The kindly old gentleman from up the street would often stop and chat.
He knew the parents and sometimes spoke to the boy. Not often, the youngster was very quiet. His interaction with the family ceased abruptly the day he spent a few quiet moments with the boy. The afternoon that it happened the boy was sitting on the front wall reading a book when the man came passed. Seeing this as a rare opportunity to speak to the lad, he greeted the boy and asked what he was reading.
The boy looked up and studied him briefly before replying. “Nothing of any real significance,” he said.
This precocious reply surprised him a little, but he persisted. “Ah! And school, how is that going?”
“It is generally regarded as necessary,” he replied, without hesitation.
Taken aback by the boy’s response, the old man felt obliged to push a little harder. “So, what do you want to be when you grow up?”
This caused a sudden change of demeanour in the boy. He straightened up and closed his book. “What I want to be will play no part in my future. It is what I will become that matters.” At that moment, the boy’s eyes flashed red.
Despite the shock, the old man was about to say something, when the front door opened and his father called out. “Time to come in!”
The boy obediently jumped down and walked swiftly to the house.
The old man shuddered as he watched the door close.
