“Drip.”

A hoarse voice whispered, tucked underneath a cardboard box. The boy stood still, his back leaning against the cold wall as he felt trails of water dripping on this back. The weather wasn’t in his support, rushing down to the earth as if the rain had erupted from the land.

“Drip.” Another whisper. Another small fog of warm air escaped from his lips.

The tin cover made pitter-patter sounds, ringing against the downpour. A car rushed through the street with speed and splattered water all over the boy. The boy stood still, not even his expression changing a bit.

He kept looking down, staring at his feet, filled with cuts and bruises. A thud sound was heard followed with footsteps heading closer to him. The heels of the person moved with grace. A pair of black shoes came into his view. It was a girl.

“Excuse me . . .?” The boy didn’t look up, staring at his hands which were slowly turning white from the cold. “Hey . . .” The girl held his hand, making him instantly look up at her face. “You’ll get sick if you stay in the rain.”

The girl was about his age, probably older or younger than him. Her blue eyes rested on his pale white hands, chilled cold as ice. But somehow, he felt them. Her warm fingers resting on his frostbitten ones.

“What’s your name?” The boy spoke, taking the girl by surprise as she looked at him. He took his hand back, trying to warm them as the girl shot him a smile.

“I’ll tell you mine if you tell me yours . . .”

“Mama, is that boy okay now?” The little girl sat in front of her mirror, a small smile on her lips. Her mother brushed through her black hair. “I heard that the maids had cleaned him all up now.”

“Well, the doctor checked on him. He seems to be sick, so he’ll need some rest now.” The mother took the rubber band from her wrist and tied the girl’s hair into a ponytail. “Why is the little princess interested in that boy?”

“I want him to be my friend.”

“Look what I found!” The girl scurried on her little feet, grasping onto something. “It’s a butterfly!”

The boy looked up from his book, staring at the blue-eyed girl as she slowly uncovered her hands. He looked away, not bothering to see the little flying insect.

“Argh! Now it’s flying away.” The girl pouted, fiddling with her fingers as she watched the butterfly flutter away. She looked back at the boy, clenching her fingers tightly as she continued to stare at him. The boy remained unfazed by her stares, continuing to read his book.

The girl stood still, leaving her hands on her side as she sat beside him. The boy glanced at her, before continuing his reading.

“You really like reading books, don’t you?” The girl looked at him, resting her face in her hand as the boy remained silent. “Papa said that reading increases our knowledge and that I should be more like you.” The boy lifted his hand to flip the page. “A bookworm.” His hand stopped.

The girl sighed. “It means like you love reading books and rather than spending time with me.” The boy closed the book, keeping it to his side as he finally looked at her.

Autumn was on its way. Leaves had already started to change their colours, before dropping dead to the ground. The warmth from the air is slowly fading. But the one thing that didn’t change was them. Whether it was summer or winter. Beautiful flowers blooming to life or trees withering to death; they both were always there.

“Let’s read this storybook!” The girl kept the thick book on the table, making herself comfortable on the chair. “I found this in Mama’s room.” The boy peered at the book.

“It’s really thick. It will take us time to read this.” The girl was too occupied to listen to his words, busy staring at the book. “Are you even listening to me?”

“Then let’s make a promise to finish this book together.” The girl intertwined her pinkie finger with his, taking him by surprise as she pulled him closer. “Promise me, we’ll complete this book before the year ends.”

The boy moved his eyes away from her, looking at the book. He wasn’t sure if he could help her complete it, but it was worth giving it a shot.

“Fine. I promise that we’ll complete this book before the year ends.”

The girl smiled, clasping her little hands around his. “I knew that I could believe in you.”

“Waah, I want to ride that bike!” The girl wailed, moving her arms and feet as she pouted her lips.

“But Miss, you broke your hand. Master will scold us.” The maids tried to persuade her, but failed miserably.

“I don’t care! Waah!” The screams and wails echoed through the mansion. The boy remained in the library, reading a new book. All the staff members threw scornful glances at each other.

“That brat always wails and whines.”

