The girl's alert eyes only concentrated on the swaying made by her little legs, which barely touched the ground. She sat on a metal bench, hugging and resting her chin on a peculiar butterfly backpack. She no longer seemed to be thinking or paying attention to anything else around her; that was what it seemed like at first glance.

What was she doing, or what was she waiting for? Why was she alone? That was what the teenage boy was wondering. He had not stopped looking at her for several minutes, waiting for her mother or a relative of hers to approach her.

Sitting in that square, with a smoothie in his hand, he was not paying any attention to what his friends were talking about. When he arrived, he had noticed that small presence ignored by others, as people came and went without stopping to look at her. He felt something about it, though he didn't know what. Worry? Intrigue? But more importantly, why would he care about her? The girl was not his responsibility.

With that in mind, he set about ignoring her and focused on what his friends were saying. A few minutes later, he was still far from achieving that, having participated very little in the conversation. Finally, there came a point where he could no longer stand the urge to verify if she was still sitting there, waiting. Out of the corner of his eye, he espied her in the same position, only now with a somewhat melancholic countenance.

He swallowed hard, not knowing how to react to that air of sadness. And why should he? He contained that frustration in wanting to ignore her one more time.

"Bro?" He was called by one of his friends, who apparently had been trying to get his attention several times. "Did you hear me? The movie is about to start. We have to go."

Noting his own situation, he remembered that they had tickets to a performance and it seemed it was time to go.

The teenager nodded and got up from his seat smoothly, subsequently following his friends up the escalator in the direction of the movie theater. And despite his calm strides and kind face, in his mind, he was mortified about leaving the little girl without a watchman. It wasn't his obligation, but he felt that need.

Almost finished climbing the stairs to the next floor, he gave her one last look. He perceived the same image from the new perspective, seeing her braided head still sitting atop her colorful backpack.

...

The hours passed and after seeing the movie, they made the decision to go to the soda stand. So animated was the group of friends that the boy had almost forgotten the matter of the girl. The incoming light in the square was almost nonexistent, so the light bulbs were lit.

It was already night and they still did not know whether to finish their outing. Perhaps the rest wanted to continue, but he wanted to leave at that very moment. With confidence and no regrets, he told them his desire to go and rest. Perhaps it was very rare for him, since they always went everywhere together and with high spirits, but on that occasion, he did not feel that way. Without further delay, he said goodbye and left. A strange feeling overcame him and without really knowing where his feet were taking him, he ran to the same place as he had hours before. The metal bench that was previously occupied by the girl was now empty.

"Maybe she left with her mother..." he said, thinking aloud without taking his eyes off the spot. Without really knowing what to think, he continued on his way.

Stepping outside, he realized that it had recently rained. The current of air from a recent storm intercepted his senses, making him shiver. He wanted to wrap himself up with the garment that hung from his arm, but some faint whimpers caused him to tense. He turned in various directions, wanting to find the source of the sounds, until his eyes came across a small bulge a few feet away in the corner.

Puzzled, he slowly approached the crying soul. When he came close enough, he recognized that little head.

It was the girl. She was crying with her legs drawn up, hiding her face. When he saw her, he couldn't help but feel sad for her and even more so when he saw that she was shivering from the cold. How long had she been there? He supposed that she had already spent a good amount of time outside, as her fair skin looked reddish and very cold.

Not knowing exactly what to do, he only managed to cover her from the freezing air with the coat that minutes before he himself had intended to wear.

Feeling the cozy touch of the warm garment, the little girl's watery eyes rose to meet the boy's worried orbs.

Both curious gazes crossed and the air that had danced so much stopped, not violating the atmosphere that had been created for them. Yes, It was a warm feeling for them and it was able to calm the girl.

Ending the trance, the older boy crouched down to her level without breaking eye contact.

"Please don't cry," he said. He was tempted to dry her face but didn't. "Why are you here all by yourself?"

The girl brushed away the excess tears with her arm before answering.

"My daddy..." Remembering the reason again, she began to whimper but managed to restrain herself. "I came to look for my daddy."

The young man did not know how to interpret that.

"And where is he?" He began to speak with more tact. "Where's your mom?"

The little girl looked at the ground pitifully but still spoke with sobs.

"Mommy is at my house, but my daddy..." She tried to control herself again, but having the memory of her father broke her heart. "I just wanted to see dad..."

He let her vent a little, watching her begin to cry again, but he needed to learn more about her situation if he wanted to help.

"If you came looking for your dad, why isn't your mom with you?"

"He left us and my mommy doesn't want to see him anymore, but I do! Daddy always takes me here when I'm sad. And I'm very sad because I miss him so much. But he didn't come for me!" the outraged girl explained. He sensed a mixture of anger and immense grief from her.

He let out a loud sigh. Somehow, he felt that sadness, because he knew very well what it was like for his own father to abandon him.

Without further ado, he gently placed his hand on top of her. She reacted to the contact with surprise, but instead of acting scared, she was receptive to his touch as he pulled her up from the wet floor.

"I can't leave you here when you might catch a cold. You have to go back to your mother."

Quickly, the girl let go.

"No! My mom's probably very upset with me. I ran away from my house..."

