Chapter 3 SNOWFLAKE

I shook my head in answer to the tall man standing in front of me. It's not that I've been perplexed by his physical appearance; it's just that I've always been calm, and when I meet strangers, I'm even quieter.

He seemed to be rather agitated. I bet that he must have met many various sorts of women before, but he must have been indifferent when he saw his beauty; it was only now that he experienced it; I didn't even look at him for one.

"Oh..."

Neither of us said a word. The atmosphere between us was so quiet that only the sound of the rain falling on the roadway and the sound of the rain falling on the umbrella could be heard.

I could feel his gaze on me. Is it because my bright red umbrella stands out against the chilly rain? I instantly recalled something about umbrellas. He doesn't have one, since it was just demolished by the car. I shrug slightly and kneel to go through my handbag. He unintentionally followed my action and was taken aback after sawing me bring out a translucent raincoat. This handmade raincoat is created from a large piece of nylon that I transferred into a practical transparent raincoat. I unzipped my bag and draped it over him.

Despite his height, the hooded garment adequately covered his whole body. Fortunately, I purposefully made it a bit larger. He looks like a God-sent angel in a translucent shroud. But, from my perspective, this person appears like a huge dog in a strange raincoat.

I appear to have just gazed at him for a few moments until he coughed gently and cleared his throat:

"So... how about the cat?" He asked me.

Oh, yeah. What about the cat, by the way? I'm curious. I can't bring him back to my inn since the landlord's policy prohibits families from having pets. Should it be left alone in this state? I delicately bit my lower lip.

While I was thinking, the person standing next to me was silent as if observing me. I wonder what I will look like in his eyes? A petite girl in a pure white dress, with a large umbrella covering half of her face, soft lips tightly pursed in confusion. On the back of the hand there were two new scratches, still bleeding.

"Did you get scratched by the little cat?" He asked in a worried voice.

I didn't respond, instead of nodding. After a while, I responded to him:

"Perhaps he despises me."

Then I added quietly:

"It appears... he is fond of you."

As if he hadn't heard me, he caressed its fur and said with his smile:

"Is that right? I think he looks like you. How can the same individuals despise one another?"

The joke was told in a half-joking, half-truth tone, which I didn't mind too much.

"Do you not believe me?" He stared at me and then handed it to me. "Try to touch him again."

I half doubted, gently reached out my hand towards it. Indeed, the cat's eyes looking at me were much softer. He shrank back a bit and closed his eyes, slowly accepting me and letting me do all sorts of things on his back. Now he knew that the other hand was the hand of an honest person, a hand that wanted to save him, not beat him.

I easily untied the necklace that strangled her neck. The kitten was freed from the thing that bothered him for a long time, his mood seemed to be much better, he purred twice as if to thank the two humans for saving him. He looked docile and lovely, just like a white snowflake.

"Snowflake?" The boy asked indifferently. I was startled, did he have the ability to read others' minds? Or is it simply that his thought was the same as mine?

When he noticed that I was staring at him suspiciously, he held out the necklace and carefully explained:

"It has its name engraved here."

I did the same, mumbling the phrases inscribed on the ancient necklace:

"Nayer?"

The boy laughed. I wrinkled my brows in frustration, and he chuckled since I couldn't even say its name correctly. I felt ashamed in front of such a stranger for the first time. Even though I have always had the greatest grades in school, there is no way for a youngster who has only attended private schools since childhood to come into touch with a language like French?

"His given name is Neige."

"What exactly does it mean?" I aggressively inquired. I had to open my mouth four times. This is quite an accomplishment for someone like myself who dislikes talking to strangers.

"It means snow," He replied.

"So that is. How the new name suits you." I was thinking to myself. The kitten stroked my leg once more. I scratched its adorable tiny head with a sweet smile as light as the breeze. But my happiness was fleeting since I realized I wouldn't be able to raise this cat on my alone. Right now, the only thing I can do is bring him around to see whether anyone has adopted him...

"I'll take care of him."

"What did you say?" I asked him back with a surprised expression.

"I said I'll take care of him. Or are you able to keep him?" He said.

I shook my head once again and stared at him. His frame is tall, his lines are elegant, and his garments are well-knit. He appears to be a man who has had a prosperous life. His physical appearance isn't bad, and he's probably not a mean person...

"Did you just pass judgment on me?" He interrupted my train of thought with a slight smile.

I averted my sight to avoid his stare, neither denying nor admitting anything.

"Give me your hand." He said in a soft voice.

"What..."

He grabbed one of my hands before I could continue speaking. To stop the bleeding, he gently wrapped a handkerchief around the back of my little hand. The warmth from the boy's touch communicated to my ice-cold hand and caused an unintentional tremor. He averted his gaze as soon as the bandage was removed and I noticed that his earlobe was a touch red.

"Don't forget to take the medication." He reminded me.

I was a bit stirred in my heart as I stared at the handkerchief he had quickly knotted. It turns out he's not such a bad man after all. I decided to get up and go after caressing the cat two more times. Before leaving, I gently unzipped my purse and pulled out a light pink silk band, leaned over, and tied it to one of the cat's legs before. Then I rose up and quietly spoke to him:

"Housewarming present."

The baby cat returned to Ryan, scratching his paw as if to authenticate the new owner's identity. Ryan unintentionally followed the girl's silhouette as she walked straight forward. Her little hand was still gripping the large umbrella, despite the girl's light brown hair and long, pearly white legs.

"So beautiful." He mumbled.

The rain had barely ceased as he held the cat in his arms and the gloomy clouds eventually gave way to a bright blue sky.