Maily and Naily were having lunch together in the school cafeteria when a figure passed by, none other than Shinta, clutching a plastic container.
Shinta made his way to a lone plastic chair, settling there despite the cafeteria tables being only partially occupied. He deliberately chose to sit apart, a silent acknowledgment of the invisible barrier that separated him from the other students.
Everyone seemed to avoid him, their gazes lingering with a mixture of pity and disdain. Naily noticed him eating his humble meal of rice and dried salted fish. A wave of whispers rippled through the cafeteria, laced with cruel judgments about him being a "disgrace to the school" and questioning whether "such an existence" even belonged there. All eyes were fixed on Shinta.
Naily, her temper flaring at the venomous whispers, slammed her hands on the table, the resounding crash silencing the cafeteria. She pointed a finger directly at Shinta. "Hey, you! Come here." Her voice brooked no argument.
Maily was stunned. Her sister never wants anyone near her, not even family, she thought, bewildered. She turned to see who Naily had summoned. Shinta, looking hesitant and anxious, glanced up from his lunch, his eyes questioning what would happen next.
Seeing Shinta's appearance and the situation he was in, Maily finally understood her sister's reaction. A flood of memories washed over her, taking her back ten years.
She and her sister were being hunted by the guards of the Pascua family, their own family. Their parents had been murdered because of their family name. The two girls had overheard the deadly plan and fled to warn their parents, but they were too late.
They ran until they reached an abandoned bridge, where they collapsed. A boy was there, living beneath the bridge. When they awoke, they were lying on a makeshift bed of cardboard.
The boy they had seen before they passed out was asleep in a corner, sitting upright. A small campfire crackled in front of them, undoubtedly lit by the boy, because Naily was burning with fever, and her leg looked injured. Maily decided to wait and see.
Maily's mind drifted back to their once-wonderful life as princesses, a life now shattered by their own blood relatives.
She and her sister were children who didn't have any idea of what's happening, why they did it, what's the reason of all events happening right now. All she knew was that who's behind the death of there parents. But as a child like them, with no power at all they can't do anything by themselves.
Morning arrived, and the three children stirred. Naily, disoriented, could only call out for her sister. Maily greeted her gently. Naily, still confused, didn't notice the boy cooking dried fish for their breakfast. When she finally saw him, she instinctively hid behind her sister.
But the boy smiled, introducing himself as Inta and asking her name. Naily, her stomach growling, shyly introduced herself. The breakfast wasn't much, but they had no choice but to eat and survive.
Days turned into weeks, and they grew accustomed to life under the bridge. One day, while they were washing their clothes, some stray dogs appeared, sniffing around. The girls, terrified, scrambled behind their makeshift wall of cardboard and plastic.
The dogs, drawn by their scent, quickly found them. The girls screamed for help, desperately wielding a tattered sofa cushion they had found.
Shinta, hearing their cries, raced back to their makeshift home, two sticks clutched in his hands. He fearlessly fought off the dog, which was nearly his size.
A few minutes later, the sisters heard a dog's howl. They rushed out to find the dog lying on the ground, with the boy beside it. Both girls, tears streaming down their faces, ran to Inta to check on him.