"She may be upset, but I bet she's more worried."

"But..."

"Come on..." He smiled at her, wanting to convey confidence. "If you want, I can carry you. You must be too cold to walk. What do you say?"

The girl covered herself with the garment placed on her shoulders, unsure. However, as the handsome teenage boy smiled at her, she allowed him to hug her and then carry her as he had said.

As he held her, he felt the freezingness in that tiny body, so he wrapped her up even more, covering her head. She leaned into his shoulder with a smile, feeling safe. Before the boy even asked, to his surprise, the girl pointed him in a direction. When thinking about it in retrospect, perhaps it was logical that she would know where her house was since she managed to make it to the square on her own. And without further ado, he prepared to follow her instructions.

For a moment, he wondered how he had ended up in such a weird situation. It all happened so quickly that maybe he just let himself be guided. The result was him carrying the girl that he kept sneaking glances at in the mall, taking her home.

As it was becoming customary that day, he looked at her from the corner of his eye and noticed that her eyelids closed from time to time, demanding sleep. Even without looking at her face too hard, it was easy to tell that her tiredness was due to all her crying. She suddenly engulfed his neck in a small hug, settling into a more comfortable position. He was amazed at the rapid trust between them, almost as if a connection had been formed.

"Hey, tell me, what's your name, little one?" he asked, seeing her begin to doze off on his chest.

"Jolyne," she answered with a sweet, sleepy voice.

"Jolyne..." he pronounced, somewhat captivated by the adorable name. "What a beautiful name. My name is Haruno."

"Thanks. You are very cute, Haruno."

The statement made the young man touched. Clearly, Jolyne had said it without thinking, so he let her rest until they reached the house.

Although the road itself was short and silent, a thousand questions about that very afternoon ran through Haruno's mind. From the very first moment, he had felt what he would call an "attraction" to little Jolyne. However, thinking about it made him feel uncomfortable, as he did not see her in a romantic or perverted sense, as someone might think.

No, of course not. Destiny perhaps? Or was it just the feeling one got when seeing an innocent girl alone? That must be it, of course. He didn't want any more confusion in his head, so he decided to forget about it and continued on his way with the sleeping Jolyne.

Soon, they arrived and Haruno noticed a patrol car parked to the side. He immediately rang the bell. He did not have to wait long, as a brown-haired woman answered with a rather miserable face and an air of concern. When she realized what the young man was carrying in his arms, she quickly took the girl from him. Her unleashed tears woke up a stunned Jolyne.

"Jojo, you're safe..." her mother said, hugging the girl, who still had Haruno's coat on.

"Mommy." Reciprocating her hug, like her mother, she began to cry. "I just wanted to see dad."

"Shhh... It's okay, my love. Okay..." The woman stopped caressing her braid. Nothing mattered to her other than having her in her arms again.

After a few seconds, the mother looked at Haruno, who in turn was watching them with a slight smile.

"You brought my daughter back." There was clear gratitude in her eyes. "I don't know how I could possibly repay you, young man."

"Haruno, Mommy. Not young man," the tender Jolyne stressed.

"I really appreciate it, Haruno."

"It's nothing. I... I was just hanging around when I saw Jolyne, and I just couldn't..."

"Would you like to stay for dinner?" the mother proposed, taking the boy by surprise.

"What? Me? Oh! I couldn't..."

"It's the least I can do. Thanks to you, she is back and in good health. You went through the trouble to bring her here personally, so I'd really like for you to accept."

Haruno considered it. He wanted to spend some more time with the little girl. However, he should leave as soon as possible. After all, his friends were waiting for him at the hotel where they were staying.

"I'd like to stay, ma'am, but I cannot. My friends are waiting for me and we have to leave for the airport first thing tomorrow. Surely, they're already wondering where I am."

Jolyne's expression morphed into one of disappointment. She wouldn't say it aloud, but she really wanted the handsome boy to stay.

"I understand. I'm sorry for the inconvenience, and I really appreciate you bringing Jolyne."

"Don't. It was a pleasure."

Haruno pretended to leave, but...

"Wait!"

Both the mother and the boy looked at Jolyne in surprise.

"I..." she said sadly. "Can I have your sweater?"

The teenager had forgotten about his coat. Despite the cold, it was not something that mattered much to him.

"Oh! My coat. I mean, sure."

"No, Jolyne. You must give it back," the mother intervened.

"No, really, you can keep it," said the boy, seeing the girl cling to the garment. "Consider it a gift."

"A gift!" exclaimed the girl. Letting go of her mother, she ran towards the boy. Upon reaching him, she detached a ladybug brooch from the cute backpack hanging on her back. With burning cheeks, she handed it to him. "Here, I want to give it to you."

Observing the smiling little girl's embarrassment, Haruno took it and caressed the brooch before putting it in one of his pockets.

"Thank you, Jolyne. I will cherish it."

"Yeah, and I'll take care of your sweater!"

As the woman approached her daughter, Haruno looked at her one last time.

"Bye, Jolyne."

And he finally left.

The girl held tightly to the coat as she watched Haruno's back retreat further and further away.

"Bye, Haruno..."

____

This is a story translated from Spanish to English, thanks to Foenix8 for helping me.