“No wonder many caretakers had quit their job. She is such a troublemaker.”

The boy looked up from his book, staring out of the glass window. Night had already fallen, with few specks of light illuminating distant houses. It looked like it was about to snow. . .

Another scream echoed through the mansion before falling dead silent.

“Psst, wake up.” The girl moved in her sleep, scrunching her face as she turned to her side. “Weren’t you making a ruckus to ride a bike?” Her eyes snapped open, sitting up on her bed as she stared at her window.

“Are you crazy?!” She whisper, quickly wearing her slippers as she headed towards the window. “You could have fallen off the window.” She held his hand, pulling him in as he dusted the snow from his coat.

“Wear a coat and a scarf. We are going out.” The boy quickly went to her closet, pulling out a black coat with a white woollen scarf. “Here.”

She wore the coat and wrapped her neck with the scarf. “But what if someone sees us? Plus, it’s snowing outside. Heck, I don’t even have a pair of boots.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll keep you warm.”

“But—”

“No buts.”

“You are crazy! I am not sitting in front of you as you ride the bike.” The girl whispered angrily, stomping on her feet as she turned towards her room.

“Then do you have any better idea of riding a bike with a broken arm?” The boy sat on the bike, both of his feet on the white snow ground, his hand holding on a lantern. “Just try once.”

“Nope, not at all.” The girl turned to leave, but felt a hard tug on her arm. She opened her mouth to scream, but got silenced by a hand.

“Just give it a try, brat.” The boy whispered in her ear. The girl removed his hand and made herself comfortable on the seat. “Finally obeying, huh?” He handed her the lantern as she quietly kept it in front of them.

“Just ride.”

The boy kept his foot on one pedal, before pressing hard on it as his other foot rested on the other pedal. The bike moved forward, moving along the path free of snow. The boy applied more power, the bike moving at speed as the girl let out a yelp.

“Ah! Slowly down!” She closed her eyes shut, holding onto his coat, her heart pumping furiously. “It’s too fast!”

“Open your eyes.”

“No!”

“Trust me.” She opened one eye, peeking at the scene in front of her. Her mouth gaped open.

It felt as if time had somehow stopped, but they were still moving. She could hear her heart thumping in her ears, turning red as the blood rushed to them. The moon was shining above them, the stars filling the night sky. Snow fell slowly, each frozen water drop visible to her eyes. Magical. That’s what she felt as the bike moved through the snow.

Ring. Ring.

“Argh . . .” I squinted my eyes, moving my hand as I tried to find my phone. “Fuck, where is it?” I rubbed my eyes, sitting up on the bed as I finally found it. I clicked on the answer button, putting it near my ear as I stood up. “Hello?”

“Oh, Dr. Rhein. I had been calling for at least an hour. Where are you?” Emma spoke from the other side as I massaged my forehead.

“What is it now?” I spoke in annoyance, scanning my eyes around the room as I picked my shirt from the floor.

“There is an emergency at the hospital. You need to urgently come here.”

“Fuck . . .” I muttered under my breath as I wore my shirt, unbuttoned.

“I am sorry, what?”

“I am coming.”

“Your health has improved a lot. You can get discharged by tomorrow.” I spoke to the patient as she nodded her head. I kept her chart back as I exited the room. I washed my face, trying to ease the headache I was feeling.

“Are you okay?” I dried my face with the towel, looking at Emma as she approached me.

“Says the one who literally ruined my mood first thing in the morning.”

“You were drinking again, weren’t you?” I remained quiet, walking by her as I walked towards my office.

“Wait.” She held my hand, preventing me from moving any further. I turned towards her, raising my eyes at her. “Tell me the truth. Why are you drinking a lot lately? Earlier, you used to only drink like this heavily every month. Now, it’s almost like you want to drown yourself in alcohol.”

“Thank you for the concern. But I need none of it.” I turned to leave, but felt her tug on my hand again.

“Did you see a dream? Perhaps a good one?” Emma spoke in a calm tone, continuing to look at my face. More specifically my eyes.

“And what makes you think that I had a good dream?”

“You look happier than usual.”