"Is she worried about something?"
Children usually feel tired after playing all day, but looking at the little girl now, it didn't seem that way.
"Zane, go take a look."
Nicole had noticed Pixie too and spoke to Zane.
"I'm not very good at comforting kids, but it's only right to understand what's going on."
Zane nodded and left the small room, heading toward the activity room. Even though he slowed his steps, the sound of his footsteps still echoed.
Outside the activity room, Nicole didn't go in but quietly watched as Zane entered.
Pixie seemed to be staring blankly out the window, unaware of Zane's arrival. It wasn't until he walked right up to her that she snapped out of it.
"Zane brother? Aren't you resting?"
Blinking, Pixie first asked about Zane's well-being.
"I'm fine. What are you doing here, little Pixie?"
Zane kept a gentle, big-brother tone, resting his hands on the window and speaking calmly.
"I don't know... I just... feel really bad."
Pixie shook her head; she couldn't explain how she was feeling at that moment.
"Are you missing your parents, little Pixie?"
Zane didn't sugarcoat it—he spoke directly, his face kind and voice soft.
"Father and mother... they're both gone."
"I've been alone for a long time. Even if I miss them, what does it matter? They're not coming back."
Pixie shook her head. In a child's voice, she spoke words that were cold and harsh.
Strangely, she didn't seem all that sad—she was simply stating a fact, her heart seemingly frozen.
Zane lifted his gaze toward the courtyard outside the window, then looked up at the starry sky and smiled slightly.
"Little Pixie, do you like looking at the stars?"
Pixie nodded. She often couldn't sleep at night, and there wasn't much to do at the orphanage. Other than watching the stars, there wasn't much else.
"The stars are always there. Even if clouds cover them sometimes, they're still there."
Zane spoke softly, lowered his gaze to Pixie, knelt down, smiled, and gently said,
"Actually, little Pixie, you're not alone. You and I—we're both children of the stars."
"Not just you and me. Everyone at the orphanage—we're all children of the stars."
"Children of the stars?"
Pixie looked puzzled, lifting her head to Zane. He didn't explain right away but shifted the topic slightly.
"The stars are always watching us. Even when the sun rises, they're still there—just hidden."
"In other words, Pixie, you've grown up under the watchful gaze of the stars."
Zane knew that no matter how mature this little girl seemed, she was still just a child.
And a child's heart...
Pixie blinked, thought for a moment, and whispered,
"But... but the stars in the sky are in big groups. Aren't we insignificant to them?"
Zane shook his head slightly and spoke softly.
"Even though it looks like the stars are close to each other, they're actually very far apart. In the dark universe, stars are lonely too."
"Universe?"
Pixie didn't understand what the universe was, but since Zane said it, she chose to believe him.
"What can I do? Compared to the stars, I feel so small... probably insignificant..."
Zane smiled gently. He wasn't concerned about logic—he was weaving a dream for Pixie.
"Actually, every child of the stars has an important mission. From the moment we're born, we're responsible for caring for the stars."
Zane picked Pixie up and placed her on the windowsill. The night was deep and cloudless. Facing the vast sky, he pointed toward the stars.
"They watch us grow, and we must care for them too. Lonely stars don't want to be alone."
"And there are so many stars—more than drops of water in the ocean, more than grains of sand in the desert. No one can care for them all. For lonely stars, little Pixie is one of a kind."
Looking at the sky, Pixie's eyes seemed to reflect the countless stars, though confusion remained.
"What can I do... I can't give them food or talk to them. Is just watching enough?"
Beside her, Zane held one hand on her shoulder and placed the other over his own heart.
"We have hearts."
"Our thoughts can travel across billions of miles and connect us. The stars can't reply, but they can listen."
"They can hear everything you want to say, little Pixie."
Zane's eyes flickered softly as he revealed the purpose he'd been building toward.
"Pixie, your parents might be one of those stars up there right now, watching over you."
"They're watching you because they hope little Pixie will shine like a star. You can't let that light fade away."
As the words fell, the starlight in Pixie's eyes quickly dimmed. She lowered her head, as if afraid to look at the sky.
"I shouldn't have survived... If it weren't for me, my mother wouldn't have gone home. She could've just run. And my father wouldn't have become an Ethereal..."
Maybe it was because Zane gave her a sense of safety, or because of his gentle tone—in any case, the little girl who had closed herself off gradually began to open up...
"I'm just bad luck. I only bring harm to those around me. If it weren't for me... if it weren't for me..."
Big teardrops began to fall. Pixie tried her best to hold them in, but these long-buried feelings couldn't be controlled anymore.
"It's not your fault. It has nothing to do with you, little Pixie. Don't take the blame on yourself. It was an accident caused by the Hollows—you couldn't have stopped it."
Zane reached out, gently stroked Pixie's head, and pulled her into his arms, speaking softly with great warmth.
Now he fully understood why Pixie had avoided the other children, even though she longed to play with them.
If he hadn't pulled her along earlier, she likely would have refused again in the end...
Hearing his words, Pixie cried even harder.
Zane knew this wasn't a bad thing.
Once she cried it out, it would be much easier.
"Little Pixie has so many tears. If the stars could see, they'd feel the same way too..."
"If you keep crying, the stars will be sad too."