IN LOVE WITH A VILLAIN | CHONI

-47-

Noble Smiles

6 pm

Before heading to the Southside, Cheryl dropped by the foundation. She hasn't been there for a while, ever since she came back to Riverdale, and she wanted to see how the kids were doing.

She has tighter security now. Everytime she would go to public, loose, and crowded places, two vehicles were always following behind. She didn't want that. Her Uncle did. Timothy wanted to protect her at all cost because he couldn't let something like three years ago happen to her again.

She looked at the car mirror and wiped the blood on her left eyebrow. She simply used her thumb to seal the cut and to prevent it from dripping. She didn't cover it with a band-aid because she didn't wanna make it obvious.

She ordered her men to stay outside the building except Archie who went with her inside. When she walked in, she saw the children playing with their stuffed toys in the lounge and it made her smile. She noticed that the floor was smudged with wet soil, clearly from the children's footwears.

"CM!" Sally, the appointed facilitator on that day, greeted gladly.

Cheryl gave her a slight bow.

"I didn't get a notice that you'll be arriving. I'm sorry for the mud. The kids had too much fun," the lady explained.

Before replying, Cheryl gestured for Archie to leave and move separate her way.

"Well, how have things been?" she asked, leading the way to the kids' play room.

"Everything's going great, CM," Sally replied. "This week's count rose up to 2 percent."

Cheryl nodded. "Hmm. Well, at least those abandoned babies are safe here."

"For sure, CM."

"Okay, uh, leave me be. I'll just check the edges." Cheryl tapped her shoulder and opened the door to the room.

As soon as she stepped in, she saw a couple of kids on the floor; some were reading and some were coloring their books. She felt the bliss when the kids waved their hands on her. Two caretakers smiled and greeted her formally. She gave them a nod and proceeded to observe the room's atmosphere. It was cheerful, she liked it.

She was scanning the book shelves when again, she remembered Toni. It was their safe place. They both were good and close with kids, and interacting with them makes their mood so much better.

"Hi," a 9-year old mixed girl greeted from her left.

"Hey." Cheryl smiled. She admired the girl's parted braids, her brown eyes, and her left dimple.

"... Can I help you?"

"Can you please open my biscuit?" she asked, displaying the small pack she has on her hand.

"Yeah." Cheryl did her request with a smile. She handed it back and thought of her to leave, but she stayed there, staring at her.

"... Anything else?" she asked, looking down on her.

"Where's the girl?" she asked innocently.

That question hardly confused Cheryl. "Girl? What do you mean?"

"When I was 6 years old, I always saw you with a girl," she mentioned and Cheryl realized she was talking about Toni. "She was by your ear in height, and I'm guessing she's mixed, too. Where is she?"

Cheryl sighed. She didn't know how to reply.

"... She also helped me in tying my shoelaces before," the girl added. "She's a beautiful and nice person."