Chapter 13: Are You Siblings?

Grace felt the pain from the fall and the unfairness of it all. Subconsciously rubbing her small hand, her eyes turned teary. She sniffled, got up from the ground, and took out a small notebook from the desk. She began to write with every stroke of the pen. The other kids weren't surprised. Grace couldn't speak, so she usually communicated with them through her notebook. However, since she rarely played with others, the notebook didn't come out often. In no time, she finished writing. She turned the notebook around and showed it to Mia, "Apologize." Seeing the word on the page, Mia snorted and questioned with hands on her hips, "You want me to apologize? Grace, you've really got some nerve! Are you asking for trouble?" With an air of arrogance, Mia walked over to Grace, intending to push her again. Grace didn't expect Mia to strike again and had no time to react, freezing in place. Daniel and Leo had been paying attention to the situation the whole time. Mia's push had happened suddenly, and they hadn't noticed until Grace fell. Now, seeing that Mia was about to resort to violence again, the two little ones couldn't bear it. "That's enough, how can you bully people!" Daniel, with a serious face, stood in front of Grace, sternly glaring at Mia. Seeing him suddenly blocking Grace, Mia couldn't help but freeze. Daniel sternly said, "Hasn't your mom taught you? When you do something wrong, you must apologize. You pushed her, and you should apologize to her!" Though young, Daniel carried a natural air of authority when he became serious. Mia panicked, looking around to see if any other kids would speak up for her. After a while, with no one stepping forward, she could only nervously try to defend herself, "I, I..." No matter how much she tried, she couldn't find the right words. Seeing her face turning red from embarrassment, Leo walked over, "You can not hit others. Fighting is not good for kids! You must apologize to her!" Unlike Daniel's stern tone, Leo's voice was gentler, but it still carried a hint of severity. Mia glanced at him, her eyes slowly welling up with tears, about to cry at any moment. Seeing this, Leo blinked and dragged his voice, "Don't cry, you won't be pretty if you cry. Being a bad kid will make you ugly! Bad kids hit others. If you don't want to be a bad kid, apologize nicely to Grace. If she forgives you, you'll be a good kid!" Hearing this, Mia forcefully sniffed, holding back her tears. She didn't want to be an ugly girl! However, bad kids would become ugly... After struggling for a while, she apologized to Grace, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have pushed you. Can you forgive me?" Grace looked at her for a while and nodded. "That's right!" Leo grinned, "We're all classmates, we should get along well!" Mia, reluctantly, nodded in agreement. Everyone echoed Leo's words, but Daniel turned back to Grace, "Are you okay? Did you get hurt just now?" Grace silently hid the injured hand behind her back and shook her head at Daniel. Leo had also come over. Seeing her trying to be strong, he looked a bit doubtful, "I clearly saw you bump into something just now, how could you be okay? Let me see!" Saying this, without giving Grace time to react, she grabbed Grace's injured hand. Grace was a bit hesitant and tried to pull her hand back. However, her fair skin and the small red mark on the back of her hand made it especially noticeable. Seeing that red mark, Daniel confirmed with her again, "Does it hurt?" Grace shook her head seriously, but there was still a hint of redness in her eyes. Seeing this, Daniel and Leo both frowned involuntarily. With such intense redness, how could it not hurt? It seemed a bit swollen, and there might even be bruises later! "We'll take you to find the teacher and the doctor." Daniel decisively made the decision. Grace wanted to pull her hand back, but Leo firmly grabbed it and pulled her along behind Daniel, heading straight to the teacher's office. Seeing the injury on Grace's hand, the teacher asked about what happened and promptly took them to the school infirmary. Grace's injury wasn't serious, but the school nurse didn't take any chances. She sprayed medicine on it and gave it a little massage. After finishing up, seeing the two little ones who had been waiting for a while, she couldn't help but praise, "Are these two little ones newcomers? Why haven't I seen them before? They're so cute, they will be handsome in the future! And... they look quite similar to this little girl. Could they be siblings?" Daniel and Leo, upon hearing this, glanced at each other, then looked at Grace beside them with unspoken understanding. The two of them weren't surprised; after all, Grace shared the same father with them. It's not unusual for half-siblings to resemble each other. Others had mentioned before that their features, especially their eyes and brows, didn't resemble their Mommy. Grace also stared at the two little boys, wondering if they looked alike. After the school nurse finished treating Grace's wound, the teacher led the three little ones out of the infirmary. In the classroom, Grace obediently followed them like a little tail. When they reached their seats, the three of them sat down in order. Daniel and Leo initially thought their task was over, but unexpectedly, during break times, wherever they went, Grace followed. This tail was surprisingly hard to shake off! Moreover, during class, Grace would secretly glance at them. After a few times, Daniel couldn't help but squint his eyebrows and met her gaze, "Why are you following us?" His tone wasn't unfriendly, but it lacked much emotion, even a bit indifferent. Grace was startled by him, her gaze dodging for a moment. After a few seconds, she looked back. Daniel raised an eyebrow. He did have a soft spot for this little girl—she was pretty and elicited a protective instinct. If the circumstances were different, he and Leo would surely treat her like a little princess. But she was Daddy's daughter! If they were kind to her, it would be disrespectful to Mommy! He wanted to ignore her, but she looked at them with a pitiful expression! He wanted her to keep her distance, but then he saw Grace starting to write in her notebook. "I want to your friend." In no time, Grace lifted the board, covering the lower half of her face, revealing only a pair of bright, sparkling eyes.