{"id":3731,"date":"2025-10-16T17:26:53","date_gmt":"2025-10-16T17:26:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/?p=3731"},"modified":"2025-10-16T17:26:53","modified_gmt":"2025-10-16T17:26:53","slug":"v11c4p1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/?p=3731","title":{"rendered":"v11c4p1"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cDewey<\/em>. Didn\u2019t I tell you that you don\u2019t have to face everything by yourself? You can rely on me,\u201d she said, stroking my back. \u201cIf you feel like crying, you shouldn\u2019t hold back. It will make you feel a bit better,\u201d she continued, and as if on command, tears started flowing out of my eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was torn between the embarrassment of being seen crying and the warm comfort of the first gentle hug I could ever remember receiving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After crying for a while, I did feel a bit better, just as Maria had assured me. The more I calmed down, however, the more the awkwardness set in. In particular, my face was pushing against something very soft, which could only be…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, don\u2019t think of <\/em>that. I absolutely cannot think of <\/em>that.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the more I tried to ignore that fact, the more I couldn\u2019t stop thinking about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI-I\u2019m fine now. Please let me go,\u201d I insisted, now at my limit, and I was relieved from her breast\u2014I mean embrace<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I could only imagine how red my face was at that moment, but at least my heart felt a little lighter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou do seem fine now,\u201d Maria told me with a smile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The girl I love comforted me while I was crying… Should I be happy about this? Should I just be embarrassed?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo, since you are fine now, I have a proposal to make. Would you like to hear it?\u201d She stared at me with her clear blue eyes, making my face feel even hotter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cO-Of course…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWon\u2019t you try to speak with your brother again?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat?!\u201d I yelped, completely taken by surprise. I had assumed that Maria, in her kindness, would suggest keeping my distance from someone who clearly wanted nothing to do with me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cB-But he told me to never come back, because I abandoned my family…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat is my point,\u201d she answered, gesturing with her index finger. \u201cYou didn\u2019t abandon them. You were sending them money, and today you rushed here as soon as you read that letter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI never came back here before today though…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s barely been half a year since you left. You\u2019ve just started your new job, so I\u2019m sure you\u2019ve been busy catching up with work even on your days off.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s true, yes, but…\u201d I knew that, had I really wished to do it, I could have found the time to go back home. I chose not to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd most of all, you don\u2019t even know why your brother told you those things.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s just because I left him and all my other siblings…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut you didn\u2019t! You can\u2019t be sure of how he feels, since you\u2019ve never talked about it. You\u2019re just making assumptions. Someone,\u201d she said with a giggle, \u201conce told me this: you can\u2019t tell what people think, even if they\u2019re very close to you. Even if they\u2019re family. So you need to <\/em>talk to them to be sure.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I could tell that she was trying to do an impression of Katarina, and I couldn\u2019t help but giggle as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, she was right. Even when we lived together, Ronnie and I were both so busy that we never had much time to talk to each other. He was a grumpy guy, but he always looked out for his siblings\u2014I didn\u2019t know why he\u2019d say something like what he did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I must not run away,<\/em> I thought, but I couldn\u2019t work up the courage to step forward either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ll come with you,\u201d Maria then declared, and I immediately started walking back to the house, with the world\u2019s most wonderful woman by my side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605\u2605<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHmmm… I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve made any wrong turns…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019d been following Dewey\u2019s sister\u2019s directions to Ronnie\u2019s workplace, but I didn\u2019t seem to be getting anywhere, and I started feeling anxious. There was a lot of greenery around me, but not a single soul that I could ask for information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I wasn\u2019t that<\/em> bad at following directions…but I didn\u2019t have a compass built into my head either. Furthermore, I didn\u2019t really know this town except for the area around Maria\u2019s house. I\u2019d never been near Ronnie\u2019s workplace before, and it honestly surprised me to even find a path in what was basically a forest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI thought it\u2019d be close by, since he went there on foot…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And his legs were injured too… It\u2019s sad to think he had to walk on this bumpy path full of rocks.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I kept stumbling my way along the path until I saw Ronnie\u2019s back in the distance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So I <\/em>didn\u2019t get lost!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

