Chapter 2: Three Tiny Portions
Maya remained at the doorway, one hand pressed against the splintered frame.
Inside, the abandoned house smelled of damp wood, dust, and old paper. Sunlight poured through gaps in the boarded windows, illuminating the floating dust and the children sitting on a flattened cardboard box.
The younger boy looked about five. He wore a faded blue shirt with a hole near the hem and trousers that were too short for his thin legs.
The girl beside him appeared to be eight. Her braids were uneven, and one of her shoes had a broken strap. She kept her hands folded in her lap, watching Eli with a seriousness that seemed far too old for her face.
Eli placed the lunch container between them.
“Okay,” he announced, attempting a cheerful voice.
“Chicken first. Then rice. And we have apples.””
The little boy leaned forward eagerly.
“Can I have the big piece?””
Eli laughed softly.
“You always want the big piece, Jordan.””
“Because I'm growing.””
“You've been growing for five years.””
“Exactly.””
For the first time since seeing him outside the school, Maya smiled.
Then Eli broke the chicken into smaller pieces.
He placed one portion in front of Jordan, another in front of the girl, and a third between them. The rice followed. The apples were divided into thin slices, and the chocolate cookie was broken into three uneven pieces.
The girl, whose name Maya soon learned was Nia, stared at the cookie.
“Eli, you should take the biggest one,” she said.
“I'm not hungry.””
Jordan looked up from his food.
“Your stomach made a noise.””
Eli glanced down.
“That was the house.””
Nia didn't smile.
“Eli.””
“What?””
“You said we weren't supposed to lie.””
His hand paused above the container.
Maya felt something tighten in her chest.
Eli lowered his eyes and moved his own portion toward Jordan.
“Eat, little man.””
Jordan shook his head.
“No. You eat too.””
“I had breakfast.””
“What did you have?””
Eli opened his mouth, but no answer came.
Nia quietly pushed one of her apple slices toward him.
“You can have this.””
Eli pushed it back.
“You need it.””
“So do you.””
“I'm older.””
“That doesn't mean you're not hungry.””
For a moment, neither child moved.
Then Eli gently picked up the apple slice and placed it in his mouth, making an exaggerated show of chewing.
“See? Delicious.””
Jordan giggled.
Maya pressed her fingers against her lips.
She had never thought about what hunger looked like when it wasn't happening to her. At school, students complained if lunch was cold or if the cafeteria served something they disliked. She had once thrown away an entire sandwich because she wanted to buy fries instead.
Now she watched three children negotiate over a single apple slice.
Her eyes burned.
She stepped forward accidentally.
A loose piece of wood creaked beneath her shoe.
Eli's head snapped toward the doorway.
He was on his feet immediately.
“Who's there?””
Maya froze.
Nia grabbed Jordan's arm.
Eli moved in front of them, putting his body between the younger children and the door.
“Stay behind me,” he ordered.
“But Eli—” Nia began.
“Now.””
His voice was sharp enough to make Jordan fall silent.
Maya slowly appeared in the doorway, her hands raised.
“It's me.””
Eli stared at her.
For a second, his expression was unreadable. Then his gaze dropped to her school uniform, her backpack, and the expensive watch on her wrist.
“You followed me?””
Maya swallowed.
“I wanted to see where you were going.””
“You shouldn't be here.””
“I know. I'm sorry.””
“Then go home.””
The words were harsh, but Maya noticed the way Eli positioned himself in front of the children. His feet were planted firmly, and his hands were clenched at his sides.
He was frightened.
Not for himself.
For them.
“I'm not going to hurt anyone,” Maya said.
“People always say that.””
“Eli, I just—”
“You saw us eating, right?”” He pointed toward the food container.
“So now you've seen us. You can go.””
Nia peeked around his elbow.
“Eli, she gave you the food.””
He didn't look at her.
“That doesn't mean we can trust her.””
Maya felt the sting of those words, but she couldn't blame him.
She took a careful step inside.
“I'm not here to take anything away from you.””
Eli laughed once, without humor.
