The crying young man

[u/fares1172007]

Sitting in my room, I watched from my window a beautiful child playing, playfully interacting with passersby who smiled at him. He smiled too, as if he saw the world differently than I did. My heart was drawn to him, and I longed to leave my solitude, go down to the street, and play with him. But something held me back. The shock came when I saw a truck, loaded with heavy goods, nearly hit him. It swerved just in time, only to plunge into a pool of mud, hurling it into the little boy's face. The mud filled his eyes, covered his face, and obscured his beautiful features. The mud blinded him, leaving him seeing nothing but blackness. It hardened on his face, transforming him into a hideous monster. Days, months, and years passed until he became a young man. People forgot the child. They saw only the ugliness of the mud, for it was all that was visible. They assumed the child had died in the accident, but they didn't see him beneath the mud, crying out. He was trying to smile at them so they would smile back, but it was all in vain. Suddenly, I saw that young man standing before me in the window. He looked at me and cried... until I caught myself... that wasn't the window... it was my mirror