-Chapter 11-
Lariz’s big blue eyes sparkled like glass marbles under the light, full of excitement and relief.
“Pretty!” she said brightly.
“Then let’s go get you cleaned up,” I told her, smiling.
“Okay!”
Just as I was about to take her into the bathroom, Rohen suddenly grabbed my hand.
“What is it?”
“I’m going too.”
“What?”
“…You’re not coming in. I’ll wash Lariz myself.”
Oh, really?
After everything I’d done—dragging them here, keeping them safe, giving them food—he still had that sharp tone with me.
“You two can handle it on your own?”
“We’re not stupid.”
“Fine, fine. Then come here. I’ll show you what to use.”
There was no reason to stop him. Honestly, they needed to bathe anyway; they were filthy, like kids who hadn’t washed in forever.
Lariz eagerly leaned in beside me like a little puppy wagging her tail.
“Unni, unni! What do we use?”
“Okay, listen carefully,” I said, pointing at the bottles. “Use this one for your hair, this one for your body.”
“Mm!”
“And this one—you put it on after you’re clean. It keeps your skin soft, so make sure to rub it on your arms and face, okay?”
“Okay!”
Even after my little tutorial, Rohen stayed stubbornly outside the bathroom door.
‘Is this what they call a moody seven-year-old?’ I thought.
I’d already expected this attitude, so I didn’t mind. I just nodded calmly.
“All right then. Go wash up. I’ll grab some clothes for you.”
“Okay! Oh, unni! Can you hold this for me?”
“What’s that?”
“My treasure! Hehe.”
It was a small blanket—too thin to be a real quilt, too big to be just a towel—dirty from being hugged for too long.
But to Lariz, who’d never owned anything, it was clearly precious. The fact that she was willing to hand it to me almost made my eyes sting.
“I’m giving it to you because you’re my unni,” she said proudly.
“Okay. I’ll take good care of it. Now go wash, all right?”
“Okay!”
Lariz smiled sweetly, grabbed Rohen’s hand, and the two disappeared inside.
Soon, I heard the sound of running water.
Knock, knock.
“Aisha, I brought the clothes,” came El’s voice from outside.
I started to open the door—but something told me to be cautious. So I cracked it open just a little and peeked out.
There stood El… and about twenty kids behind her.
“What the—what’s with the crowd?”
Almost every troublemaker in the orphanage was standing outside my room.
“Well, um…” El said nervously. “Everyone was curious. We always get to meet new kids, but you didn’t even introduce them this time.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“O-okay! I won’t!” she said quickly, shoving the bundle of clothes into my hands before scampering off like she’d just escaped danger.
But the rest of the kids didn’t move. They kept trying to peek through the doorway.
“Aren’t you all leaving?” I asked.
“You’re so mean, Aisha. You always keep everything to yourself.”
“Yeah, let us see the new kids!”
“…You guys are getting a little too bold lately,” I said quietly, narrowing my eyes.
“Ahh! It’s the scary witch Aisha! Run!” one of them shrieked.
I curled my lips into a half-smile, glaring just enough to make them flinch. A few stepped back—but only for a second before edging forward again.
‘Goldfish memories,’ I thought grimly.
“Are you sure you don’t want to leave?” I said with a sweet, dangerous smile.
“C’mon, just a peek—”
The door nudged forward as they pushed.
‘Unbelievable.’
“Kids aren’t things you get to ‘look at,’” I said sharply.
“But—”
“No buts. Oh, you think I’ve gone soft lately, huh? Think I won’t do anything? Fine. Let’s see if you still think that after I deal with you properly.”
“Eek! Run!”
Apparently my reputation as “the scary orphanage witch” still held, because the whole group scattered in an instant.
I crossed my arms, watching their little heads vanish down the hallway.
“They really have no fear these days,” I muttered.
The orphanage kids were mostly kind, but some were… different.
A few had parents who still visited—or paid money to leave them here temporarily. Those kids always acted superior, bullying the others and pretending to be special.
