It was on a beautiful night, cradled by the stars and a full moon, that a family was celebrating a joyful event. A pretty cake sat on a table, illuminated by the candles that cast a lovely yellow glow.
"Happy birthday, Logan!" said a woman with beautiful brown hair as the young boy blew out the candles.
"Thank you, Mom, Dad, and you, big sister!" the young boy cheerfully replied.
This boy had beautiful caramel-colored skin and silky black hair with a very particular streak. His eyes displayed a color that no one else had, making him a unique child, with a magnificent iris of red. As he savored the cake his mother had made, crumbs stuck to his cheeks. But this sweet family moment wasn't over yet, for a young girl with long, beautiful black hair brought over a mysterious box.
"We have a lovely little gift for you," she said as she placed the box on the table and gently wiped away the cake crumbs from his face.
In front of him now sat a pretty box with a ribbon and tiny holes. Impatient and curious, he opened the box. What he discovered made him smile with happiness, for inside lay a lovely little creature, fast asleep. It was a tiny kitten with fur as white as snow, eyes closed, sleeping peacefully.
"I bought it for you, with Mom and Dad's help," the young woman tenderly declared.
"You're the best, thank you!" he said as he hugged them tightly.
Then he carefully took the kitten out of the box before lifting it into the air, and at that moment, the kitten gently opened its eyes, Logan's happy face reflecting in them.
"I'm going to call you Shiro, because you have such pretty white fur."
This is how that beautiful birthday evening ended for the young child, filled with love and happiness, along with a new member of the family.
Shiro and the young boy then began to spend all their time together as if they were brothers.
They played together, slept together, ate together all day long the two of them never left each other's side.
When Logan was doing his homework and not playing with him, Shiro would come rub against him or jump onto the table before lying down without disturbing him. And Logan would always pause for a moment to gently stroke him.
His sister would sometimes come by to see if he needed help, but it was always unnecessary, because Logan never had any difficulties. He was a true little genius, gifted in every subject, especially Math, but also in sports. So much so that his sister Saori would even sigh at not being able to help him, not even a little.
"It's really frustrating, you know, you never need any help. How am I supposed to play my role as the big sister?" she sighed.
"You already play it wonderfully, big sister. Don't be so upset, and besides, it lets me brag to Mom and Dad," he laughed, teasing her.
"You little bratty genius," she said, ruffling his hair.
And they often kept on playfully bickering, laughing and talking for hours about everything and nothing, and each of those moments was a true blessing.
Because after all, it had not always been this way.
POV Logan
Every moment spent with my family was pure happiness, because things hadn't always been like that. The truth is, my mother, my father and my big sister are not related to me by blood, because I have been an orphan since birth. I was abandoned on the platform of a train station before being taken in by a priest, one of the only things left with me being a piece of paper with my name on it.
So I spent my life in an orphanage, and it was not always easy. Because I was born with a very rare physical trait eyes of a red color. Apparently this was due to a genetic modification, and I never understood why this made people so reluctant to adopt me. I kept asking myself the same question over and over again:
"Are red eyes really that ugly?"
My eyes later earned me a nickname among the other orphans: the demon. Everyone knows children can be very cruel to one another, and of course, this never stopped hurting me.
"I don't want to play with you, your eyes scare me."
"Go play somewhere else, demon."
"I'm sure you'll grow horns and a tail."
So many things that made me start to hate my eyes that made me so unique; I didn't want them anymore.
I even wished I could rip them out so I wouldn't have to endure everything the other children put me through.
But of course, it wasn't just them.
There were also the parents who came to adopt a child.
They always threw me those looks mixing several emotions: surprise, curiosity, fear, disgust, and a whole bunch of other feelings.
"Oh, there's no way I'm adopting that child, his eyes are disgusting."
"He scares me, let's take one with normal eyes."
"He looks like a little devil."
They, who were adults, behaved just like children, never thinking for a second that their words could hurt me. I often stopped eating, even stopped sleeping, and I often cried in every corner of the orphanage where no one would see me.
But only one man always found me: the priest who had taken me in, always cheering me up.
