THE TALE OF THE SOLITUDE FIGHTER

Written by : Lau Yi Lun

Kyle is a loner. He was often alone and he went everywhere by himself. He did not

understand the meaning of loneliness as he had succumbed to it a long time ago. He felt

that there was a wall separating between him and the others. Kyle had an elder brother

named John. John knew that his younger brother has this kind of habit where he liked to

be alone most of the time. Due to these time of being alone, Kyle slowly delved into a state

of depression. He can feel himself sinking into a bottomless pit of darkness; he could not

find a way out. He longed for someone to lend him a helping hand. However, that day never

come. From that moment, he started to lock himself in the room. He did not eat and drink

for days and his brother was quite worried.

“You should eat something, Kyle. You will get sick if you have an empty stomach,” John

insisted.

“Stay away from me!” Kyle shouted and cried.

John could not do anything but to leave the food on the table of the room. Kyle had a

passion of drawing from a young age. Once, a friend of John came to their house. John’s

friend took a look at Kyle’s drawing and try to take a picture of it. Kyle blew his top and he

became furious out of a sudden. He stopped talking to his brother for a few days due to

that matter. John assumed his younger brother was petty and did not like to share good

things with other people. Kyle was known to always kept all his things to himself and

anybody that dare to touch his things will never escape his scolding.

After looking at his younger brother’s situation, John decided to bring him to consult a

psychiatrist. The psychiatrist stated that Kyle suffered from depression and the main
cause was due to the loss of loved ones. The only way for his brother to recover was to use

something that can interest him to drag him out of sadness and grief.

John pondered for a long time and he was slipping into his train of thoughts. As he walked

back to his house, he kept thinking about ways to heal his brother, Kyle. He had promised

his mother to take a good care of his brother after her passing. After thinking for many

times, an idea popped up in his mind. John knew his brother loved to draw. He liked to draw

every character portrayed in Enid Blyton’s book. John wished to bring his brother to the

author’s fan and greet session.

“Kyle, what do you think of meeting Enid Blyton in person?” John asked his brother.

“That would be great. How good if I can get her signature on the book!” Kyle replied with a

wide smile.

“I would be really happy if I can take a picture with my favourite author,” Kyle continued.

The most anticipated day reached and the two brothers went to the Kinokuniya bookstore

for the fan and greet session. John asked Kyle to choose a book of Enid Blyton that he

loved. As he browsed through the books, he was attracted by the book entitled “Max and

His Leash”. Without thinking long, they proceed to the counter for the payment.

“I can see that you really like this book,” John smiled.

“Thank you for buying it for me. Love you, brother,” Kyle hugged his brother tightly.

“Max and His Leash” told a story of an unhappy dog named Max that wanted to untie

himself from the leash. He was deserted by his owner as they have a new dog. However,
his owner hoped that the villagers can keep Max as their pet. Hence, he tied him up to a

shady tree near the villager’s fishing village. In the morning, he will greet everyone that

passed by with a smile. They will give him a fish in return. During the night, Max will weep

silently as he could not release himself from the leash. He wished to run around freely like

the children in the field too. One day, a boy asked Max.

“Why don’t you want to untie the leash yourself since you are able to do it?” the boy

seemed puzzled.

“I have been tied up for way too long that I forget how to untie the leash myself,” Max

replied.

As John read the story to Kyle, he can see that his brother had slowly regained that

long-lost smile dated back to ten years ago. He seemed to be able to relate to the story a

lot. John advised his brother to forget about the past and encourage him to move on with

his new life. John nodded as a sign of reply.

“Mum will surely be happy witnessing this moment with his little Kyle,” he whispered to

himself.