The pink-haired girl was sobbing, large tears continuously rolling down from those pink eyes, mixing with the snow and leaving wet streaks on her flushed red cheeks.
The wrist she used to block Sefina’s teeth was still firmly held out, even though a tooth mark with traces of blood had already appeared on it.
With her other hand, the girl was frantically trying to pull the last piece of white bread from between Sefina’s clenched fingers.
“Don’t… don’t do this.” The girl’s voice was broken and pleading. “Please…”
Sefina instinctively wanted to curl up, to protect this hard-won food, and a whimper like a wounded beast escaped her throat.
But when she looked up and saw the girl’s tear-streaked face clearly, her heart clenched sharply, as if pricked by something, sending a jolt of pain.
‘She looks… sad too…’
Even though Sefina was desperate to survive, still… this girl in front of her, who had chased her so frantically—this bread must be incredibly important to her too, right?
‘Maybe… she’s also struggling on the edge of hunger and cold, just like me?’
A wave of shame and guilt washed over Sefina’s soul.
Her grabbing motion stopped, and the fingers gripping the bread loosened slightly.
Watching the girl still struggling, Sefina’s hollow eyes finally began to gather moisture.
The piece of white bread, now slightly squished from her grip, slowly extended back toward the pink-haired girl.
The girl was taken aback, as if she hadn’t expected Sefina to suddenly give up the fight. She shakily took the bread.
She quickly hugged it to her chest, then looked up, her gaze falling back on Sefina.
Sefina saw neither disgust nor anger in her eyes. Those pink eyes, like cherry blossoms washed by rain, were clear and gentle.
Her gaze slowly swept over Sefina’s exposed limbs—covered in blue-purple frostbite patches, overlapping new and old bruises, plus the fresh blood marks and scrapes from the beating she’d just endured.
There was hardly an inch of unblemished skin left.
Sefina’s tattered thin clothes were nowhere near warm enough, and her small body uncontrollably shivered in the cold wind.
‘Maybe… she’s been beaten who knows how many times for such a small piece of bread… just like earlier…’
An indescribable pang of bitterness surged in the girl’s heart.
“I’m sorry…” Sefina lowered her head, her voice very soft, thick with a nasal tone.
Finally, the tears could no longer hold their weight and rolled from her eyes, dropping onto the cold, dirty snow, disappearing instantly.
She knew her actions were excessive and despicable, but she really had no other choice…
Unexpectedly, a warm little hand gently landed on her snow-covered blue hair, softly rubbing.
“Are you very hungry?” The pink-haired girl’s voice was very gentle.
Sefina nodded vigorously, crying even harder, and kept repeating under her breath:
“I’m sorry… I’m sorry…”
Seeing her like this, the girl felt even more pity. She was silent for a moment, then spoke again:
“Come with me, okay? I still have… a little bit of black bread at home.”
Sefina’s head shot up, staring at the pink-haired girl in disbelief.
Just moments ago, she had so unfairly taken the girl’s food and even gulped down a bite, yet the girl not only didn’t blame her, but instead wanted to take her home and share the little food she had left?
An indescribable warmth instantly flooded Sefina’s nearly frozen heart, bringing a bittersweet throb.
Without a moment’s hesitation, she nodded vigorously, as if afraid that even a second’s delay would make this sudden kindness disappear.
Seeing her agreement, the girl showed a faint smile. She reached out and carefully held Sefina’s cold, stiff little hand.
Then, the girl led her, turned around, and stepped through the crunching snow, walking step by step out of the alley…
Passing through several more dilapidated lanes, the pink-haired girl stopped in front of a low stone house.
The outer walls of the stone house were covered with traces of wind and rain erosion and cracks, looking precarious. The door was also very old, as if a strong gust could blow it down.
This was her home.
The girl pushed open the unreliable wooden door, which let out a soft creak. Sefina followed her inside.
The interior was just as simple as the outside. The space was small and dim, with only a tiny window letting in a little gray daylight.
The air was faintly musty and smelled of firewood.
There was very little furniture: a simple fireplace built into one corner, two beds covered with straw and worn-out blankets, and a crooked wooden cabinet—that was almost everything.
After entering, the girl’s first act was to whisper toward one of the beds:
“Grandma, I’m back.”
An elderly woman with graying hair lay on the bed, her chest rising and falling faintly with weak breaths. She seemed to be asleep and didn’t respond.
Carefully, the girl gently placed the regained white bread on the bedside.
Then she turned to Sefina, who had been quietly following behind, and said:
“I’ll start a fire first, then get you something to eat.”
Sefina followed closely behind the girl, watching her skillfully get to work.
The girl threw the thin twigs and broken wood she had collected during the day into the cold fireplace, then laboriously struck a flint a few times to ignite the dry kindling.
Orange-red flames slowly rose, greedily licking the wood, making soft pop sounds. A long-missed warmth began to spread through the cramped space, gradually dispelling some of the bone-chilling cold.
Then, the girl led Sefina to the only cabinet. She opened the door—inside was nearly empty, with only a few pieces of slightly moldy black bread.
But to Sefina, who had been hungry too long, with her stomach burning, these black breads still held an irresistible temptation.
“Let’s toast it first before eating.” The girl said, taking out a relatively intact black bread, then pulled Sefina back to the fireplace.
She placed the black bread at the edge of the hearth, letting the fire’s warmth slowly toast it.
While waiting for the bread to soften and warm, the girl spoke softly, as if to break the awkward silence or just to herself:
“There isn’t much black bread left at home…” Her voice was very light, tinged with sadness. “It’s too hard, and Grandma has bad teeth—she can’t chew it or swallow it.”
“That’s why I tried to trade some things I’d saved earlier to get that white bread…”
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