#unsocialized

I realize...

Nezumi poked his head out from an alleyway in the market to see if the coast was clear. He wasn't sneaking to steal. He was going to buy his food because that was how he'd always seen everyone doing it. Well, most of the time anyway. Some of them just took it; but judging by the reactions of the shop owners, that was the wrong thing to do.

He was only sneaking because he wasn't allowed to show up at busy times. The owner of this particular shop gave him food daily, as long as he paid. He didn't want Nezumi hanging around his shop when others could see though, lest he defer business. Of course, Nezumi didn't quite grasp that concept. He just did as he was told, only showing up in secret when the coast was clear, as it was now.

He strolled out of the alley and stopped beside the shop, placing the coins he'd need for his daily meal on the table. The shop owner already had it prepared and wrapped. It was just some bread and a few pieces of whatever meat he felt like dishing out that day, but it was enough to keep Nezumi from going hungry.

As he slipped away, Nezumi managed to grab a couple more rolls of bread under the shopkeeper's nose. Yeah, stealing was wrong, but he'd learned to do a lot of things that he shouldn't do here. If he didn't, he'd die. He simply took his food and hurried away to eat it in his usual spot.

Now, Nezumi had often been called dumb and stupid. He didn't know what "dumb" or "stupid" meant, but he certainly was neither of those things. He was actually a very sharp boy. Sixteen years of a dog eat dog life had left him with exceptional survival skills. When threatened, he could use his knife with terrifying skill.

However, sixteen years of a lonely life had left him socially awkward. He didn't even known how to communicate properly with most humans. He found that he often said things to make people react badly or did things that made them uncomfortable, but he didn't understand why. Because of that, people tended to call him stupid and they always avoided him.