Chapter Text
Lena pushed her cart slowly through the mall grocery area, still feeling the strange quiet that came with finally coming home.
Years in Canada. Cold streets. Different faces. Different life.
Now everything felt familiar again,
She stopped near a small food stall where a woman was giving free samples of dumplings.
Steam rose from the tray, carrying a warm smell that made Lena realize she had not eaten yet.
"Have a taste, miss," the woman said kindly, offering a small cup.
Lena smiled politely and reached for one.
Before she could eat, a small kid walked up beside her, standing on tiptoe to see the food.
The woman nodded gently, signaling it was okay, and handed the child a sample too.
Lena glanced at the kid for a moment.
Something about her looked familiar, but Lena couldn't place it.
She shrugged the thought away and took a bite.
It tasted good. Warm, savory, comforting.
Then, seconds later, her throat tightened.
Lena coughed.
Once. Twice.
Her chest felt strange.
She swallowed hard, trying to steady herself, but the tightness only grew worse.
"What's in it?" Lena asked quickly, her voice already strained.
The woman froze slightly. "Shrimp," she answered, nervous. "Is... is that okay?"
Lena's eyes widened.
"I'm allergic," she managed to say, her breathing becoming uneven.
Beside her, the kid suddenly began coughing too.
Small hands gripping the edge of the stall.
Red spots appeared on the child's neck.
The woman gasped. "Oh my God-"
Lena tried to steady herself, grabbing the counter as dizziness started to creep in.
Around them, people began to look over, whispers rising, confusion spreading.
Then she heard it.
A voice she had not heard in years.
"Lalee?"
Lena's head lifted slightly.
A woman pushed through the small crowd, panic already clear on her face. She rushed straight to the child and dropped to her knees.
"Lalee, oh my gosh, baby, breathe... breathe..."
Lena's chest tightened harder, her own coughing growing worse. Her vision blurred slightly as she tried to focus.
Then the woman looked up.
Their eyes met.
Both froze.
"Lena?" Miu whispered, shock filling her voice.
For a second, everything felt suspended. Time, sound, even the noise of the crowd.
But the child gasped again, pulling Miu back to reality.
She moved instantly.
From her bag, she pulled out two EpiPens with steady hands that clearly had done this before. She injected the first one into the child's thigh, speaking softly to keep her calm.
"It's okay. You're okay. Just breathe for me."
Then she turned to Lena.
Lena tried to speak but could only cough, her fingers gripping the edge of the stall tightly.
Miu stepped closer without hesitation and pressed the second injector against Lena's leg.
A quick push.
A soft click.
"breathe" Miu said quietly.
Lena leaned slightly against the counter, breathing hard, eyes still fixed on Miu like she wasn't sure she was real.
People around them murmured, someone calling for mall security, another person bringing water, the stall owner apologizing over and over.
But Lena heard none of it clearly.
All she could see was Miu.
Kneeling there.
Holding the child with one arm while keeping a steady hand near Lena, watching both of them carefully like nothing else mattered.
Minutes passed slowly.
Lena's breathing began to ease, the tightness in her chest loosening bit by bit.
The child's coughing also softened into small shaky breaths.
Only then did Miu finally relax her shoulders.
She looked at Lena again, quieter this time.
"You still carry antihistamines?" Miu asked gently.
Lena shook her head slightly, embarrassed.
"I... forgot."
Miu gave a small sigh, not angry, just tired. "You always forget."
The words slipped out so naturally that both of them noticed it.
An old habit. An old tone.
For a moment, neither spoke.jm
Mall staff arrived, asking questions, checking on the child, guiding the crowd away. The stall owner kept apologizing, clearly shaken.
Lena slowly straightened, still feeling weak.
"Is she your daughter?" Lena asked softly, looking at the child resting against Miu.
Miu froze for a second.
"Yeah," she answered quickly, almost too quickly.
Lena studied the girl more closely now, her cheeks, the small curve of her nose, both clearly like Miu's. But her eyes were different. Big, round, and the shape of her face, it was strangely familiar in a way Lena couldn't quite explain.
"She looks like you" Lena said quietly.
Miu's grip on the child tightened slightly. "We should go," she muttered, avoiding Lena's eyes.
"Miu-"
But Miu was already standing, adjusting the child in her arms.
"Thank you," Lena said softly, unsure what she was thanking her for anymore.
Miu gave a small nod, still not looking at her. "Take care, Lena."
And then she walked away.
Fast.
