The Run-Aways chapter 1

          Everything was calm. The dawn has just broken. The lofty still starry sky was beginning to transcend its black color into dark blue. Looking eastwards you could even see the first shy rays of light hiding behind blackened hill-tops. Two children were walking slowly on the dirty road crossing the dew-sprinkled field which covered almost all the visible area around. The bigger one was a boy and he seemed overwhelmed with his apparently very disturbing thoughts. In his hand he was holding a little girl that, in contrast, was too preoccupied with wandering her eyes all around herself, a blissful childish smile adorned her innocent beautiful face.
          ‘Brother, do you think Mom and Dad will be angry when they find out?’ inquired the little girl with the most delicate of voices. As she did so she looked towards her brother, and even though it was still too dark to see his face, she noticed, maybe just intuitively, his dark frown.
          ‘Why, what do you expect?! - to be proud of us!’ he returned abruptly, still lost in his thoughts.
          For a minute fell silence.
          ‘I was just wondering...  would they stop loving us,’  sorrowfully continued the little girl with saddened tone of voice. Not even having finished her sentence, she broke into terrible sobbing.
          ‘Stop that, just stop it!’ her brother started yelling with fury, grabbing and shaking her by the shoulders. ’ We know that they don't love us, they don't love anybody. If they did love us, they wouldn't treat us like that. They wouldn't beat us, they wouldn't curse us, they wouldn't make our lives hell.
          His sister didn't respond with any vocal gesture whatsoever. She simply pushed herself away and continued crying, but this time - more silently and remotely. Her mind completely agreed with her brother but still, something deep in her heart was uneasy - there she sensed beyond any doubt that despite their many flaws they were their parents and she and her brother must respect that. She recalled of one time when she got into some silly mischief, her mother slapped her on the face, but right off she deeply regretted it and started apologizing with most loving and self-reproachful voice, caressing her hair and kissing her cheeks. Although her parents were doing bad things, in their heart of hearts they were genuinely good people, and should be if not loved at least not hated.
          Silently brother and sister continued their run-away tramp, but this time - with their hands apart. 

                                        END OF CHAPTER 1