Emily

The little girl did not respond for a while. She hated the name Carl had given her. She thought it was too short and too boring!

"Carl used to call me Gen!" she replied as she bowed her head.

The man laughed and said, "What an ugly name! No offense! Is that really your name?"

"No, not really!" She took a bite of her chocolate bar.

"Who is this Carl by the way? What did he do?"

The little girl started to weep. She was just overwhelmed of the things that happened and she was thinking of how she went through all of it. She now hated the world for bringing misfortunes to her. She never wanted to live in the first place.

When the man realized tears were flowing from her eyes, he rubbed the little girl's back gently, trying to comfort her. "Hey, don't cry. We all had rough times. I'll share you my story okay? I want you to listen. We'll take turns. I'll go first."

The little girl wept her tears and replied, "Okay."

"I was not always like this, you know. I was a well- dressed and well- fed man. I even had a family. I could still remember how happy we were. I had a wife and two kids. I was a nurse in a hospital, and I was well- payed. Everything was okay, you know, until one day... I had an accident. I was hit by a bus walking to work. I was hospitalized for weeks and my family had to take care of me. I went back on my feet, but everything just changed after then. I lost my balanced from a head injury. I had a problem with my memory and I forgot everything I learned about nursing. I was fired one day when I made a prescription to a patient with wrong medicines- it could have killed my patient. So I became jobless. My family eventually had big financial problems. We had problems paying our bills, and everything. I lent money once, in a bank. I was walking from the bank, when I was robbed. All that I had lent, all the money, was stolen. They beaten me to death, luckily a stranger passed by and stopped them. I was bedridden for days, and I couldn't walk. So again, my family took care of me...But... uh- but they..."

The man stopped for a moment. The little girl noticed tears flew from his eyes, and he began sniffing. She rubbed her hand into his shoulder trying to comfort her friend.

"But they grew tired. My wife and my son, left me. All there was left was my daughter- who eventually got tired of taking care of me, and followed her mother. So they all left me. I took care of myself until I could walk. I starved myself, and there were times, I only drink water to fill my stomach. I couldn't pay my own food and I couldn't pay the bills, everything! You know what's worse kid? My house burned down one night when I left a candle burning for a night. It left me devastated. I wasn't even able to save my fine clothes. I was only able to save few, but they sort of ragged. I couldn't apply for any job, I had no suits. My family never came back to check if I was okay nor looked for me. So I ended up here, beside the dumpsters and rats- homeless and hungry."

Thee little girl did not know what to respond. She felt horrible for him. She realized, there were people too that were like her- unfortunate.

"You forgot to mention your name mister!" the little girl said.

The man wept his tears and smiled. "Tom!" he replied. "So what's your story kid? How did you end up in here? Are you homeless too? Where are your parents?" he asked.

The little girl was silent for a moment until she began to speak.

"I had none mister, I was born unwanted and had to be given away by my own mother. I was given to Miss Mary, she had three children, and her husband left her. She treated me poorly as I can remember. She did not gave me a name besides calling me "little brat"- which I knew the meaning very well, and she did not gave me a birth date. Well, she was not my real mother so may be she did not know when I was born. It was that night when she had me to choose between- them or my books. I chose my books for personal reasons and so I became homeless. But I was glad though, because I was finally free from their abuses. And then I met Carl- who dressed me and fed me, and gave me shelter. But unfortunately, he turned out to be a bad guy and so I had to run away from him, because like what I told you, he was going to sell me. So I ended up here! And then I met you, mister Tom!"

The little girl looked at Bob and saw him smiling.

"Was it not a sad story?" she asked.

"It was. I'm sorry, I was just amazed of how you talk. You are very young to talk like that you know," he replied. "And hey! Know the person first before trusting them okay?"

The little girl nodded and gave him a smile. But when she looked at Tom, she noticed he lost his smile. Then Tom began to talk. "You are very young and innocent, yet you had to go through all of those. I'm sorry my friend."

She knew Tom felt sorry for her, and she was sorry for him too.

"I'm sorry too. You're such a nice man, yet you had to suffer all the things you had been through." she said to him.

There was silence for a moment until Tom began to speak. "What did you say your name is?"

"Gen. At least that's what Carl named me," she replied.

"That is a horrible name!" he smirked. "Carl was not really into good names, was he?"

"May be he was not after all!" she said.

Tom grabbed a piece of wrapper from his old dirty bag. He began reading the labels on the wrapper. The little girl immediately noticed him and asked, "What are you doing?"

The little girl waited for Tom to reply but he did not respond and instead, he grabbed something from his bag again. He grabbed a flashlight, and immediately pointed out to what he was reading in order for him to read the words on the wrapper clearly.

"Uh-huh! It's perfect!" he finally spoke.

"What's perfect?" the little girl asked curiously.

The man looked at the little girl and said, "I will name you- Emily!"

The little girl was surprised. She liked the name and she did not expect to be given such a beautiful name.

"Emily- is a beautiful name!" she exclaimed.

"And one thing, you will have your birth date, marked today!" he said while placing the wrapper and the flashlight back into his bag.

"I have a birthday? And it's today?" Emily asked as she raised her eyebrows in gladness.

"Absolutely!" Tom replied. "But I'm sorry we couldn't celebrate it!"

"That's very fine mister Tom! I couldn't believe I have a birthday!"

Emily jumped out of joy. "Thank you mister Tom! Thank you, thank you so much!"

