Chapter 2 - Veluriya

Why do people with tons of coins waste their money without thinking there are homeless people begging in the streets to at least have some food to eat? Why do people who has actually everything tends to receive abundance while those who have nothing gets their opportunities taken?

Life is so unfair.

Well, probably not. Life is fair but people are not. We breathe the same air and we walk at the same surface. Life just actually depends on how you live it. If you choose to work hard and just focus on your goal, notwithstanding how hard it is you'll get it. But still life is very austere. There are hard workers who doesn't get their needs and wants that easy, while there are some who just stood up and get a bunch of viands. I don't understand anymore; is life fair, or not?

The night in the Kingdom of the Eufrata is very dim, the streetlights are glooming in their yellow shade but that is not enough to brighten the lives of the people living on the streets. The roads leading to the town center going to the 2nd district were clogged with merchants and traders from the moment the sun sets. They're going back to their districts, their home. They brought with them valuable things they had bartered, sold and bought all day from the other towns. Most of the goods from our poor district. Screams and laughter quickly subsided in the first district's small market square as the children of the elite class who were running around giddily with spring delights earlier became tired and quiet.

District 1 may be the poorest district but we create the most beautiful handcrafts amongst the other districts; clay pottery, magnificent vases, jars, and bowls line our displays of opulent products. Handcrafted jewelry sits gloriously on small table mats below the small stalls. It's all cheap from the deep-pocketed but these small handicrafts are our life. The District 2 and other towns next to us imports linen, silk textiles, and other expensive things to bargain. Nevertheless, the most clogged area is always the first district because we're the place that connects towns from towns.

However, despite being the district that catenates towns, we are abandoned; mostly people like us, paupers. The elites passing through don't even give a single glance to see our situation. They just use our district as concourse, they don't really care about the penniless as long as they bater. There are so many children and adults who are enduring the cold street and seem to be just waiting to die on the sidewalk. And the elites passing by don't even give a whit. We're suffering, that's the truth.

Yes, people like us exist.

We are living a hopeless life because poors in the Kingdom of Eufrata doesn't have opportunities. We are just a piece of trash that needs to get rid off anytime. We have been kicked out from street to streets because according to the rich passers-by, we are a big inconvenience to them which I want to prove them wrong. Hence, I cannot do anything but to keep myself shut and look for a job to live. I've always wanted to slap to their faces the fact that we are also humans struggling to live because we don't have opportunities, and if we have the whit chance, it could be easily taken from us.

I only have my very old grandma, and I badly need jobs in order to make a living. I've done everything a normal adolescent shouldn't do. I am a thief, a liar, and a swindler, but it is all for our survival. I admit I've messed up, but what can I do? It's our nature; I don't want to live this way, but life seems to force me to. I have never wanted to be like this, but I have no choice. I need to live, so I need to take advantage in able to do that.

The Palace appears to be unaware of our predicament, which is utterly impossible. But, according to my information, we are reportedly fine. The District 1 is still the center of Eufrata, but we're only being used as passageway that concatenates towns. The people living in there are not fine at all; we're not living well at all. Hence, I've heard that the Palace thinks we're doing great. So perhaps the Monarchs are hoping that there is nothing to worry about in the first district which is so wrong.

We are dozens.

We have numbers.

We look like tribes of homeless people hugging the coldness of the night and only the huge moon serves us light. If the moon is not present, then we suffer in the dark. We have never been safe at all, I've never felt safe in the streets. But I can't do anything, I want to save my fellow paupers, yet again I couldn't do a single thing.

"Veluriya..." A solemn voice called me from behind. I was staring at the merchants disappearing from the roads when my Grandma called me. I immediately diverted my attention to my barely breathing grandmother. I cannot just give her up, she's all I got. "Veluriya..." She called again. That’s what she always calls me, she says it’s my name which is not. I always tell her it's not my name but she keeps on insisting that it's mine.

To be honest, sometimes I don't understand my grandmother; she's saying that 'I should understand' but I just can't. I don't get what she says unless she explains it to me. But according to her, I must understand it by myself which is extremely difficult for me.

"Veluriya." She called again.

I slowly approached her and quietly smiled, "That's not my name." 

Maybe, she's reminiscing someone which is not me. I haven't heard anything about my parents at all, maybe it's the name of my late mom? Or maybe not. I don't get anything at all. And I'm also fascinated by the fact that I know nothing about my biological parents. I grew up with my grandma knowing not a single thing about the person who gave birth to me.

"Veluriya is my granddaughter."

I sighed. This is why the other people in our district calls me Veluriya too when it's not even my name.

"Grandma..." I replied and drew nearer. She extended her hands and I immediately rested my face on her palms. She raised her hands and slid it slowly into my face, fondling my cheeks. As she always does, she makes sure I am the one in front of her by stroking my round face as well as my long and wavy hair. She identifies me by my features. I don't know what I look like, I haven't seen myself in a mirror for a quite long time already. All I know is that my face is round; people calls me cute for that, my hair is wavy brown and long and it falls on my hips.

I stared back at her. The moonlight caught her face, allowing me to see the joy on my grandmother's face. Her eyes widely open, not even blinking once, her lips curving for a smile causing her wrinkles to form even more. Tears slowly forming form her eyes as she slowly caresses my face. She is legally blind. My grandmother has been discouraged to live eversince my grandfather died. I get the impression that she's just forcing herself to breathe in the street so I don't feel so alone. And that makes me lament for myself.

She just continued stroking my hair. Under the dazzling bright moon, after several fondles, I saw tears in my grandma's eyes. It watered her lashes as it dripped down her cheeks until it completely fell off. Her tears continued streaming down and I just stare with a heavy heart as she continued to caress my hair.

We are both sitting in the dirty street of our poor district. My grandma has been creating shallow whimpers due to cold, the algid breeze hits us freely. My cloth wrapped around her is not enough to ease the whistling cold air, and I'm saddened with the fact that I could not do anything aside from give her what I have. And I have nothing but a piece of thick cloth. We were only ones who were awake, the other people on the street were already sound asleep.

"Veluriya, my granddaughter."

I reached her face, "I'm here." My voice cracked, I tried to hold back the tears that were about to drip. I even grit my teeth and bit my lip to prevent my tears from bursting. My heart is racing fast, my chest clenches as I stare into my grandma's face. The tears from her eyes remains still, as if it's been there since the other day and will retain until the next days. I cannot describe how I cherish my grandmother. All I could say is— she is my life. She's the only one I have and I'll do anything to give her what she needs, even if it means I'll sink. I grew up in her arms, and I will forever remember her sacrifices for me.

"Help them." She whispered, her voice faltering making her sound old and weak. I was stunned by what she said. She's starting to say something again that I can't understand. Is she pertaining to the homeless people on the streets?

"Yes." I replied without even getting what she meant.

I looked around, there's so much of us. And my grandmother just bestowed her expectations to me. We were deported to District 1, I don’t know who deported us here. If this is an order from the palace, someone mighty would appear in front of us and explain to us why we have been thrown away from the streets near to the Palace. We used to serve in the Palace so we also stayed in the streets near the palace. We did not expect the sudden eviction of us there as they abruptly put us in the place where the palace thought we were living well.

"I'll do everything I can." I whispered.

"Veluriya, you are Veluriya." Grandma cried as she closed her eyes. I don't know if she's reminiscing something in the past as she hardly mention my real name, instead she calls me by the word according to her is also my name.

"I... I am."

My tears fell.

I am not Veluriya.