Author's Note
.｡｡*ﾟi hope you're staying safe and being kind to yourself! .｡｡*ﾟ
Love youuu 💗
𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒆𝒏𝒋𝒐𝒚
MANHATTAN – JANUARY 1898
"Kloppman."
The old man stirred, opening his eyes to a blurry, dark room. His neck ached horribly. With the sudden realization he wasn't in bed, Kloppman discovered he'd fallen asleep at the front desk again, staying up late to make sure all the boys had gotten in safely.
The Duane Street Lodging House was quiet, almost all its residents were still asleep.
He guessed it was midnight, but the glimmer of dawn's light pouring in through the close curtains indicated otherwise.
"Kloppman," the voice whispered again, punctuated with a soft poke to Kloppman's shoulder.
The old man found his glasses and put them on – his vision clearing to reveal Jack's frightened, flushed face. The boy's hair was wet from both snow and sweat, his nose red with frostbite. He was dressed in the Refuge uniform with part of his left sleeve almost completely ripped open.
"Jack?" Kloppman muttered, shaking his head, half-expecting this to be a dream or an apparition of some sort. "Jack…how did you…?" He trailed off, taking in Jack's terrified expression. "What are you doing here?"
"Please," Jack's raspy voice was shaky, sounding like he might start crying at any moment. "Please don't kick me out, Kloppman. I'm so tired. I've been walking for miles. Please."
It was too late. The tears were already falling without Jack's permission. He was trembling, scratching his arm, looking wild-eyed as he glanced around.
"Jack, hey, it's alright," Kloppman said, trying to clear his clouded mind enough to settle this boy. "I won't kick you out. You're okay—"
"I ran away," Jack cried, unable to control his emotions any longer. His chest and shoulders heaved as he caught his breath. "They…beat me over and over again and…I escaped…" Jack paused, the gravity of what he'd done sinking in all at once. His eyes widened as he stared at Kloppman, a look of horror on the boy's face. "Snyder will send me back. I don't wanna go back, Kloppman," he rambled, his voice cracking. "Please don't make me."
Kloppman had walked around to the other side of the desk, quickly embracing Jack in a tight hug as he hushed him. "No one's going to send you back, son," Kloppman said, hugging Jack as the boy muffled his cries. "I won't let them."
They stayed like that for a few moments, with Jack a mess of fear and adrenaline, and Kloppman with a broken heart for a boy he was supposed to have protected.