Arrival at the Orphanage
After the monster chaos passed, Elina walked slowly with Alice toward her orphanage. The sturdy and fairly large brick building stood peacefully among lush trees, with a spacious yard filled with small flowers.
Someone rushed toward them as soon as they saw Elina entering the yard. Her breath was gasping, yet elegance still radiated from that beautiful woman's figure. Her face showed anxiety mixed with relief.
"Elina! Are you alright?" the woman exclaimed, her voice trembling. "We heard there was such a terrible monster attack. We were so worried!"
Elina nodded slowly, though her eyes still held remnants of tension from the recent events. Beside her, a small girl hid halfway behind her body, looking around unfamiliarly with eyes still filled with fear.
"And... who is this child with you?" the woman asked, her voice softening when she saw Alice.
Elina bent down slightly toward Alice, her voice gentle and full of affection. "She survived from a destroyed village. Her name is Alice. From today on, she'll live with us here." She looked at her friend with a warm smile. "Alice, let me introduce my best friend, Novy. She also manages this orphanage with me."
Alice was still hesitant to step forward, her hand gripping tightly the hem of Elina's clothes. Her gaze was full of wariness, as if still trapped in the shadow of the attack that had just destroyed her world.
"What about the other children?" Elina asked, concern implicit in her voice.
"They're safe in the basement. They'll come out soon," Novy answered while sighing in relief.
Novy immediately crouched before Alice, smiling as gently as possible. She knew well how to approach wounded children.
"Welcome, Alice. You're safe here, no need to be afraid anymore."
She extended her hand slowly, without forcing, letting Alice decide whether she was ready to accept or not yet.
Alice stared at that hand for quite a while. In her heart churned fear and longing for the warmth that was lost. Finally, carefully, she touched Novy's hand with her fingertips.
Some of the other orphanage children had already begun gathering behind Novy, whispering curiously while peeking. Some tried to restrain themselves from being too enthusiastic, while others were almost impatient to greet the newcomer.
Elina smiled at the children with full tenderness. "This is your new friend. Please welcome her nicely, okay."
---
Two weeks had passed since Alice's arrival at the orphanage.
Although the other children had repeatedly tried to approach and invite her to play, Alice still chose to sit in the corner of the room, hugging the rabbit doll that Elina had given her. Her gaze was often empty, staring out the window as if waiting for figures who would never return.
Novy watched her from a distance while carrying a pile of blankets for the children. She sighed softly, her heart feeling tight seeing the little girl still trapped in her own world.
"Alice..." Novy whispered to Elina who happened to pass by. "That child still won't interact with the others. I'm worried she's too immersed in her trauma."
Elina turned, her gaze gentle yet full of deep understanding.
"Let her slowly find her own way, Novy. A wound that big can't heal just with warm words." Her voice trembled slightly, remembering the dark night when she found Alice. "All we can do is accompany her... until she's ready to open her heart again."
Novy nodded slowly, then looked at Alice once more. There was a deep sense of pity, but also hope—that someday that little girl would smile without the fear that shadowed her.
---
That night heavy rain poured on the orphanage roof. The sound of water drops hitting the tiles mixed with thunder that occasionally struck. The other children were already fast asleep, but Alice still sat in the corner of her bed, hugging the rabbit doll while shivering in fear.
Every time lightning struck, her body trembled violently. In her mind, the sound of thunder mixed with the screams and monster roars on the night that changed her life forever.
In the bed beside her, Selena—a red-haired girl with warm brown eyes—woke up hearing soft sobbing sounds. She rubbed her eyes, then turned and saw Alice frightened alone.
"Hey Alice," Selena whispered softly, not wanting to wake the other children. "You're scared of thunder, right? Oh yeah, my name is Selena if you still remember."
Alice looked down deeply, not answering. Only the embrace on the rabbit doll grew tighter, as if that worn object was the only thing that could protect her from the frightening world.
Selena smiled thinly with understanding, then got down from her bed and sat on the floor near Alice's bed.
"When I'm scared... I like to count the rain sounds," Selena said in a small, calming voice. "One... two... three... up to ten. Somehow it feels calmer after that."