He would often repeat this sentence to me:
"You know, Logan, the Lord does not make us endure trials we cannot bear. Otherwise, how would He be a loving father? Believe me, one day you'll find a family and you'll accept yourself." he said, gently stroking my head.
And his words full of comfort and hope turned out to be true when I turned eight.
"Oh, Mom, look, he's so handsome!" declared a young girl with a joyful expression.
"What's your name?"
"Lo...Logan," I replied, a little surprised.
And that was perfectly normal, because no parent had ever spoken to me in such a jovial and kind way.
"Oh, and he's shy too," added a man with a smile.
"So?" asked the enthusiastic young girl, looking at the one who seemed to be her mother.
"He's a handsome little boy, we're going to adopt him," she replied, looking at me.
"Very well, come this way to sign the papers," agreed the priest, giving me a smile.
They quickly signed the papers, and then it was already time to leave; everything had been settled so fast. It all felt far too sudden, but above all unreal. After all, who would want to adopt a demon like me with such repulsive eyes? I think I had been hurt so much by all those words, sharp as daggers, that I had ended up believing them and belittling myself.
A question then tormented my mind so much that it finally burned my lips:
"Doesn't it bother you or disgust you, my red eyes?"
When I finally asked the question, I hung on their lips, my heart pounding as I waited for their answer, and at last, they gave me a smile.
"Why would that bother us? You're a very handsome boy, and you're going to be part of our family now," the mother declared softly.
Then the one who would become my big sister, Saori, came closer to me and crouched down to my level before speaking these words:
"I think your eyes are beautiful."
My heart tightened it tightened so much it hurt, yet strangely, the pain was also pleasant.
Tears then flowed on their own, and I felt a gentle warmth caress my cheek as Saori tenderly stroked my face.
Until now, I had only ever received mockery, disgust, and silly nicknames.
Even if it might sound childish, it always hurt me, but that day, I had finally found a family.
"Thank you!" I said, eyes wet.
I then wiped my tears, said goodbye to the sisters and the pastor, and grabbed Saori's hand to join my new family.
I then adapted to this new life, and like any normal child, I now had to go to school. I was really apprehensive about being surrounded by classmates, of course, once again because of my eyes.
My sister had dropped me off in front of the gate and had noticed my very visible stress.
"What are you afraid of, little brother?"
"My eyes."
"I already told you, they're beautiful."
"Yes, but not everyone thinks so. Some people are mean and like to hurt others."
Saori seemed surprised by my comment, but she quickly replied with a smile.
"Little brother, it's true, not everyone in this world is kind. You'll probably still face a lot of teasing, and some people will look at you strangely. But the most important thing is that you accept yourself and your differences," she said, smiling.
"And what if I can't?"
"Can you be strong for me then?"
"Yes."
"Go on now." She gently pushed me toward the entrance.
Once inside, I walked through the school corridors before reaching the classroom where the teacher was apparently waiting for me.
"Logan, right? All your classmates are inside, you're going to go in and introduce yourself, okay?"
"Yes, sir."
The teacher opened the door of the classroom, and the room, which had been a little noisy, fell silent; everyone stopped talking.
"Alright, today you have a new classmate, be nice to him," declared the teacher.
With a knot in my stomach, I walked in timidly and stood before all the students, my heart beating faster than usual.
"My name is Logan, I'm 8 years old, thank you for welcoming me."
There were small whispers here and there in the room before the teacher designated my seat:
"Go sit next to Ambre," said the teacher, putting an end to the conversations.
I walked toward my seat with my head lowered and sat down, and instantly I heard a voice:
"Hey, do you want to eat with me at recess?" asked a young girl sitting to my right.
I lifted my head and our eyes met.
A beautiful young girl was facing me, our gazes locked in each other's eyes.
"You... you have red eyes..."
She seemed very surprised, and I instinctively looked away.
"You know, I think it's cool."
Surprised, I looked back up, unable to control my face turning slightly red.
"Th...thank you."
"My name is Maïli," she said with a smile.
"Alright, open page 1 of your textbook," asked the teacher while we kept talking.
