A child was running alone through the alleys of an old city. His name was Vagner, around 8 years old, dressed in rags and as dirty as if he had just come out of a chimney. The boy was very thin, not looking very healthy, but the most remarkable thing was that, despite being so wretched, the boy still smiled and his eyes still sparkled, as if he saw a treasure no one else could see, as if his physical state did not represent him at all, and all that energy and positivity stemmed from one thing: Kindness.

Vagner was made up of an infinite cycle of kindness; being kind made him feel good, and as long as he felt good, he would remain kind. The child had parents before, but he ran away from them—one drank and beat him while the other ignored him—and seeing that he could gain nothing from staying in that house, he began to venture out into the world.

In the first few days, he felt lonely, wondering if he should go back home, but then he remembered that he would only bother his parents even more and decided to continue on his path. One day, the boy saw a doll amidst the trash. He had never seen a toy like that before; it was so dirty, so lonely. Vagner immediately began to associate what he saw with what he lived through, so he knocked on the door of the house to which the trash belonged.

"What the hell is it now? HEY, GO SEE WHO IT IS." A few seconds after the shout, a young girl opened the door. She seemed to be the same age as Vagner, and even though she looked better off than he did, her expression was worse.

"Who are you? What do you want?" the girl asked in a tearful tone. Vagner immediately connected with her and understood what was happening. He smiled, surprising her. He wasn't going to take up much of her time; he knew it was dangerous for her.

"Excuse me, may I take that doll over there for myself?" he asked, pointing to the trash. The girl, puzzled, just stared at him in disbelief.

"The doll? Sure, I can't keep it anyway... I picked it up a few weeks ago... it was floating in a river nearby, but my dad says I can't have time to play, I have to work to help him get the drink he needs."

"THAT'S GREAT!" In his pure innocence, the boy shouted the first thing that came to his mind, scaring the girl even more. Little Vagner, you don't know the context, you don't know what each life is like, please keep your mouth shut. "I mean, my dad only paid attention to me when he was angry; he never asked for my help, so for your dad to leave you the job of working, it must mean that he prioritizes you a lot."

"He... prioritizes me?" No, no, no, Vagner, stay quiet, don't put fertilizer in the wrong soil. The girl blushed with joy, and her eyes welled up with gratitude. "You're right; I never thought of it that way. My dad must love me a lot to give me such an important responsibility."

"Yes, so work hard for him, okay?"

"Okay. I will."

Don't talk about what you don't know, don't impose your view of life on others. But... who am I kidding? He's a child; it's not his fault, he doesn't know anything even if he believes he understands... So he took the doll and continued with his day.

The boy wandered through the darkness of the night, singing softly with the doll in his arms, low enough not to disturb those who were sleeping, but loud enough to help him relax to the sound of his voice. There was a cold, empty wind trying to kill the boy, wanting to tell him that there was no meaning to the life he lived, but the boy's answer to the wind was always the same: If you decide to attack only me and not the doll or anyone else, then I don't care. Besides, my friend would be alone, and I can't leave him alone.

As he walked through the streets, singing, he got distracted. At one point, his stomach seemed to like the music and decided to try to sing along. Vagner walked aimlessly through the nonexistent streets of the city, where it seemed time did not move, and the souls there were lost. Then a shadow flew past him—it was a giant dog that seemed to be running at full speed from something. Curious, the boy looked in the direction from which it came and saw two street boys, a bit older than him, chasing the animal with what looked like pieces of wood.

The boy immediately understood what was happening and, with the doll in his arms, placed himself between the pursuers and the pursued. The two older boys stopped running, not because they were scared of Vagner, but because they hadn't expected that and were curious, though also furious.

"What are you doing? The dog's getting away," said the more robust of the boys, holding his piece of wood higher, while the other, who was skinnier, took the opposite approach and lowered his weapon.

"If you want, we can share his meat with you."

"No," said Vagner without hesitation, staring at the two with a pleading look. "Would you like it if someone beat you to death just to eat you? If you're hungry, we can try asking for fruit or something from people, but you'll have to wait until daylight so we don't disturb them while they sleep."

