Chapter 3: Alone in the World (fl pov)
The apartment smelled of rice and soap.
A faint, familiar sweet scent one that had slowly become my home over the past six years.
It wasn't a big apartment. Just two rooms, faded walls, and old or abandoned furniture. And yet every corner held a memory; every scratch on the floor was a reminder that we had made it through another day.
Ryo was lying cross-legged on a small mat by the window, a coloring book open in front of him. I had bought it from a roadside stall cheap paper, washed-out colors but he treated it like a treasure. The tip of his little tongue peeked out between his lips, his mind completely absorbed in filling shapes with color.
Sometimes I would stop and just watch him.
I wondered how a six-year-old child could be far more patient than me.
"I brought the grocery bags in from the balcony," I softly, setting them down near the kitchen counter.
Climbing the stairs, the plastic handles had dug into my fingers, and my back ached dully. These days, carrying things had become difficult. Still, I said nothing. Complaining wouldn't make the load any lighter.
As soon as I slid one bag aside, the thin plastic tore.
Rice spilled out, white grains scattering across the worn floor.
"Oh—"
"Careful, Mom!" Ryo shouted immediately.
He jumped up and dropped to his knees, his small hands quickly gathering the rice one grain at a time. He was nimble and focused, as if this were the most important task in the world.
I froze for a moment.
Then I smiled.
Despite the pain in my body, despite the cold and lonely nights in this apartment, he was perfect.
He was my reason to live.
"It's okay," I said gently, sitting beside him. "We'll clean it up later."
But he shook his head seriously. "We have to eat the rice. We shouldn't waste it."
My chest tightened.
"Thank you, little helper," I whispered, brushing a few strands of hair away from his eyes.
He looked at me, his face suddenly uncertain. The playful concentration vanished.
"Mom…" he said hesitantly. "Will we be safe now?"
That question tore through my chest.
Safe.
The word echoed in my mind, heavy and sharp.
I didn't answer right away.
I had left my family because I no longer trusted them. Because something had broken slowly, quietly until staying felt more dangerous than leaving. What they had done, I would only fully understand later. But even then, it wouldn't change the outcome.
I had learned one lesson the hard way:
that the only person I could truly rely on… was myself and ryo.
I placed my hands over Ryo's, stopping his movement. His palms were warm, small, and real.
"We're together," I finally said, choosing my words carefully. "As long as we're together, we'll be okay."
He studied my face, as if searching for a crack in my promise.
Then he nod.
"Okay," he said softly.
I pulled him into my arms, holding him just a little tighter than usual. He smelled of crayons and soap like home. Outside, the city went on cars passed, sounds rose and fell but inside that small apartment, time seemed to stand still.
Maybe alone in the world.
But not truly alone.