"You didn't answer me," Maïli whispered with a little smile.
"Yes, I want to eat with you at recess," I replied happily.
That's how a new life began for me, and the years started to pass by.
Finally, a new life... I was still far from imagining what awaited me.
6 years later.
I had made a small circle of friends when I started elementary and middle school, including my best friend Maïli, a cheerful and kind girl. My mother and father traveled a lot for business trips because they owned a pharmaceutical company, and we lacked for nothing.
At that time, they had gone to America; it had now been 5 days, and they were supposed to return tomorrow evening, according to what they had said. In the meantime, Saori was taking care of me as usual, taking time off work.
Saori had left home a few years earlier to live independently; she was now 26 years old. My parents, being entrepreneurs with a very successful company worth millions of dollars, made sure we lacked nothing. But my sister wasn't interested in the company; she wanted to earn and build her life on her own without anyone's help. Still, we always remained close, and she very often came by the house, always greeted by Shiro who would tenderly rub against her.
She currently worked in personal care, assisting elderly and sick people. That was just like my sister a loving person who had also taken care of me and who now took care of others. She seemed very fulfilled, and my parents were proud of her no matter what path she had chosen.
While we were quietly playing on our console, the house phone rang.
She got up to calmly answer it while I was trying to cheat a little to beat her.
A piercing sound then alarmed me as I saw Saori collapse on the floor in tears.
Instinctively, I immediately rushed toward her.
"Big sister, are you okay?!"
She looked me straight in the eyes, and I could already guess that it was serious.
"Listen... Mom and Dad had an accident... they... they're dead..."
I took a few seconds to understand before breaking down in tears and collapsing in turn.
Comforted by my sister, who held me as tightly as she could in her arms, both of us sobbing uncontrollably, trying to ease the pain.
Their plane had suffered an engine failure mid-flight, which caused the crash of their aircraft into the sea. Their lifeless bodies were recovered a few hours later by the rescue teams.
Once the funeral was overdrenched in tears, pain, and mourning what we thought would be the hardest part was, in reality, only the beginning. The company our parents had built was taken away from us by the board of directors, who argued that my sister had not participated in the business because she wanted to lead her own life. All their accounts were also frozen without any valid reason. My sister filed a lawsuit, but even though everything was in our favor, we lost the case.
After that, lacking any means, we were evicted from our luxurious house, and I had to move into my sister's small apartment. At first, everything was fine, but I was about to enter a prestigious high school, and the cost was high. My sister absolutely insisted that I continue, so to take care of me she took on multiple jobs until it wrecked her health. She literally became a slave, and even...
One day, I came home early from school. Upon entering the house, I noticed several pairs of shoes. Hearing strange noises, I headed toward my sister's room. Horrified, my heart pounding out of my chest, I saw her lying on the bed laid out like a rag doll while several men, including one of my middle school friends, were taking advantage of her. That's when I exploded with rage:
"Get out! Get out!"
"Oh, come on, Logan, join in and enjoy her. After all, she's not even your real sister," my classmate laughed.
"Shawn!"
I struck him with all my strength, sending him sprawling backward, his nose bleeding. But then the men shoved me aside and began beating me violently, until my sister herself intervened.
"Leave him! Leave him!" she begged through tears as I was being pummeled.
After endless minutes of being mercilessly beaten, they got dressed, looking at us with satisfaction before leaving the room.
"We'll see you soon, little whore!"
I stood up, my sister looking at me with all the pain in the world, while my face was covered in bruises from the blows. Our eyes met for a moment, but instead of continuing to look at her and then going to comfort her, for the first time, I turned my gaze away from my sister. I saw her as dirty and disgusting. And I left, leaving her there, sitting on the floor, a simple sheet covering her.
But the choice I made that day, turning my eyes away, denying my own sister even for an instant, would become one of the greatest mistakes of my life.
The next day, the only thing awaiting me was horror the horror of losing what I cherished most in this world. I screamed, I burst into tears, grief preventing me from standing as I stared at my sister's body hanging from the ceiling.
"This can't be real..."
