chapter 3

One night, I was cleaning the gym area at school. It was already late. As punishment, I had to clean not only my section but also the mess left by other students.

The entire school building was silent.

Only the sound of my cleaning echoed through the empty hallways.

Then… I heard footsteps.

Slow.

Heavy.

Someone was walking toward me.

Three boys appeared from the darkness.

One of them smirked and said, “You should never have fought with Rose.”

Before I could react, they pushed me.

“Let’s teach you a lesson,” another one said.

One of the boys tried to grab my arm.

I kicked him hard and started fighting back.

They didn’t expect that.

During the struggle, I grabbed a thick rope that was lying nearby and quickly tied two of them together.

“Did Rose send you?” I demanded.

None of them answered.

But their faces told me everything.

Anger burned inside my chest.

I ran to the storage room, grabbed a bucket of oil, and threw it over them.

 Chairs were scattered around, and I started kicking them aside.

Then I took out a lighter from my pocket.

I sat down on one of the chairs, looking straight at them.

“You should never dare to fight with me,” I said coldly.

And then…

I was about to throw the lighter.

But at the last moment, I paused.

I looked at them, slowly closed the lighter, and said coldly, “This time… I’ll let you go. But there won’t be a next time.”

After saying that, I turned around and walked away.

By the time I reached the orphanage, it was already 12:30 at night. The lights were off and the main gate was locked.

But I was used to it.

Because of my part-time job, I often came home late. That’s why I always kept an extra key with me.

I quietly opened the gate.

Suddenly—

The lights turned on.

“Happy Birthday, Flora!”

Everyone shouted together.

For a moment, I was completely stunned.

Right… today was my birthday.

I smiled softly and said, “Thank you.”

We cut the cake together. Everyone laughed, danced, played games, and talked happily. For a little while, all the pain of the day disappeared.

After some time, our caretaker aunt gently said, “Alright everyone, Flora should rest now. She just came back from her part-time job.”

I nodded quietly.

How could I tell them that I had already been fired?

I didn’t want to ruin everyone’s happy mood.

When I went to my room to sleep, three little kids came running toward me.

“Flora, can we sleep with you tonight?” they asked with hopeful eyes.

I smiled.

“Of course. How could I say no to my little angels?”

I washed up, tucked them into bed, and read them a story until they slowly fell asleep beside me.

Looking at their peaceful faces, my heart felt warm.

For that moment… everything felt okay.

The next morning, the dean of the orphanage tried to stop me before I left for school.

“Flora, wait—”

But I ignored her and walked out quickly.

I didn’t want to be late again.

When I arrived at school…

I saw something that made me stop in my tracks.

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