The Kiss that Sparked it All

Ellinor paused before asking Baber, “You wanna leave this place?”

Baber looked a little nervy but he nodded anyway.

“And where do you want to go?” Ellinor asked again.

Baber tried his best to express himself, “The orphanage.”

Orphanage?

Damn, the kid even wanted to go back to the orphanage. Life at the Howard’s must really suck.

Ellinor gently ruffled his hair, trying to comfort him and build trust. T’d love to give you a hand, but you’ve gotta understand, I’m just a guest here, and Patricia is your legal guardian. Unless we can find some dirt on her and strip her of her custody, I can’t help you leave this place.”

Baber was all ears, but his understanding was limited, and he still looked at her with a puzzled expression.

might have been

sighed and simplified, “What I’m saying is, you’ve gotta be patient. Wait for the right moment, and I’ll help you

moment, but his eyes gradually lost their guarded

to show resistance when things

again. It seemed like he was in a

was patient. She took a necklace from around her neck and put it around Baber’s, adjusting

charm. It’s got some magic in it. As long as you’re wearing it, it’ll protect you. No one can push you around. But

it. He treasured the necklace around his neck and nodded

later, no matter how scared you are, remember not to cry. Smile and call her mom. That way, she won’t hurt you” Ellinor

he would soon meet the ‘mom’ who scared him, Baber started to shake in fear.

got this magical

looked at Ellinor, his eyes filled with determination, “Yeah! I’m not scared…”