The sun always shone through the curtain in his room. He had tried everything to block it out, and he’d finally accepted that it never really leaves. Now, every morning, as the light inches itself over the golden mountains, he wakes and whispers for Mabel. She never comes, though he still waits until his mother drags from the warmth. She dresses him, she always has and as she throws a sweater onto his limp body, he screams for Mabel once again. His mother murmurs in his ear and he tries to believe every word she says, but he can’t. He curls his tiny fingers into a fist and lunges at her but his legs collapse beneath him. His mother pulls him by his fragile shoulders and screams at him, she calls him Aubin but he knows his name is Jaak. Her mouth is wide open, her lips pursed at the edges and chapped from the wind. As she shrieks warm spit touches his nose, he hates how close she is. She drops him, his feet smashing to the ground, his shoulders are red and sore, they will bruise. He closes his eyes, but quickly opens them again, he doesn’t want to miss anything. A man walks in, he is tall, but he does not intimidate the boy. He recognises the man and stands on his tattered feet. The boy touches him, he feels the bumps on his hands and thick veins that cover his fingers. But the man pushes him away, scowling.
‘Olev’ The boy whispers and shocks himself.
The man stands still, his lips quivering. He pulls his chin up and calls the boy Aubin. The boy tells them, he screams at them, that his name is Jaak and he wants to know were Mabel is. Olev and Jaak’s mother look at each other, and suddenly the boy realises they do not know who Mabel is. He wants to tell them who she is, he wants to explain the way her eyes change colour when clouds leap over the sky. But he can’t. He shoves his hands in his pockets and sighs. He walks out, watching his feet, they scream for Aubin to come back but Jaak does not turn for he does not know who Aubin is.
