The Unexpected Hero

Howard and Zannie walked quietly to their barracks. Zannie's secret smile still hasn't disappeared and she has no intention of speaking, neither does Howard. Until Howard couldn't hold back anymore and sighed before speaking.

"Zannie?"

Calling the girl's name was enough to get her attention.

"Why? What's the problem?"

"Did you follow me because you didn't trust me? Were you afraid I'd be arrogant in front of Ms. Aida while teaching the kids?" Howard inquired softly.

Zannie shook her head and nodded timidly. "I know your demeanor; I just thought you got short tempered on the youngsters."

"I can't be angry with the kids, especially in this situation where they're also losing hope," Howard admitted to Zannie. "Did you find that surprising?"

"Yes, I'm just surprised; you weren't like that before, and I didn't think you'd change," Zannie responded.

Howard didn't say anything, instead continuing to walk with Zannie, and they were only interrupted when they saw a child on the side of the rocky road about to be run over. Howard quickly approached the boy so he could save him.

Howard was prompt, it's a good thing he pulled the boy because there was only a little distance between him and the truck and then Howard hugged the boy when they were lying down. Maybe the truck driver didn't notice the child so he just passed him and didn't stop.

Then they went to the side of the road. Meanwhile, Zannie also felt sorry for the child, because he was crying.

"Mama, papa" was all the child said and Zannie wiped his tears.

"Don't cry, can I know who we will call to take you to you?"

The kid  stopped crying for a moment and gave his ID to her.

“Where do you live? Is the place you are living also the same address in your ID?” Howard asked.

The kid nodded. “But our house has been destroyed by the war. My parents left me here.”

Zannie couldn’t believe what the kid confessed. There’s something about her that flashbacks to her. They interrogated the child named Kurt and they decided to bring the kid to the learning area where Howard used to teach earlier. Ms. Ada is very grateful to bothe Howard and Zannie. Without them, the kid would probably have been on the verge of death.

This is also the opportunity for the two to express her gratitude. “Thank you, Zannie and Howard. Actually we are trying to look for more children here and gather in this learning facility for a while.”

They just smiled.

***

Even though Zannie and Howard avoided their fellow volunteer's gaze, they couldn't help but be intrigued.

"Are you together again? The two of you get together often, ah," Joel teased the two. Nurse Andrea and Lucille also laughed.

"It just happened that Howard and I were together earlier. Ms. Aida asked him to help teach the children," Zannie explained.

"Yes, Ms. Aida just asked me, and for Zannie to go home safely, I just went with her," Howard answered.

"Ah, is that so? Let's eat together," Lucille said. Zannie shyly approached and partook in their group's dinner.

"Come along, Howard," interrupted Andrea with a light smile on her face.

After the simple dinner, Zannie went to his barracks, still wondering where Howard would sleep tonight. She searched for him and discovered him in the car.

"Why are you there? There are a lot of mosquitoes there," Zannie observed.

"I'm going to sleep here; it's not appropriate for me to stay in your barracks; who knows what else Jacob will think," Howard explained, indicating that he was at ease with his situation.

"Are you sure you're okay there? Alright, I'm going to sleep," Zannie answered and looked away.

"Yes. Goodnight to you," Howard answered briefly and slowly closed the car door.

Zannie knew that Howard was not really okay with that situation. Even the condition of the young man was still a concern for him. He couldn't sleep that night. It was 12:20 in the morning, Zannie was curious if Howard was really okay and she decided to take a peek at the young man in the car where he was sleeping. She even brought a blanket and a flashlight.

Zannie slowly opened the car door and noticed that Howard was fast asleep. He couldn't help but be impressed by the handsomeness of the young man while he was sleeping.

"Are you really for real?" she whispered while still looking at Howard. It's like she's hypnotized. She suddenly realized that he shouldn't have looked at the young man for so long, so she just frowned at him, then put the blanket beneath him and then closed the car door as if nothing had happened.

"Why did I do that? Why do I feel like I'm crushing on him?" she grumbled. She appears to be losing her faith with Jacob if she is still distracted by Howard.

"Perhaps I'm only feeling this way though since Jacob was never here. Is it possible that it's cheating? But it's not. We're not lovers to begin with," she whispered to herself again, hoping for an answer.

He was restless inside the barracks. He still doesn't really feel sleepy. Howard was messing with her mind and heart just because of the sudden attraction that she didn't know where it came from.

But whether she admits it or not, Howard really impressed her earlier when he rescued a young kid named Kurt. Little did she know that Howard had a soft spot for children despite being hot-headed and bossy with anyone.

"Is he really sincere in what he's doing? Maybe he's just doing it because he wants to get out of this place," he guessed and couldn't stop fiddling on the pallet.

"I don't want to think badly of Howard..."

Zannie let out a sigh and ruffled her own hair. "But in the beginning, a CEO like him is no different from the CEO who oppressed and imprisoned Papa..."

As he remembered, she burst into tears. One of the reasons she doesn't trust anyone except Jacob is a memory of her father abandoning her.