Alice slowly lifted her head, looking at Selena with eyes still tearful. A small curiosity began to emerge behind her fear.
Selena winked with a friendly smile, then began counting with a voice almost like singing. "One... two... three..."
Unconsciously, Alice began counting along in her heart. When thunder struck again with a thunderous sound, her body still trembled, but this time she didn't cry like usual.
Selena smiled in relief seeing that small change. "See? You can actually be strong too. If you want, tomorrow I'll teach you how to make paper airplanes. They can fly high, so you can pretend to escape from the rain together with the plane."
For the first time since her arrival, Alice looked at someone longer without the blinding fear. Her lips hadn't smiled yet, but the fear in her eyes seemed to lessen slightly, replaced by a small but real curiosity.
From the slightly open bedroom door, Elina and Novy who happened to be doing night patrol stopped for a moment. They witnessed that small conversation with tearful eyes, their hearts warm—finally Alice was beginning to open a small gap toward her new world.
---
The next morning, golden sunlight entered through the large orphanage window, chasing away the remnants of cold and darkness from last night's rain. The children were already busy playing in the yard, their laughter filling the fresh morning air.
Alice sat on a wooden bench near the door, her rabbit doll still tight in her embrace. Her eyes followed the movements of running children, heard their laughter, but her body remained unwilling to move from the place she considered safe.
Suddenly, Selena appeared with her characteristic mischievous smile. In her hands, she held several sheets of paper that had been neatly folded into small airplanes.
"Alice, come on!" Selena exclaimed enthusiastically. "I've already made paper airplanes like I promised yesterday. Want to try flying them together?"
Alice looked at those paper airplanes with small sparkling eyes. Slowly, she extended her hand and took one of the planes Selena offered.
With hesitant movements, Alice threw the paper airplane. Surprisingly, the plane flew quite far from what she expected—until it hit the head of a boy who was practicing archery at the end of the yard.
Alice immediately felt shocked and afraid, her body tensing ready to run or hide.
Ensei—a black-haired boy with friendly eyes—along with his friend **Batara**, walked closer while holding the paper airplane that hit him.
"Selena, you're always mischievous, aren't you?" Ensei said in a joking tone, but not angry.
"Eh, this time it wasn't me!" Selena stuck out her tongue mischievously. "But Alice who threw it."
Ensei looked at the frightened Alice, then smiled warmly. "Alice, right? Your throwing accuracy is good. Maybe we can play archery together later."
Alice who was frightened and preparing to face anger, slowly began to calm seeing Ensei's sincere smile.
"My name is Ensei," the boy said while pointing to his friend. "And beside me is Batara."
"I'm Alice," Alice answered in a small voice, but clearly audible.
"Nice to meet you, Alice!" Batara exclaimed enthusiastically. "It feels like you've been here for two weeks, but I've never heard you speak!"
Hearing Batara's innocent comment, Selena immediately threw a small paper ball at Batara's head while laughing. "You're so insensitive!"
Alice saw their interaction—Batara who protested while laughing, Selena who teased mischievously, and Ensei who smiled seeing his two friends' antics—then for the first time in the last two weeks, the corners of her lips lifted forming a small smile.
---
From a distance, Elina saw that scene with tearful eyes from being moved. Novy stood beside her, patting her friend's shoulder gently while smiling.
"Look, slowly she's beginning to find her world again," Novy whispered with a voice full of hope.
Elina nodded, her heart filled with deep gratitude. "Children indeed have extraordinary healing power. They teach Alice that the world still has goodness, that there's still a place to laugh and play."
That night, for the first time since tragedy struck her family, Alice slept without nightmares. In her heart, a small hope began to grow.
Before falling asleep, she whispered to her rabbit doll—and perhaps also to Kimberley's spirit whom she believed was still watching over her from afar.
"This time it will definitely be alright. It has to be," she whispered with a small but sincere determined voice.
Outside the window, stars shone brightly as if giving their approval. Alice finally began to find her new family, and though the wound in her heart hadn't fully healed, she began to believe that happiness could still be found again.
---
TO BE CONTINUED...