"Hey, do you have a problem, kid? We're street kids; no one will want to help people like us," replied the bigger boy, deciding to ignore that strange child. He tried to pass by, but Vagner blocked his path again. "MOVE!"

The older boy punched the younger one, sending the child to the ground. On impact, the doll was released and fell a bit farther away, its head turned toward the unfolding situation. The two boys began to beat him, dropping their "weapons" and continuing to punch him, and as he was beaten, Vagner connected with them—they were alone, cold, and hungry, scared and on edge. They weren't bad; they were just older, more experienced, more malicious versions of Vagner.

Bad? Good? The boy saw none of that; there was no distinction. To him, all humans were humans, and if he had to name them, he would say that all humans were good. After the beating, the two boys picked up their "weapons" and continued to advance, leaving Vagner hurt on the ground. The boy cried; under the moonlight, his tears fell, and under the fake eyes, his sadness stood out.

"This is your fault, you know that, right?" The voice of a woman, already an adult, caught his attention. The woman looked down at him with cold, empty eyes, eyes that said nothing. "It's no use crying over the pain now; what's done is done. Be a man, get up, and don't make the same mistake twice."

"Pain? No, I'm not crying because of the pain, at least not mine."

"What?"

"I'm crying because I couldn't help those two; I didn't calm them down; I did nothing for them, I was just a stress release, but that doesn't heal anything, it doesn't solve anything that way, I saw that."

"Kid, they didn't look back... I was watching; they didn't care about you."

"But I cared about them; I cared, and that's enough. Besides, thank you."

"For what? I didn't do anything."

"You waited until it was over to come talk to me; you didn't hit them."

"Tsc, you're a big idiot." But the boy didn't react to the insult; he just got up and limped over to his toy on the ground, picked it up in his hands, and continued walking, resuming his singing. The woman was ready to turn her back on him, but then she realized that she couldn't do it. "Hey, kid, come with me." Vagner stopped and turned around, confused, but he didn't refuse the offer. It wasn't as if he had anything else to do or anything to lose. And since the woman had her back to him, he didn't see the brief tears that fell from her face. "What's your name, brat?"

"I'm Vagner, and you?"

"Call me Sofie."

"Beautiful name, where are we going?"

"I'm going to take you to my house; it's too dangerous for you to stay here alone."

They then proceeded, and to the boy's surprise, Sofie was very wealthy. Her mansion was isolated from the city, and she had guards and servants. A large stream could be found behind her house.

As soon as he arrived at her house, the first thing she did was give him a bath and tend to his wounds. While he was bathing, Vagner also washed Chin. After being treated, he also "tended to the wounds" of the toy. Even when he received help, the boy had to help others. Weeks passed, and he began living with Sofie. It didn't take long for her to see that he was a vegetarian, just as he was hardworking. He wouldn't let the servants do everything; he helped with the laundry, the dishes, cleaning, and cooking. He even made cookies and sweets to take to the guards. Inside, the wind had no strength because it was warm; emptiness was an idea, as it was crowded with people. A warm and crowded place.

And even after so much time had passed, the boy didn't part with the toy; he took it from one place to another. And Sofie's eyes became warm and filled with an unimaginable tenderness.

They often took carriage rides through the city, and every time they went out, Vagner brought a basket of snacks that he personally made sure to hand out to anyone who appeared asking. Sofie was concerned about the boy's benevolence.

"Vagner, I know you like to help people, but you have to understand that you are not God to have the power to help everyone. You're so good that it's almost reckless."

"But isn't being good what matters?" the boy commented, smiling while hugging his toy. Sofie didn't know how to argue. The counterargument would be: no. Is being good the most important thing? Or is being prudent and surviving essential? Were your parents good when they got involved with those bandits and now they're dead? Your life, the lives of others, why does it always seem like you have to choose between the two?

Where is the balance? Where is the right? Where is the line, the limit, that separates the moment of caring for oneself and the moment of caring for others? Is the limit when you put your life at risk? "My life always comes first" would that be the right thought? But "The lives of others always come before mine" doesn't seem right either; what's the answer?

