Chapter 1886

Karina couldn’t help but admire the director.
Once the director had composed herself, Karina expressed her wish to meet the children at the orphanage.
The director agreed without hesitation. “Of course, I’ll take you to see them. But just so you know, there’s one child who’s a bit of an outlier. Please don’t take it to heart.”
Karina was intrigued by the way the director shifted her tone mid-sentence, clearly singling out a particular child. Her curiosity about this boy was immediately piqued.
They soon arrived outside a classroom.
The caretakers had turned an unused room into a makeshift classroom since most of the children at the orphanage couldn’t afford school fees, and donations from kind-hearted people had been sparse for years.
Not wanting the kids to miss out on basic education during their formative years, the caretakers took turns teaching classes.
Peeking through the window, Karina hesitated to enter, not wanting to startle the children. She observed silently, her eyes scanning the room. It wasn’t long before she noticed a boy sitting in the far corner, completely out of sync with the others.
While the other children eagerly followed the teacher’s instructions, answering questions and playing games, the boy sat alone by the wall, staring blankly at a wooden block in his hands.
“Is that the boy you mentioned?” Karina asked softly, her interest growing.
The director nodded, her expression filled with both sadness and tenderness. “Yes, that’s him. His name
is Dylan Dixon. His parents divorced when he was young, and shortly after, his mother died in an
accident. He was supposed to be raised by his father, but his father unexpectedly passed away from a heart attack.
“With no relatives left, he ended up here. They say he used to be a bright and cheerful boy, but ever since then, I’ve never seen him smile.
“No matter what we try, he stays like this.”
Karina frowned slightly, exchanging a glance with Wilfred before turning her attention back to the boy.
He exhibited many signs of autism, or at the very least, extreme trauma-induced withdrawal.
Her chest tightened.
“Does he interact with any of you?” she asked.
The director sighed. “He doesn’t
speak to us. We’ve tried coaxing him with candy, but he won’t take it. He doesn’t even seem to want it. He spends all his time holding onto that block see, the one in his hand. We have no idea where it came from.”
Hearing this, Karina’s suspicions were confirmed: the boy was showing clear signs of autism.
Some cases are congenital, while others are triggered by trauma, where the individual retreats into themselves after a severe emotional blow, shutting off communication with the outside world.
The condition could range from mild to severe, but now that Karina had identified it, she couldn’t just stand by and do nothing.
She asked the director for permission to spend time alone with the boy to assess the severity of his condition.
The director hesitated briefly before agreeing.
*
As the school bell rang, the children erupted into cheers, rushing out of the classroom in a boisterous swarm. Within moments, the room was empty-except for the boy in the corner.
A caretaker approached Karina, clearly having been briefed by the director. She gestured toward the boy. “He’s still sitting there, holding that block. He doesn’t even know how to feed himself properly most of the time. Go ahead, but don’t take téo long-dinnertime is coming soon.”
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