if Strange and Weird 4
For Lina, Daryl was an unexpected encounter during her childhood.
It was brief, but left a deep impression.
My mother said that young homeless people with hands and feet don't deserve sympathy. Even if they work on a construction site carrying bricks, they can still have food and shelter.
So when Lina saw the 'wild man' again in the park, she no longer felt sorry for him. Why didn't he go find a job?
But her curiosity was irresistible; after all, she had never seen a homeless person before. Any homeless person with a brain would go to the big cities, and there was no future in begging in a small town.
Lena played on the park slide for three days, her bottom bruised and swollen, but this 'wild man' still stayed curled up on the bench, hardly moving except for occasionally eating some bread.
That's strange.
But Lina decided that this was the last day; her bottom was just too sore, and she didn't want to play on the slide anymore.
Perhaps all homeless people are like this: able-bodied but too lazy to move, they're just useless in life. Maybe they're like this at home too, which is why their mothers kicked them out of the house.
Although this 'wild man' seemed alright, he was willing to give the few meals that the cats and dogs that occasionally came to the park would ask him for.
At least he seems to be a kind-hearted person.
Of course, the food didn't end up in the animals' mouths either. The way their owner looked at the 'wild man' made Lina very angry, and she felt a tightness in her chest.
The food was also thrown on the ground, but the 'savage' picked it up without any hesitation, dusted it off, and ate it all.
His plastic bag was empty, and he clearly didn't have any food, yet he was still looked down upon by those people just because he looked slovenly?
Lina, on the contrary, thought he was much better than those pretentious guys.
Although Mom said that such a person doesn't deserve sympathy, kind people should also be rewarded. She could go home and break into the snack cabinet... No, her butt can't take the blow.
She could just break into Negan's snack cabinet!
Without hesitation, Lina excitedly jogged off, oblivious to the woman passing by who was on her phone, "Yes, it's been several days! Can you come and take him away? I can hardly breathe! This is too dangerous! I've never seen this person before..."
Negan was taking the baseball team to practice today, and Lucia was at work, so no one was home. But Lena knew where the spare key was, so she opened the door with practiced ease and went straight to Negan's snack cabinet.
It's the one Negan kept hidden away! Lucia doesn't like Negan eating too much junk food, so...
Even though Negan lost his job, he didn't dare tell Lucia!
Lina opened the innermost drawer under the bookshelf in the study and saw a pile of high-calorie snacks. It wouldn't be easy for her to carry them away by hand; she needed a container.
That was easy to find. Lena rummaged through the living room and found the bag Negan needed to take to the gym. Then she ran back to the study and ransacked the drawers.
Dragging her large bag, Lina went downstairs, locked the door, and ran towards the park.
She's so kind!
Upon arriving at the park entrance, the most conspicuous thing was the police car, its flashing lights making Lina pause for a moment.
Something doesn't feel right.
Before she could even run inside, she saw the police dragging the 'wild man' out.
"Let go!" Daryl began to struggle violently when he saw Lina appear; it was too embarrassing.
"Officer, is he a bad guy?" Lina asked, frowning.
Since he was just a child, the police weren't too heartless. "We just need to check his identity," they said, since he didn't have any identification on him.
"He didn't do anything wrong," Lina said unhappily. Why arrest him? Aren't the police supposed to arrest bad guys?
“It’s just a routine investigation,” the policeman said dismissively, then forced Daryl’s head into the car.
"He's just here to play with me! This is, this is my brother." Lina didn't know why she told this lie.
"Are you serious?" the police officer asked Lina, looking at her with suspicion.
Lena held up her bag. "He promised to come picnicking with me. Look, I'm going to get some snacks. I live over there!" Lena pointed in a direction.
"..." The police looked at Daryl suspiciously. Why wasn't he saying anything? And his attire... Maybe they should take him back for questioning.
"Then have your parents come to the police station." The policeman continued to shove Daryl into the car.
"Then I'll have my dad sue you!" Lina angrily threw down her bag, put her hands on her hips, and shouted, "What right do you have to arrest him? We were just playing in the park near our house, did we break the law? You can wait for the court summons! I'll have the judge fire you!"
The police officer was taken aback. There hadn't been any cases recently, and this person's behavior wasn't inappropriate... If this commotion happened... wouldn't he be accused of racial discrimination?
The policeman subconsciously loosened his grip, "This..."
"Evidence! What right do you have to arrest people without evidence!" Lina said fiercely. Thinking about it, someone must be trying to drive the 'wild man' away, because all the adults looked at him with disdain, and whether it was children or pets, they repeatedly told them to stay away from him, as if he were some kind of virus.
He is clearly very kind and friendly!
The noisy park crowd gathered around, including a few people who recognized Lina. Curious, they approached Lina and asked if she needed help.
In the end, the 'arrest' came to nothing.
