Grandma and Grandpa had said he wasn't allowed to go into someone else's home without being invited.
That was rude.
It wasn't something a good child should do.
But...
Lele pressed his lips together.
He was really curious...
He really wanted to see what Old Man Mao, who was hated by everyone in the village, looked like.
Hm?
Lele's heart skipped a beat.
He abruptly looked up toward the house.
He tried hard to see inside through the crack in the door.
He'd heard something...
What was it?
Lele tilted his head to listen.
He pulled at his ears.
He tried hard to catch the sound he'd picked up by chance.
The sounds of the wind and rain instantly filled his ears.
Lele couldn't help walking a few steps closer.
He didn't care about the rain beating against him.
All his attention was fixed on that strange sound.
What was it?
A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky.
In an instant, it lit up everything before him.
It also clearly illuminated what was inside the house.
Though it was gone in a flash...
Lele stood frozen, as if struck by lightning.
"...I saw..."
The child picked up the milk and took several gulps, but still felt an uncomfortable dryness in his throat.
"I saw..."
The child repeated it several times.
He didn't know whether his body's trembling made his voice shake, or whether the trembling in his voice had spread through his whole body...
"It's all over now."
Xiao Xiao looked at the child.
He didn't know what had happened...
Maybe something terrifying?
Something that still kept the child from talking about it freely, even after all these years.
Perhaps he should tell the child not to force himself.
The past was past.