When the family left the area by the river, the little girl was scolded by her parents, making her very sad. It wasn’t her fault that she and her puppy got lost. Little Max was the one who started chasing a squirrel, not her. She just followed him so he wouldn’t get lost and cry by himself.
Her parents both worked in the university. Her father was a professor while her mother worked as an events organizer in the campus. It was a habit to take a walk around the campus as a family whenever her parents were off work.
The scolding was interrupted when they met a couple of her parents’ colleagues along the way. After telling her to stay put and to behave, her parents began chatting with their co-workers. The little girl felt bored so she started playing fetch with Little Max using a small tree branch while also trying to open the candies the handsome big brother gave her earlier. The candy was square and white. It didn’t look appetizing at all, but she still popped it in her mouth and then immediately spat it out.
“Ah, spicy!” She started spitting to relieve the mint’s cold burn on her tongue. “That big brother looked handsome but he’s so evil! He gave a nasty candy to a little girl like me! Bad man! Hmph! Blegh!”
While she spat and cursed the deceptive big brother, Little Max saw another squirrel and began chasing after it again. The little girl didn’t think before chasing after her puppy as well. She didn’t know how far they ran but when she looked around, her parents were nowhere to be seen. Once again, they got lost.
“Stupid Max! Mommy and Daddy are going to scold me again!”
This area was unfamiliar to her. It looked empty and scary.
“Are you lost?”
“Ah!”
The little girl was startled upon hearing an unfamiliar voice suddenly speaking. However, her alarm was quickly replaced by awe at the beauty in front of her.
The beautiful lady chuckled, her voice sounding as beautiful as her. The innocent little girl didn’t notice the dangerous-looking men standing nearby who were watching her as if she was an enemy while she and her puppy approached the beautiful lady without any care in the world. The lady was sitting on the grass with her back against a tree trunk. She had a laptop on her lap. The little girl sat beside her, shoving the equally awe-struck puppy to the lady.
Evelina smiled at the little girl but most of her interest was on the puppy. She reached her fair hand and began petting its soft fur. From the corner of her eyes, she saw that her bodyguards were about to step forward to wrench the “dangerous creature” away. She quickly gestured for them to stay back without the little girl or the puppy noticing. Couldn’t those men see that the girl and the puppy were harmless?
Although reluctant, the bodyguards stayed back but their vigilance increased. There was no doubt that they would spare neither kid nor dog if they harmed her. It was fortunate that these men were her brother’s subordinates. Compared to the ones working under her parents, her brother’s loyal subordinates had at least a fraction of emotions remaining within their killing machine selves. The bodyguards were too skilled in concealing their killing intent that the young dog failed to detect any danger from them with its natural senses.
“What are you doing?” the little girl asked Evelina.
“Playing with my computer. Do you want to try?”
The little girl nodded, her eyes shining with excitement.
Evelina showed the little girl some of the basic games on her laptop. Then she searched for some American children’s shows available on the internet and allowed the girl to watch an episode of her choosing.
About twenty minutes later, the girl’s parents found finally them. They thanked Evelina for her kindness in accompanying their daughter. Evelina watched them with curiosity…and a little envy.
‘So that’s what a normal family is like?’
“Bye, beautiful lady! Thank you for letting me borrow your computer.” The little girl pulled Iris and pressed a kiss on her cheek. “Oh, right. Here, you can have this!”
A pack of mints was shoved into her hands. Before Evelina could decline, the little girl and her puppy had already run away while chased by her exasperated parents. All Evelina could do was chuckle and wave goodbye to the nice family while touching her kissed cheek.
Her bodyguards appeared beside her when the family disappeared from view.
“My lady, Boss Nikolai called and instructed us to bring you back. He wants to eat dinner together with you.”
“Alright. Let’s go back to my brother.”
As they walked away, Evelina shook the pack of mints. She took out one and placed it in her mouth.
Nice and refreshing.
Her footsteps became lighter, as she smiled.
###
###
An Italian aria and a pack of mints.
Two very different people unknowingly received something from each other. Upon receiving what belonged from the other, they had no idea that both their fates had been sealed at that moment, that they had been tied by destiny.
Unfortunately, the fate of the other one was doomed for an early and tragic death. Thus, their destiny couldn’t be fulfilled right away. However, their tied destinies couldn’t be broken by death alone.
Love may not have started when their paths crossed for the first time but her song and his pack of mints had done their job in connecting their fates together. It might take some time but they would surely meet again, with one transcending death, to fulfill their destiny because…
Her death is only the beginning of her life…and his love.