Lena, head held high and chest puffed out, grabbed the savage's pants, pulled him into the park, sat him down on the lawn, and pushed the snacks towards him.
Daryl was somewhat surprised, but... could it be another tampered snack?
She doesn't seem to dislike him, so why would she use these things to prank him?
Daryl was completely baffled, but remained silent and didn't dare to look at Lina.
"Eat up!" Lina looked at Daryl expectantly; she was a true warrior! She was the 'princess's' knight! She was so cool!
Daryl hesitated for a moment, picked up a bag of potato chips, and tentatively put it in his mouth. It was a normal bag of chips, and Daryl breathed a sigh of relief and ate it without worry.
"Don't you have a home?" Lina rested her chin on her hand as she watched Daryl eat snacks, and she herself started to feel envious, secretly swallowing her saliva.
Daryl nodded. Moore had already joined the army. He would occasionally go back to his father's place for a while, but most of the time he hid in the woods, trying to find work. However, wherever he went, his father would cause trouble. Eventually, he simply stopped looking for work altogether.
He didn't leave Georgia with Moore until after Moore's discharge from the military, but now... Daryl raised his eyelids, glanced at Lena, and immediately shrank back as if he had been electrocuted.
"...emmm" Lina looked at Daryl with a troubled expression, but finally made up her mind, "Come with me!"
Daryl, carrying his bag, was passively pulled by Lena's trouser leg as they ran into the woods.
Daryl frowned. After all, she was still a child. Was it really okay for her to run around like this all the time, especially with strangers? Where were her parents?
"We're here!" Lina looked up at the tree and saw a huge treehouse.
“I can lend you my secret base,” Lina said, pointing to the treehouse. Beyond it was Negan’s old house, which had been vacant since Negan’s parents passed away last year.
This treehouse was built by Negan on the basis of his original treehouse when he took Lena back to his old house.
Daryl looked at the treehouse; it was large, but only for children.
Lina clearly noticed the problem as well and became troubled again.
Daryl pursed his lips. "I can live in the woods."
"Then how will you sleep?" Lina asked Daryl, not answering his question.
Daryl scratched his head. "Just lie down."
"Huh?" Lina looked at Daryl in shock. This was too tragic!
“Wait for me,” Lina climbed up the treehouse, rummaged around inside, and finally pulled out a tent. “Here, take this.”
The size was just right, and Daryl didn't hesitate and took the tent.
From that day on, there was one more living person in Lina's secret base.
Daryl's chaotic thoughts gradually calmed down as he spent time with Lina. Although he still hadn't figured out what to do, he had plenty of time to think it through.
Lena followed Daryl through the woods almost every day, getting to know all sorts of plants and animals. Daryl even took her hunting, and they also raised a little rabbit together.
Daryl also promised to take her to see the deer, something Lina had been looking forward to for a long time. However, deer are not easy to find, and Daryl searched for a long time before telling Lina that he had found traces of deer.
"...We agreed to see the deer on that day, but he just disappeared. What a liar!" Lina was still angry when she thought about what happened back then. She considered Daryl her best friend, but he left without saying goodbye.
She thought Daryl had been eaten by wild animals! She searched for him in the woods for several days, and he was finally rescued from the depths of the forest by his parents and the police. He then fell seriously ill.
Everyone at the table stared at Daryl in unison. What a beast! Such a small child... Oh, no, that's why he was right to leave, but why didn't he say goodbye?
Daryl picked up his glass and took a sip. He had gone to see Lena that day, and he saw her in the park with a little boy, chatting and laughing. As he got closer, he heard Lena say to the little boy, "...Okay, okay, when I grow up I'll marry you..."
Daryl stood rooted to the spot. Yes, she was still young, she would have a perfect life, so why would he think he could wait until she grew up?
Daryl turned and left. He wanted to protect Lina, but he needed to have the ability to do so. Not to mention he wanted more. He wanted to wait for Lina to grow up and fall in love with him again, but what right did he have?
"...Can't you go play by yourself and stop following me? If you keep doing this, I'm going to marry someone else!" Lina said angrily.
“But if you marry me, we have to be together, just like Mom and Dad,” young Spencer argued.
"I'm not grown up yet!" Lina said irritably. Daryl had promised to take her to see the deer today! That annoying Spencer!
"But, but, I want to play with you!" Spencer said, feeling wronged.
“Then you go…” Lina looked around, “Go to the slide, and I’ll wait for you at the exit after you slide down.”
"Ugh? I don't want to play on that slide, my butt hurts so much," Spencer said, sounding aggrieved.
"I would never marry someone like you!" Lina said disdainfully.
Spencer, stung by the rejection, gritted his teeth and climbed the slide. Lena turned and ran away. Who wanted to play with him? A clingy tagalong! A crybaby!
Spencer, who tumbled down with a clatter, not only had a sore bottom, but also a broken heart when he discovered that Lina was missing. He sat on the ground and burst into tears.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
