The Final Goodbye
The walk to the orphanage was slow and agonizing. The night air was cold, biting at Selina and Victor as they made their way through the fog-covered streets. They walked in silence, the gravity of their decision weighing heavily on them. Each step felt like a betrayal, each breath a reminder of the pain they were about to inflict on their child.
As they approached the orphanage, the building loomed large in the darkness, its tall iron gates foreboding. The orphanage was known throughout the town as a place where unwanted children were left to be cared for by strangers. It was a place of last resort, a place where desperate parents left their children when they had nowhere else to turn.
Selina stopped in front of the gates, her legs suddenly unable to move. She couldn't do this. She couldn't leave her child here, in this cold, uncaring place. But Victor's hand on her shoulder brought her back to reality.
"We have to, Selina," he said softly. "It's the only way."
With trembling hands, Selina placed the basket on the steps of the orphanage. She leaned down and kissed Janya's forehead, her tears falling onto the baby's cheeks. Janya stirred slightly, her tiny hand reaching out, as if sensing that something was wrong.
"I'm so sorry, my love," Selina whispered, her voice choked with emotion. "I'm so sorry."
Victor placed a hand on Selina's back, gently urging her to stand. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a piece of paper—a note they had written together earlier that evening. He placed it in the basket next to Janya, the words a final plea for forgiveness and understanding.
"We love you more than anything in this world," the note read. "But we cannot take care of you. We hope that someone will find you and give you the life we wish we could have given you. Please know that this was the hardest decision we have ever made, and we will never forget you. We are so sorry."
Selina and Victor stood there for a moment, looking down at their daughter, knowing that this was the last time they would see her. The pain was unbearable, but they knew they had to leave before someone found them. They couldn't face the shame of being seen abandoning their child.
With one last, agonizing look, they turned and walked away, disappearing into the fog. The sound of their footsteps echoed in the night, growing fainter with each step until they were gone, leaving Janya alone on the orphanage steps.
The Beginning of a Lonely Journey
Janya's cries pierced the silence of the night as the cold air touched her skin. It was as if she knew that something was terribly wrong, that the warmth and security she had felt in her mother's arms were gone forever. Her cries grew louder, but there was no one there to comfort her.
Inside the orphanage, the headmistress, Miss Grimshaw, was in her office, going over the day's paperwork. She was a stern woman, strict and no-nonsense, with little patience for the emotions of others. She had seen countless children come through the doors of the orphanage, each one a reminder of the cruelty of the world.
When she heard the baby's cries, she sighed and stood up from her desk. She knew what those cries meant. Another unwanted child, another life left to the mercy of strangers.
She opened the door and stepped outside, the cold night air biting at her as she walked to the steps. There, in a small basket, she found the baby, her face red from crying, her tiny fists waving in the air. Miss Grimshaw bent down and picked up the note, reading it quickly before stuffing it into her pocket.
"Another one," she muttered to herself, shaking her head. She picked up the basket and carried it inside, closing the door behind her.
The orphanage was a cold and unforgiving place, much like the world outside its walls. The children who lived there were fed and clothed, but there was no love, no warmth, no sense of family. It was a place where children grew up quickly, learning to fend for themselves in a world that had already rejected them.
As Miss Grimshaw carried Janya through the dimly lit hallways, the baby's cries began to fade, as if she knew that no one would answer them. She was placed in a crib in a room with several other babies, all of them abandoned, all of them alone.
And so, Janya's life began in the orphanage, her parents' final words left behind in a note that would soon be forgotten. She was just another child among many, her fate uncertain, her future unknown. But even in those early moments, the seeds of resilience were being planted, seeds that would one day grow into something extraordinary.