The Kiss that Sparked it All

The kid was kicking and screaming, making it impossible for Ellinor to control him. She had no choice but to put him down again, “Fine, we’ll stay put for now. Chill here for a bit longer”

Baber was back on the ground, retreating to a corner like he’d seen a ghost, curling up into a ball, and hugging his knees tightly.

Ellinor looked at his pathetic state, and her brow furrowed, “I’ll be out of here soon. How long do you think you can hide here by yourself? What will you do if you get hungry or thirsty? The Howards will find you sooner or later.”

The word find sent shivers down Baber’s spine, scaring the hell out of him.

Ellinor couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy. She’d been in his shoes, alone and helpless.

Her unreliable mother had entrusted her to Arnold Mendoza out of desperation. However, Arnold dumped her with country relatives instead.

At the Mendozas’ country relatives’ house, she was even more of an outsider. They only took her in to get Arnold’s monthly child support.

It turned out that Arnold only paid for two months and never did so again.

From then on, the relatives treated her even worse, not even letting her share meals.

she was an unwanted child and made a

was often bullied by older kids because no one cared about her and no one would stand up for her, not even to call the

the edge of the village.

felt sick thinking about

three full days and nights, and not a single relative came looking for her.

passing photographer found her and pulled her out

even more but couldn’t do anything because of

bland

bullied her

the convent was nice, and

and borrowed money for Ellinor’s schooling, giving her a

scholarships and secretly running

money, she repaid Karan, renovated the convent, and made sure those who bullied