Chapter 1 - Before Sunrise
Niran awoke on the floor, as he did every day.
Being careful not to wake the others, he put on his sandals, stood up, and walked into the small hallway and silently walked past the open doors where others continued to sleep. He entered the main room and approached the door to outside. He slowly turned the handle on the trailer door, opened it just enough so that he could squeeze through, and carefully shut the door behind him. It was still dark, but Niran could see by the purple hue in the sky that the sun would soon begin to rise.
He walked toward the immense buildings that towered in front and above him. He glanced toward the scaffolding that men would soon begin climbing when it was light enough, and it terrified him to think of himself being so high as those men. He did not understand how the buildings could be built so high and not tip over. He promised himself he would never go in one, let alone climb high in one. He looked at the cranes sitting atop some of the unfinished buildings. In the dark he could only see their outline against the night sky and it reminded him of the fantastical stories his mother told him when he was a small boy: of dragons feeding upon the bodies of bad and unwise little boys and girls who ran away from their parents.
He wore nothing but white, cotton shorts that hung to his knees and were kept tied to his waist with a shoelace. He did not own any other clothes. As he walked, the sand quickly covered his sandals and feet, and the coolness was soothing.
He stopped, took off his sandals, and using one sandal he dug a small hole in the sand. He then took off his shorts and carefully squatted over the hole, relaxed, and emptied his bowels. There was a hastily constructed shack near the trailer for such things, but he hated to use it. It was dirty, smelled, and during the day he did not like to be seen by the hundreds of men who were constantly walking into and around the large, unfinished buildings. They would stare at him and it would make him feel uncomfortable. Instead, he had learned how to hold his business and take care of it on these early morning walks. He finished, and looking into the hole he was glad that he no longer had the diarrhea that had been plaguing him for several weeks. He then took his sandal and filled in the hole. He stood up, keeping his sandals and shorts in his hands, and he once again began to walk, enjoying the coolness of the air on his now naked body.
There were some lights twinkling high in some buildings and he would occasionally hear the sound of metal banging against metal as some men worked through the night. Niran's eyes continuously scouted for any movement but he saw none and was relieved. He had been stopped and questioned before by men who were stern and angry. He did not understand their language but he understood that he should not be here. These men had scared him tremendously and all he could do was say nothing and point toward the trailer where he lived. They looked to where he was pointing and the look on their face changed. They began to look uncomfortable, and possibly embarrassed. Niran was never sure if they were embarrassed for themselves or for him. Their voices would become less harsh but still demand that he return to the trailers, pushing him along.
Thankfully, he saw no one and he continued to walk toward the spot where pipes could be seen jutting from the ground and snaking away in all directions. He had first seen the pipes, and the water that he knew was within them, from one of the small windows in the trailer. During the day he would see men go up to the pipes and one pipe in particular, that had been lifted off the ground and supported by wooden planks.
Having reached his destination he walked under that pipe now, setting his sandals and shorts to the side and on the ground. A wrench attached to the side of the pipe was higher than his head, but he still managed to reach and turn the wrench, using all his strength, and soon a small stream of water began to fall on his head.
The water was not cold, but instead cool and it felt good on his skin as he continued to turn the wrench as more water began to fall. He did not know where the water came from, but it was clean and did not smell so he did not care. Smooth rocks had been poured on the ground underneath the makeshift shower so as the water reached his feet the sand was quickly washed away and he could feel the water begin to run freely through his toes. Although he was naked under the running water he knew it was unlikely that anyone could see him in the darkness.
He reached up with his hands and began to scrub his hair with his fingers. He had not had his hair cut in some time and it hung almost to his shoulders. His mother would never have allowed his hair grow this long. His fingers would find the clumps where his hair had been stuck together and he would work these areas for a few seconds until he could feel the clumps dissolve and fall from his head. With his hair clean he would move next to his face, using his fingernails to scrub his skin and rid his face of the embedded dirt. The areas around his eyes were the worst, and as he carefully picked away the dirt and sand he would try to remind himself that he was no longer a little boy and he must stop his crying; if for no other reason than to keep his eyes clear of the dirt and sand that never stopped blowing throughout this horrible country.
