Do you believe in love at first sight?

Chapter：9.1

“Damn it! f**k! ” Maxwell’s anger flared up as he pulled Ethan on to his lap. He did it to comfort him, but also to calm his own fury, not wanting Ethan to see the curses spilling from his lips.

“I didn’t dare tell Luna, because she truly loved that man. I was afraid of hurting her, and I was afraid she wouldn’t believe me. Maybe that’s why he preyed on my weakness, it never stopped. Whenever he was home, Luna was happy. She did suspect once or twice why he stayed so long this time, but we never said anything. Then Luna found out she had cancer, and it was already in the late stages.”

"Luna is not rich. She only makes enough money to live on for the three of us. In order to pay for the huge medical bills, I have to find a job. This at least allows me to avoid him for a while. Because I learned to cook in the orphanage as a child , I found a restaurant owner who hired me right away, even though I was only fifteen. He even told me that if I worked hard, he would give me a raise when I turned sixteen, that was my first job. I'm happy that I can help Lina.”

At that time, there were only two months left until my sixteenth birthday. My boss was a good man named Daiki, He said he was japanese .

So, from noon to evening, I worked in the restaurant. Soon I found other job opportunities, so in the morning I delivered newspapers and milk. I worked odd jobs during the day and after get off work at the restaurant, I worked the night shift at the store. I have four jobs in total. Although I am very busy, it also allows me to avoid that man and earn Luna's medical expenses. I am very happy that I can help Luna.

"I think you are very strong." Maxwell stretched out his hand to sign language in front of Ethan, feeling heartbroken for the boy who had endured so much at such a young age but still persevered. How could someone like him be considered weak?

“Thank you,” Ethan glanced up at him with a brief smile before lowering his head. His blue eyes became unfocused, staring into the distance, as his thoughts drifted back to those difficult days.

I had been working for almost two years, and one day, just five months before I turned eighteen, Luna passed away in the hospital. Before that, I visited her every week. She endured the pain with such strength, and when she died, the doctor told me that she left with a faint smile on her face. Luna was such a strong and joyful person, both in life and in her final moments.

That man knew Luna had passed away. Maybe, with no fear of the hospital coming after him, he came back again and went to that house looking for me.

At this point, Maxwell unleashed another string of vicious curses, wishing with all his might that those curses would come true, leaving that man trapped between life and death, unable to live or die.

"Luna was gone, so I decided to move out of that house, not giving him another chance to find me," Ethan slowly signed, unaware of Maxwell’s curses.

"Good job!" Maxwell thought to himself. If only Ethan were stronger, he could have beaten that man up before leaving.

At this point, Ethan’s hands paused, and his whole body began to tremble uncontrollably.

Maxwell tilted his head, watching Ethan’s face filled with shame, self-doubt, and pain. He could already sense that the story didn’t end here. The real humiliation, and the accusations from the man that had been mentioned earlier tonight, were all tied to what was about to be revealed next.

Ethan's blue eyes filled with tears again. "I don't know how that person got my ID card. After he couldn't find me, he borrowed a lot of money in my name and then disappeared. Then I couldn't find him ..."

His hands fell limply onto his legs, the movements of his signing coming to a halt. His fingers opened and closed repeatedly, as if by doing so, he could somehow gather the strength he needed to continue, to find the will to use sign language and finish telling the story of his past.

“If you don’t want to remember it, then don’t say any more,” Maxwell said softly. He could imagine what was going to come next; he had seen cases like this before. But knowing it had happened to Ethan made Maxwell’s heart ache, torn between pain and anger.

Ethan shook his head violently, tears streaming down his face as he sobbed. "I couldn't repay that much money, so the debt collectors forced me to work in one of their shops. They said the fastest way to pay it off was to sell my body. I was in so much pain, so much agony. I had to pretend I was just a puppet-no thoughts, no feelings, no soul-just doing whatever they wanted me to do, however they wanted."

“I lost track of how long the days went by. Gradually, I truly became the puppet I had wished to be, unable to fake a smile, unable to eat or drink, and I had even lost the ability to cry. But they didn’t want that kind of puppet. They kept hitting and shouting at me, forcing food into my mouth…”Tears streamed down Ethanface, and he struggled to breathe as Ihe choked on his sobs.

Maxwell could no longer endure it. He grasped Ethan’s trembling hands tightly and enveloped him in a firm embrace. His eyes brimmed with tears, but unlike Ethan’s, Maxwell's were filled with a mix of anger.