Mateo and Benny both froze, but Mateo immediately stepped forward and covered Lily's mouth, keeping her from bursting into loud sobs.
If Lily cried loudly, she would inevitably bring the teachers running, and then he would be in serious trouble.
Most importantly, their secret would be exposed too.
The two boys gathered around Lily and coaxed her for ages before finally calming her down. In the end, they even promised not to leave the orphanage at night, which temporarily appeased her.
Mateo and Benny both breathed small sighs of relief, but when they exchanged a glance, each saw the determination in the other's eyes.
Night soon fell. After his bath, Mateo returned to bed and kept his eyes wide open, afraid he might fall asleep. Once the director and teachers finished their rounds, he quietly sat up. Sure enough, Benny had fallen asleep again.
He carefully climbed out of bed and went over to Benny, who was snoring away. "Benny, Benny!" he whispered.
Unfortunately, Benny did not react at all. He was sleeping like the dead.
After trying for quite a while, Mateo reluctantly gave up. He returned to his own bed, unsure what to do.
He had no idea where District 8848 was. If he left the orphanage alone, he would not even know which way to go.
Even if he had enough time, he did not have enough courage to venture out alone.
The night was as black as ink, and the call of some unknown bird drifted through the window. He slowly walked over, looking up to see the bright moon.
Dark clouds crawled like snails from one side of the window to the other. The trees in the courtyard were a mass of blackness, and strange rustling sounds rose from them now and then.
Mateo hesitantly