Chapter 2
Yvonne lay in bed, sulking, barely touching her dinner. By morning, hunger was what finally dragged her out of bed.
It was 5:30 AM, and while the other kids her age were still deep in dreamland, Yvonne, clutching her growling stomach, struggled to sit up.
Hunger hit her like a wave, and she felt dizzy as she tried to get up. The world around her seemed to blur, like everything was covered in a fog.
She stumbled her way to the kitchen, leaning on the walls for support. The cook, seeing her struggle, handed her a boiled egg with a sympathetic smile.
Yvonne sat down on the doorstep, carefully cradling the egg, taking slow, cautious bites of her simple breakfast.
When the egg settled in her stomach, the emptiness finally started to fade, and she stood up, ready to head back to her room.
But as she passed the backyard, she noticed a strange boy swinging a stick at the big yellow dog, Bucky, who was tied to a tree.
Yvonne’s face instantly turned pale. Without thinking, she rushed over, her voice filled with panic. “Hey! Don’t hit Bucky!”
Jeremy Adler, hearing the shout, turned around, confused. He saw Yvonne protecting the dog, looking at him like he was the bad guy, her face full of fear.
“I’m hitting it?” Jeremy’s voice was rough, still cracking from his voice change, but an irritated smile tugged at his lips.
“That dog started it! It’s been barking at me non–stop.” He let out a half–laugh, clearly amused by her sudden accusation.
Yvonne didn’t respond, just pressed her lips together tightly and stared at the stick in his hand, clearly not buying his explanation.
Jeremy, sensing her suspicion, casually tossed the stick aside with a scoff. “I wasn’t hitting it, okay? I was just trying to scare it, get it to shut up.”
Yvonne blinked at him for a second, then just muttered, “Fine.”
That single “fine” left Jeremy feeling weirdly deflated, like someone had just knocked the wind out of him with a pillow.
He sighed, frustrated. ‘What’s the point of explaining to a kid? She’s not going to get it anyway!
Meanwhile, Bucky, sensing Yvonne’s affection, eagerly wriggled into her arms, wagging his tail like it might take off.
It was a complete 180 from how he’d acted toward Jeremy, who had been met with a growl when he tried to pet him earlier.
But Jeremy wasn’t about to admit he felt weird about the whole dog situation. He just crossed his arms and leaned back, acting like he couldn’t care less.
Yvonne leaned in close to Bucky’s ear, muttering something softly to him. The dog, now calm, tilted his head as if he actually understood her.
Jeremy was about to turn and walk away, not caring about their little interaction, when a sharp voice cut through the air. “Hey.”
He turned around and saw Yvonne looking up at him with her soft, fair face, her big, sparkling eyes locked on his, unblinking.
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She innocently asked. “You wanna pet the dog again?”
Jeremy froze for a second, caught off guard. He didn’t respond right away, and then she went on, “Bucky had puppies, and he’s a little scared of you. You still wanna pet him? I can hold him for you.”
To him, Bucky was just a plain–looking mutt. Jeremy had seen more purebred dogs than he could count, so he really didn’t care.
But for some weird reason, his feet wouldn’t move. Before he knew it, his body had already crouched down next to the dog without even thinking.
He put his hand on the dog’s head and scratched it gently. Honestly, it didn’t feel like much–nothing compared to the soft, fluffy fur of a Samoyed.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Yvonne holding the dog, and when he noticed the faint red in her eyes, he absentmindedly asked, “What’s wrong with you?”
She looked up at him, and he shrugged, pretending he didn’t care. “If you don’t wanna talk about it, whatever. I was just wondering why you’re crying so early.”
Yvonne pouted, looking like she was about to break down. Thinking about what happened yesterday made her heart ache.
“No nobody wants me…” she whispered, her voice cracking as she choked out the words.
Her small body trembled slightly, and all he could see was the top of her messy head, making her look even more lost and lonely.
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11.48 AM
Chapter 2
Her soft, broken voice made his chest tighten.
He muinbled, “How could no one want you? You’re… well…” He almost said “pretty,” but the words stuck in his throat.
Jeremy wasn’t exactly the best at giving compliments, and that word just didn’t feel right coming out of his mouth.
After a long pause, he finally spit out, “Average.”
Yvonne wiped her tears away, her eyes still full of confusion. “Are you complimenting me?”
Jeremy shot her a cold look and nodded stiffly, “Yeah, I’m complimenting you.”
Her face lit up, and she, following the rule of “you scratch my back, I scratch yours,” threw the same words right back at him. “Thanks! You’re average too!”
Looking at her innocent, happy face, Jeremy finally understood what it felt like to put your foot in your mouth.
His handsome face darkened instantly, and he fell silent, fuming inside.
Yvonne, thinking he’d had enough of the dog, let go of Bucky and stood up. “I’m gonna go back to sleep. Bucky knows you now. You can pet him by yourself. Bye.
Jeremy snapped out of his thoughts and watched her run off. For some reason, he found himself calling out, “Wait a second.”
He bit his lip and hesitated for a moment, looking at her red–rimmed eyes and pale face. Then, he asked, “What’s your name?”
In Dani’s office, a man in a suit was flipping through papers on the desk. The photos passed by quickly, but none seemed to stir any reaction from him.
A few minutes later, he stood up, his voice low and smooth. “Sorry to keep you waiting, but there’s no kid here I’m looking for.”
Dani also stood, smiling politely. “It’s fine, sir. Safe travels.”
She watched his figure disappear into the distance, and then sighed, finally able to breathe again.
This guy? No idea where he was from, but he had an aura that screamed power. Sitting next to him had felt like being suffocated. She couldn’t even speak normally, afraid he’d cut her off.
She’d met a lot of rich people, but this one? He was the first to make her feel like she couldn’t breathe.
She turned and went back to her office, locking the kids‘ files away. As soon as she closed the drawer, there was a knock on the door.
Thinking it was someone calling her to lunch, she called out, “One sec, I’ll be right there—”
But when she opened the door, it was the same guy, standing there again.
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