"Vagner, being good is not the only thing to do in life; yes, it's one of the main things, but you can't focus solely on it. You'll understand better when you grow up."

"Well, then I'll wait until I grow up. In the meantime, I'll help everyone I can; you should help me someday, Sofie." The woman just continued to look at him with tenderness, and discomfort from the boy's stubbornness. The feeling she had was that nothing and no one could change the boy's mind; not even the most manipulative being had a chance against that stubborn head. And, strangely, she hoped she was right.

Days passed, and the fame of the good Samaritan boy began to spread. The solitary boy who wandered invisibly through the streets became notorious and surrounded by people, but even in such different situations, his soul remained the same.

It was a gray day when what would change everything happened.

"HELP!" The scream caught the attention of the carriage as they were traveling on the road back to their home. A couple was lying on the ground, the man was unconscious with a terrible cut on his belly, and a pool of blood was forming around him. The woman beside him was in tears, pleading for help.

"We have to do something..." Vagner said, almost throwing himself out the window before Sofie stopped him.

"Are you crazy? We don't know if the person who did this is still there; they might attack us too."

"Are you saying we're going to leave them?" It was too late; Vagner had already connected with the couple. "Imagine if it were you like that woman, alone, desperate, begging for help while people walk by without a care, try to put yourself in the man's place, bleeding, literally dying while watching someone fighting in vain for their life, can't you see? Tell me, isn't this something worth risking for?"

And a flash came to Sofie's mind; the boy's words projected an image in her mind, an image so desperate, a scene so sad, she saw herself with the bloodied boy in her arms, crying for help with no one coming to his aid.

"STOP THE CARRIAGE! WE NEED TO HELP THEM!" As Sofie commanded, so it happened. They immediately took the couple to her mansion, where the house doctors began treatment.

The woman waited in a separate room, Vagner and Chin were beside her.

"Thank you so much, boy." The woman said, kneeling and hugging the child with all her strength. "You saved our lives, you're an angel, may God bless you, boy, thank you so much, thank you."

Tears fell from her eyes as a thunderstorm began; a storm was approaching. I wonder if the heavens were crying knowing what would happen next?

"I couldn't leave you there; I don't know what happened, but I swear everything is fine. You're welcome here and can rest as much as you want."

"I... am welcome here?"

Sofie was walking down the corridor towards where the treatment was occurring. It was strange how the storm's wind made everything colder, and even on such a busy night, everything seemed emptier. As if the very warmth and presence of what wasn't there were absent, almost as if they didn't want to be part of the events that would occur.

When she reached the room, the man was resting peacefully; only the doctor was beside him. The woman stayed there examining him completely, looking for scars, marks, or anything that might indicate he was some kind of bandit, but she saw nothing anywhere. Until, finally, the man began to awaken.

"Where am I?" He asked, trying to get up, but a sudden sharp pain from the abrupt movement made him stop.

"Sir, calm down..." The doctor said, trying to calm his patient.

"Who are you? Are you one of them?"

"One of them?" A chill ran through Sofie's body upon hearing that phrase; maybe the cold was trying to give her a final warning? "Who are they?"

"Bandits, more than I've ever seen in my whole life."

"We didn't see any bandits, sir, just the two of you." The man turned pale, and a look of terror took over; Madame's heart raced, thinking of the recent days she had; in just a few seconds, her child's face came to her mind several times.

"Us... two? I was alone." The realization came...

"VAGNER!" The woman shouted, running out of the room. As soon as she stepped outside, she heard an explosion from the walls outside, and chaos began. But nothing could distract the woman from her goal; she kept running, soon sweating, yet still feeling cold, hearing voices and turbulence from all sides, but feeling so alone.

Why did she have to bring strangers? Damn, DAMN why did she listen to the boy? It didn't matter if his intentions were good; she knew she should have been more cautious than that. Why did she let him convince her? Let everything happen to her, let fire from the sky fall upon her, but let no harm come to her child.

