In the middle of the night, Aino's little figure curled under the covers and was sobbing continuously. She kept trembling as well. She was very afraid. However, she also felt that she was brave for having succeeded i n tricking her Uncle Holden. Just for a few seconds, she felt pity for Uncle Holden as well. However, the six -year-old Aino could not care so much anymore. She had to escape from the clutches of her uncle as soon a s possible. She must escape. No, she could not let her Uncle Holden see that her eyes were swollen from crying when she woke up the following day. She could not cry any longer!
'Aino, don’t cry! You can't be a coward. You have to be brave! Your mom is going to give birth soon. You still have to take care of your mom. Be brave!'
Aino wiped her tears away and forced herself to not cry. Finally, she stopped crying. She tiptoed and went barefoot to the bathroom and washed her eyes and face with ice-cold water. After that, she returned to her bedroom and slept. She had to sleep well. Not long after that, the little girl fell asleep. She had many dreams throughout the night. She dreamed that her mother truly had given birth to her younger brother. She dreamed that she took great care of her mother. She had been an expert at taking care of her mother since she was very little. Aino woke up smiling. When she opened her eyes, she saw her uncle standing by
her bed. He was holding an exquisite little white dress and was waving it in her face. 1
"You’re finally awake, baby," her Uncle Holden said gently.
Aino squinted. "Uncle Holden, how come you’re in the room?"
"Our schedule is very tight today, so I wanted to push you and get you to wake earlier," Holden said. "I saw that you’re still sleeping when I came to your bedside, and I couldn’t bear to wake you up. So, I might as well prepare what you will wear today. I saw that you were smiling so sweetly in your dreams. Tell me, what were you dreaming about?”
Aino blinked her round eyes. "Hmph! I just want him t o piss off to death!"
Holden stifled a laugh. There was a pause before he said, "He is your father. You can't piss him off to death. We'll just ignore him from now on. After all, you have my love for you! Ignore him!"
"Mm-hmm! Ignore Sebastian Ford from now on!" Aino said.
"Quickly get up and pick your clothes! After you've picked out your clothes, I will take you through all the streets and alleys in the entire South City today."
What he wanted to say but he did not was, ‘Perhaps you will never set foot on this piece of land again when you grow up later, so I will take you to as many places here as I can today.'
Holden did not say any of that. He only turned around and helped Aino pick out her clothes. He was very serious and he had a good eye. The clothes that he picked out for Aino matched Aino's complexion and temperament very well. If an outsider who did not know anything saw them, the person would truly feel that they were a pair of father and daughter. This was because their facial features were vaguely similar, and also because was too much like a father.
After Aino had changed her clothes, Holden took Aino along with him and had the driver drove them through all the streets and alleys in South City. He brought Aino to all the big amusement parks in South City. Aino kept squealing in excitement.
"Uncle Holden, I love you, just like a mouse loves cheese,” Aino shouted.
Holden sat in the car and felt an unprecedented joy. That was a kind of happiness he wanted. Holden could feel that he was very close.
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