Chapter 2
-----
"Mom! Dad!" Laura's voice rang out from the backyard.
Not long after, Emily and Albert rushed over.
"What is it?" Albert asked.
"That orphan girl... she's nowhere to be found, Father."
"Good. I'm glad she's gone from this house," Emily said with visible relief.
"Have you lost your mind?! It's a problem if she leaves!" Albert snapped. "This house and all its assets are still under her name. We can't even sell anything until she turns nineteen."
The middle-aged man looked visibly restless.
"Oh my God, why didn't you tell me sooner?!" Emily exclaimed.
"I just found out yesterday-from the lawyer himself."
"This is a nightmare! Hurry, we need to find her!" Albert ordered urgently.
-----
On the outskirts of the city, Yvette walked with unsteady steps.
No one paid her any attention.
A pitiful little girl in tattered clothes, with messy, uneven hair, wandered along with a pale face, clutching her stomach.
She was heading toward a cemetery just a few meters ahead.
But at the entrance, she spotted a food truck selling burgers.
The rich aroma instantly filled her senses.
Her hunger intensified.
Beside the truck stood a handsome boy, around ten years old, holding a bag of food in his hand.
The hunger made Yvette feel dizzy.
"Forgive me, Father... Mother..." she whispered softly.
Summoning all her strength, she ran toward the boy.
He blinked in confusion at her ragged appearance.
Before he could react, Yvette snatched the plastic bag from his hand.
"Hey! That's my burger!" he shouted.
The boy immediately chased after her as she ran with surprising speed despite her frail body.
"Aaron~"
A gentle female voice called out, stopping the boy in his tracks.
"Where are you going?" the woman asked.
"A little girl stole my food, Mom."
"A little girl?" she repeated, puzzled.
"Let it go. Maybe she's hungry," she said softly. "Come on, we need to head to the cemetery."
She took his hand and led him away.
Aaron, however, kept glancing around, searching for the girl who had stolen his food.
Not out of anger-
But out of concern.
The image of her pitiful clothes lingered in his mind.
-----
Aaron stood before a freshly dug grave.
His grandfather's burial had taken place earlier that day.
Everyone around him looked deeply mournful.
From afar, he noticed a small figure.
The same girl.
The one who had stolen his burger.
Yvette knelt before two neglected graves.
Her parents' graves.
"Ayah, Ibu, forgive me... I didn't mean to steal that boy's burger... but I was so hungry..." she sobbed, her voice trembling as she ate.
She wiped her tears and runny nose with the back of her hand.
She looked utterly disheveled.
It had been nearly three days since she had eaten properly after running away from her uncle's house.
Aaron watched from a distance.
"Poor girl..." he murmured.
Pat!
A hand tapped his shoulder, startling him.
"Aaron, let's go home," his mother said gently.
Lily Watson.
Aaron didn't respond immediately.
His eyes remained fixed on where Yvette had been sitting.
But now-
She was gone.
"She disappeared..."
"Who disappeared, sweetheart?" Lily asked, confused.
"You remember the girl who stole my burger earlier?" Aaron said. Lily nodded.
"She was right there, at those two abandoned graves... but now she's gone."
"She looked so pitiful, Mom. Her clothes were torn, and her hair... it was shaved unevenly. She's a girl, but..." Aaron trailed off.
Lily smiled softly, gently stroking her son's head.
Her son had such a compassionate heart.
"Maybe she went back home," she said.
"No way, Mom. I don't think she even has a home... What if we let her stay with us?" Aaron suggested earnestly.
At that moment, Lucian Watson approached.
His father.
"What's going on?" he asked calmly.
Aaron quickly explained everything.
Lucian nodded with a small smile.
"Of course. She can stay with us... if we ever meet her again," he replied.
"Now come on, Aaron. It's about to rain," Lily said, glancing at the darkening sky.
"Okay, Mom," Aaron answered.
-----
That night, under the steady drizzle of rain, Yvette had no choice but to sleep beneath a bridge.
She wasn't alone.
There were others there too.
People with the same fate as hers.
Homeless.
That was the word for those without a place to call home.
"Cold..." Yvette whispered, hugging herself tightly.
Her clothes were far too thin.
Not long after, an old man approached with an irritated expression.
"Hey! Get out of here!" he barked.
He didn't like others invading his spot.
"Please let me stay here for the night, Uncle..." Yvette pleaded weakly.
Her face was pale.
She hadn't eaten at all that day.
"I'M NOT YOUR UNCLE! GET LOST BEFORE I HIT YOU!" he shouted.
Yvette froze.
It reminded her of her own uncle.
"Okay... I'll go..." she said quickly.
She ran off in fear, her small feet moving as fast as they could.
She didn't want to be beaten again.
-----
A luxurious car stopped in front of a school gate.
Someone stepped out.
Aaron Watson.
He flinched when he heard a voice shout nearby.
"Hey! Thief!"
Curiosity drove him to follow the commotion.
Several students were chasing a small girl in ragged clothes.
Aaron's eyes widened.
He recognized her.
He began running too-faster than the others.
It was the same girl from the cemetery.
Yvette.
She had stolen food again.
"Hey, wait!" Aaron shouted as he ran.
But Yvette didn't stop.
She kept running toward the road.
"Hey! Where are you going? That's the main road!" Aaron yelled.
Then-
Honk!
Crash!
A car struck Yvette.
Her small body was thrown several meters away.
Aaron witnessed it all.
He froze in shock.
Blood pooled beneath her fragile body.
-----
Yvette lay weakly on a hospital bed.
Her body was covered in wounds.
Her head was wrapped in bandages.
"It seems she has suffered repeated physical abuse," said a man in a white coat and glasses. "There are bruises everywhere-pinch marks, even burn scars from an iron."
He observed her condition from behind a glass panel.
Beside him stood Lily.
After hearing what happened from her son, she had rushed to the hospital immediately.
"Poor child..." Lily whispered, her heart aching. Especially seeing Yvette's uneven, partially shaved hair.
"Was she being abused? We should report this to the police."
"We need to wait until she regains consciousness first," the doctor replied.
Lily's gaze remained fixed on Yvette's fragile figure.
Her heart ached at the thought of a child enduring such suffering.
No child should have to go through something like this, she thought.
Aaron slowly entered the room.
He stood beside the bed, looking at Yvette up close.
There were so many scars on her arms.
"Mom... Dad..." Yvette murmured weakly in her sleep.
"Mom... Dad..."
Aaron flinched slightly.
"Mom, she's waking up..."
Lily, who had been speaking with the doctor, quickly entered.
Yvette's fingers twitched faintly.
Aaron gently took her hand.
"It's okay... we're here. We'll protect you," he said softly.
Slowly, Yvette opened her eyes.
The bright white light stung her vision.
"You're safe now. You have a big brother who will protect you... forever," Aaron said, smiling warmly.
A single word-
Forever.
It became a light in Yvette's darkness.
A promise she would hold onto for the rest of her life.
To be continued...
