When he was in second grade, Ben experienced the darkest event of his life—an incident that changed his worldview forever.
That morning, his mother sent him to buy cooking spices at a shop quite far from their house. With light steps, Ben set off down the still-quiet village road. On the way, he met his cousin, Hana—a cheerful little girl about his age.
"Ben!" Hana called, waving. "Let's go find some mangoes! There are plenty of ripe ones in the backyard."
In their village, mango hunting was a common activity. Children often went into the orchard and waited for the fruit to fall. Ben hesitated for a moment, but he felt he still had time before going to the shop. Finally, he nodded.
They entered the shady orchard. They gathered a few mangoes. But just when he thought he had enough, Hana wanted more.
"You go to the shop first," Hana said. "I'll wait here for a while."
Ben was a little worried. The orchard was quiet and far from any residential area. But Hana reassured him. Finally, Ben continued on to the shop.
After buying the spices, he remembered Hana, who was still alone in the orchard. Anxiety made him quicken his pace. His heart pounded.
And there, behind a lush mango tree, their little world shattered.
Before Ben's eyes, Hana—his nine-year-old cousin—was being raped by a grown man, about forty years old. Ben froze. His breath came in gasps.
"Stop!" Ben shouted as he ran.
But his small body couldn't withstand the strength of an adult. The man knocked Ben to the ground and tied him to the trunk of a mango tree. Ben could only cry, staring in horror at what had happened to Hana.
The man finished his depraved act, then stole all the mangoes and the rest of Ben's shopping money. After that, he simply left, leaving the two little children with unimaginable injuries.
The perpetrator was someone they knew: Jack—a neighbor from their village.
Nearly half an hour passed before Ben's mother became suspicious because her son hadn't returned home. She took Lisa, Hana's older sister, to look for him. When they arrived at the mango orchard, a heartbreaking sight greeted them.
Ben was tied to a tree, his face bruised, and sobbing. As soon as she was released, she immediately screamed, "Hana, Sis... Mama... Hana was raped by Jack!"
Lisa screamed hysterically when she saw her sister lying weak. They took Hana home, trembling and heartbroken. On the way, they even met Jack, who pretended not to know anything.
When they arrived home, they found Ben's house had been broken into. The evidence became clear. Shortly after, the police arrested Jack.
Ben returned to school, but Hana had to stop for three months due to the deep trauma. From that day on, Ben changed. He became withdrawn and withdrew from social life. The carefree world of children no longer appealed to him. All he knew was studying, helping his parents, and silence.
________________________________________
In his village, children who excelled in sports were considered the pride of the family. They were cheered, praised, and respected. Ben grew up different. While his friends spent time on the field, Ben preferred to stay in the small village library.
The dusty books became his sanctuary. There he found peace and answers to questions he dared not ask.
Ben soon realized he was different. While his friends were still struggling to read, he was already devouring textbooks with ease. In religious studies, while other children were still spelling Arabic, Ben had already memorized long chapters of the Quran. But his intelligence only made him more isolated. "Ben is strange," whispered one friend. "Yeah. Normal kids play soccer, not read books," replied another. Ben didn't care. He found a way to survive: turning his intelligence into opportunity. He did his schoolwork, made secret cheat sheets for exams, and slowly accumulated some spare change. But his talents didn't stop there. He became interested in machines and electronics. He observed the repairmen who came to the village, studied how their devices worked, and tried taking things apart. One day, he managed to fix his neighbor's television. "You're so good, Ben," the neighbor said, handing him some money. But this success only became a source of trouble at home. One night, his father found money in Ben's pocket. "Where did this money come from?" he snapped. "From fixing the TV, Dad... and doing my friends' homework," Ben replied quietly. SLAP! A hard slap landed on his cheek. "Don't lie! You must have stolen!" Ben was speechless. No explanation was ever believed. His mother could only hang her head, afraid to defend herself. From then on, Ben became increasingly withdrawn. ________________________________________ He found another escape: gaming. When the PlayStation arrived in the village, Ben quickly mastered it. He created cheats, sold games and their secrets, and turned the game into a small source of income. Not only that, he also dominated Tamiya racing. He dismantled toy car engines, replaced components, and achieved unmatched speeds.
"You always win, Ben. How do you do it?" a child asked in awe.
"I just understand how it works," Ben replied simply.
But all these achievements still didn't make him happy.
He still felt lonely.
In the realm of religion, Ben was once again the center of attention. His memorization of the Quran was extraordinary. His teachers were impressed, but his friends were jealous.
"Did you learn from a genie?" they taunted.
Ben just smiled bitterly.
At night, he often sat alone under the starry sky. In the silence, he imagined a different father—not one who beat, but one who guided. A father who protected, understood, and cherished him.
Under the moonlight, Ben made a promise to himself:
One day, I will become someone strong. Not to take revenge, but to protect.