"Why don't you just patiently wait in the car when I go in to pick up Blue and the head of the orphanage?" Kevin asked as he closed the car door.
He straightened his wrinkled shirt with his hand as he stared lazily at the other man who just got out of the same car.
"It must be boring staying alone in the car. Let's go," the man answered casually as he started walking past the orphanage gate.
They were at Lootus Orphanage. The Lootus name had the meaning of "hope." The main purpose of the existence of that place was to give hope to the orphans.
Kevin was speechless as he kept staring at Kris's board back that started zooming out from his sight. He just shook his head annoyedly and followed the taller man to walk past the orphanage yard.
Kevin had a perfect plan this afternoon. He wanted to take Blue and the head of the orphanage to go shopping. He just got his paycheck, and he wanted to treat them on this sunny Saturday. He didn't have work on Saturday, and Blue also didn't have school today.
The plan sounded perfect before Kris shamelessly wanted to come along. He said that he needed a ride to the repair shop to take his car, but Kevin knew exactly that it was just an alibi. Kris just wanted to ruin his plan today and didn't want to let him relax.
"Mother, is there really no data about my background?"
Kevin's sharp ears suddenly caught a familiar voice. He immediately grabbed Kris's arm and brought the taller man to hide behind a large tree in the yard.
The orphanage was surrounded by a wide green grassy yard, and there were many big trees to ward off the scorching sun in the yard.
Kevin poked his head slightly to peek at the veranda. Two women were chatting there. One looked younger when the other looked older. The younger one was sitting on a chair, while the older one was sitting on a wheelchair.
"That's Blue, right?" Kris asked in a low voice, barely audible in Kevin's ears. "Who is the old lady in the wheelchair?
"She is the head of the orphanage, her name is Monica Nierling. The children here call her mother. She suffers from a stroke and has to rely on a wheelchair for her mobility," Kevin whispered back at the taller man who was hiding behind him. "Now, just be quiet and listen to them."
Kris was still frowning, but he didn't utter any word and just followed Kevin's order. He didn't understand why they needed to hide, but he didn't protest.
They were hiding behind a big buckeye tree not too far from the veranda, and they needed to stick to each other to hide their giant-like bodies. The diameter of the trunk was about 50 centimeters, and that was too narrow to hide both of them.
"Is that background so important to you, Blue? You are here with us now, and in the future, you will also be with other people. Is the past still important to you?"
The two men could hear the old lady asked back instead of answering Blue's question. The lady looked very old, probably almost four-fifths of a century. Her shoulder-length hair was all grey.
"The other kids know at least a little about their backgrounds. Bella was abandoned by her mother because her mother was pregnant without a husband, Mark was forced to stay here because his parents served in the Middle East war zone and he has no relatives, then Brother Kevin lived here because his parents died during the war seventeen years ago. As for me, I don't know anything about myself," Blue's replied with a gloomy tone, and Kevin could feel the bitter feeling tucked in every word.
"Won't it be better for you if you know nothing about what happened in the past? What if your past turns out to be worse than Bella, Mark, or Kevin's? It will only shackle your steps, Blue," the lady responded as she placed her wrinkled hand on top of Blue's head.
"But, at least I know why I'm here, Mother. At least I have something to remember. I don't even have a last name like the other kids. My name is only "Blue" without a last name."
That was such a painful reality. Kevin had expected that Blue would ask about her past. Everything about her was like a black hole. There was only blackness there, and no one dared to enter the mysterious space.
The mother took her hand away from Blue's head again and swiped her gaze to the wide courtyard. "We didn't tell you not because we didn't want to tell you, but we truly don't know anything about your past," the wise lady explained. "At that time, people from the Social Service brought you to this place. You were still red back then, maybe your age was not even one day old back then. They didn't only bring you here that day. Along with you, there were some of the other children who were transferred here from their shelter, including Kevin."
Kevin didn't seem to be surprised by the explanation and just kept staring at the two women with a blank gaze. His expression was completely different from Kris's who looked surprised now. Kris was about to speak, but Kevin suddenly moved his hand back to pinch his arm, silently warning him to keep quiet.
Blue looked a little stunned to hear the explanation from the mother. "Including Brother Kevin? Does that mean I was also a victim of the war seventeen years ago? Is it possible that my parents died from the war?"
"That's why we never told you about it, Blue. We know that information will only make you more curious even though we simply don't know the answer to your question. Your eyes are blue, so we thought you came from a western immigrant family that was not recorded in the government office. In other words, you likely came from a family of illegal immigrants in this country, Blue."
Blue looked very shocked to hear the explanation, and Kevin had long expected the reaction. It was the first time she heard the story. When she was still a kid, she often asked about her parents to the people around her, but no one answered her question. It was the first time the head of the orphanage told her the story.
"Blue," the mother called out the girl's name again. "Just forget about all that. You are my daughter, and you are Kevin's sister. About whose blood flows in your body, it doesn't matter anymore. The most important thing is your heart. If you have a good heart, then your future will also be good. If you feel empty because you don't know about your past, then you just need to fill your heart with stories of the present and the future."
From afar, Kevin could see a crystal-like liquid dripped from Blue's blue eye, but the girl quickly rubbed it. Kevin knew that the girl hated it so much when others saw her crying. All the girl could do was hug the mother figure who had always been her place to lean on.
The mother figure also returned the hug tightly, whispering affectionate words to encourage the foster child who was at her lowest point now. Kevin couldn't hear the whisper, but he was sure that the lady's words could help Blue feel better.
Kevin admired the lady for her wise attitude. The advice given by the lady may have some truth. It was pointless to know about her past if it would only hinder her steps from moving forward. Sometimes, knowing nothing was better than knowing something that may hurt you.
Just like the quote "The past is a closed-door" by Margaret Atwood, it was best for Blue to just let her past became a closed-door and no need to re-open it.
"And, if you want to have a last name, you need to wait until you get married. You can get the last name from your husband, Blue." The lady tried to make Blue feel better by saying a random joke. Just a random joke, but that was enough to make Blue smile once again.
The two women smiled, but Kevin didn't copy the action. He just stared at the two women with an unreadable gaze. It seemed like there were mixed feelings in his heart.
The young scientist just sighed and turned around as he whispered, "Let's go." And he started walking to the gate.
Kris was dumbfounded, but he immediately caught up with the black-haired man. "What about your plan? You don't want to bring them with us?" He asked confusedly.
Kevin showed a stoic expression as he walked to his car. "No need. I'm not in the mood," he replied coldly. His heart became heavy, and he needed a cup of coffee.