Spiderweb

"Haha, I wouldn't have known," Gradis laughed.

"Huh?" Julian asked looking up at Gradis questionably.

"That it was only one week. You guys look basically inseparable to me... Like a real father and son," Gradis smiled.

Julian gave a sad smile. "Yea…" he agreed, "now I remember why he never wore that PJ."

"What happened?"

"I think he was traumatized by his time in the orphanage but it only kicked in after he came with us," Julian explained, "I'm glad we got him out before it got worse."

"How exactly did you get him?" Gradis asked, her curiosity growing.

"Ah…" Julian muttered, his eyes darkening, "My father… he was looking for a way to earn an alliance with another major company and also add to his long list of glorified titles attached to his name."

"The company involved childcare?"

"Yup, an organization made to look after families that need money to take care of their kids and for kids that need a family or for kids that need to be looked after while they transition into adulthood," Julian explained, locking eyes with Gradis, "otherwise known as: FOF."

"Oh! For Our Futures, right?" Gradis asked, the name sparking her memory.

"Hmm, correct," Julian nodded proudly, happy she knew the organization.

"But… why did he need their alliance? Last time I checked your company didn't dabble in childcare," Gradis asked, cocking her head slightly.

"He wanted total confirmation from the public to build a new city and FOF was not on board with it. When a few articles came out about FOF denying collaboration with our company because the construction area for the city was home to many lacking kids, my dad decided to use their expertise to earn their trust and looked for orphanages in corporation with FOF to adopt a kid,

"He especially chose an orphanage that was at the bottom of the ladder, to show he would accept people from all walks of life as his own."

"Hmm… I have to admit that a very nicely calculated plan," Gradis nodded, inspired by his father's approach, "he gets FOF's help and the respect from any other company that looks up to FOF or is in collaboration with FOF. It's a complete profit on his side and also strengthens his power in society."

Julian stared at Gradis blankly before turning back to Matheio.

"It is, isn't it..?" Julian sighed. The fact that Gradis was able to guess the reason behind his father's works and complement them was a bit disconcerting but he pushed away his thoughts. She was right after all. "But if that wasn't enough, he gave me a certain criteria to fulfill when I was sent to look for the kid to adopt with him. He was going to be communicating with the orphanage owners and getting his hand in their trust so the task of picking out the kid was passed to me."

"Criteria? It wasn't enough that he already had all of these plans in motion, he now needed the kids to be carefully picked out according to his interests?" Gradis asked.

"Hmm, he was so meticulous with the issue since it was all going to help his company in the future. He asked me to find someone who was young, calm, energetic, separate from his peers and the workers and most willing to obey orders and stay in their place," Julian continued, his eyes dimming the longer he talked about it, "and I hate to say it every time, but Matheio was the one that fulfilled all of those requirements."

"Ah…" Gradis muttered, feeling the hate and bitterness in Julian's voice as he said that sentence.

"I found Matheio in the corner of a big empty room, his toys scattered all over the floor and books open to their first pages. It was horrifying really…" Julian ran his hand through Matheio's hair gently, "how someone so bright like him could have stayed in that lonely room all by himself, staring at the hands of the clock he was unable to read waiting for a certain formation that signified the worker's next visit."

That day was still very clear in Julian's memory, the time, the air of that moment, and the first worn down smile Matheio had given him.

"'Hi!'" he had greeted Matheio.

Matheio turned his head to face Julian so quickly, his neck cracked. "'HI!!'"

"'Nice to meet you…'" Julian looked down at the paper in his hand and back up to Matheio, "'Matheio, right?'"

"'Nice to meet you too!'" Matheio happily greeted, 'are you a worker?'

"'A worker?' Julian repeated.

"'The tall people who come when the hands of that clock reaches a certain way,'" Matheio explained. He looked at the clock then back to Julian and cocked his head in confusion, "'but… it isn't that way yet… are you not a worker?'"

"'Ah… haha no,'" Julian chuckled, "'I'm one of the people who come to take you to a new home.'"

"'OH! The workers always talk about some people like you,'" Matheio grinned, "'but I'm pretty sure they said some word like 'never' whenever I asked if someone like you would come to me…'"

Julian stared at the little boy, a pang of guilt hit his heart. "'They did?'" He asked, ruffling Matheio's head, "'Well, I'm here now.'"

Matheio's eyes lit up, "'REALLY?!'"

"'Hmm,'" Julian grinned.

"'My friends always told me about how they would like if someone took them home,'" Matheio smiled.

"'Your friends?'" Julian looked around the room in case he had missed any tiny child, "'where?'"

"'They left…'" Matheio smiled wistfully as he looked down at his dirty feet, "'all of them.'"

"'Oh…'" Julian replied, unable to form any other words. He looked at the tiny kid, the sting in his heart growing bigger. He wanted a way to heal the sadness behind the kid's smile but the words of his father rang in his head, 'don't get attached,' he had warned, but… this time Julian was going to break the rules a bit, 'would you like to come with me?'

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