She then gave Tom a tight embrace. "You're welcome!" Tom said as he embraced his new little friend. A tear shed from his eye when he realized he almost forgot how to embrace somebody. He remembered it had been more than 20 years since he made a long conversation with somebody and hugged someone. It was really a nice thing to feel like he was loved. He enjoyed the moment thinking she was his loving daughter, whom he missed so much.

"Mister Tom! Let's have a proper encounter. I'll start first!" Emily said.

"Hi! My name is Emily, and today is my birthday! How about you mister?" she said.

Tom laughed realizing how silly his new friend was! He was so amused by her. He also thought she really loved her new name.

"Hi Emily, I'm Tom! Nice to meet you!"

Emily smiled and replied, "Nice to meet you too!"

Then they laughed together.

The night grew long for the two of them as they were laughing and sharing their sad and happy stories. In the middle of their talking and laughing, Emily had fallen asleep on the shoulder of Tom. So Tom had to carry her into her bed made of boxes. He watched Emily sleeping as he was reminiscing the memories of his loved ones who left him alone. He pulled out a blanket from his bag and lie down on the laid card boards beside Emily's box. The night was cold, and dogs were barking loudly.

In the middle of the night, he gave his blanket to his little friend who needed it the most- who he noticed was getting so cold. He had never done that thing before. He also had not felt like a father for a very long time, until now.

But he kept telling himself, he must not oblige, and that he only helped the little girl to have something to lie down to, and there's nothing more he could do! He was ready to be a father again, not because he did not want to, but because he was afraid he forgot how to be. He forgot how to be a nurse, and now, he thought he also forgot how to be a father.

When the dawn came, Tom woke up and packed his things and was ready to left Emily alone. He starred at the little girl for a while. "I'm sorry Emily!" he uttered then left.

But it was not long after, Emily had awoken from several bites of ants on her feet.

"Ouch! Ants!" she exclaimed and immediately got out from the box. She noticed Tom wasn't there! Even his old dirty bag and the card boards he slept on! She tried to look for him in the alley but he was nowhere to be found.

"Tom! Where are you?" she cried out.

She then saw the wrapper Tom was reading last night at alley entrance. She then thought Tom must had left her alone when she was sleeping!

She grabbed her bag and ran into the streets.

"Tom! Tom! Please don't leave me. I'm scared," she cried out loud while she was running.

She met a lady who was walking into the opposite direction she was going. She stopped her and asked, "Have you seen a man with an old dirty bag? He is tall and his hair is white... A homeless man perhaps?"

"Are you lost dear?" the lady asked.

"Please I'm in a hurry. Have you seen him?" she said.

The lady thought for a second and replied, "Oh. I think a man who fits your description, had asked me earlier for direction. Is he new here?"

"To where?" Emily asked.

"Bus stop at the next corner- to the left," the lady replied.

"He's not new, he had memory problems, thank you lady. Bye!" Emily said as she ran away from the lady.

When she reached the next corner, she then tried to catch her breath. She saw the bus stop sign and looked for Tom. She finally found Tom lining up to get into the bus.

"Tom wait!" she called out.

"Emily? How did you find me?" Tom asked curiously.

Emily took a deep breath and asked, "Are you going to leave me? Alone?"

Tom replied, "But I'm done helping you. You asked for something to slept on! And I made you one!" You didn't like it?"

Emily started to cry. She thought Tom would really leave her.

"It's not that mister Tom... Did I do something wrong? I'm sorry if I did. Please mister Tom, I want to go with you. I don't want to be alone! Am I a bad kid?" Emily cried.

Tom began to shed tears. "You are a good kid Emily and you did nothing wrong, but you can't come with me."

"Why not? Am I a bother? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. Please mister Tom, let me come with you. I can look for money for you or food to eat. Please don't leave me, I'm scared."

Emily had never been so emotionally fragile before. She begged Tom to let her come with him. Tom was just so confused of what to do.

"I'm sorry, I forgot what it is like to be a father," Tom said.

"Is that why you decided to leave me? But mister Tom, I am independent. I only want a companion.. since, you don't want to be my guardian."

Tom nodded and replied, "What if you will get hurt? I can't raise you, I have no money. You will be hungry with me."

Emily wept her tears and said, "I had been through maltreatment, mister Tom, and I managed to bear all of it! I had eaten scraps of food from my step- siblings and step- mother. I was grabbed by the hair, and to be honest mister Tom, it did hurt but I never complained about the pain. I had escaped through a window and had to walk on the ledges. And to be honest mister Tom, I thought I was going to fall and die at that time, but I was persistent, cause I wanted to live even though sometimes, I wished I was never been born at all. So you see mister Tom, I had been hungry, cold and haunted for many times... but I survived all of it! I did even though sometimes, I wished I just did not. Is it really my fault I was born by mistake? Unwanted and unloved? "

She began to kneel down and continued, "So please I beg of you, don't leave me behind. I'm so scared. I never thought the world would be cruel to me." Then Emily shed more tears.

"Sssshhhh. Don't cry Emily. Everything is going to be all right! Please stand." He grabbed the little girl's hand and helped her to stand. He wiped her tears on her face with his old hands and caressed her hair.

"There you go. You are such a beautiful girl. Now don't cry, okay? You can come with me. I'm not going to leave you here alone and like this. Now stop crying, you are making me cry too."

Emily smiled and hugged him tight. "Thank you mister Tom!"

"Now where are we going?" she exclaimed.

Tom smiled and grabbed her hand. "A nearby city!"

They happily rode the second bus, because the first one left them. Emily was excited for it was her first time to ride a bus. She realized she trusted a good man. And yes, Tom was a good man!