Kindness

“It’s only an orange!”

The words echoed around Sephiroth’s mind over and over again. The events of the last hour playing out again and again. The kindly given gift dashed against the wall with a hard slap.

Holidays were supposed to be cheerful. They were supposed to be full of good will and peace and all manner of kindness.

The cold light of the labs Sephiroth had the misfortune to call home always felt colder this time of year. On his way back from school, for he was allowed to go and socialise with other children, he saw the other adults mingling. Their laughter went a small way to mitigate the stark white walls. He had not been allowed to decorate them so the bright coloured paper and sparkling trees were left outside his rooms.

There was drink and food, music and even dancing. He had dragged his heels as he was led through the party back to his cell. He’d slipped the hand that led him and for a moment, he stood watching the adults have their fun.

“Come on!” snapped Marla. She was the one who took him from the cells to the school car and back again. She was a pinch faced, hard eyed woman who had no care in her at all.

“Leave the boy alone Marla!” A tall man with a big bushy moustache said. “Poor lad doesn’t get out much as it is, let him see.”

“Five minutes,” Marla said folding her arms over her chest. “But he will hear about it and you can deal with him.”

The man laughed at her. No one laughed at Marla. Sephiroth was already too busy looking at the flashing lights and shiny tinsel that decorated the tree. They had them in the school. All the other children had them in their homes too. Many of them would get gifts and get to spend the day not doing any homework.

“Pretty isn’t it,” said the man who had laughed at Marla. He nodded. He had been told not to speak to strangers. This man seemed rather nice for a stranger though. His eyes were kind, but there was a sadness in his pose that Sephiroth couldn’t understand. This was a party, people were supposed to be happy at parties.

All of a sudden, something cool and round was shoved into his little hands. Glancing down, he saw that the man had pushed an orange into his grip. He had never had an orange before. The skin was crinkly, pitted and smelled wonderful. A small smile touched his face. “You take that and eat it later,” the man said.

“All for me?”

“All for you!”

“Thank you,” he said softly. No one had ever given him anything before but he knew he had to be polite.

“You better go with Marla now, else she’ll do something awful!”

Sephiroth looked up at the woman and nodded. He had nowhere to hide the gift; all he could do was trot over and follow her into the lab. Once through the lab, she shoved him into his room with the palm of her hand. “Get in there!” she snapped.

Faster than he could move, she dashed the orange from his grip. It hit the floor with a squelch, juice leaking from the broken skin. “It’s only an orange!” she barked, snatching it from the floor before he could get it back. She was gone before he could say anything else.

He wouldn’t cry. She would know if he cried and merely taunt him for it later. The scent of the juice still lingered in the air. As he walked over to the hard bed, he wondered what it would have tasted like. Maybe one of the other children would be able to tell him after the holiday.  He laid down and squeezed his eyes shut, he wouldn’t cry! A single tear slid down his cheek; this was supposed to be the season of kindness. He wondered whether that kindness would ever extend to him.