After her bath, Aurora dashed out of the bathroom at once.
“Rory, I haven’t even dried your hair yet.”
The woman felt helpless. Aurora seemed completely unaffected by the recent mishap.
If it had been any other child, such an event might have caused severe trauma, yet Aurora acted as if nothing had happened.
“Mom, I’m going to see Julian,” Aurora said, hopping and skipping her way to the next room.
“Alright…”
“Julian, open the door!” Aurora knocked on the tightly shut door.
A few seconds later, the door opened. He was dressed in a sailor’s son’s white T-shirt and jeans, his fine hair damp and falling across his forehead.
He was much taller than Aurora, looking down from above at the girl in her pink dress, her long hair cascading over her shoulders, dripping water drops from the ends.
“Little bunny, what’s wrong?”
Earlier, Aurora had been frantic and frightened in the water and had not really seen the boy’s face clearly. Now, she saw him standing before her.
“Julian, you’re really handsome!” Aurora blinked.
The boy seemed older than his actual age and bore no trace of youthful boyishness as his peers, his black eyes cold yet deep.
Taking advantage of the door opening, Aurora, petite and agile, slipped into his room. Only then did Julian realize this uninvited little girl was barefoot.
“Aren’t you scared?” He thought about the magnitude of the incident, which would normally make any child seek comfort in their parents’ arms.
But she showed no sign of fear.
To his surprise, the girl had quickly recovered from fright, her light footsteps making him wonder if what had just happened was all a dream.
“Didn’t you say that with you around, nothing would happen to me?” Aurora said, her big eyes innocent.
Julian felt helpless. Back in the sea, he had merely tried to calm her, knowing that flailing about could have drowned her.
The dangers in the sea were far greater than one could imagine. How could he truly ensure her safety?
It was just a well-intended lie, yet she took it to heart. He slowly crouched down before asking, “Why did you want to save us?”
A child at her age shouldn’t understand these things, yet she risked her own life to press her father to save others.
From Magnus’ perspective, his decision was not wrong at the time. No one knew if the weather would worsen.
The sea harbored many unknown dangers, and lingering too long was not a wise option.
If it were him on the ship, he likely would have made the same choice as Magnus.
Of course, this was just from the rational perspective of an ordinary person, but how could such a young girl understand all that?
“It’s written that way in the stories,” Aurora smiled sweetly.
“What stories?” Julian was quite curious.
“In many stories, like Snow White eating the poisoned apple and the prince waking her, the mermaid who saved the prince who fell into the water, the prince who saved the princess locked in the tower, and Belle who broke the curse on the beast…”
Listening to her non-stop recounting of fairy tales, Julian knew he shouldn’t expect too much.
This was a girl deeply enchanted by fairy tales, but this time, he was thankful that a fairy tale had saved his life.
“Little bunny, have you noticed something?”
“Why do you always call me that?”
“Because you look just like a bunny when you cry in my arms,” he replied bluntly, having never encountered such an adoring girl before.
Aurora, slightly annoyed, turned her head away as she pouted. “I’m not a bunny. I have a name. I am Aurora.”
Seeing her lovely face, he gently poked her cheek when he said, “Alright, Aurora.”
“That’s more like it!” She beamed with satisfaction. “Julian, what did you want to talk about earlier? Notice what?”
“All you talked about were fairy tales of princesses and princes. Did you save us just because you thought you might meet a prince?”
He glanced at Aurora, wondering if she understood these things at her age.
“Of course not. Finding a prince is one thing, and saving people is something entirely different. Besides, how would I know if there was a prince on the ship? But I believe that when I grow up, a prince will definitely come for me on a white horse.”
Most girls probably all dreamt this way, imagining themselves as princesses in fairy tales.
She would meet a handsome prince who would come toward her on a bright sunny day.
“Aurora, what if the man on the white horse is a prince but he’s bald?” the boy suddenly asked in a teasing tone.
“Will you still want to marry him?”
“A bald guy? No way!”
A faint smile played on his lips. “But he’s a prince on a white horse.”
Aurora seemed troubled.
“That’s not going to happen. Julian, you’re just making fun of me!” Aurora poked his face.
“Do you regret having saved me?” He raised his eyebrows, his smile somewhat mischievous. “Perhaps I am your prince.”
Aurora met his teasing gaze, too young to understand what he meant.
“You do look like a handsome prince from a fairy tale. Maybe when I grow up, I’ll marry you.”
“Do I need to ride a white horse then?” he joked.
“I’m not talking to you anymore.” Aurora, frustrated, kicked him and ran out. That joke was never mentioned again.
How could a naive little girl take such words seriously? Yet Julian never forgot that playful remark.
Days at sea became less boring with her around. Playing with her every day gave him a chance to forget his troubles.
As the time to return home drew nearer, their day of parting soon arrived, and suddenly she remembered something.
“Julian, what is your full name? Can I find you later?” Aurora asked, holding his hand.
She really enjoyed playing with this cold yet gentle, and sometimes naughty boy.