When Dad lifted a spoonful of congee to my lips, I didn't drink it. I just shook my head and said I wasn't hungry.
They didn't scold me. Instead, they asked with concern if I was feeling unwell, if that was why I had no appetite.
That afternoon, Mom checked out of the hospital.
She said staying was too expensive. She needed to save money for my tuition.
She said as long as I was happy, everything was worth it.
Home was a tiny rented room.
No heating. No air conditioning. The windows didn't even seal properly against the wind.
Honestly, I didn't care about any of that.
I just wanted a home.
For one fleeting moment, I thought the parental love I'd lost had finally returned.
I thought I could act spoiled.
I thought I had arms to lean on.
In the end, I still had nothing.
This wasn't the reunion I had longed for.
So standing at the doorway, I gathered my courage and said to my parents, "I... I want to go back to the orphanage."
They both froze, then their eyes turned red.
"We're sorry, Cecilia. We were wrong before. No matter how hard things got, we should never have abandoned you."
"Will you give us one more chance? We swear we'll take good care of you."