The Way We Stay – Story 10

Story 10: The Bench Near the Slide

The playground was loud.
Laughing loud.
Running loud.

Luca sat on a small bench near the slide.
He watched the other children climb and shout and spin.

No one asked him to join.

His shoes scraped the ground.
Slow.
Slow.

“Do you want to play?” Baba asked.

Luca shrugged.
“They already have a game,” he said.
His voice was quiet, but the feeling was not.

Baba sat beside him on the bench.
Not facing the playground.
Facing Luca.

“That can feel lonely,” Baba said.

Luca nodded.
His eyes stayed on the slide.

A girl slipped while climbing.
Another child waited.
Someone laughed kindly.

“They don’t know I’m here,” Luca said.

Baba was quiet for a moment.
Then he said,
“Sometimes being unseen hurts more than being told no.”

Luca leaned closer.

They sat together.
Watching.
Breathing.

After a while, a boy dropped a ball nearby.
It rolled.
Stopped near Luca’s feet.

Luca picked it up.
Held it.

He stood.
Walked slowly.
Returned the ball.

“Thanks,” the boy said.

The game shifted.
Just a little.

Luca didn’t run yet.
But he smiled.

Baba stayed on the bench.
Watching Luca be seen.

Belonging doesn’t always begin with joining.
Sometimes it begins
with being understood first.

How do you think Luca felt while sitting on the bench?

Sit beside each other today.
Without fixing anything.
Just stay.