Social Distance
"Little Fox closed its eyes again."
Just as surprised as the little girl had been to see Little Fox open its eyes, she was now disappointed to see them close again.
Ah...
Little Fox had closed its eyes again.
That was fast.
The little girl puffed out her cheeks.
She hadn't even gotten a good look at Little Fox's eyes.
They seemed...
to be a very unusual color.
The bright lights in the subway and how briefly Little Fox's eyes had been open made the little girl unsure whether she had really seen them.
Were they...
silver-blue?
She wasn't sure.
"Nini."
The young woman looked less like the child's mother and more like her older sister.
She grabbed the child's hand.
"How did you end up here all by yourself?"
"I almost thought you'd disappeared..."
When she had turned around and not seen the child, the woman's heart had practically stopped for a second.
She'd searched frantically without success, and just as she was about to call the police, she spotted the child.
The woman felt relieved.
Then she noticed the unfamiliar young man across from the child, and her heart tightened again.
She hurried over at a near jog.
Only after taking the child's hand in hers did she feel reassured.
The woman was panting.
Her heart's frantic pounding roared in her ears.
She reached up and touched her forehead.
In that short time, sweat had beaded on it.
Her whole body felt hot.
Now that she was slowly calming down, she began to feel a little chilly.
The little girl blinked and smiled sweetly, her voice soft and sugary. "Auntie."
"Look."
"What a pretty little fox~"
Her fondness was plain for all to see.
The woman paused.
A little fox?
She looked in