Stay By My Side
have an owner. Xavian would love to keep it as a pet.“You’re not afraid of Moony?” A childish voice could be heard.“M-Moony?”Natalie’s sight shifted from Moony to a little boy, who was standing at the door of the dining hall.The little boy had pretty looks, and his dark eyes were fixed intently on her. His good looks were even comparable with that of Xavian and Clayton’s. Upon closer observation, she noticed that the little boy looked somewhat similar to Xavian and Clayton. Maybe it was because of this similarity that made her smile slightly.She took Moony in her hand and walked toward Franklin before squatting down in front of him.“Is this snake yours? It’s cute!” Natalie was smiling when she looked into the little boy’s dark eyes. “Is its name Moony?”The little boy pursed his lips and snorted. “You’re unattractive, but you’re rather brave. At least you’re better than those women who screamed when they saw Moony.”“Here. I’ll return it back to you.” Natalie placed Moony on Franklin’s small palms.Franklin snorted again, never once averting his eyes from her face. “I called you unattractive just now. Why are you not mad at me?”As Natalie had a hyper-realistic mask on her face to make her appear ugly, she wasn’t the slightest bit bothered by the little boy’s harsh words.“Well, it’s a fact that I’m unattractive. Therefore, there’s no reason for me to be mad about it.” She rubbed Franklin’s head, which was bristly because of his short hair, while she spoke. “Moreover, I’m already ugly. Won’t it just make me uglier if I still get angry about it?”Franklin was already five years old. Still, his head had never been touched by anyone other than his grandfather.His father had never touched him, whereas others wouldn’t even dare to think about it. Even the woman who gave birth to him would be frightened by a few words from him. Thus, she would never approach him.An indescribable warmth surged in the boy’s chest when Natalie caressed his head.It was a feeling he had never experienced before.“Y-You…” He clenched his little fists.“Hmm? What is it?” Natalie paused her action before lifting her head to look at the boy, who seemed to be struggling with something.“Woman, you touched my head! You’ll have to take responsibility.” Franklin stared straight into her eyes as he spoke. “Be my woman from now on. I swear that I’ll take care of you to the best of my abilities for the rest of my life. No one will dare to bully you!”“Pfft!”Natalie couldn’t stop herself from letting out a snort.This little fellow is only about the same age as Clayton and Xavian, yet he confessed his feelings to me just like that? What was funny was that the little boy was so adorable, yet he said something so domineering like he was the president of a company. The contrast was so jarring that she couldn’t stop herself from laughing.“Why are you laughing?” Franklin puffed up his
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