The old man's face showed a hint of displeasure.
"We agreed that the child could pick one thing from the shop..."
"I keep my word."
"Whatever the child chooses is hers."
The old man was adamant.
Child's Mom and Child's Dad were taken aback, then smiled wryly.
"Sir, you're too kind."
"You helped us get in touch with our child."
"And you even gave her such a precious gift..."
"I told you, I do bear some responsibility..."
The old man waved a hand.
"No, no."
Child's Dad immediately said,
"What responsibility do you have?"
"You're not responsible at all."
"The balloon burst because it bumped into something."
It wasn't the old man who had burst it.
Even if the child had immediately turned back, she might not have found her way back.
This place was quite far from where they had been.
And the way there was winding.
What if the child got anxious on the way...
and had an accident?
What if some bad person tricked her?
In short...
For the child to make her way back alone...
unless she was incredibly lucky,
he didn't think she would remember the way she had come.
"You really helped us a lot by letting her stay in your shop..."
Child's Dad smiled gratefully at the old man.
The shop was naturally much safer than being outdoors.
And the old man was such a kind person.
He had taken such good care of the child.
At first, the old man certainly hadn't known that she had been separated from her parents.
He had probably thought she was a child from the neighborhood.
The child had been dazzled by the "rare treasures" filling the shop.
How could she have remembered her parents, whom she had left behind?
Only after choosing