This is the story of the "lost in time and space" charmer

A vague grin at afar.
The sweetest eyes.
An almost unnaturally beautiful face.
Always wearing flip-flops.

This is a tale of a four-year old boy with his head in another world.
He lives in a shack in Langa with his mom and two sisters.

His father.
He used to be a part of the boy's life, until his mother left him due to abuse.
Best friend with the bottle.
He beat him up regularly.
Holding him upside-down, shaking him, hitting him.
At night he still comes by their shack.
Knocking at the door.
Drunk.
Yelling.
Frightening.

His mother.
Loving her kids to death.
Raped.
Stabbed by the father while she was expecting his child.
In front of the little boy.
Bravery.
The boy tries to defend his beloved mother from this man, telling him not to hurt her.
Report to the police. Restraining order. Noone cares.
No money.

His bigger sister.
Nearly completely paralyzed since birth.
Cannot speak nor hear.
Lays on the bed all day.
Got her teeth wiped-out when she was little, so she would not bite her tongue off.
The beauty of her face runs in the family.

He looses himself.
All of sudden the world cannot touch him.
As if all the people around him were passing by in slow-motion, circling his bubble with no hope of breaking it.
Staring into nothingness.
He does not see.
He does not hear.
He does not respond nor react.
He is someplace else, where noone can reach him nor disturb him.
Where are you?
Processing. Thinking. Trying to make sense out of it. Torment.

He sobs.
For no apparent reason or event, he goes to pieces.
Crumbling in silence. Not real cries, just soft sobs.
The kind of tears not shed to achieve comfort, but which fall because the heart they derive from is completely broken.
Where are you? 
Sadness of fear, lack of safety and pure raggedness.

His face melts everyone.
This kid smiles every now and then.
Especially when he hears the words I love you.

His tale. A mini-version of it anyway.

I love you