The tramp sat with his legs out straight, eyes closed, leaning against the wall.
He had done a lot of walking throughout the day and was both tired and hungry. It was the middle of the afternoon and this was a place he visited regularly. This was a good spot because three of the shops that backed onto the alley would often bring scraps out to the large bins around this time, after their lunchtime customers had finished. It seemed to be a tacit agreement that he could take whatever he wanted, as long as he didn’t leave a mess.
He had almost fallen asleep when he became aware of people gathering at the bus stop a short distance away at the entrance to the main road. For some reason he found himself paying particular attention to a woman and a child that were obviously engaged in a deep conversation. The woman was bending down, discussing something with the girl. Moments later, he watched as the young girl approached. He could see that she was carrying something taken from a brightly coloured, plastic lunch box. She held it out to him with a nervous smile. He took it with a nod.
It was a small, brown paper bag.
He watched her walk away, back to her mother, who looked more than a little nervous that she had permitted such a thing. He continued to watch as they all got on the bus. He felt sure that he saw a hand waving as it disappeared from view.
He looked down at what he’d been given. He realised that the child had done it out of love. He contemplated love. No matter who you are, he supposed, love can come from just about anywhere.
He opened it to find half a cheese sandwich.