Suddenly, an uncontrollable and dreadful wave of nausea overwhelmed me, causing excruciating suffering. My guts twisted in painful spasms, and I was forced to violently empty the contents of my stomach. Every muscle in my body seemed to rebel, trying desperately to rid itself of the devouring sensation that had invaded me.
"Saori... no... What... what have I done..."
After a long moment, I finally managed, with great difficulty, to take her lifeless body down and held her in my arms, sobbing as the rays of the sun illuminated her once beautiful, now pale, face.
The warmth of her body that had comforted me so many times was gone, irrefutable proof that she no longer belonged to this world. That day I learned that sometimes we believe we know the worst, but the worst is always yet to come and even in the worst, there is always something worse still.
At her grave, tears brimming in my eyes, I remembered the memories of my sister, of who she was. A selfless, kind, and loving person who cared for others but above all, who had always taken care of me. So I solemnly swore to become a better person, to help those in need and, this time, to never look away.
"I promise you, big sister!"
Four years later.
The years flew by; I had to fend for myself during my high school years. I had discovered that my sister had saved money for my university, on top of having already paid for my entire year of high school. This made me feel even more pathetic and guilt-ridden as a brother, the shame weighing heavily on my heart and mind. I withdrew from others, focusing solely on my studies, and I also took a job after school because the rent still had to be paid.
Maïli had offered several times for me to live with her and her parents, but I didn't want to take advantage of my most loyal friend. Coming home, I opened the door to find a notice posted on it: Eviction notice 3 months late on rent.
I put down my school things and took out the little fresh milk I had left in the fridge.
"Don't mind if it's half empty, I don't have much money."
"Miaow."
I poured the milk into his bowl, which I then placed on the floor as he rubbed tenderly against me before drinking, as if to comfort me.
"It's good, isn't it, Shiro," I said, petting him as he lapped up his milk.
Afterwards, I took a shower and had a light snack before putting on my work uniform.
"Alright, I'm off, Shiro. I have to go to work now. See you later."
I walked the streets for about ten minutes, arriving at the store where I worked as a cashier.
"Come on, Logan, go set up your register, you're a little late," said my boss.
"I'm sorry."
"It's not a big deal, go on and set up your register," she said kindly.
I hurried and got to my register to start taking customers, and I worked all night until midnight. Finally, I returned home and studied my math lessons obsessively despite the fatigue. I was so far ahead in my studies that I had begun writing theses to earn money and was also giving tutoring lessons.
Eventually, I heard the birds singing, a sign that night had given way to day another sleepless night for me. I took another shower and reheated a pain au chocolat I had bought the day before before opening the last carton of milk in the fridge to make myself hot chocolate and give the rest to Shiro.
I also gave him a half-eaten can of sardines, which he devoured in the blink of an eye.
Once ready, I headed for the door where Shiro was waiting.
He rubbed affectionately against me as usual, letting out a beautiful meow.
"See you tonight, big guy," I said as I left for school.
Once at school, I took my usual seat where Maïli was waiting for me at the back of the class.
"Looks like someone pulled another all-nighter," she said in a tone meant to scold me.
"It's nothing, don't worry about it."
"Stop it, you're destroying your health. Come live with me like I offered."
"No, not again, but thanks for the offer."
"Stubborn mule. When you end up on the street, you'll have no choice but to accept."
"We're not there yet, though it sounds like you hope it happens."
"A little... who knows, maybe even a lot," she replied with a smile.
While Maïli and I were talking, the classroom had grown noisy, almost everyone was there but the teacher still hadn't arrived. Suddenly, a violent wind rose, shattering the classroom windows and causing several students to scream in panic.
But the main event was the large, bright white sphere that appeared in the center of the classroom, blinding us. It kept growing rapidly and swallowed several students, their screams fading into silence.
The white sphere had now covered nearly the entire classroom, only the back remained untouched but it would soon engulf us too. Maïli and I looked at each other for a brief moment; I noticed she was trembling, so I took her hand to tell her that no matter what this was, we were together.
Then, inevitably, the two of us were also sucked into this unknown light, hand in hand.