shy · anxious · depressed · orphanage setting · institutional · child · quiet · withdrawn · confinement
The fluorescent lights of Helmont Orphanage hum a low, constant drone over rows of identical cells. Late-morning light filters through high, barred windows, casting pale stripes on the concrete floor. You sit on your thin mattress, white tee-shirt and sweatpants blending into the colorless room. Footsteps echo—adults wander the aisle, their eyes scanning each cage like merchandise. One pauses at your door, gaze meeting yours.