Lena stood there, watching them disappear into the crowd.
Her breathing was steady now, but her heart wasn't.
The little girl looks like Miu in some parts of her face, but her eyes, the shape of her face, the brows,
her eyes…
---
The next day, Lena decided to visit Lingling at the hospital.
Partly to surprise her, yes. But if Lena was honest with herself, there was another reason. She needed answers. The child she had seen yesterday wouldn't leave her mind.
A mini Miu.
Lena walked through the hospital hallway, her steps slower than usual. Nurses passed by, stretchers rolled quietly, machines beeped in distant rooms. Everything felt normal, yet her chest felt strangely tight.
As she turned the corner toward Lingling's office, someone suddenly bumped into her.
A small body.
Lena stepped back in surprise.
"Oh-sorry," she said automatically, then looked down.
Her breath caught.
The child she had been thinking about was standing right in front of her.
The little girl looked up and smiled, her big round eyes looking back at Lena. For a moment, Lena felt as if she were staring into the same eyes she saw every day in the mirror.
Something warm bloomed inside Lena's chest, light, and painful, all at once.
"Hi," Lena said softly, crouching down to the child's level.
The child waved shyly,
Lena smiled, A few strands of hair had fallen across the girl's face, and without thinking, she gently brushed them aside. "You're so pretty," she said.
The child giggled but quickly turned her attention to the necklace hanging from Lena's chest. She stared at the butterfly pendant curiously.
Lena followed her gaze and smiled. "You want it?"
The child shook her head, then lifted the necklace hidden beneath her small summer dress.
Another butterfly pendant.
Almost the same.
Lena stopped breathing.
She knew that necklace.
She had given it years ago.
Her heart began pounding. "Did your mama give you this?" she asked quietly.
The child nodded.
Before Lena could speak again, a voice called from the hallway.
"Lalee!"
A woman in a doctor's coat hurried toward them. The child immediately ran to her.
"You sneaky little butterfly," the woman said, lifting the girl slightly and tickling her sides. The child laughed loudly, the sound bright and pure. Lena found herself smiling too, feeling a sharp ache as she watched them.
Her eyes dropped to the ID clipped to the doctor's pocket.
Ginny Stevens.
The doctor turned to Lena with a polite smile. "Sorry about that. She got away again."
"No, it's fine," Lena replied. "I actually love kids."
Ginny chuckled. "Well, this little miss has a checkup."
The child frowned immediately. "No... don't want to," she said in a tiny voice.
Lena almost laughed. For a second, she had the strange urge to scoop the child up and run away with her, just to keep hearing that little voice.
"No can do, little miss," Ginny said, gently pinching the girl's cheek.
She adjusted the child in her arms, then looked back at Lena. "Sorry, we have to go. Thank you for keeping her company."
"Come on, Lalee," Ginny continued. "Say goodbye to-" She paused, raising an eyebrow, asking for her name.
"Ah... Lena," she said.
"Say goodbye to Lena."
"Ba-bye, Leeena," the child said, waving both hands.
Lena smiled softly and waved back. "Bye beautiful"
Ginny carried the child down the hallway, the girl's laughter slowly fading as they disappeared around the corner.
Lena remained standing there for several seconds.
Her fingers unconsciously touched her own necklace.
The same butterfly.
The same design.
Her chest tightened again, but this time, not from panic.
That necklace... she had given it only once in her life.
To Miu.
Lena slowly straightened and continued walking toward Lingling's office, her thoughts louder than the hospital noise around her.
She still could not push the thought away.
Why did Miu give the necklace to the child?
What does it mean?
The allergy. The same eyes she see in the mirror every morning.
And the feeling every time she looked at the little girl, she felt strangely light, as if she could give everything for her.
Was it simply because the child looked so much like Miu?
Her steps slowed, her thoughts spinning, her chest tightening with a pressure she could no longer ignore.
No.
She can't keep guessing like this.
She need answers before she lost her mind.
Lena took a deep breath, and began walking faster down the hallway, her grip tightening on her bag.
she's going to start with Lingling.
---
Ginny returned to her office with Lalee bouncing happily beside her, the little girl still humming some tune she had probably made up herself.
"Slow down," Ginny said, laughing softly as she opened the office door. "You're going to trip again."
The moment the door opened, the smell of warm food drifted toward them.
Inside, Miu stood near the small table, arranging containers of takeout carefully, her movements calm and quiet as always.
Lalee's eyes lit up.
"Mama!"
She ran straight toward Miu and wrapped both arms around her leg.
