Chapter 5: The Puzzle of Silence

---

Chapter 5: The Puzzle of Silence

---

The Encounter

The night was heavy with smoke and laughter when Wade saw him again.

Peter.

The silent boy with the eyes that seemed older than his years.

Wade had come to the bar only to drink, to drown the shadows of Leopard and Sanchi in amber liquid. But when he saw Peter in the corner, sitting with his friend Ned, something shifted.

Someone at the bar sneered loudly, pointing.

“Hey, look at the pretty mute. What good’s a boy who can’t even talk?”

Peter lowered his gaze, cheeks burning.

Before Wade could react, Ned shot back. “Shut your mouth before you choke on it.”

The drunkard laughed and staggered off.

Wade’s eyes lingered on Peter. The boy wasn’t broken by the words—he was used to them. But there was a weight in his silence that dug into Wade’s chest.

---

The First Words

Ned leaned close, whispering to Peter. “You okay?”

Peter gave a small nod, then noticed Wade watching. For the first time, their eyes locked across the smoky room.

Ned followed his gaze, then smirked. “Well, looks like the devil himself is staring at you.”

Peter’s lips curved into the faintest smile. He lifted his hand slightly, a hesitant wave.

Wade surprised himself by standing and crossing the room. His boots echoed, each step heavy, until he was at their table.

“You working with Sanchi?” Wade asked bluntly, eyes fixed on Peter.

Peter blinked, startled. He shook his head quickly, then looked at Ned.

Ned translated, “He says… yes, sometimes. But not by choice. Sanchi owns him. He’s just stuck.”

Wade’s jaw tightened. He had expected fear, denial—but Peter’s honesty, even in silence, hit him harder.

---

The Translation

They spoke in fragments.

Wade would ask. Peter would gesture or scribble on a napkin. Ned would translate.

It was awkward, clumsy. And yet, it worked.

At one point, Wade pulled his gun from the holster, laying it on the table—not as a threat, but as a test.

“You ever hold one of these?”

Peter tilted his head, then mimed shooting with his fingers, grinning faintly. Ned chuckled. “He says he doesn’t play with toys. Real guns only.”

Wade smirked despite himself. “Smart kid.”

For the first time in years, Wade felt something loosening in his chest.

---

The Puzzle

Then, Peter picked up a pen. On the back of a receipt, he began to write. Not in sentences, but in poetry, his words flowing like quiet music.

Ned read aloud:

> “Makes you pine

Till your heart is in the edges

Makes you cry

Troubles you by inflicting wounds

And then becomes your salvation”

The bar seemed to hush. Wade stared at the words, his throat tightening.

He leaned forward, his voice low.

“That’s love.”

Peter’s eyes lifted, wide.

“Love,” Wade repeated, softer. “It’s the answer to your puzzle. Finally…” His lips curved into a rare, almost broken smile. “…finally someone can understand me.”

---

The Diary

Peter’s hand trembled as he pulled something from his bag. A small, worn diary. The leather was cracked, the pages filled with sketches and scribbled words.

He slid it across the table.

Wade hesitated, then opened it. His eyes scanned the pages—fragments of poetry, sketches of faces, half-finished thoughts.

And there, written carefully on the inside cover, was a single name:

Peter.

Wade touched the letters like they were something sacred. For the first time, the boy wasn’t just a silent face in a cruel man’s world. He was real.

“Peter,” Wade said aloud, testing the name.

Peter smiled—soft, radiant, and utterly disarming.

In that moment, Wade knew. The boy had already carved his way past the walls Wade had built for years.

And it terrified him.

---

Longer bar scene – describe atmosphere, music, tension.

More mockery & reactions – Peter facing cruelty, Ned defending him, Wade’s inner rage.

Deeper translation dialogue – expand Wade & Peter’s questions/answers with Ned’s humor in between.

Extended poetry moment – Peter writes more than one verse, Ned reading with awe, Wade reacting emotionally.

Diary details – show sketches, fragments of Peter’s thoughts, Wade reading and interpreting them.

Inner monologues – Wade reflecting on why Peter’s silence feels louder than any gunshot.

---

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***