A Cold Heart

Jason rushed through the front door of his mansion, not even bothering to greet the household staff. The nanny he hired for Alina, Jocelyn Shin, came forward to address her master. She was a short woman in her fifties and highly experienced with children. With greying hair and a kind demeanor, Jason had hired her for her excellent track record since he was inexperienced with children.

“What happened?” he demanded. “Didn’t you give Alina her medicines?”

“I-I did!” Jocelyn protested. “She took her medicines in the morning but I don’t know how she suffered from another attack!”

Jason did not stand around to listen to her excuses but ran upstairs where the doctor was examining Alina. He barged in through the door to find Alina on the bed, while the family doctor, Aidan Han was checking her heart rate with a stethoscope.

Her small figure was seemingly fatigued and her hair was tied into little pigtails. Her chubby face was sweaty and her large round eyes were looking up at her uncle with a silent plea. But Jason avoided looking at her and focused on the doctor who was treating her.

“Can you take some deeper breaths for me, Alina?” he asked in a gentle tone. Alina whimpered and breathed in and out. Aidan grabbed a notepad and scribbled something before turning to Jason.

“We need to talk,” he said. Then he turned back to Alina and added, “You should rest. Alright?”

Alina murmured a sleepy “Okay,” to him before closing her eyes. Jason glanced at his niece. She seemed completely normal and her sudden ailment puzzled him. He had gone through her medical history and while she suffered from asthma, it was treatable with medicines. 

He followed Aidan out of the room.

“She’s faking it,” Aidan sighed.

Jason only groaned. “Why is she faking her asthma attacks?” he asked warily. “What is wrong with this kid?”

“Isn’t it obvious, Jason?” Aidan asked incredulously. “She just lost her parents! She’s missing them!”

“Well, she can visit their graves anytime she wants!” Jason retorted. “She can just take her nanny and-”

“You expect an eight year old to visit her parents’ grave?” Aidan scowled. “That’ll just traumatize her! A guardian must always be present with her! Nanny won’t do. You should take her there-”

“No,” Jason said flatly. “I don’t wanna go anywhere near that couple.”

The bitterness in his tone was evident. Jason might have taken in his niece but he had not forgotten his sister’s abandonment. The scars of the past were raw in his heart and even thinking about her infuriated him.

“You can’t hide from her all the time,” Aidan sighed. He had known Jason from a young age. They had grown up together and while Aidan was not as rich as Jason, he was the best Pulmonologist in the country. 

With his blonde hair and serious look, he was more of the cold beauty which attracted people. There was a certain assurance in his voice which made people trust him while his icy exterior made him seem more professional. Despite his hard outlook, he was still a very caring and gentle person especially towards Jason and now towards his niece, Alina.

“I don’t have the time to cater to a child’s demands,” Jason said coldly. “I prefer not to get close to her. Besides, I’m probably going to send her abroad. I don’t think she can adjust here.”

“Are you mad?” Aidan demanded. “That girl-”

“You really think that I can take care of a child?” Jason scoffed. “Me?”

Aidan did not know what to say to that. Jason Cho was a notorious bachelor and while many women of high status wanted to marry him, he had rejected all of them. He did not want to tie himself in a relationship given that he had severe commitment issues. After seeing his own parents wither away in a loveless marriage, Jason had sworn off of any marriage alliances. True, he fooled around with a few casual hookups but none of them were anything serious.

Everyone was kept at an arm’s length and that was how Jason preferred it. Either talk to him about business or do not talk to him at all.

“You can at least try to be friendly to her,” Aidan suggested. 

Jason’s jaws tightened. Every time he saw Alina, he was reminded of his late sister Sheila and her betrayal. Her actions cost his parents their lives and even though Jason was not particularly close to them, he was in the car when his father had decided to kill them all by steering the wheel in the opposite direction. 

They died. But he survived. And for the next sixteen years, he had to endure the horrors of his parent’s dying screams.

“I can’t,” he said in a heavy voice. “I will never ever accept her in my life as my niece. She’s simply Sheila’s child but has nothing to do with me. That’s it.”

Aidan grimaced at his words. He pitied the child who was obviously faking her condition in order to gain some attention from her uncle. But Jason was as cold hearted as ever. The scars from his past would not let him live his life to the fullest.

“I’ll head back to work,” Jason went on. “Bye.”

Aidan nodded and watched him leave. He was about to leave as well when he noticed a small figure peeking from the doorway of the bedroom next to them.

Alina was not sleeping but overheard the whole conversation. Her heart fell upon hearing how much her uncle hated her. Before Aidan could console her, she shut the door.

….

A lone figure was walking on the road, limping as she made her way through the posh neighborhood. She was awed by the large houses around her. The beauty and elegance of the area was so much different than the place she used to live in.

The houses were probably taller than all the trees and the gates shut tight with electric locks similar to the ones on her cage back at the lab.

Are there people locked in those houses? She wondered. Then a thought struck her.

What if they were like her?

I must find out! She decided. Slowly approaching one of the houses, she examined the lock with intense curiosity. It needed a code. She had seen the lab assistants unlock her cage with numbers whenever they brought food for her so she typed in random numbers.

Instantly, the alarms went off, scaring her. The girl was shocked as red lights lit up and she heard the barking of dogs from inside.

“EEK!” she squeaked and ran off before anyone else could find her. What is happening? She thought desperately. The lab locks never went off like this!

She continued to run until she was out of sight and no one was following her. Sheila had told her to find Jason Cho but for the past three weeks, she had been aimlessly wandering the streets. The girl did not know her way through the city and got confused by the tall towers and maze like roads. 

Her bare feet were filled with cuts and blisters but she had quick healing powers. But her powers were weakening because she had not eaten in days. She stole some food from nearby restaurants but those did not last long. Her stomach was growling and she had no idea where to go.

She glanced at the paper Sheila had given her. The address was of that street since she saw a signboard which indicated the name of the road. 

But which one was the house?

“Over there!” 

The girl looked up in alarm to see that someone was pointing at her. They must have heard the alarm and spotted her!

Without any delay, the girl ran for her life. 

“Catch her!” one of the men yelled. He was leading a group of other men who were pursuing the burglar who tried to break into one of the houses. They ran after the girl but she was surprisingly fast.

The girl did not pause and tried her best to ward off her chasers. There was a narrow alley up ahead and she sprinted right into it, hiding behind a large trash can which could hide her petite figure. She hid there, waiting for the men to leave.

The group ran past the alley, not noticing it in the dark. The girl held her breath as she heard their footsteps fade away. She let out a sigh of relief.

“Hi!”

“AHHH!”

The girl almost fell on the ground upon hearing the squeaky voice. A little girl with pigtails was looking at her with large, innocent eyes.

“I’m Alina,” the girl said. “Are you hiding from my uncle too?”