The rain outside intensified, the noise became increasingly unrecognizable, the water poured with all its strength. Then the woman reached where she had left the two. The sight she had when she entered the place was a flash of lightning, a doll sitting on a sofa, and in front of her, the woman was holding Vagner tightly by his hair while holding a knife in her other hand.

The boy was crying from the pain of his hair being pulled, and the woman was just smiling.

"LET HIM GO!" Sofie yelled, but the moment the voice came out of her mouth, she realized how futile it was.

"Oh, look if it isn't the stupid mommy?" The woman said, with traces of her fake tears still on her face. "Is that how you shout at a guest?"

"You're not a guest."

"Not? But the boy said I'm welcome, didn't he, little Vagner?" The bandit said, pulling the kid closer to her, forcing him to let out a scream of pain. "Aren't we welcome here? Are you going to go back on your word now, you little shit?"

Vagner cried, not knowing what to say, not knowing what to think, not understanding what was happening, no longer able to connect with that woman. It was as if she were a monster that came from the shadows to get him. Were there monsters like her walking among humans? Were there truly evil people after all?

"Please, if it's money you want, you can have it all; just don't touch him. I'll give anything."

"Give what? You don't have anything we want, nothing we won't take anyway. The only reason the kid is still alive..."She placed a knife against Vagner's cheek, making a small cut. "Is because seeing that cute little face so terrified really excites me."

Maybe it was the wind, or maybe it was truly a miracle, God decided to act, gravity had its way. No one can say what happened, what caused it, but it is a fact that Chin, the doll that was sitting on the couch, somehow ended up on the floor. And the sound of the fall startled the bandit, who immediately turned to see who was behind her. She found no one, but that brief lapse in her guard was enough for Sofie.

The woman charged at her opponent, a fight began between the two, and Vagner was freed in the confusion. In his fear, his first reaction was to run to Chin and hug the doll with all his might.

He didn't want to see, he didn't want to hear, he couldn't understand anything. Why was it always so hard for people to just talk? They should just say what their pains, desires, and traumas were and come to a consensus to help each other. Why were there so many who moved their bodies more than their mouths? No one deserves to suffer, no one deserves to get hurt.

All the boy knew was that in the next moment, the bandit had a knife over her heart and Sofie was on top of her. He stared at the scene in shock; that woman didn't deserve to die, she should have talked. Sofie looked at the boy, crying and trembling, and in her eyes, he saw the purest fear. And the boy could do nothing, he had no idea what to do to help her.

Then he only remembered being in the woman's arms with Chin, as she ran through the mansion, to the sounds of rain, gunshots, and screams. As they ran, they passed by bodies, so many people, and many of them Vagner knew. Their eyes were open and seemed to follow them with their gaze.

As they passed, Vagner connected one by one with each body. Assimilating how terrifying and agonizing their last moments must have been, thoughts and emotions that should have passed, and he couldn't stop crying. Sofie just cried along. The doll had no tears to shed, no mind to understand, and no eyes to see, so how was it expected for it to feel anything about its surroundings?

They reached the outside, the heavy rain had turned the place into a mudslide, which made running difficult. Sofie didn't know which direction to go, she was just trying to avoid any gunfire she heard, and when she realized it, she was facing the river, which had swollen three times its size due to the rain. The current was too strong and fast, they would never make it. Crying and gasping, Sofie looked from side to side until her body leaned forward. Had she thrown herself into the river?

No.

The woman was hit by a stray bullet, and then, mother and child sank into the depths.

Vagner lost consciousness.

When he regained it, he was lying on what seemed to be a log in the water. Chin was no longer in his hands, and Sofie was draped over it with her waist still in the water. One of her arms was over the boy as if she was keeping him protected.

"Sofie?" The woman did not respond, she just lay there while they were carried away by the current. "HEY SOFIE!" But she did not respond. "SOFIE, FORGIVE ME, I SWEAR I'LL NEVER DO ANYTHING WITHOUT YOUR PERMISSION AGAIN! SOFIE!" No matter how much the boy shouted, his voice would never reach the abyss of death. Touching her skin, he realized how cold she was and how her eyes were now TRULY empty. There was nothing left there.

