“Sir?” I shook his shoulder gently. He barely stirred, his lips pale and trembling.
I helped him sit up, my hands instantly freezing against his soaked blazer. “Come on. There’s a café nearby. Let’s get you something warm.”
“You’re not. Let’s go.”
“Why? Why would you help someone like me? Everyone else just walks by… and pretends I don’t exist.”
I swallowed hard, remembering the nights I cried myself to sleep after my husband abandoned me with a baby, wondering if anyone would notice if I disappeared.
“Because I know what it feels like when the world turns away. And I promised myself I’d never be the one who turns away from someone else in need.”
His eyes welled with tears. “I don’t even know who I am anymore.”
“That’s okay,” I told him, helping him to his feet. “We all get lost sometimes. The important thing is finding our way back.”
Inside the small café, warmth wrapped around us, but he still shivered. I ordered hot tea and a sandwich, and when the food came, he ate like a man who hadn’t had a proper meal in days.
He noticed me watching and swallowed hard. “Thank you,” he said, his voice rough. “I haven’t eaten this well in… I don’t even know how long.”
