Jericho sat in the dark corner of the alleyway, staring blankly at the dumpster in front of him. He had just finished rummaging through the trash, searching for any scraps of food he could find. It was a daily routine for him, ever since he was abandoned by his parents and left to fend for himself in the harsh slums of Manila.
He remembered the day clearly. He was only eight years old and had just come home from school. His parents were gone, and a note was left behind on the kitchen table. They simply wrote that they could no longer take care of him and that he was better off without them.
Jericho was taken in by his grandmother, who lived in the same slum. She did what she could to care for him, but she was old and couldn't work much. Most of the time, Jericho was left to fend for himself.
He quickly learned to survive on the streets. He would do odd jobs for the merchants in the market, and he was smart enough to hustle his way into getting food from the food stalls. He was also academically intelligent, which helped him earn the respect of some of the other kids in the slum.
But despite his intelligence and street smarts, Jericho was still a weakling. He was small for his age and was often picked on by the other kids. He learned to fight back, but he was always at a disadvantage.
"Jericho, are you okay?" asked a voice, bringing him back to reality. It was Liz, who had just arrived with some food for him.
"Yeah, I'm fine," replied Jericho, forcing a smile.
Liz sat down next to him, handing him a bowl of rice. "You're not fine," she said, her tone serious. "You can't keep living like this, Jericho. You're better than this."
Jericho shook his head. "What do you expect me to do? My parents abandoned me. I have no one."
Liz put a comforting arm around him. "You have us, Jericho. You have Tenshi and me. We're your family now."
Jericho smiled, grateful for their support. He took a deep breath and looked up at the sky, where the stars shone brightly through the smog. For the first time in a long time, he felt a glimmer of hope.