His tears only served to feed the river that was carrying him away.

The force of the current increased and turned the log, separating mother and child completely. The boy hit his head hard against a rock and was dragged by the water once again, losing consciousness once more.

The next time he woke up, he was on the riverbank. The rain had stopped, the boy crawled to a tree where he leaned against. His head ached severely, with a huge wound on his skull, weak and powerless. He continued crying, his tears kept falling.

Now he felt the wind cutting through his fingers, his head, the wind seemed to turn his body into glass, and he was truly alone. The place was so empty, there was no one, neither Sofie nor Chin.

Where was everyone? Where were the people he always helped? He always made sure to be there for someone, so why was there no one there for him? Was it his fault? He got what he wanted, a place where everyone was as good to him as he was to them. And he threw it all away? He didn't stop? The boy cried, but not from pain. Even though every fiber of his body ached, his head was numb and tingling. The reason the child shed tears was because he thought of all the people he had seen, and he connected with them. He saw Sofie and connected with her a hundred times more.

"Hihihi..." A laugh came from the forest. With great difficulty, Vagner looked around trying to see who was there. And a girl was coming through the undergrowth toward him. "Poor boy, you must be suffering so much."

"Who are you?"

"Me? I'm Lily. And you must be Vagner, right? I've heard a lot about you, the most altruistic boy known. How did you end up in this situation?"

"It's a lot to explain right now."

"Should I assume that this involved some bad people?"

"Bad?.... No, I don't like that word, I don't believe in it."

"In bad people? Have you never met someone who laughs while doing evil deeds? While causing discord? Someone who no matter how much you think about it, you can't understand?"

"'Seeing that cute little face so terrified really excites me'" that phrase haunted him. The boy couldn't shake the terrifying face of that woman or the cold, lifeless eyes of the corpses that followed him. Why did they feel the need to hurt and torment? It didn't make sense; why was it so hard to think of others? It had always been so easy for him, as if he were the only person in the world still trying and only misfortune fell upon him because of it.

"It's true, I can't explain why they did what they did." The boy placed a hand over his eyes as he surrendered further to his feeling of despair.

"I understand your point of view, Vagner, and I think it's beautiful that you want to have so much faith in humanity, that you want to help people, but the truth is that in this world, what prevails is the cycle of life: the strong devours the weak, and here, kindness is a sign of weakness. Your life should always come first because the world's happiness is completely irrelevant if you are not happy."

The boy no longer looked at the girl; he just cried.

"What makes the world such a hard place to live is the kindness of people, because it's impossible to make the planet peaceful. Empathy, kindness, gentleness are just tools of torture for the human heart. You fight for others for no reason while you hurt yourself, it doesn't make sense."

"Hey, but there is still hope!" At this moment, the boy slightly turned his head toward her, waiting for her to finish. "I recognize that there are many people who cannot ignore others, but there is a way to destroy kindness, so no one will care about anyone's pain, they can focus on their own happiness."

-"Destroy kindness? Is that possible?"

"With me, it is. Come on, Vagner, I guarantee that people can be happier this way and..."

"No."

Silence. A weak, dying "no" from an eight-year-old child made something that was once a deity... fall silent.

"What?" The girl asked. For the first time in the story, Lily was incredulous. For the first time, the girl doubted what she saw and heard. For the first time, she was surprised. Vagner still had tears on his face but smiled; it wasn't a completely genuine smile, it wasn't a happy smile, it was sad as if thoughtful, but still, it was incredible that he continued trying to smile given the situation he was in. "Hey kid, did you hear me? The only reason you are in this situation is because of kindness."

"No, kindness was what made me meet Sofie in the first place, kindness helped me save a dog, kindness made me help many people... kindness helped me many times, it gave me a family, and then took it away."

"Exactly, you gained something to lose, that's sad, that's unfair, that's not right."