He walked out from underneath the still flowing water and picked up a handful of sand. With his skin wet the sand stuck easily and he began to scrub his skin vigorously. It stung in places, but he knew that any minor cuts must be kept clean as to not be made worse by possible infection. He ran his hands over his chest, arms, legs and even his behind, but he did not touch the hole with the sand. He had learned a long time ago to keep the sand away from there.
He stepped back under the water and the sand began to fall from his body, taking with it the smudges of dirt that had previously covered his skin. When he felt that the sand had been completely washed away he leaned forward and let the water run over his hole. He used his fingernails to scrape away any dirt and `other stuff' that stuck to his skin. He noticed that he did not feel sore this day and he let the water run over his hole for a minute and enjoyed the soothing feeling.
Niran loved how clean he now felt. He knew it would be the cleanest he would feel all day. Still standing underneath the running water he leaned his head back, and let the water wash over his face and into his open mouth. He would drink some of the water, but mostly he just let it splash over him. He closed his eyes and for a few minutes he thought back to the river near his village and remembered playing under a small waterfall with his sisters, as his mother watched from the shore.
Niran reached down, grabbed his shorts, and held them under the running water. Rubbing the cotton against itself, wringing the shorts over and over, he tried to remove as many of the stains as he could. The shorts were no longer white, but he kept them as clean as possible. He had almost no possessions of his own, and no matter what everyone thought of him, he would not let them steal what pride he had left in himself.
Niran heard voices in the distance and his head quickly looked up to scan the area. He saw no one, but he noticed he could no longer see any stars and knew he had to return to the trailer before it became lighter. He reached and pulled on the wrench and his mood diminished momentarily as the water slowed and then stopped completely, with just a few drops continuing to fall. He wrung his shorts with his hands as best he could and then put them back on. He then stepped into his sandals and began to walk back to the trailer. As he walked he rubbed his skin trying to get as dry as possible. The air was dry. This place was always so hideously dry. It took him less than 5 minutes to return to the trailer, however he was no longer wet except for his hair and his shorts, and he doubted it would be noticed as most likely everyone would still be sleeping.
He quickly walked back to the trailer door and stepped into the shallow pan filled with water located next to the step. Once again the sand fell away from his feet and sandals so as not to be tracked into the trailer with him. He then walked up the short steps and silently pulled the door open and peeked inside. As he expected there was no movement.
He slowly walked in and saw the small metal desk and chair where the woman, Sun, would sit and meet the men before she sent them to one of the rooms in the two adjoining trailers that were located a short distance away. He was afraid of the woman, even though she was Thai like him. She would occasionally beat him for no reason and he had learned that it was best that he stay away from her as much as possible.
To the right was a small kitchen where one of the girls would make the meals for everyone. He was fed twice a day and it was usually rice but sometimes a soup that was made up of vegetables that he could not discern. He dared not complain, but he disliked the meals, as they had no taste, no flavor. Looking at the small kitchen he saw what looked like pieces of fruit sitting in a corner on the counter. He wondered if anyone would miss just one piece, but he knew better and stayed out of kitchen so as not to test his temptation. He had seen one girl get beaten so severely after stealing food and he did not want that to happen to him. He was always hungry, but he was not starving, and he had learned a long time ago that it could be worse, much worse.
He quietly walked back down the hallway and into the room where he slept with several other girls. He was the only boy. He had tried to make friends with a few of the girls but instead they preferred to tease and make fun of him. He did not understand why. They would not let him sleep near the window where the cool air would come in at night, but instead he slept closest to the door where the air never moved. He did not like how they treated him at first, but he soon became used to their continued taunting. They dared not touch him though, as one of the girls learned that he would hit back if necessary, even if he knew that Suna would beat him for it. At first he hated being so far away from the window and the fresh air that came with it, until he began his early morning walks that he now cherished more than anything.