And the older, stronger ones? They liked to prove their “power” by picking on the weak.
“Ugh. I hate that type the most,” I said, sighing. “People who think hurting others makes them strong.”
‘Once I’m in charge of this place,’ I thought, ‘they’ll be the first to go.’
After locking the door, I turned back inside.
The bathroom was still noisy, full of splashing and chatter. I sat on the bed and sorted through the pile of clothes.
There were some matching outfits—same design, different sizes.
“Matching clothes for twins… that’s going to be adorable.”
Just imagining it made me grin. No wonder moms love dressing twins alike—how cute would that look? Especially on my sweet Lariz.
I was still smiling to myself when—
“UNNIIIIIII!”
Lariz’s voice rang from the bathroom.
“What’s wrong?!” I shouted, rushing over and throwing open the door—
—only to see Rohen, covered head to toe in body lotion, scrubbing himself furiously with a sponge.
The moment he saw me, he yelped and tried to cover himself.
“Why are you coming in?!”
“Because Lariz called me! What are you even doing?”
“What does it look like? I’m washing! You said to use this stuff!”
“Yeah, but not that!”
“You tricked me! It doesn’t even make bubbles!”
“That’s because that’s lotion! I said the white one is for after your bath!”
Rohen blinked, staring between the bottles with a blank look—one clear, one milky-white. His expression slowly turned from confusion to sheer disbelief.
“See? If you’d paid attention when I explained, this wouldn’t have happened,” I said, sighing.
Lariz ran up beside me, tattling eagerly. “Unni! Oppa wouldn’t listen! I told him it didn’t make bubbles, but he kept saying it was right!”
Rohen’s face went red. I crossed my arms and tilted my head.
“Honestly, Rohen… looks like you do need a big sister.”
“There’s no way,” he grumbled. “Ugh, whatever. I’m done.”
He quickly rinsed himself and stormed out—still half-covered in lotion streaks.
“Unni…” Lariz said softly, pouting. “Oppa put that sticky stuff on me too.”
“It’s okay, sweetheart,” I said, chuckling, and began helping her wash properly.
At first she was shy, but she slowly relaxed, letting me scrub her hair and rinse her off. By the time we finished, half the bottle of soap was gone.
And her hair—oh boy, it had been so tangled it took ages to clean.
By the end, I was soaked from head to toe.
“Guess I need to change clothes too,” I said with a tired laugh.
“Okay! Hehe, unni, am I clean now?”
I dried her hair and wrapped her in a towel. She looked up at me with a bright, innocent smile.
“You sure are. You were already cute, but now you’re even cuter.”
“Really? Hehe.”
“Let’s get dressed. The clothes just arrived.”
“Yay!”
She grabbed my hand, still giggling, and we stepped out.
“Ugh, dirty oppa,” she teased immediately.
“I’m not dirty,” Rohen muttered, scowling.
“You are! You stink!”
He shot her a glare, then stomped back into the bathroom.
“See, unni? You have to talk to him like that. He only listens when you do,” she said proudly.
“Is that so?”
“Yup! If you talk nicely, he doesn’t listen. But if you scold him—he obeys!” she said with a grin. Then her eyes sparkled again. “Unni, what should I wear?”
“This one! You and Rohen can wear matching outfits.”
“…Can’t I match with you instead?” she asked quietly, her smile fading.
“Don’t want to match with your brother?”
“No, I do… but I like you more,” she murmured.
My heart melted. “You’re such a sweetheart. Oh! I have something for you.”
“For me?” she asked, tilting her head.
I pulled out a small doll I’d hidden on my bed—the one I’d asked El to buy for me at the market.
“Here.”
“Wow… what is it?”
“A doll. You’re always hugging that blanket, so I thought maybe you’d like this too.”
At the mention of her blanket, I glanced toward the bed—where the small, worn cloth still lay.
Lariz’s gaze followed mine, and she smiled softly.
“This one’s special too,” she said. “My oppa made it for me.”
“Really?”
“Mm! I told him I wanted a doll.”