He was walking relatively slowly, probably because of his hurt leg, so catching up with him wasn\u2019t so hard. \u201cRonnie!\u201d I called when I was close enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cH-Huh? Why are you here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI wanted to talk with you a bit more,\u201d I answered, and he looked at me suspiciously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhy should I talk with you<\/em>? And I don\u2019t have time anyway. I\u2019m going to work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut I heard from your sister that your job involves strenuous manual labor. How are you going to work, hurt like that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTsk, always running her mouth…\u201d he grumbled, clearly displeased. \u201cI know, but I have to go and see if there\u2019s something I can do. If I don\u2019t make money, all the little ones are going to starve.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo you\u2019re not even sure you\u2019ll be working at all? Then it\u2019d be better to rest for the day, or your injuries won\u2019t get any better. If you need to report that you\u2019ll be taking the day off, I can deliver the message for you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWere you even listening to me? I\u2019m paid by the day, and I need to work. I can\u2019t just take a day off like that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut if you go and hurt yourself even more, you won\u2019t be able to work at all. If you need money now, just ask Dewey. He\u2019d be happy to know he can help.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDewey left us. He\u2019s not one of us anymore,\u201d he replied dryly, furrowing his brow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe was very worried about all of you while coming here, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat guy…\u201d he muttered, and I caught a glimpse of sadness in his eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou really care a lot about your brother, don\u2019t you?\u201d I asked Ronnie, whose face immediately turned sour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHuh?! What are you talking about?! I just said that he isn\u2019t one of us anymore!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo you said, but doesn\u2019t that just mean that you don\u2019t want him to worry about the rest of you and enjoy his own life?\u201d I countered, feeling that this was the true meaning behind his harsh words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHow\u2019d you come up with that idea?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBy looking at you back there and here now. It\u2019s obvious that he\u2019s important to you,\u201d I declared, confidently staring at him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ronnie started awkwardly scratching his head. \u201cDid Dewey say that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNope. It\u2019s just what I think. Dewey thought that you hated him, and he was quite shocked because of that,\u201d I replied, and Ronnie gave me a look that was half relief and half sorrow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLet him think that then. Don\u2019t tell him about what you just told me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut why? He was really hurt when he heard those words coming from one of his beloved siblings. You should stop being so embarrassed about it and just tell him the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m not embarrassed about anything!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou aren\u2019t?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Huh, I thought that was the issue. Ronnie does look like the type who has trouble admitting his own feelings.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOf course not! I just don\u2019t wanna weigh him down…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHow so…?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou saw that scum we call \u2018father.\u2019 While we\u2019re working our butts off, he steals all the money he can from us, gets drunk, and beats us. And our mother isn\u2019t much better either. That\u2019s why we have to live in that tiny shack that\u2019s gonna fall apart any day now. I\u2019ve never been to school, so I can\u2019t hope to get any decent job, since I can\u2019t read. And all the others who left before Dewey were the same. He was the only one who made it. He got into the Ministry… Having to care for a family like this is only gonna be a hassle for him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not…\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before I could say true<\/em>, Ronnie added one more thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe\u2019s our pride,\u201d he said, looking calm and satisfied as he did so. \u201cHe\u2019s always been smart, you know. He even learned how to read all on his own. When he told me he wanted to go to school, I knew that was the right thing for him. He\u2019d go to school and then come back home to work. I know how hard he was working, trust me. And then, what do you know, he was even smarter than all the other kids there, and he got to skip grades. Oh, I was so happy when I heard of that. Then he got recommended by the school to take the Ministry\u2019s exam, and he managed to pass it without a problem. I\u2019m so proud… No, we\u2019re all<\/em> so proud of having him as our brother.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ronnie\u2019s recounting of his brother\u2019s achievements was a happy and loving one. He clearly wasn\u2019t lying about being proud of Dewey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why I don\u2019t wanna weigh him down. I want him to forget about scum like us and live his best life.