“You don't know what people take.””
The room went quiet.
Maya looked at Jordan, who had stopped eating. His fingers curled around a piece of chicken, and his gaze darted nervously between the older children.
She remembered the security guard's suspicious voice. She remembered how Eli had flinched when he heard it.
“Okay,” she said softly.
“I won't come any closer.””
She crouched near the doorway.
“Can I ask their names?””
Eli hesitated.
“Nia,” the girl answered before he could stop her.
“And that's Jordan.””
“Hi, Nia. Hi, Jordan. I'm Maya.””
Jordan gave a tiny wave.
“Your shirt is pretty,” he said.
Maya glanced down at her yellow polo.
“Thanks. Your shirt is blue.””
Jordan examined it as though he had forgotten what he was wearing.
“It used to be darker.””
Nia nudged him gently.
“Don't say everything.””
“Why?””
“Because you do.””
Eli almost smiled, but the expression disappeared when he turned back to Maya.
“Are you going to tell someone about this place?””
Maya didn't know how to answer.
“Would that be bad?””
His face hardened.
“It depends who you tell.””
“Why?””
“Because if someone comes here and decides we shouldn't be here, where do you think we'll go?””
Maya looked at the cracked walls, the broken furniture, and the cardboard mattress in the corner.
She had no answer.
A faint breeze moved through a hole in the wall. Behind Eli, a faded piece of paper fluttered against the cracked plaster.
Maya noticed a small photograph pinned beneath it.
At first, she could see only a corner of the picture and a strip of yellowed tape.
Eli followed her gaze.
His entire body went rigid.
“Don't touch that,” he said.
Maya looked back at him.
“What's in the picture?””
“Nothing.””
“Then why can't I look?””
“Because I said so.””
Nia stopped chewing.
Jordan lowered his food.
Maya had never heard another child speak with that kind of desperation. Eli wasn't merely trying to keep her away from a private possession.
He was protecting something.
Something that frightened him more than the possibility of being discovered in an abandoned house.
Maya slowly stood.
“Okay,” she said.
“I won't touch it.””
Eli watched her carefully.
She took a step backward toward the doorway.
Then she stopped.
“Eli?””
“What?””
“Have you been here long?””
His jaw tightened.
“Long enough.””
“Where are your parents?””
Nia's eyes filled with tears.
Eli turned toward her immediately.
“Nia, finish your food.””
“But—”
“Please.””
The last word was barely audible.
Maya felt as though she had walked into a conversation that had been hurting these children long before she arrived.
She looked at the photograph again.
The paper was faded, but the child's face in it seemed strangely familiar.
She couldn't see it clearly from the doorway.
She took one more step toward the wall.
Eli moved to block her.
“I told you not to touch it.””
“I'm not touching it,” Maya whispered.
“I just want to see.””
“Why?””
“I don't know.””
He stared at her, breathing unevenly.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Jordan, still sitting on the cardboard box, asked the question that made Eli close his eyes.
“Is that the picture of the girl Mommy told us about?””
Maya turned toward him.
“Mommy?””
Jordan nodded.
Eli immediately crouched beside the little boy.
“Jordan, eat your food.””
“But you said—”
“I know what I said.””
Nia reached for her brother's hand.
Maya's heart began to pound.
There was a mother in this story. A photograph. A house these children were afraid to lose.
And somehow, Eli seemed terrified that Maya might connect the pieces.
She backed toward the doorway.
“I should go.””
Eli didn't answer.
Maya stepped onto the porch, but before she could leave, she heard the faint sound of paper tearing inside the house.
She turned.
Eli stood against the cracked wall, one hand pressed over the photograph, his face drained of color.
Nia was staring at him.
“Eli,” she whispered, “you said you'd tell her when she came.””
He shut his eyes.
Then he looked directly at Maya.
“Your mother told us you might come here someday.””
Maya's fingers went numb around her backpack strap.
“My mother?””
May you like
Eli slowly lowered his hand from the photograph.
“And there's something else you need to know.””
