The Boy In The Shadows

There's a boy in shadows,
He lives all alone.
Nobody has ever seen what his face looks like.
Those who have seen him
Have only had a fleeting glimpse -
Like a sudden gust of wind.

When the sun is shining,
He retreats into the darkness,
The darkness he calls his home.
He has no where else to live…
His home is a prison
But he doesn't know how to escape.
It's the only life he's ever known
And it's hard to rewrite your beginnings.

So he goes on,
Aware that the world is unaware of him.
Some days,
He can accept it
Other days,
He cannot bear his gray, dismal existence.

The only time the boy can ever remember being happy
Was when a little girl discovered him,
Hiding in the corner.
"Do you want to play?"
Her innocent smiled beamed at him.
He recoiled at her glow
But at the same time, he found it captivating

They had played for hours,
Until the sun went down,
And the boy's form became indistinguishable in the darkness.
The little girl looked around worriedly.
"Where are you, boy?"

The boy started to cry.
For a moment,
He thought that he was real,
Tangible,
More than a shadow.

He helplessly watched the girl search for him
She called out to him, hoping for a response.
He sobbed silently,
Feeling the darkness of the night consume him.
It laughed at his attempt to live in the light,
His attempt to make a friend.

The girl continued looking through the blackness
"Boy… please, come home with me."
Her tone was getting desperate.
"You're my only friend. Please."

The boy smiled through his tears:
He had made a friend.
But as much as he wanted to go with her, he couldn't.
Finally,
He saw her turn and head home.

When she had gone,
The boy in the shadows started to weep
He had no one to comfort him.
His wails echoed through the blackness
Until the boy's tears had run dry.

The next day
The little girl came back,
Looking for her friend.
She heard a sound,
And she excitedly turned,
"Is that you?"

But no one was there…
Only a shadow.