Miu looked down, surprise flashing across her face before softening into a gentle smile. She bent slightly and picked the child up.
"So where did you run to, hmm?" Miu asked, brushing Lalee's hair back.
Ginny removed her coat, tossing it over the back of her chair before dropping into her seat with a tired sigh. She leaned back, stretching her arms.
"Your kid really has a lot of energy, Miu," she said, shaking her head while checking something on her phone.
A second later, Ginny's lips curved into a smile. She stood and walked toward them.
"Well, guess who's coming here..." she said, lightly tickling Lalee's side.
Lalee burst into laughter. "Jayjay!"
She clapped her hands excitedly, wiggling in Miu's arms like she might jump off any second.
Miu smiled faintly and sat down on the couch, placing Lalee on her lap. Her fingers automatically moved to the child's neck, gently checking the skin there. The redness had already faded and was barely noticeable now.
Ginny watched the gesture, then suddenly remembered.
"You brought two EpiPens yesterday, right?" she asked casually. "I checked Lalee's bag. Where's the other one?"
Miu's hands paused for a fraction of a second.
She pressed her lips together before answering, still looking down at Lalee instead of Ginny.
"Oh... ahm... there was a woman who also had an allergic reaction. So I used it on her."
Ginny raised an eyebrow slightly. "Wow. She's lucky you had a spare."
Her eyes lingered on Miu a second longer than usual, studying her expression, but Miu only nodded quietly and said nothing more.
Before the silence could grow awkward, Lalee suddenly jumped off the couch and ran toward her small bag near the table.
Miu and Ginny exchanged confused looks.
"Baby, what are you doing?" Miu asked.
Lalee dragged the bag back to the couch, giggling as she climbed up again. Her small feet dangled off the edge while she opened the front pocket with serious concentration.
Then she reached into the pocket of her summer dress and pulled something out, quickly closing her fist around it as if trying to hide it.
Miu and Ginny watched, amused.
"I see... you're trying to hide something, huh?" Miu teased, lightly tickling her.
Lalee laughed loudly, shaking her head.
"Come on, show it to Mama," Miu said, smiling.
Lalee slowly opened her palm.
The moment Miu saw what was inside, her smile disappeared.
Her fingers froze.
Her heartbeat suddenly climbed so fast she could almost hear it.
A ring.
Not just any ring.
It was the pair to the butterfly necklace.
Her ring.
"W–where did you get this, baby?" Miu asked quietly, picking it up with slightly trembling fingers, turning it to make sure she wasn't mistaken.
"Pretty lady," Lalee answered happily, bouncing slightly.
"What?" Miu asked, steadying her.
"Pretty lady," Lalee repeated, pointing toward the door.
Miu's chest tightened.
Ginny stepped in casually, unaware of the tension suddenly filling the room. "Oh, she must be talking about the woman in the hallway earlier. When I ran after Lalee, she was talking to someone."
Miu immediately turned to her. "A woman? C–can you describe her?"
Ginny paused, noticing the shift in Miu's tone. This was the second time she had reacted like this since yesterday.
"Ahm... taller than me," Ginny said slowly, thinking. "Probably mixed. Long hair."
She looked at Miu again and noticed the way Miu was biting her lower lip, one leg bouncing slightly.
"Are you okay?" Ginny asked.
Miu nodded quickly. "Yeah."
Ginny tilted her head. "You know what's strange? Something about her looked familiar. I just can't point it out."
Before Miu could respond, the office door suddenly opened.
"Jayjay!" Lalee shouted happily, immediately jumping off the couch and running forward.
Jayna stepped inside, laughing as she bent down to catch the child. "Hello, little butterfly," she said in a playful high-pitched voice, lifting her into the air.
She walked over and kissed Ginny lightly on the cheek before glancing around the room.
"Okay... what's with the strange energy going on here?" she asked.
"Nothing," Miu answered quickly, already slipping the ring into her pocket. "Someone just gave Lalee a ring."
Jayna nodded, not asking further, clearly too used to the random small chaos around them.
Ginny, however, didn't miss the way Miu stood up almost immediately after.
"I'll grab something from my bag," Miu said quietly, moving toward the table.
Ginny watched her for a moment, her brows knitting slightly.
Miu rarely looked unsettled.
But right now, her shoulders looked stiff, her movements just a little too controlled.
Something had definitely changed.
And Ginny had the quiet feeling that whoever that "pretty lady" was...
She wasn't just some random stranger.