I Won't Go Back To My Family Who Abandon Me novel Chapter 105

“Leticia, are you here?”

“Yes, what should I do today?”

Small enough that she barely reached an adult’s waist, and blue eyes painted on a particularly white face.

The child’s eyes twinkled with a solemn look.

Jessie, the owner of the bakery, was looking at her as if she was just the cutest thing as she said affectionately.

“Can you bring blueberry jam to Daniel? He said he wanted to eat some.”

“You’re talking about the bookstore guy, right?”

“Yes, that’s right. If the bookstore isn’t open, you can leave it in front of the door.”

When Leticia was handed the jam by her chestnut colored hands, the little girl’s arms were already full. Jessie looked anxious that she might drop it, but Leticia hugged it to herself as if it was the most precious thing she’d ever held.

“Well, I’m off!”

She curled her small body up in a bow, then dashed off on her short legs. It seemed she wanted to bring it quickly.

“You’ll hurt yourself if you run that fast, Leticia!”

Jessie shouted worriedly at her back, but Leticia was already too far away.

“Sigh… I feel bad for such a young girl.”

Even though most people were still asleep, it seemed that her situation still wasn’t very good if she was showing up so early in the morning.

“She’s eight years old now, right? No, I think she said she was seven years old.”

Jessie went back into the bakery with a sigh. Leticia wouldn’t leave her mind, even while she kneaded the dough.

A few months ago, a family moved into a vacant house that was old, and considered uninhabitable. She didn’t really know what kind of people they were because they never showed their faces properly, but when she saw them moving into the shabbiest house in the village, she assumed that they were very poor.

Then one day, a strange child, who she’d never seen in the village, showed up at the bakery.

Jessie approached and talked to her first since the child seemed to be hesitating.

[What’s wrong, kid?]

When she bent down half-way to meet her eyes, the child slowly opened her mouth, and wiggled her hands.

[That’s not it, I…]

[Hmm?]

[Can I work here?]

[What?]

When she’d asked her questions because she thought she’d misheard her, the child assumed she was being rejected and said with a determined expression.

[I can do whatever you ask me to do! I like anything, so…]

As the little girl was talking, she began to tear up, and her clear blue eyes were getting harder and harder to resist.

[Please let me work.]

Jessie gave a short sigh at her pitiful request with a face that looked like she was ready to cry.

Her hair color reminded the baker of a brightly blooming flower on a spring day, but seeing as her hair was messy, it was clear that she couldn’t afford to care for herself or didn’t receive any care from her parents.

‘Is there a reason?’

It was a pity that a child, who should be protected by adults, was trying to find work.

Jessie was the first to suggest she run errands, mostly because she didn’t have enough work for the child to do. When the unexpected opportunity came, the child cried, and said that she would work hard.

Since that day, Leticia had visited many places, including this bakery; the flower shop across the street; the bookstore nearby; and many other places; to help out.

She walked around and performed errands. The money was only enough to purchase a small cookie, but Leticia always said thank you.

‘The young girl is always grateful, even for such a small sum of money.’

It was only later that she heard why the child asked for work.

Her father lived far away so that he could earn money somehow, and her mother was too sick to get out of bed. If it wasn’t enough, she also had younger siblings too. It seemed that the child had decided on her own to work in order to help her family, even if it was just a little bit.

‘I’m proud of you, but I also feel bad for you.’

Jessie clicked her tongue, then began kneading her dough again.

When Leticia returned, she was thinking she should at least give her the bread she baked today.

***

‘I need to be careful not to drop it.’

After a quick trip to the bakery, Leticia was walking carefully to her destination. She didn’t want to lose the precious blueberry jam just because she tripped over a stone.

‘Blueberry… it looks delicious…’

Even though it was sealed with a stopper, it smelled so sweet that her mouth was watering. Leticia had stopped without realizing it, and was staring down at the jam blankly.

She wasn’t sure when she’d last eaten bread with jam. Wait, had she ever eaten it?

“No, no, no! Get a hold of yourself, Leticia!”

It wasn’t the time to be doing this. Today, she had to somehow make more money by running her errands faster. Leticia, who’d belatedly remembered what she had to do, shook her head quickly and went back to her task.

As soon as Leticia arrived at the bookstore, she knocked on the door. There wasn’t an immediate response, and she was about to leave the jam at the door.

“You’re here Leticia.

What’s the matter?”

Daniel, the owner of the bookstore, greeted her and opened the door. As soon as she met his eyes, Leticia blinked and held out the jam to him.

“I’m here to give you the blueberry jam.”

“It must have been quite heavy, but you brought it well. Thank you, Leticia.”

“No, it’s what I had to do.”

Suddenly, something caught Leticia’s eyes.

“What’s that?”

Daniel followed the direction of her small finger with a curious expression. At the end, books were piled up neatly.

“The letters are blurred and very old, so I put them aside to throw them away.”

“Then, can I have one?”

“You want one?”

“Yes, I think there’s a fairytale book.”

While she spoke, her gaze was already directed at a particular book. However, when Daniel didn’t answer, Leticia looked up at him nervously.

“Can I take it with me?”

“Of course, but you won’t be able to see the letters that well.”

“It’s okay! Thank you for giving it to me!”

Leticia smiled brightly as if she’d never been worried, and only picked out the fairytale.

“Leticia.”

A low voice called out to her from behind, and Leticia turned her head. As soon as their gazes met, Daniel said.

“The books are going to be thrown away, it’s okay if you take another book.”

“What?”

“You can have it as thanks for running the errand.”

Daniel presented her a much cleaner and newer book than Leticia was holding in her hands. However, Leticia was hesitant to accept it.

“But…”

She wanted to take it right away, but she didn’t choose this old book because she liked it.

Leticia ended up firmly refusing because she wasn’t confident that she could return the favor she’d received.

“This is really enough for me.”

“Leticia…”

“Next time, if there’s a book you want to read, please let me know.”