While the doctor, Nun Lisa, and Mr. Goat stepped away to speak in hushed tones beyond the garden path, the boy stirred again.
Jimmy blinked against the dark veil wrapped around his sightless world. A low breath left his lips as he sat up slowly on the veranda's worn wooden floor. His dove tilted her head, watching him quietly from her perch.
He paused—his hand lightly brushing the floor. Something felt… different.
There was no pain. Not even a hint of the searing agony that had torn through his nerves before.
Instead, there was warmth—an energy coursing softly from his chest, flowing outward through his limbs, his breath, his fingertips. It felt like a stream of invisible light bleeding from every inch of him.
Then, his head turned toward the garden.
The world appeared before him—but not as it once had. He could not see colours, shapes, or faces. Everything was consumed in black... except for glowing outlines, bright and white like soft chalk sketches traced across the void. The doorway, the dove, the trees swaying beyond the fence—all defined only by gentle, living light.
His lips trembled.
"I... I can see…" he whispered, voice dry and shaking, "…not with my eyes… but…"
A sob caught in his throat.
"I'm awakened."
His hands covered his face, and he cried—not from the pain, not from fear, but because something inside him finally cracked open. But there were no tears. He forgot the beatings, the curses, the blood. He forgot the scars, the labels. For this one moment, he was only a boy who had touched something divine inside himself.
From the path, Nun Lisa saw him through the tall grass and crooked wooden frame.
She smiled gently and sighed, "He's awake… and he's already forgotten he was ever hurt."
Turning to the others, she said, "You two go ahead. I'll stay with him for a while."
Mr. Goat and the doctor nodded and disappeared down the forest path.
Nun Lisa returned to the house with a bowl of warm broth and soft bread in her hands.
Character Note: Jimmy
Name: Jimmy
Age: 15
Appearance: A mute boy with deep amber skin, short and unkempt hair, and plain, forgettable features. His body is underdeveloped from years of hardship, a little too thin, with a quiet frailty to him.
Mental Profile: Average intelligence, but emotionally intuitive. He lacks formal education but has an innate ability to sense the intentions and feelings of people and Whisps alike.
Personality: Soft-spoken in thoughts, kind, gentle, and deeply empathetic. Though life has taught him silence, his presence often speaks more than words.