Leon was standing on the sidelines, watching as the two argued. He was amazed at how both Mathew and Bear were so much more mature than any kid of their age had a right to be, and it was not a good thing. But it was what their situation demanded. They didn't have a choice.
Escaping this place was obviously one of Leon's goals, and making money wasn't a big problem either. With his knowledge of technology from back on Earth, it would surely come in handy. He was already fantasizing about bringing a tech revolution to this world.
The problem was, he was just too small for people to take him seriously. As the heated argument between the two continued, Leon didn't know what to do.
Just then, Leon spotted an old man with a long, dirty white beard. His long, messy hair was covering his shoulders. Leon had recognized the man; it was the same mysterious old man. But this time, the old man was so thin that every bone on his body was visible. He was sitting with his back resting against an old tree, his skin so pale that if it weren't for the rhythmic rising and falling of his chest, one might have mistaken him for a corpse. The old man's eyes were closed, and he seemed to be sleeping.
Out of the corner of his eye, Leon saw Bear grab Mathew's collar. Fearing they might start a brawl, Leon rushed towards them, ignoring the old man for now.
"…all our dream has a chance to survive."
Mathew gently tapped Bear's back as he said,"My dream is for us to live happily, and you're part of that. You misunderstood Jack's plan. Yes, money was important, but only after we make it out of here altogether. It isn't necessary for our escape; it's needed for what comes after that."
Just as Mathew was about to continue, a childlike voice interjected."I think we should go, people are looking at us," Leon said, pointing towards the people who were watching them as some sort of drama. Bear's loud voice earlier must have caught their attention.
Mathew grabbed Leon and Bear's hands as the three of them walked off into the distance.
When they finally reached their destination, 28th Street, Mathew looked around for a few seconds, then leaned closer and said,"I'll go to 27th Street. You and Leon take 28th."
Mathew took off before Bear could even object.
Now stuck together, Leon offered a cheering smile to Bear."Don't worry, Bear, just do what I tell you to."
As the light of the evening sun was slowly fading from the street, a pair of two boys walked forward — one big, one small. The big boy would occasionally go to a passerby and, with the small boy in tow, speak to them, sometimes pointing towards the smaller boy. The passerby would either take out something from their pocket to give them or completely ignore them.
This continued until the pair reached the street junction where four roads intersected. As Leon and Bear arrived at the spot where they had started, Mathew was already there, waiting for them.
"So, how did it go?" Mathew asked.
"Total of 18 iron coins," Bear said as he took out 18 coins.
"I have 15," Mathew replied, pulling out 15 iron coins from his pocket."Let's head towards the alley, Lisa and the others should be there," Mathew said, taking the lead with Bear and Leon following.
Mathew looked at Bear and said, "Look, not every day is the same. You got 18 coins today."
Bear looked at Mathew and, with a sigh, said, "It's all thanks to Leon. He made me act like a big brother taking care of a child all on his own."
Mathew laughed and said, "That's what Lisa did yesterday as well."
Leon, who was silently following from behind, tugged on Mathew's pants."Mathew, have you seen that old man?" Leon said, pointing towards an old man who was sitting on a bench on the side of the street.
"What old man, Leon?" Mathew asked.
Perplexed by his words, Leon pointed again. "That one."
"You silly boy, that man is young. You call him an old man?" Mathew said.
"Uh… he is young?" Leon was perplexed as he looked at the man with short, white hair and wrinkled skin. To him, the man was clearly an old man.
"We're already getting late. We don't have time for this," Mathew said as he picked up the pace.
"Bear, do you see that old man?" Leon insisted.
"Come on, Leon, look — he looks just about the same age as Gill," Bear said as he followed after Mathew.
Leon was confused. He had seen Gill before. Gill was at least in his late twenties. Were these boys blind, or was something wrong with his eyes?
"Leon, hurry up!" Bear said as he held Leon's hand and dragged him along.
Everything went like yesterday afterwards. At night, when everyone was about to sleep, Leon got closer to Lisa.
"Hey, Lisa, do you remember the accident yesterday on 29th Street, where an old man was hit by a carriage?"
"Uh… I don't, actually. But I do remember you stopping to watch an old lady getting hit by a carriage, and I had to drag you away as it was getting late," Lisa replied.
"Why are you asking those questions, though?" she said, tilting her head as her eyes looked at him.
Mathew, who was sitting close by, interjected. "Leon, are you alright? Did your head hurt? You've been asking these questions about an old man a lot lately."
Leon, not sure how to respond, said, "Uh… one last thing. Do you remember when Bear and I were talking this morning? Around the corner, there was a thin old man on the verge of dying?"
"No, I made sure no one was there when I talked to Bear about that," Mathew said.
"Yes, I also didn't see anyone there except a dog lying near the tree," Bear responded.
Leon's mind grew more and more confused.He had clearly seen an old man on all these occasions.