A lonely boy sat on a solitary swing, remaining motionless and quiet, gazing down at his feet. It seemed he was there for a long time and didn't care enough about the passersby's concerned gazes towards him.

He had a few band-aids on the forehead and nose and scratches on the neck and elbows. His clothing was more like a uniform. The institute symbol was right on his left shoulder, but it wasn't clear to see in the distance.

The kid slightly swung and stopped as soon as he heard footsteps approaching.

It was another kid, a little boy happily stepping on the puddles, splashing them.

His giggles and the sound his shoes made were joyful, contrasting with the lonely kid. The little boy was a true sun, whereas the lonely kid was a forgotten planet on the back of the solar system. Despite the other kid's contagious joyfulness, the lonely boy didn't want to approach nor showed signs of willingness to do so.

However, the little sunny kid made eye contact and widely smiled, running towards the boy on the swing who turned his face to the other direction… 

… but it wasn't enough for the small kid to get what he wanted to say by that action.

"Hello!" The small kid beamed, and the boy on the swing flinched. 

"Go away," the lonely boy hissed, avoiding eye contact.

But the other kid insisted on talking to him about many things, exhausting the boy's social battery with haste. "Why do you have boo-boos?" The little kid asked and caressed the other boy's face, startling him. "Mommy can cure your boo-boos," he smiled confidently.

What a nuisance. The lonely boy scowled and avoided the little one's touches. "I'm fine. Go away," he hissed again, and the little boy noticed a pair of sharp fangs in the other boy's mouth.

But it wasn't enough for him to give up his friendly approach! The little boy was resolute to help that gloomy kid cheer up the best way he could! 

Posing brightly, he opened his arms as if he was ready to give a hug and beamed. "You don't look fine. Is it heart boo-boos? Daddy says hugs can ease heart boo-boos, come!" The little boy joyfully said, but the other boy seemed deeply annoyed.

"I don't need it," the lonely boy hissed angrily like a stray, spicy cat. "I don't need anything! I just… want my mom…" he sniffled but tried to keep his angry face.

The lonely boy's face showed new colors to the sunny little one, who collected his hands to himself and fidgeted a little. He tried to touch the other boy but hesitated.

"Where is she?" the little sunny boy asked.

Somehow, what the little sun said made his friend vicious. The once blue colors he saw on his face turned red like the flowers he saw midway, and there were darker shades around his friend's eyes. His body was tense, and his eyes glared at him intensely like a boiling kettle about to explode.

The little sunny boy didn't understand such behavior, but he tried to help his friend the best he could. He was his new friend, after all!

The little boy posed proudly and offered his hands to his friend, ignoring how tense the other boy was. "I can help you find her! Let's look for-"

"YOU CAN'T BRING THE DEAD TO LIFE!!" The lonely boy snapped angrily and shoved the little boy away.

The little boy fell on the dirt floor, staining his pants and coat. He hit his head on the floor, but his hand fortunately didn't let it hurt too much. With both elbows bruised, he tried to stand up again, feeling his head a bit hurt.

It sure hurt. His eyes were swelling in tears, but he didn't cry. Instead, clouds covered the sun's brightness, and a storm was approaching.

"I-It wasn't n-nice!" The little boy stammered. His eyes were glossy, but he kept his angry pose. "You c-can't s-shove people t-that way!! W-what if I-I got h-hurt?!" He scolded the other boy, whose viciousness faded as if the little one threw water on the fire of his soul. "I j-just w-wanted to help."

The lonely boy was in shock. His eyes widened, and his expression was half blank, half horrified. They looked at the rock next to where the little boy fell. He didn't want to hurt him, but what if the little one fell and hit his head on that rock? He just wanted to 'shoo' him away, not hurt.

Hands reaching out and curling back, the lonely boy didn't know what to do when he saw the bruises on the little sun's arms. His first action was basic, even though he felt his face burning and his eyes watering.

"I'm sorry…" the lonely boy said in an almost whisper. "I-I'm r-really s-s-sorry…" he sniffled, his hands shivering.