\u201d He smiled sadly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRonnie… Neither you nor your siblings are scum.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI can\u2019t read and I can\u2019t do calculations with numbers. I\u2019m a piece of useless scum, just like my father.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYour father may be scum, but that doesn\u2019t apply to you. Of course, being literate and numerate is very useful, I will give you that, but those skills don\u2019t make you any worse or better of a person. If anything, I think very highly of you for the way you take care of your younger siblings.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite the beating he had received, he was still determined to go to work to feed his family. Despite how this could make Dewey hate him, he wanted his little brother to be happy and free. That was the opposite of scum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ronnie was staring at me, surprised. Perhaps, just like Raphael had theorized, both Dewey and Ronnie had been put down by someone<\/em> for all their lives\u2014their father, obviously\u2014and ended up losing all of their self-confidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI-I…\u201d Ronnie finally started talking, but someone\u2019s jarringly brisk voice interrupted him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere she is!\u201d the voice cried. I turned around and saw a cloaked woman running out of the woods toward us with a grin on her face. She was the very woman Liam and I had met near the orphanage. Larna had told me her name…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSarah?\u201d I wondered, and she seemed surprised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHow do you know that name?\u201d she asked me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSomeone told me, obviously. More importantly, what do you want?\u201d I fired back, wary of her, and she started laughing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve come to bully you a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHuh?!\u201d I uttered, confused by that nonsensical answer. \u201cWhy in the world would you do that? We barely even know each other, and this is the longest we\u2019ve ever talked!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes,\u201d she agreed after thinking about it for a while, \u201cthat\u2019s true. But, you see, I\u2019ve been feeling all weird up here because of you recently,\u201d she continued, placing a hand on her chest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the first time, her expression didn\u2019t look fake. Her face right now reminded me of a child who could start crying any moment now. I felt kind of sorry for her, and I reached out my hand to her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd so, I\u2019ll bully you a bit to make up for it,\u201d she concluded, going back to her fake-looking grin as she raised and then quickly lowered her arms. When she did this, a huge black snake appeared out of nowhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wow! That looks even more realistic than the snakes I make!<\/em> I thought, failing to understand the gravity of the situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWatch out!\u201d Ronnie shouted, jumping in front of me to shield me from the snake, which hit him straight in the arm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHng!\u201d he cried out in pain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAre you okay?!\u201d I asked, trying to determine if he had been hurt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s nothing. But don\u2019t just stand there like an idiot! And what\u2019s that girl\u2019s deal?!\u201d he shouted, but, from the way he was holding his arm and the pained expression on his face, I could tell that it had definitely not been nothing<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He jumped to protect me even though he barely knows me… He really <\/em>is a good guy!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry. She\u2019s…an acquaintance…of sorts, but I guess she hates me for some reason. Anyway, show me your arm.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The spot where the snake had hit him had turned into a large black bruise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s this now?!\u201d he yelled, scared by the unnatural blotch on his skin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This isn\u2019t a normal bruise. It was Dark Magic, just as I suspected… That girl really knows her way around nasty spells, that\u2019s for sure. It\u2019s just like that time when she sealed us into that pitch black space… <\/em>I thought, the main difference being that, unlike the previous time, I had absolutely no idea what to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAwww, I missed,\u201d Sarah muttered with a clearly fake frown. I feared that she was not going to leave it at that, however.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cDewey. Didn\u2019t I tell you that you don\u2019t have to face everything by yourself? You can rely on me,\u201d she said, stroking my back. \u201cIf you feel like crying, you shouldn\u2019t hold back. It will make you feel a bit better,\u201d she continued, and as if on command, tears started flowing out of my eyes. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3731","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tak-berkategori"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3731","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3731"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3731\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3732,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3731\/revisions\/3732"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3731"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3731"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3731"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}