"You say that kindness is the villain, but in truth, if everyone were good, none of this would have happened, right?"

"But weren't you the one who said that all people are good? Are you going back on your word now? Can you explain to me, Vagner? How can a person do what was done to you?"

"No." The girl gave a slight smile of relief, thinking she was getting somewhere, but her feeling quickly faded away. "But I'm just a child, how do you expect me to know everything? Probably when I grow up I will understand their side too."

"B-B-Bullshit, this is ridiculous." Lily simply couldn't say anything, completely at a loss for words, feeling a rage, a shame, and a strange feeling inside her. "You're saying that even after everything that happened, you will still continue with this ridiculous belief? Kid, the world you live in is different; it's kill or be killed, a world full of malice, lies, a world full of ill intentions. People like you are easy prey! Don't you understand? If you don't learn to live by their rules, you will suffer."

"Give up what I believe to be like everyone else? No, I'd rather say what I think to see if I can make someone like me. Isn't that how we make friends?"

"NO, YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND." Lily yelled, her eyes became glassy, her hair began to float. In her rage, a white light began to swirl around them, but she and the boy didn't care. He was too tired to worry, and she was confused. "IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO TEACH EVERYONE WHAT YOU THINK. AS LONG AS HUMANITY IS HUMAN, THERE WILL ALWAYS BE DIVERGENT IDEAS, THERE WILL ALWAYS BE SOMEONE WHO WILL BETRAY THIS CYCLE. EVIL SPREADS MUCH MORE EASILY THAN GOOD. THIS IS A LOST BATTLE. WHAT DO YOU EXPECT TO THROW YOUR LIFE AWAY FOR? IT'S IRRELEVANT TO TRY TO MAKE THE WORLD HAPPY IF YOU ARE UNHAPPY."

"Foolish..." It wasn't an insult, it was a lighthearted joke. Vagner had come to like her. "... I am part of the world. If the world is happy, it's obvious that I will be too. I can't imagine a reality where everyone smiles except for one single person."

Lily's eyes widened, she was astonished by what she heard. That boy shouldn't even be able to read properly, he didn't know anything; she knew many things, she had deceived and used so many people. So why? Why was she the one who was at a loss for words?

It was then that she realized... she was also crying. It was then she realized that the main reason for the white lights dancing around them was not due to her rage, but because in front of her was the purest hope, an incredible stubbornness. There was no logical argument in favor, and at the same time, it made all the sense in the world. A faith, a hope, and a determination so great that it was beautiful.

"Vagner... Vagner..." The one who had never cried, for the first time, shed genuine tears as she threw herself at the boy and embraced him. "Hey kid, don't go."

The boy smiled as Lily hugged him. It was getting harder and harder to keep his eyes open. Seeing life slip away, the girl decided to give him one last gift.

When Vagner came to, he was back at the mansion, in Sofie's lap with everyone around him.

"Sofie? Are you okay? I thought I'd never see you again."

"Don't be silly, Vagner, you're my child. I'm not going to leave you, never again." She hugged him. It was warm and full of love. The boy smiled like he had never smiled before in his life. It was so good to be there; everything he had been through was worth it.

"Thank you... Mom."

Meanwhile, Lily pulled her hand from a cold, empty corpse, still unable to hold back her tears, still unable to understand what she had seen.

"So... at least you will have the peace you so deserve... I'm sorry. I just don't understand. If you are so full of hope, whose despair did I feel?"

She stood up, still weak, and prepared to leave, but as soon as the boy's hope ended, she felt an agonizing despair in the area, a cry of plea that called to her like a siren's song. The rage and agony were so strong they were almost palpable. The confused girl followed the trail and saw among the waters and stones, a small doll. But amid all that despair, there was a distorted hope, a belief that Lily could give it life, and Lily then realized that all along, it was the doll who was crying, and she realized that if it could, the toy would scream. Its feelings expressed what it wanted to say:

"Kindness must fall."

A desperation from compassion fueled the hope to destroy kindness, and Lily then promised the toy that one day she would give it life to fulfill its hope.