Hello :) Here is my newest story.
I came up with this storyline quite some time ago, but now decided to work it out.
Have fun :)
Chapter 1: Returning Dreams
Soft, black, white with orange. The boy silently picked the stuffed penguin up from his dirty covers on the bed. It was a bit filthy, dust on its fluffy beak and at one side, the filling sticked a little bit out. He let his hand run down its face. Sometimes, it was like the penguin talked to him. As if he had a friend... Like he finally had a friend. The boy sat down on his bed hugging the stuffed penguin really tightly. His room, small, dirty and dark was almost his whole world. When he wanted, he could dream of anything he wished for. Love, friends, someone who cared... The wallpaper was some sort of dark gray, although the boy could have sworn that it had been a nice white color when he was younger. He sighed and continued to stroke the penguin with his small warm hands.
Four penguins, constantly returning in the boy's dreams. The first penguin was often ahead of the others, he was bossy, chubby and stern. But the boy wasn't afraid of him. He seemed like someone he could trust with his life, or at least he did to the boy. Then there was another penguin, a large, smart one. Friendly too, but always absorbed in his own thoughts. The boy didn't get what the penguin meant that penguin often, but he could be funny. A penguin with a large scar over his beak was the third the boy remembered. Actually, he was pretty afraid of that penguin. And always a bit behind, was the fourth penguin.
Small, fluffy and kind. It felt like he had known that penguin for all his life. As if he owed his life to that penguin. The boy cuddled the stuffed penguin. In his dreams, he always could hear the penguins talk. It was silly, the boy did know that, but they really did. They told him funny things, things he forgot immediately after he woke up from such a dream. He only remembered that they could talk... And somehow, his dream always took place on a demolition site. And when he woke up, every time again, he wondered if his dream meant something...
The boy got up and walked silently to the window. He watched out of it and saw the small snowflakes falling down on the empty pavement. Trees, standing alone at the side of the house were leafless and sad. The boy looked over all the cars he could see at the parking place behind his house, but his dad's wasn't there yet. His dad was always working, had never time to play with him. Even on last Christmas eve. He silently watched the snowflakes grow bigger and bigger. How he had dreamed of presents and socks filled with candy... Again and again and always, every Christmas since that last one where his mother left, he had been all alone. No presents, no candy, no parents.
Even though his dad had forbid him to leave the house on his own, he decided to take a small stroll around the city. Maybe it would cheer him up. He took the stuffed penguin by its flipper and threw himself into New York City's Central Park. He didn't know where he would go, but he had the feeling he was led by something. The boy dragged the penguin happily behind him, feeling perfectly safe on the cold street of the big city. He decided after a couple of minutes to sit down on a bench in the park. Snow was still falling down and had wetted the boys clothes and old sneakers, but he didn't feel cold. He looked around and saw all the people hurrying home dragging their groceries and children behind them. Some bells rang and the boy looked around. Central Park Zoo... High gates and a tower separated it from the rest of Central Park.
He hadn't been in the zoo since he was a baby... His dad used to tell him a strange story about that zoo... And if he remembered correctly, that was the exact same place where he had gotten his penguin doll. The boy got up from the bench and walked slowly to the fences of the now closed zoo. He hugged the penguin tight in his little arms and pressed his face against the bars of the fence. Maybe the animals were lonely too... The young innocent boy thought as he walked further past the fence. He saw a small opening in it and got on his knees. He slowly worked himself and his penguin through the fence and inside the zoo. Maybe the animals would be nice company for once.
The boy walked a bit fearfully past the habitats of all the animals. The most of them seemed to be sleeping, or at least they didn't pay attention to him. Some habitats even seemed empty... He slowly took step for step, pushing the stuffed penguin even closer to his chest. He bit his lip. Was this all worth it for a little companionship? The animals couldn't talk back, they probably would only be afraid of him... But maybe they wouldn't ignore him. He would be seen for a change. Even if it was only by the pair of eyes belonging to an animal.
The boy walked and walked through the zoo, some animals following him curiously with their eyes before going back to their animal-business. He felt as if he was led by some sort of force and he walked straight to the center of the zoo. He could see a habitat with a large stone in the middle of it and it was surrounded by water. A fence separated him from the habitat and without hesitance, he climbed over it. He somehow made it almost completely dry to the platform and laid down on his back. He watched the snowflakes fall down on his face with a feeling as if he belonged there. As if he had finally found his real family and had gotten home after a long vacation. The boy closed his eyes and got his stuffed penguin closer. He had found his place. He could hear happy voices ringing through the sky and slowly, but happily, the boy fell asleep.
I hope you're liking it so far :)