Chapter 22: Melvin

Xinya walked into the toy shop and, for a moment, paused in wonder. The place looked like something out of a little kid's fantasy. The place was brightly colored with toys of all kinds scattered around the place. There were toy soldiers, dolls, teddy bears, trains, etc. Although Xinya knew they were handcrafted, the quality of the toys looked like they had been machine-made.

Forgetting his purpose, he trailed his fingers over the toys musingly. These toys reminded him of his lost childhood and depressing thoughts invaded him. Picking up a teddy bear, he stared at it. It reminded him of the one his mother gave him when he was younger. How he missed her.

Someone cleared their throat, startling him from his reverie. Masking his feelings, he suppressed those thoughts and put them back in the small box, at the back of his mind where they came from. Xinya put the teddy bear back and turned around to face a man that was clearly in his late 30s.