ragginovel Chapter 2: Childhood (2)
Chapter 2: Childhood (2)
Chapter 2: Childhood (2)
Chapter 2: Childhood (2)
Thats how Sien and I started meeting every three days.
She was always the first to arrive and wait for me at the agreed meeting place.
I wondered how early she came, as it was always her who waited for me.
While eating the bread she brought from home, I learned many things about her.
Sien was 9 years old, two years younger than me.
Although not aristocratic, she grew up in a wealthy house. Both her parents were doctors.
Considering how rare it was to have both parents as doctors, I found it surprising.
As I suggested, she brought food every time we met. She also told me that all of that food was secretly brought.
There were also some parts where my expectations for her were different.
Contrary to what I thought, that she would be bright and have many friends, she grew up somewhat lonely.
"I'm the only one?"
"Yes. You're my only friend, Berg."
She shyly revealed this during our third meeting.
"I used to get sick often, so I didn't have time to make friends."
"..."
"But when I saw you, I went 'wow!' and couldn't let you slip away."
"What does 'wow' mean?"
"I don't know. But I went 'Wow.'"
She was overjoyed by the fact that we became friends.
Perhaps thats why she didn't realize that our relationship wasn't normal.
Friends don't snatch food from each other.
They don't just listen without reacting like I do.
Our relationship was one-sided, with no reciprocation, but Sien was content with just that, always chirping next to me.
She had many interesting stories;
Stories of shaking hands with a brave little wolfman in the neighboring city she followed her parents to,
Stories of seeing a statue of a dragonkin warrior,
Stories about a demon king who existed two hundred years ago,
Stories of an aged elf chief who disregarded her,
Stories of seeing a dwarf of similar height crafting jewelry
She had so many interesting stories that made me wonder if there was a reason for her to meet me.
She seemed to have traveled a lot, perhaps due to how wealthy she was.
And every time I listened to her stories, I could truly feel the vast distance between us.
"You were sick, so how did you travel so much?"
"I traveled because I was sick. I had to move around to get treatment. But I'm okay now. I don't get sick often these days."
"..."
"Don't you have any interesting stories?"
I shrugged in response to Sien's question.
It wasn't that I found her bothersome.
I simply had nothing to say.
The stories I could share were neither bright nor interesting like hers.
At best, I had stories of fighting with someone, getting injured, or doing something foolish with Flint and Max.
Our worlds were too different.
However, Sien kept trying to blend in with me.
As a result, there were several aspects that she had to tolerate to be with me.
First, the place where we met.
It wasn't exactly a slum, but we met in a place where people didn't come often.
It was entirely because of me.
I didn't know if it would be the same with Sien by my side, but even whenever I left the slums alone, people pointed fingers at me and avoided me.
It was somewhat natural, considering that people from the slums were known for stealing things, but there were also many who found us inherently dirty and repulsive, like cockroaches.
If I foolishly crawled out to a brighter place with Sien, I didn't know what kind of trouble we might encounter.
As we grew closer, I started teasing her more often.
For some reason, her irritated appearance made me laugh, making me want to tease her even more.
"I have no intention of being best friends with a bed-wetter."
"What? Berg-"
"-Besides, I'll be the only one at a loss. You don't have any other friends anyway."
"..."
However, at that joke, Sien's expression quickly darkened.
She couldn't argue back at all and blinked her eyes, looking lost.
"Sien?"
"....."
She couldn't even answer my call and pursed her lips. Without a moment's hesitation, she turned her body and left.
I hurriedly grabbed her departing figure and patted her gently.
"Hey, Sien...! It was just a joke, why are you like this?"
Did I cross the line?
Sometimes I forget. She's not from the slums. I should regulate the level of pranks accordingly as well.
The fact that she had no friends might have been a sensitive topic.
To comfort her, I spoke.
"You were sick. How could you make friends-"
"-Do you have someone closer to you than me?"
But the words she spoke surprised me.
"What?"
"Do you... have a friend more precious than me?"
She frowned anxiously, as if she was disappointed not because I joked that she had no friends, but because I rejected the offer to become best friends.
As I looked at her like that, I let out a long sigh.
With that sigh, the tension surrounding us dissipated.
Erasing the mischievous expression from my face, I smiled and said, "Let's become best friends."
"If you're lying to ease the anger-"
"It's not like that, Sien."
I was sincere.
Because of her, I felt myself brighten as I saw a world I hadn't experienced before.
I had begun waiting for the day I would meet her as well.
Max and Flint might feel resentful, but I made my decision.
"Let's become best friends."
At those simple words, a big smile spread across Sien's lips, and tears welled up in her eyes.
Holding onto me tightly, she was overjoyed.
Perhaps at that time, I underestimated the power of the term 'best friends.'
Contrary to what I thought, that becoming best friends wouldn't bring much change, we became even closer.
The frequent meetings were proof of that.
We went from meeting every three days to every two days, then to every day.
We ate together, washed together, and lived together, playing many pranks.
Max and Flint expressed their dissatisfaction with my behavior, but I didn't listen.
I only had the thought of prioritizing my best friend in my mind. I only wanted to meet Sien.
I couldn't help it. When I was with her, I could escape the gloomy atmosphere of the slums.
Just seeing Sien's smiling face made all my worries disappear.
And so, another year passed.
We had been friends for two years now
And best friends for one year.
In the year when Sien turned 11 and I turned 13...
Sien's parents passed away in an accident.
She too became an orphan like me.
End of Chapter
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