She frowned at her supposed memory. She definitely knew Gary was the one who rescued her. But the line, I will always be here... Did she imagine it? She didn't know why but it just felt important to her. She closed her eyes and tried to remember it. Dream or reality, dream or reality. Eventually, she fell back asleep, even without an answer. 

She drifted in and out of sleep. Each time she woke up, she was confused as she tried to remember a strange dream she had. But then again, dreams were all rather strange, weren't they?

It was late in the evening. The sky was a pink-red shade, with the sun disappearing behind the skyline.

A small girl was seated on the bench by the playground. She was hugging her knees, her face hidden behind her knees. She looked like she was crying.

A young boy was collecting cans and cardboards in that area. He was skinny, but he seemed strong. Dirt covered his body, so did scars and bruises. His hair was long, with fringe covering his eyebrows.

“Are you ok?” he asked cautiously as he walked towards the girl.

The girl did not answer.

The boy frowned at her response, or rather, non-response.

The girl continued to cry. The boy stood there and looked at her, at a loss of what to do. The girl still continued crying, for 5 minutes… 10 minutes… Eventually, she calmed down and her cries turned into slow sobs. Soon after, she stopped crying. By then, the sun had already set and the sky was dark.

“Are you ok?” the boy asked again. This time, the girl looked up, her eyes glistening with tears, under the moonlight. Her stomach grumbled. She looked down again, embarrassed.

“Let’s get some food,” the boy said. “But first, wear this.” He gave her a makeshift mask, made of newspaper.

“Why?” the girl asked softly.

“Just wear it,” he replied curtly, as he put on his mask. The girl put hers on without further questions. “Follow me,” he ordered, pulling her hand.

They moved along stealthily, safely hidden in the shadows. When they reached a shop, he stopped. He moved swiftly, first sliding the lid of a steamer off, so that it is left ajar, then using his hands to grab three steamed buns. The girl watched his actions in shocked. “You can’t…” she said as she reached out to stop him.

“YA! You little thieves!” a man, most likely the shop owner, yelled.

“Run, idiot!” The boy passed a bun to the girl, grabbed her wrists, and ran as fast as his little legs can take him.

After they were sure that they were out of sight, they stopped. They were panting heavily, gasping for air.

“Why did you steal!”

“Why did you make so much noise!” They both said at the same time, both evidently annoyed.

“I’m not stealing.” The boy argued, indignantly. “I will return the favour, one day. And you shouldn’t have made so much noise. I could have taken more!”

The little girl frowned. As much as she was young, she knew that it was wrong to steal. What the boy said puzzled her.

“You won’t understand,” the boy sighed. “Aren’t you hungry? Eat it,” he urged.

The girl munched down hungrily while walking back to the playground. She didn’t notice, but the boy wasn’t eating. The boy walked quietly by her side. When they reached the playground, the boy finally asked. “So, why were you crying?”

The girl stopped eating and studied the boy. Finally, she replied, “My eomma’s sick. Very sick. She fell down and hit her head. The doctor says she might sleep and not wake up again.” The girl looked down and tears started to fall again. The boy patted her back, trying to comfort her. “Does your appa know? Or any of your family members?”

“I don’t know… “

“Then why did you come all the way here to cry?”

“My eomma will be upset if she hears me cry. She can always hear me when she’s sleeping. I don’t want her to hear me cry…”

“Your eomma will get well soon…” he said softly.  “Look at that star,” he pointed to the brightest star in the sky. The girl looked up. “That star is very powerful,” he explained. “Because it is the brightest star. It can grant your wish, if you wish hard enough.”

“Really?” the girl asked, her eyes twinkled with hope.

The boy smiled and nodded.

“I need to go,” the boy suddenly said, as he hide his collection of cardboards in the bushes. He needs to sneak back to the orphanage before lights out, because the in-charge will check on the kids at night. He cannot be caught missing or else he will have a harder time sneaking out.

 “Will you come back again tomorrow?”

He shrugged. “Eat this for your breakfast tomorrow,” he told her as he passed her the other steam bun. “And so back to the hospital. It’s not safe here.”

(hohoho. another update. and to those that figured tat the other Star is Jihyo, congrats...... but no prize xD Its about time Gary found out, isnt it? kekekek. soon, soon. after chinese new year. anyway, i made some editing to the chapter 6. i ust added a one liner. but dont underestimate the worth of one liners, okay? keke no pun intended but yeah. hmm and thanks for supporting this really. i may not reply to every comment but i do read it all!)