Betraying Memories

Chapter 1

Clara's PoV

"Clara, hurry up! The kids have been looking for you!" I heard Angel shout from outside my room.

"You go ahead! I’m almost done here!" I shouted back while fixing my bag and the gifts I brought for the kids.

There was an event at the orphanage where I used to live, so even though work was hectic, I made sure to attend. Angel and I live together in an apartment that’s also near the orphanage.

"You always take forever, seriously," Angel complained as I came out of the room.

"Sorry, okay? I was just fixing the gifts," I said sarcastically, and we headed out of the apartment together.

If we weren’t carrying anything, we might have just walked. But since our stuff was a bit heavy, we called for a ride to the orphanage.

"I heard a lot of the kids found permanent families in the past few months," Angel shared while we were in transit.

"Really? That’s good to hear. I just hope they all find families who will choose them." The children in the orphanage have been through a lot. Some grew up there, while others ran away from cruel households.

If I only could, I would have adopted all of them. The last thing I want is for any of them to feel like no one wants them. It’s natural for them to feel jealous, especially when they see their friends getting adopted one by one.

"Ate Clara!"

"Ate Angel!"

The kids rushed to us the moment they saw us, even as we were still putting down the gifts. This is something I would never trade for anything—the joy and happiness of the kids every time we visit.

"Did you miss us?" I put down my things so I could hug them back.

"Yes! It’s been so long since you last visited us!" said Klarisse, one of the kids who grew up in the orphanage.

"Sorry about that, I’ve just been so busy with work that I couldn’t visit even if I wanted to." The other kids nodded and said it was okay since Sister Anna explained why we hadn’t come.

"There you are," we turned to see who spoke—it was Sister Anna.

"Sister," Angel and I walked up to her and took her hand in ours to show respect. Sister Anna is the head of the orphanage, assisted by other nuns.

"I’m glad you arrived safely. Let’s go in, the program is about to begin." Angel and I nodded, grabbed our things, and entered.

Once we got inside, there were still quite a few decorations that needed to be hung. There weren’t many volunteers since some were still in school. One thing that always warms my heart is how generous people are with donations for the kids and the orphanage itself.

I still remember last year, someone donated five TVs to the orphanage. The donor didn’t want to be named, but we were immensely grateful. It made it so much easier for volunteers to teach the kids. Before that, we only had one TV, so it was really hard to conduct lessons.

We couldn’t afford to educate all the kids at once, and as more donations came in, more children were also being taken in.

"Ate Clara," I turned toward the voice that called me.

"Gio, what is it?" Gio is also one of the children who grew up in the orphanage. He was only about a year old when his mother left him here—she said she could no longer support him.

"This is for you," he said, handing me an envelope which I figured was another one of his letters. He loves writing letters. Sometimes they’re short, sometimes they’re long.

"Thank you, Gio. I’ll give you your gift later," I said, and his eyes lit up before he hugged me and ran off to his friends.

"Gio’s such a sweet kid, isn’t he?" I was a bit surprised—it was Angel beside me. I didn’t even notice she was there.

"You said it. I hope his mom knows how kind and affectionate Gio has grown to be."

I can still see the sadness in her eyes. I know she didn’t want to leave Gio with us, but she had no choice. She gave him to us, hoping he’d have a better chance here.

"Okay, enough with the sad stuff. Did you hear there was another huge donation?" Angel said, shifting the mood.

"The same one who donated the TVs?" I asked.

"Maybe? The donor listed was anonymous again."

"Whoever it is, we owe them so much. I’m sure that money will be enough for the kids and the orphanage for at least a few months." With how expensive everything is now, no matter how big the donation, it’s likely just enough to last for months.

We finally finished decorating the venue, so we had the kids sit down so we could begin.

"Angel, I’ll just go to the bathroom. Can you handle things for a bit?" She nodded, and I made my way to the restroom.

When I got back, I didn’t realize that most of the program had already gone by. After the games, the kids ate, rested, and then it was time to hand out the gifts. Soon after, the entire program wrapped up.

"Once again, I want to thank all of you who helped make this event a success. A special thanks to Mr. Montreal for—"

Suddenly, I clutched my ear. It started ringing with a sharp, screeching noise.

"Clara, are you okay?" Angel was saying something, but I couldn’t understand her—the ringing was nonstop.

"Clara?" she called again. "Are you okay? You’re sweating. Are you tired?" She bombarded me with questions.

"I-I’m fine."

I didn’t catch what Sister Anna said after that because of what happened. Angel and I excused ourselves early since we were tired and had work the next day.

Montreal... Montreal... Montreal...

Who are you?