The little sun looked at him, and his gaze fell on the boy's trembling hands and body. His friend's eyes widened, even though hot tears rolled down his cheeks, some staining the bandages and others freely falling. The cry was silent, and he was stuck where he was.

The little boy sniffled and rubbed his eyes, approaching the older and taller boy. He took the boy's arms and opened the way for him to rest his head on the boy's chest, embracing him in a warm, cozy hug.

"It's okay," the little boy cooed.

The little kid patted his new friend's fluffy dark hair and stroked his back while the taller boy's breathing faltered mid-sobbing. The little one was sure that a hug could heal the heart 'boo-boos,' and that would be surely enough!

"W-Why d-did y-you…" The lonely boy sobbed, and the little boy smiled widely in return, showing his shiny smile even though some teeth were missing.

"Because my friend needed it," the little boy hugged his friend again. "Sis says we need to hug a crying friend," he beamed, and the other boy embraced him in return.

The hug was funny. The other boy surely hadn't hugged a lot because he didn't know where to put his arms, but he managed to do the same his little friend did.

"Sorry… hic," the taller boy sobbed.

"It's okay," the little boy smiled, and his eyelashes became the spotlight on that warm smile.

The older boy sniffled and cleaned his own face with his sleeves. Meanwhile, the smaller and younger boy guided him to sit on a bench and then sat beside him. Soon, the little boy took something out of his pocket and handed it to his new friend, who took it confused. It was a popular strawberry candy with white stripes.

"How is your boo-boo?" The little boy asked, curious, unwrapping one candy.

"It's fine… thank you," the older boy mumbled, his cheeks slightly peach-colored after crying.

"Hehe~" the little boy grinned, but the candy fell from his mouth, right from the missing tooth spot. "Oh no," he looked at his candy on the floor, half with drool, half with dirt.

"Your teeth…" the other boy let out a small snort. "Here," he gave the candy the boy handed him earlier.

"Thank you, but it's for you," the little boy smiled, cupping the other boy's hand with care. "Eat it, they're sour and sweet," he grinned.

"Oh…" The other boy slightly blushed, unwrapping the package.

"Mommy says it's going to rain soon. Do you have a home? I can walk you there!" The little boy beamed, proudly posing. 

For sure, the little sun's parents told him earlier he was grown up enough to know the directions, and he was an outstanding boy by bringing them the morning's bread. Well, it's only suppositions, but that confident smile of his told that and made his new friend chuckle a little.

"It's fine. I… have somewhere to go, and I can go there by myself, so you don't need to soak yourself in the rain," the older boy informed, placing the candy's wrapping in the pockets.

"Hm… okay…" the little sun sulked, and his hair was messed up by a harsh, cold wind that blew some of the leaves on the floor. "Ah!! Mommy's predictions are too soon!!" He desperately pointed to the stormy sky, in which a few clouds rumbled with thunder.

"You need to go so you won't get soaked in the rain," the older boy advised, but the other little boy seemed conflicted.

"B-but… you need to go too! But your face tells me you'll stay here and get soaked!"

Oh, he was caught. Was he too easy to read?

The taller boy blinked a few times, not knowing what to say or what to do because he was really planning on staying at the park for a while and avoiding going "home."

"If you go to your house, you won't be sick, and we'll meet again tomorrow!!" The little sun smiled and gave him a small yellow flower. "This is our promise to meet each other again," he beamed again.

Who was that person? Why was his smile so bright and… warm? Didn't he get tired of smiling that much? Or giggling that much? How could he have such an adorable look and naturally peach-colored cheeks?

New colors were painted on his soul, and the painter waved goodbye even though his heart screamed for him to not go away.

"Bye-bye, and see you tomorrow!!" The little one beamed while waving, hushing in a direction.

"Ah! Your name! What's your name?" The taller boy asked, but the little friend of his was already far. "My name is Addai..." he mumbled, sounding more like a grumble.