An Orphan Tom 1/3

„You’re pathetic.“

„Am not!“

„So are!“

The seventeen year old dreadlocked teenager huffed and buried his nose back into the magazine he was reading before his roommate, Jacob, interrupted him. He wasn’t reading the article, he was just looking at pictures of him. There were plenty of them… all pictures of the same flawless face of Bill Kaulitz. The black haired beauty was a famous singer in Germany, and in his twenty-two years, had everything a boy might want.

And this Bill Kaulitz was the only thing the dreadlocked teenager could focus on.

„Really Tom, you should forget about him.“

Tom looked up from his magazine and frowned. He had heard this admonishment many times, from so many people.

„Why?“

„Because he is someone you’ll never have.“

Tom rolled his brown eyes and sighed. „You’re saying it as if I don’t already know that.“

„Well,“ Jacob said, as he stood up from his bed and stretched his muscles, „Sometimes you seem as if you were in love with him or something. You’re forgetting about the real world and real people.“

„I know.“ The dreadlocked teen sighed, closed the magazine, and casually tossed it aside. „But he’s just so perfect, you know?“

„Sure I know. You tell me this all the time!“ the other boy smiled, not unkindly, and ruffled Tom’s hair. „C’mon, dinner should be ready now.“

The slightly younger teen nodded and stood up. He glanced at the cover of the magazine and saw Bill Kaulitz cockily smirking back at him. Tom gave a small smile to the lifeless paper, pulled on his sweater, and left the room in search of food.

Life in an orphanage is not easy. The dreadlocked teenage boy could narrate about it for hours and hours, and it wouldn’t be a happy story. When you’re an orphan, you have to fight for everything; toys when you’re still a kid, time on one single computer when you’re older or a bath if you’re cold and want to warm up your body. As an orphan you have no friends. All around you are just people you call a friend because you don’t know how else you should refer to them. They are not enemies, and they are not friends, they are just equally orphaned souls sharing the same space with you.

When you’re an orphan you have to deal with things ‚normal‘ kids with parents and a loving home can’t even dream about. Every morning you have to get up, put on your poor and worn-out clothes, fight for the best pieces of breakfast, and go to the school where you have to deal with stupid classmates who make fun of you for not having a family and for wearing old-fashioned clothes. At the end of the day, you are so tired and worn-out that you don’t even have the strength to fight for dinner. And when your head finally hits the pillow at night, all you can dream about is a better place, a better life, and wish hard for it to happen to you. Then…you wake up the next morning to face a new day that is just the same as the day before.

„Thanks, Melissa,“ Tom said and smiled at the blonde governess who gave him a plate with his dinner on it. Tom sat down at the table, side by side, with his roommate, Jacob. The boy wasn’t Tom’s friend, but he was the closest thing to a „friend“ that the dread-head had in this miserable place. Since he arrived at the orphanage, Tom could remember Jacob being there with him. They knew each other really well, yet they did not know anything about one another. Neither of them ever shared a secret with the other (not counting Tom’s secret crush on Bill Kaulitz), but they always fought together against everyone else. Tom won’t admit it out loud, but he kind of liked Jacob.

„Hey!“

Tom smiled and shook his head, „Hi, Alex. So… you’re back, huh?“

A girl with short, dark brown hair made a face at him and sat down across from him. She chewed on some of her own food before she responded, „Yeah, those people were jerks,
really.“

Both boys laughed; they knew Alex too well. „What did you do this time?“ Jacob asked and grinned at her.

„I did nothing. Well, maybe I accidently set their cat on fire, but it really was an accident! That stupid cat shouldn’t have been so annoying and nosey when I was meditating with my candles,“ the girl nodded in agreement with her own thoughts. She shrugged, gave them both a bright smile, and continued eating her food. It wasn’t the first time that people who took her out of the orphanage, brought her back shortly thereafter. She was just too troubled and not everyone could deal with her. It seemed that she would follow Tom and Jacob’s example, and will be stuck in here until she reaches her 18th birthday.

„Anyway, have you guys heard the news about it already?“

„Heard about what?“

„Heard who will be performing at the Christmas concert this year?“ she said teasingly and wiggled her eyebrows at them.

Both boys just shook their heads and it made the girl really happy; she loved being the first one to spread the news about something.

„Well, one of you really loves him,“ Alex smirked and took a bite of her half-hard potato. The dread-head’s eyes lit up at that mention.

„Who is it?“ asked Jacob, bored.

„He-„

„Oh. My. God!“

Alex and Jacob both looked up at Tom, who was almost choking on his own dinner. The girl smirked and nodded. Her eyes were shining with joy and happiness at being able to deliver the news first. Tom was her favorite boy at the orphanage and she really wished this for him… and herself a bit, as Bill Kaulitz was her favorite singer too.

„R-really?!“

„Yeah,“ she laughed, „Really, Tomi-boy!“

„Oh my God,“ Tom repeated again, breathing heavily with excitement. This can’t be happening, it can’t be true. Bill Kaulitz can’t sing at their benefit concert, no way! „H-how?“

„Well, he’ll drive here and-„

„I know how it works!“ Tom huffed and rolled his eyes. „I mean, how’s it possible?
Him? Here? Seriously?“

„Yes.“

„Like, for real?“

„Yes,“ laughed Alex again and shook her head. „You’re like a little boy, Tom. Like an in love little teenage boy,“ she teased. Alex and Jacob both laughed at Tom, but the dreadlocked teen didn’t seem at all bothered by them.

Bill Kaulitz will be here.

Bill Kaulitz will perform for them at their Christmas benefit concert.

Bill Kaulitz will be here in less then a month from now.

Tom’s heart fluttered and his lips curled up in a happy smile. He will see his idol with his own eyes!