Chapter 5 - A hotpot with little pumpkin (1/2)

”Big sister, I'm really sorry…uwahhhh...I've made you worry…wahhhh… but he tore the book you gifted, uwahhh…”

Bella Lim sighed as she looked at her little pumpkin. His chubby cheek bounced every time he went 'uwahhh'.

She knew he would cry this loud. That was also the reason why she decided to leave as soon as possible. It was to avoid her little pumpkin to hold onto his feeling for long. It could be detrimental to his growth if he kept on restraining his real emotions.

He needed an outlet to release his frustration.

”My dear little pumpkin is crying, here comes your sister to cheer you up. My dear little pumpkin still crying, here is a shoulder for you to lean on…” she sang the modified nursery rhyme 'I'm a little teapot' and pulled her little brother to an embrace. She patted his back gently until the cry subsided.

”Is my little pumpkin okay now?” Bella Lim asked softly. Her sapphire blue eyes fell onto little pumpkin's wet face. She kissed his forehead and hugged him again to provide as much comfort as she could.

”Big sister, I'm okay now,” the little pumpkin gave a bright smile to his sister to ȧssure her that he was feeling better. He held her hand and they walked toward Bella Lim's bike which she parked right outside the administration office.

”Little pumpkin, how about we go shop ingredients for a hotpot tonight?” Bella Lim suggested the idea as she passed a small helmet to her little brother. The little boy was excited as his mouth was agape. There were twinkles of joy and anticipation in his eyes.

”Big sister, can we buy dim sim as well?” he asked while at the same time wearing the helmet given by his big sister. Then, he sat in front of Bella Lim who was about to start the bike's engine.

”Sure!” Bella Lim shouted as the engine roared. The noise was louder than her voice. A small smile appeared on her face when she noticed the glee that was emitted from her little pumpkin's body. It seemed he had forgotten the incident earlier. She rejoiced!

The two continued to ride the bike towards a secluded neighborhood called the 'Countryside'. It was named as such because this was the only place that had the least development. The government believed that it was a waste to develop the area.

That was the main reason why this area offered the cheapest rental houses in the city. Most of the residents were from the lower class.

To both the siblings, this was their 'hometown' after the death of their parents. Bella had squeezed out all her savings to pay the down payment to one of the cheapest houses in the area.

They stopped at one of the small supermarkets to buy the ingredients for a hotpot meal. After buying everything, they went to a famous dumpling stall in the neighborhood. There were already a few people lining up.

”Little pumpkin, please wait here. Big sister will line up to buy our dim sim!” Bella Lim said as both her hands held little pumpkin's round cheeks and made them bounce. The little boy giggled as he shook his head in agreement.

Bella Lim made sure that she had parked the bike securely before lining up to buy the dim sim she and little pumpkin enjoyed. Her body was positioned to an angel that allowed her to see both her little brother and the queue at the same time.

As she stood there waiting, two women approached the queue and lined up behind her. She felt unlucky for all these women knew was to gossip. Their voices were loud enough that it almost succeeded in tempting her to give them a word or two. But she didn't want to create troubles, so she forcefully listened to their gibberish.

”Hey, do you know that the most anticipated wedding of the year is being pushed forward?”

”The mighty Eric Wu and the gorgeous Karen Yang? Really? Why the rush?”