Every step Aurora took seemed to tread upon the very hearts of Genevieve and Ivy. Ivy wanted to intervene but was too frightened of being hurt by Aurora, uncertain whether the woman had gone mad or possessed unnatural strength.
“Mommy, I want my mommy,” Aurora cried, her face mirroring a lost child with wide-open eyes, yet she was committing the most cruel acts. She trampled upon Genevieve, grinding her underfoot painfully. Genevieve screamed in agony, “Aurora, have you lost your mind? Magnus, are you just going to watch your daughter do this to me?”
Aurora had just violently thrown Genevieve, dislocating her bones it seemed. Despite this, Aurora showed no signs of stopping, growing more fierce by the moment. The innocence on her face only heightened the fear, prompting Magnus to finally intervene, fearing Genevieve would be killed.
“Aurora, stop, don’t continue,” he pleaded.
“I don’t want to stop, my mom is gone, I’ll never see her again…”
Aurora sobbed like a child, and lifted her foot to continue kicking Genevieve.
Magnus figured that Tina’s departure had hit her hard, but Aurora’s current state was terrifying. While holding Aurora, he signaled to Ivy, “You all need to leave now!”
Ivy didn’t hesitate, quickly helping Genevieve away from the scene, fearing what Aurora might do next.
Magnus, sensing the grim turn of events, promptly called Julian, who rushed to the Montgomery family home without a second word. By the time he arrived, Genevieve and the others had already left. Aurora sat quietly on the bay window, staring blankly out at the world.
“Little Bunny,” Julian called softly, afraid to startle her in such a tense atmosphere.
Aurora seemed not to hear, hugging her knees and watching the rain streak down the window, murmuring, “It’s raining…”
“Yes, it’s raining,” Julian replied, having heard from Magnus that she was distressed.
Suddenly, as if struck by a thought, Aurora jumped from the bay window and ran outside.
“Little Bunny, where are you going?”
Julian chased after her, unsure of what Aurora was thinking. Magnus had described a frightening side to Aurora, her potential unleashed in a disturbing way.
Julian’s gaze deepened with concern, but he had no time to ponder; he had to act. According to Magnus, Tina’s departure had deeply affected Aurora, leaving her extremely unstable and capable of bizarre actions.
Now, as the rain began, Aurora ran barefoot into the downpour.
“Little Bunny, what are doing? Come back with me,” Julian pleaded.
Aurora ran on, bare feet splashing through the rain, “I don’t want to go back.”
Julian watched the frail figure in the rain, heart aching, wondering why she would do this. He decided to simply watch and eventually realized Aurora was merely standing in the rain, perhaps to soothe her mood.
“Little Bunny, if you must stand in the rain, I’ll stand with you,” Julian declared, allowing her to continue.
An hour passed, and Aurora showed no intention of returning inside. Her frailty could lead to illness. Julian moved behind her and embraced her, “Alright, the rain’s enough, let’s go back inside, Little Bunny.”
“Julian, do you think if I get sick, mom will come back?”
Aurora murmured.
Julian finally understood her reasoning-to fall ill so Tina would stay. Mixed emotions of amusement, frustration, and resignation washed over him.
Others might find her actions pretentious, but Julian, who had also lost his mother, could deeply empathize with Aurora’s purpose. When he was a child and his mother passed away, he sometimes watched other children being scolded by their mothers on the streets, their faces streaked with tears. Yet, he looked on with envy, wishing his mother could come back to life-even if it meant being scolded himself-rather than leaving him utterly alone.
Aurora was even more pitiable. Having already endured one separation in her childhood, she had barely rejoiced in Tina’s return when she was faced with another farewell. The most terrifying thing was this: she was left completely devastated, though she had grown a lot over three years. That growth was in emotional terms; her need for maternal love remained childlike, an elusive necessity that others took for granted.
She so wanted her mother to stay, even childishly wishing to fall ill just to have her mother care for her as she did when she was little.
“Aurora, good girl, your mom just had to leave for a bit; she will come back. No mother can stop loving her child,” Julian whispered soothingly in her ear.
“Julian, she’s leaving tomorrow, and she won’t come back.”
“We can go to her if she doesn’t return. It’s just a matter of hours on a flight. Little Bunny, you don’t have a mother now, but you have me. I will protect you; no one will hurt you,” Julian assured her, pulling her into his embrace.
“I miss mom. I’ve missed her for so long…” Aurora leaned into Julian, her tears mingling with the rain.
Julian knew this; otherwise, she wouldn’t have resorted to such childish tactics to draw her mother’s attention.
“I promise you, we’ll find her together. We’ve been out in the rain too long. Let’s go inside. If your mom knew you were sick, she would be so worried. Can you bear to make her feel that way?”
Julian cajoled her, knowing her thoughts were particularly simplistic now, her actions merely a desperate plea to retain her mother. Like a child overlooked by their parents, who resorts to mischief not out of enjoyment but to garner attention. Even a scolding would at least show that the parents cared; that was all she wanted.
The more he understood, the more his heart ached for the young woman in his arms.
Why couldn’t she just live a happy life like everyone else, instead of bearing such undue burdens on her small shoulders? Aurora shook her head, “I don’t want mom to worry; I want her to be happy.”
She had suffered so much-wasn’t her mother suffering too?
“That’s right, let’s go inside.”
Julian scooped her into his arms, and Aurora clung to his neck, just like many years ago on the deck.
The young man held the little girl, who clung to his body like a little bunny, trusting him completely. Magnus stood not far away, watching the scene, drenched in rain himself but never approaching, fearing he might upset Aurora again.
Everything that had led to this moment was his doing; had he known what would come, he would never have acted as he did in the past.
He gave Julian a grateful look, and Julian simply nodded. The world operated on cause and effect, and he couldn’t control the seeds others sowed. Now, all he could do was protect the young woman in his arms.
Never had he felt such tenderness towards a woman, and Aurora was the only one he wanted to cherish and protect, because she deserved it.