In the Words of Joey Wheeler; The Little Boy Who Wanted to Buy His Mama Shoes

Well I was just standing in line at the shoe store on Christmas Eve about a year after Kalaiya came to town cause I had to buy a new pair of boots...my old ones kinda ripped and all...but anyway! I was there, just standing in line with the boots, my wallet and there was a little boy in front of me.

The little boy was dirty from head to toe; he looked like a poor kid, one that lives on the streets and stuff. He was pacing round just like little boys about 6 or 7 do when they're nervous. In his hands was a pair of pretty woman's shoes, and they weren't his size either! I wondered what the heck he'd do with those...

Well when it was his turn at the cashier to buy the shoes, he just walked up to the desk and put the shoes with no box up on the counter. He looked up at the man at the desk and said...

"Sir, I wanna buy these shoes...for my mama, please...daddy says there isn't too much time...sir I wanna buy these shoes...mama's very sick, and she should get these shoes...so she can look pretty when she meets Jesus tonight..."

What the...? I listened to him talk to the cashier, and he seemed a bit nervous that he wouldn't get the shoes for his mama. Watching him, he took out some cash from a pocket with a little hole in it and put it on the counter. Then he said it again...

"Sir, I wanna buy these shoes...for my mama, please...daddy says there isn't too much time...sir I wanna buy these shoes...mama's very sick, and she should get these shoes...so she can look pretty when she meets Jesus tonight..."

It seemed like a million years of quiet as everyone in the shop watched the cashier count the crumpled money to see if it was enough to buy those shoes. But it wasn't. "Son, this isn't enough..." The cashier said to the little boy.

The boy blinked as if he didn't know what that meant.

"Aw Man," I thought, feeling like I was getting all wet eyed...then I remembered something that happened last year round Christmas time...

Me, Yugi, Tèa, Tristan and Kalaiya had been walking down the street together. It was snowing that day, and they'd forced me to go...ugh, shopping, for Christmas presents. Kalaiya'd bought a coat for her auntie's boyfriend. So we were all walking long the street, but Kalaiya stopped walking and said, "Wait a minute, guys..."

All of us looked at her, wondering what the heck was going on. She was looking over at an old man sitting in the shadows of an alley. He was trying to bundle up with this scrap of cloth over his shoulders. I guess it didn't warm him up enough cause he was shaking like he was really cold when even the warmest wind blew by...

I looked back at Kalaiya and saw this strange, pitiful look in her eyes when she looked at the man. All of us watched her as she walked across the street, holding the coat in her arms. That homeless man looked up at her. She looked down at him, holding out the coat. "Here...you need this more than I do." She said to him with a smile on her face.

The man stared at her like he didn't believe, but then slowly took that coat, wrapping it around himself. She even sat down next to that man and helped him put it on right. Then she stood back up and walked back to us, but didn't look at us. "Okay, we can go now." She said next, walking ahead of us.

I never quite understood why she gave the homeless man her coat when she didn't even know him. But now I do.

I walked forward to the counter, standing next to the poor little boy, and I put down the money to pay for those shoes.

The cashier guy took the cash and put it in the machine thing, then gave the little boy the shoes in a plastic bag.

And then the little boy gave me those big, shiny eyes kinda look, like I'd seen in Kalaiya's whenever she was grateful for something, and said to me,

"Thank you sir! Now mama can look pretty when she meet Jesus tonight!"

That little boy then turned around and ran out of the store and down the street until I couldn't see him anymore.

Once I bought my new boots and walked out of the shoe store I stood around to think. I thought about that kid's words...

"Sir, I wanna buy these shoes...for my mama, please...daddy says there isn't too much time...sir I wanna buy these shoes...mama's very sick, and she should get these shoes...so she can look pretty when she meets Jesus tonight..."

I kept thinking that, and then remembered something Kalaiya told me after she gave the coat to that homeless man...

"Joey," She'd said, "Whenever I see someone in need, I just have to do that kind of thing...I don't know why I do it, but it makes me feel good to know I helped that person when they needed it...you know?"

Yeah, Kali, I know now...boy, do I know...

************************************************************************

Author's Note: What? A YU-GI-OH Story????? ^^ Lol, yup yup! I accually wrote this a long, long time ago, and unearthed it just today! I should have put it up at Christmas, because that's kinda when the story takes place *sweatdrop* Anyway, I hoped you liked it!! It was based on a song I cannot find the actual words to, BUT I'M A LOOKIN!!! *searches* Heeere wordies wordies wordieeesss....*sigh* Ah well. I'll find it later!

Please rate this one!! ^^0 I would deeply appreciate it!!

Jin

***********************************************************************