frog&fog (Thirty-Six)
For many poor boys, it was probably the kind of day they dreamed of.
Dressed in respectable clothes, with a beautiful companion on their arm, attending a grand banquet, politely nodding to others dressed just as well—like Jack crashing the first-class party on the Titanic.
But for most people, such dreams were only dreams. The next morning, they would still be "woken up by poverty," then drag their not-fully-rested bodies to work and begin another busy day. The cycle repeated, day after day, until life felt bland and dull.
Yet that sort of life was still far better than that of children wandering the streets. Plants raised in the wild were naturally different from those grown in greenhouses. Cruel circumstances gave them little time for innocence or romance. Children with parents could beg for toys they liked; these children without fathers or mothers had to find food for themselves and avoid ending up like The Little Match Girl—freezing to death on Christmas Day, starving to death on a bustling street.
Though he was also thirteen, Felix was far more mature than other children his age. The only thing that could bring out a "childlike innocent smile" from him was putting on rich people's clothes or using things rich people used. He knew he had earned all this through his own "work"; even his parents' current jobs were thanks to him. What he did not know was that his life was counting down. In other words, the "success" he had gained was temporary. But Britain had a saying: the sun did not always come out, so when it did, hurry and bask in it. He had no need to consider "lasting" or "eternity."
As for their parents from Eastern Europe, Haji was adapting to his new life. While everyone