clearly homeless.

Looking at her face, she seemed to be around 18-19 years old, and her appearance was quite beautiful.

If not for the fact that her face was covered in dirt and grime, she would have been a real beauty.

However, her expression was sad, her eyes were empty, and her body was shaking.

It was obvious that she was very upset.

But, the woman, who was yelling at her, didn't seem to care.

"I said, get lost!"

The woman was holding a broom in her hands, and she was waving it menacingly at the homeless girl.

'A broom? Seriously?' Nellas thought, watching the scene.

But, the homeless girl didn't move.

She just sat there, silently, her head bowed low, and her shoulders shaking.

"Please, I am hungry. Please, give me food. Just a little." She whispered, her voice was low, and her words were almost inaudible.

But, the woman heard her.

"Are you deaf? I told you, I don't have any food for you. Get lost, don't force me to hit you with my broom."

"The bitch..." Nellas couldn't believe what he was hearing.

Who could treat a homeless person like this?

This woman was horrible.

She was treating the poor girl like an animal, and she didn't even have the decency to give her any food.

It was disgusting.

"Please, at least give me some money," The homeless girl moved her hands and slowly started scanning the ground, searching for something, "Just a few coins, that's all I need."

As she spoke, her hands continued to move across the ground, gradually, getting a hold of a coffee cup, and then slowly placing it in front of her, as if she was trying to beg the woman for money.

The woman frowned, and shook her head, "Look, I don't have any money to spare. So, just get out of here."

"..."

The homeless girl didn't reply, her blank, leafy green eyes continued to stare at the ground, her fingers clutching the empty cup tightly.

Seeing that she wasn't going to leave, the woman grabbed her red hair, and pulled her head back, forcing her to look up.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you." She hissed, glaring down at her, her eyes blazing with anger.

Still, the homeless girl didn't react, her eyes remained lifeless, and her expression unchanged.

'Ah, man, what am I doing?' Nellas sighed, shaking his head.

He couldn't bear the sight of this injustice anymore.

It was unacceptable.

And it was wrong.

He couldn't stand by and watch this woman bully a homeless person.

'I would have just left her alone if she only argued and yelled. But, she has to abuse her, just because she is homeless.'

Nellas felt the anger rising inside of him.

He took a few steps forward and stood beside the woman, who was holding the homeless girl's hair.

"Hey," Nell began, gazing down at the woman, "Let her go."

"What?" The woman glared up at him, her eyes full of anger, "Mind your own business."

"You can't treat a homeless person like this," Nellas replied, his eyes locked onto her, "Let her go."

The woman didn't move.

Instead, she tightened her grip on the homeless girl's hair, causing her to wince in pain.

"You don't know what you're talking about." She spat, glaring at him, "I have the right to refuse to give food to a homeless person."

"Seriously?" Nellas sighed, he raised his hand and grabbed the wrist of the bitch.

"You have no right to bully a poor person. Now, let her go."

The woman's eyes widened, and she tried to free her hand, but Nellas held her wrist tightly.

"Let go of me, you bastard!" She shouted, struggling against his grasp.

But, Nellas didn't release her, instead, he increased the pressure on her wrist.

And the woman's grip on the homeless girl's hair slowly weakened.

"When I say let go, you let go," Nellas repeated, then, he pushed her away, causing her to fall onto her butt, her broom falling on the ground beside her.

The homeless girl was freed, and her head slowly rose, her blank, green eyes staring at Nell's shirt.

"Thank you." She whispered, a faint smile appearing on her face.

Instead of replying, Nellas crouched down in front of her and took hold of her shoulders.

The homeless girl's head slightly turned when she sensed his touch but, it soon returned to its original position, and her eyes shifted to the sound when Nellas started talking.

"Hey, look at me."

The homeless girl blinked, her eyes were looking straight at Nell's face.

'As I thought,' Nellas nodded to himself, confirming his suspicion, 'this girl is blind.'

He didn't know how or why, but it was obvious that the girl was blind.

Her eyes were green, but they didn't have the light of sight in them.

They were dead, lifeless, empty.

"What's your name?" Nellas asked, his gaze never leaving her face.

"E-Ember." The homeless girl answered, her voice was low, and her tone was soft.

"Ember," Nell repeated, "That's a nice name."

Ember's cheeks reddened, and her lips curled upward.

"T-thank you."

Nell smiled, and then he patted her on the head.

"It's nothing." He replied, standing up.

"Now, come with me. We will get something to eat."

Without waiting for a reply, he grabbed Ember's hand and helped her stand.

But before, he could lead her away, Ember grabbed his arm which was holding her, and made him stop.

"W-wait." She stuttered, her fingers squeezing his hand, "What's your name?"

Nell's gaze shifted to the girl beside him.

She was quite shorter than him, her height was around 5'2, her face was round and cute, and her hair was long, reaching to her waist, and it was red, fiery red, the same color as a burning flame.

And her eyes... her eyes were a shade of bright, emerald green.

They were beautiful, yet, at the same time, they were cold and lifeless.

"I'm Nellas. You can call me Nell."

"N-Nell..." Ember's voice trailed off, and her lips formed into a smile, "That's a nice name, too."

"Thanks," Nell laughed, "Now, let's go."

Ember nodded, "Can you help me get my cane from the ground?"

Nell glanced at the ground and saw a black cane lying there.

"Sure."

Nell reached out and picked the cane up.

"Here you go."

Ember extended her arm and felt Nell's hand place the cane in her palm.

She grabbed the handle and leaned her weight on the cane.

"Thank you, Nell."

"You're welcome, Ember."

Nell patted her head, again, and then led her away.

The young woman, who was watching the scene, was furious.

'How dare that bastard treat me like that!?' She thought, gritting her teeth, 'I'm going to tell my husband about this.'

She got up from the ground and walked away while glaring daggers at Nell's back.

'You are so dead, bastard. Just you wait.'