There were two Thai girls, another from Laos, and one from India that shared the room with him. They were all given thin pads to sleep on that were barely more comfortable than the bare floor. They were not allowed to sleep on the softer mattresses where they were kept during the day. Niran wondered if it was because Suna feared they would run away if they were not kept close. Some of the girls did disappear but he did not think they ran away. He did not know where they went or what happened to them and he did not care. He had learned that he could depend only on himself, and due to their meanness he offered no help to the others.
There were others girls sleeping in two additional rooms; he had counted 15 total in the trailer, including the girls with whom he shared a room. The Thai lady, Suna, had her own room that she kept closed at all times. Niran had gotten a glimpse into her room one morning when she stormed out and began to yell at one of the girls, forgetting to close the door behind her. He had seen a few furnishings, photos on a small desk, and a bed that was supported off the floor with four legs. At the time he had wondered what it would feel like to sleep in such luxury, but he quickly pushed those thoughts out of his mind, realizing that self-pity did nothing, and in fact could make things worse, as it would distract him from thinking clearly.
Back in his room, he lay down on the floor but remained awake. He could see that the sky outside was getting lighter and that soon Suna would awake.
The sounds of thousands of men would soon be heard as they walked toward the many buildings on the massive construction site. Niran had been surprised that many of the workers were from Thailand, like himself. He knew that when he was working he could ask only so many questions as most of the men did not like for him to say anything as they did their business with him. But occasionally there would be a Thai man with whom Niran could communicate with, who would be nice to him, and it would allow Niran to prod him with questions in order to get a better understanding of his situation and surroundings.
He had learned that he was in a city called Riyadh and it was the capital of a country called Saudi Arabia. Niran had learned from the few talkative Thai that people from all over the world came to this country to work. The Saudis themselves also worked, but they were few. It was explained to him that the Saudis were a rich people and they needed to bring in many laborers, men mostly, to build their buildings and factories. Niran began to understand why he saw so many different types of people in one place compared to his village, where he saw only those like himself.
He learned that the buildings being constructed were in fact going to be a brand new city. He did not understand how someone could build a city where one did not already exist. He was told that this country had more money than it knew what to do with, and that building a new city was a way for them to show the world how important they were. Niran did not understand why new buildings and cities would make anyone think differently of a people and their country. He only understood that if given the chance he would leave this place immediately and go back to where there was no electricity, no running water, but where there was the love of his family. He did not see love in these buildings; only glass, concrete and steel. These buildings were huge but at the same time they were ugly and he hoped that one day they would all burn to the ground.
Niran thought of these things as he waited to hear Suna's door open, and as he did the reality of his situation became ever more clear. It was time for him to leave this place. He could no longer expect anyone to save him. It had been over six months since he had arrived and he had expected someone would find him and remove him from this terrible place and these horrible people. He had dreamed that someone from his family or village would walk into the trailer and demand that Niran be given over to them so they could take him home. He had waited, and day after day has passed, and still no one came. If he were to leave he would have to do this on his own. A sense of calm settled over him as he realized that he would need to become his own savior if he were ever to escape this place.
If he were going to leave this place he would need a plan. He could not just get up, and walk away half naked in nothing more than sandals and shorts that hung to his knees and were tied at the waist with a string. He would need additional thingsÉ many things. He may possibly even need the help of others, although he did not who. He had some ideas, but those ideas were still foggy, unconnected and led to more unknowns and dead ends. He would need to begin paying more attention to his surroundings and pay even closer attention to the men who visited him each day. He was a smart boy. His mother had always told him so. If he were to leave he would need to outsmart them all. He did not know if he could succeed, but he knew that if he stayed much longer he would die, if not physically, than deep in his soul.
Today, however, would need to appear as if it were not unlike any other day. Today he must work and continue to give the impression to everyone that he was indeed as dim and harmless as they believed. He was the quiet, little Thai boy that not only did as he was told, but did things with a smile and a shy laugh. He had overheard the woman, Suna, discuss with one of the girls that she thought he was not right in the head. He smiled to himself when he had heard her say that, as it would only make it that much easier when the time came for him to leave.
Niran rolled onto his side and looked over to where the window was beginning to show the first light of day. As he heard Suna's door open he smiled and whispered to himself, "It begins today."