He took small, hesitant bites of the bread Luna had given him, as though unsure if he truly deserved it. His hands trembled slightly, dirt embedded in the lines of his palms, but he didn't care—not about his hands, not about the world, not even about himself. For the first time in a long while, someone had offered him something not out of pity… but kindness.
Luna sat beside him, silent, her gaze fixed softly on his face. She wasn't judging him, nor was she curious about his misery. She was just there. And for someone like him—forgotten, invisible—that was everything.
That day, something shifted inside him. Maybe… just maybe… not everyone hated him.
As he finished the last bite, Luna leaned forward and asked gently, "Do you want some more?"
He shook his head. "No… I'm full."
A small smile curved on Luna's lips. "Oh! I just realized—I haven't even asked your name yet. What's your name?"
For a moment, the boy drifted away again—lost in the tangle of memories, voices, the weight of things unsaid. His lips parted, the words caught like a fragile thread ready to snap. "I… I…"
Before he could finish, a sharp voice broke the moment.
"Miss Luna! It's time to go home! If you don't return soon, your father will be furious!" The lady knight's voice carried authority, but also concern.
Luna stood up reluctantly, brushing off her dress. She looked down at him, her eyes filled with a promise she didn't yet know how to keep. "We'll meet again, okay?"
And with that, she left.
He watched her go until her figure melted into the evening light. Alone once more, but this time… something felt different.
For the first time, he understood—true happiness didn't come from grand things. Sometimes, even a single act of kindness… could light up the darkest corners of a broken soul.
Days passed. Then weeks. Every morning, like clockwork, Luna would come to meet him. She would bring him food, sit by his side, and they would play together the entire day before she returned home by evening. It had become their unspoken routine—the kind that felt so natural, like breathing.
Together, they laughed. Together, they played. And for the first time in his life, the boy felt what it was like to belong to something… to someone.
But not everyone was happy about it.
The villagers disapproved. Whispers floated behind Luna's back like dark clouds. Why is a girl like Luna spending time with that filthy boy? No one even knows who he is. He has no home. He's always dirty…
Luna knew. She knew exactly what they said about him behind her back. But it didn't matter to her—not in the slightest. She liked being with him. Their laughter drowned out the world's cruelty.
Without realizing it, the days melted into months, and before they knew it, an entire year had passed—spent just playing, talking, existing together. It was as if that one year had been theirs alone, untouched by time itself.
But one day… everything changed.
That morning was no different. Luna arrived with food, they played like always. The sun drifted toward the horizon, painting the sky in soft orange.
Just as she was about to leave, Luna paused. She turned back and looked at him with a strange sadness in her eyes.
"Maybe… this is the last day we'll see each other," she whispered.
The boy froze. "W-Why?" he stammered, heart sinking like a stone in water.
Luna looked down, twisting her fingers nervously. "Because… I'm leaving. My father… he's sending me far away to study. The journey itself will take five months. And once I'm there… we might not meet again. Not for years. Maybe never."
The words shattered him. The world that had finally begun to make sense… started slipping away again, like sand through his fingers.
For a moment, the old shadows crept back into his heart. That familiar voice whispered: See? You're alone. Just like before.
But this time… he didn't let it win.
Before Luna could take another step, he called out, voice breaking but fierce, "Why… Why do you have to go?"
She turned, holding back tears. "Because… that's just how life is sometimes."
Finally, with a bittersweet smile, she said softly, "Goodbye… and thank you. Thank you for playing with me."
She turned to leave.
The boy stood frozen for a moment, drowning in the weight of it all—until something inside him roared to life. No—not again.
Suddenly, with everything he had, he ran after her.
"I don't care where you go!" he shouted. "I will find you again! No matter how far—you hear me? I will meet you again!"
Luna spun around, surprised—but then her face broke into a radiant, tearful smile. She laughed through the sadness, her voice trembling. "Then… it's a promise, isn't it? We will meet again."
The boy raised his hand high, waving wildly. "Yes! It's a promise! No matter what—it's our promise!"
Luna stood there for one last moment, smiling with all her heart—before turning around and disappearing into the setting sun.
And as the boy stood there, hand still raised, heart still pounding… he knew this wasn't the end.
It was just the beginning.
And so, after Luna left, the days started to pass—slowly, emptily. The boy would just sit there, staring at nothing, lost in his own silent world. Days blended into each other, each one as hollow as the last.
Yet deep inside him, that desire—that one hope of meeting Luna again—still burned quietly. But life, harsh as ever, didn't care about hope. With no one by his side, no one to talk to, no one to care—he slowly began to slip back into the shadows of his old life. Hungry for days, clothes torn and dirty again, surviving only on scraps.
No one noticed him.
No one cared.
Still, somehow, he kept himself alive—doing odd jobs here and there, lifting things for shopkeepers, carrying loads for strangers. Whatever little money he earned, he spent on food—just enough to keep his stomach quiet.
And like this… another year of his life drifted by.
One day, while working at a job, carrying sacks for a shopkeeper, he overheard voices nearby.
Two men were talking excitedly.
"Did you hear?" one of them said, "Miss Luna is coming back."
The boy froze. His heart stopped for a moment, then started racing wildly. His breath caught in his throat, and it felt like the world had suddenly been set on fire.
Luna… coming back?
Another man added, "Yeah, the chief's daughter. Remember? She left two years ago to study far away. But now her vacations have started, and she's coming home for a month."
For a second, he couldn't even breathe. His hands trembled, his knees weak. After so long, that one name—Luna—felt like rain falling on dry, cracked land.
Just then, his boss stormed over. "Hey! Stop dreaming! Finish your work quickly—I don't pay you to stand around like a fool."
The boy blinked and quickly nodded. "Yes, sir… I'll finish it right now."
He forced himself to focus, finished his work, took his small payment, and then walked back to his place—a small makeshift hut he had built beneath a tree. It was nothing more than sticks and cloth, but it was enough to shield him from the cold at night.
That night, lying there under the thin roof of his little shelter, he didn't think about hunger, or cold, or the cruel voices of people around him.
All he could think about was her.
For the first time in years, his heart felt alive. His mind, his soul, his entire being was awake—filled with something rare, something precious:
Happiness.
A happiness he had never truly felt before.
And this time… it wasn't just hope. It was certainty.
Soon, he was going to see Luna again.