Life used to be a breeze for Yeong. Everything was going his way. He had a wife, a child - a complete family anyone would wish for.

“Daddy, I’m lonely,” Carrie, his child moaned. “You keep going out to type stuff on a computer. And Mommy is ALWAYS on the phone.”

Yeong looked at his only child, her eyes pleading for someone. He was too busy to spend time with her - an exception for weekends. But today was a Monday, and they had to get ready for work tomorrow.

“I’ll see what I can do, my little Carrie,” Yeong smiled as he patted her head.

With those words, Carrie hopped to her room, singing her favourite song - ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’.

“Dear,” Yeong called as he sat on the couch. “We need to talk.”

“Yes, Mary. I know! Uhuh. Yep. Yeah, the tickets to the Bad Boyz concert are still available! Next Sunday? Hmm… yeah, I think I can. See you there!” Sun, his wife chattered with her friend on the phone. “Wait, Dear. I just need to make one more phone call.”

“Can we talk first?” Yeong frowned, his voice raising with every word.

“Okay, fine,” Sun placed her cell phone on the table and looked at her husband. “What is so important?!”

“We ought to adopt a child,” Yeong voiced his opinion. “Carrie said that she was lonely by herself, and since we all have to work tomorrow, why not we handle the adoption papers today?”

Sun nearly choked on her saliva. “ADOPTED CHILD?!?!?!”

“Yes, that’s what I said earlier.”

“Um… look. I don’t fancy an adopted child. They’re none of our business - they’re not related to us in ANY way!” Sun cried in exasperation.

“Think about Carrie, Sun. Don’t think about yourself. You have a child. Care for her,” Yeong frowned.

“Okay. If you want to get an adopted fancy child, then I’ll leave this house. You think I’m so poor? I can always get a NEW one. I hate this SHABBY house,” Sun complained, tears of hate and anger blurring her vision.

“Sun, calm down. Don’t do things when you are angry,” Yeong cried, attempting to hug his wife.

“Get OFF me. I’ve been hating on you ever since the first day we’ve met! I just married you because… BECAUSE! And no, I’m not so angry that I’ll be impulsive,” Sun muttered angrily.

Yeong sighed. He knew his wife wouldn’t do such a thing. With that thought in mind, he walked towards their room and fell asleep on the bed.

The next morning, his wife was not next to him. He looked around the house - there was not a single trace of her. It was like no mother ever lived in that house. She really left.

He sat on the couch as memories of yesterday’s fight came back to him. If only he could take back everything he had said.

“Daddy, you said you would do something. Do it!” Carrie pleaded as she walked out of her room.

Even though Sun was gone from his life - possibly forever, he had to do something. He was going to adopt a child no matter WHAT.

Care For Kids Adoption Centre.

The big words plastered on the small building have a positive vibe to Yeong and Carrie. The building, although shabby and old, looked brand new with the pink paint that was just used to paint the building. Children played board games together and laughed happily through the windows.

“Is my little sister going to be from there?” Carrie asked excitedly, her eyes shimmering.

“I’ll try to get her from here. This place seems perfect to me,” Yeong smiled as he looked up to the sky.

“Let’s go in then!” Carrie exclaimed happily.

Just like the outside of the building, the inside also gave a cheery vibe to whoever who visited the place.

“Welcome to Care For Kids Adoption Centre!” a voice greeted them from behind. “I’m Ms Arene. What can I do for you?”

A lady walked in front of them from behind and gave them a warm smile. “The kids here may be a little mischievous, but they’re the nicest you’ve ever met.”

Carrie hid behind her father, the lady’s words piercing through her heart. Wasn’t she the nicest kid?

“So.. how is the adoption process over here?” Yeong asked as he carried Carrie on his shoulders.

“Well, you just have to sign some papers and the child is yours! To be honest, I’m not very familiar with this process because I just joined the industry. But I’m sure some other senior workers here will guide you,” Ms Arene scratcher her head sheepishly. “What kind of child suits your preference?”

“Well, I’d prefer a child who is a little younger than mine, who can read and write. Oh, and I want a girl too. She has to be kind and treat others well,” Yeong smiled as he said these words. “Do you have any kid like that?”

“It seems that that kind of kid is impossible to have!” Ms Arene laughed. “But over here, we have one girl that perfectly fits your description. She’s a little quiet, though. Follow me.”

Yeong and Carrie followed the lady into a dark, long hallway. The lights flickered like a bad sign. Despite these, Yeong kept on walking. He had a good feeling, and nothing could ruin it.

“This is Alyssa,” Ms Arene smiled as she opened the door to a brightly-lit room.

The room had thousands of toys scattered around it, and it gave that feeling when everything is just happy. The smell of the room was like a meadow of wildflowers - fragrant but fresh, like grass.

The girl had light brown hair, and her eyes were the colour of dark chocolate. She seemed shy in front of the presence of the visitors.

“Time to finally get rid of this girl,” Ms Arene thought to herself. “Weird things always happen when this pest is around.”

“Would you like to take her?” Ms Arene offered. “If you do, we can straight away get started with the paperwork.”

“Yes, we’ll take her,” Yeong smiled as he noticed Carrie’s eyes shining brightly. “I have a feeling great things will happen with her.”

“Alright then!” Ms Arene clapped her hands loudly. “Come on, Alyssa. Time to meet your new family.”

Alyssa stood up, hugging her soft teddy bear and walked shyly towards Yeong. She glanced at his face and was immediately taken to him. He seemed kind and caring - like the perfect father anyone hoped for. Secretly, she smiled at the thought of leaving the centre, and having someone to talk to.

“Even though this place looks cheery, many bad things have happened here,” Alyssa thought as she took one last look at her room. “Many children have jumped out of the window and escaped, some even hang themselves and lock themselves in the cupboard. We never get good things to eat. Everyone treats us badly, and just asks us to pretend everything is fine - or they’ll throw us out. Where else will we stay without this ‘home’?”

The paperwork seemed to take a long time. It turned out that her new father was one to read the small print three thousand times before signing the paper.

“Hi! I’m Carrie,” Carrie smiled while waiting for Yeong to sign the paper. “Do you want to be my friend?”

“Um..okay,” Alyssa stammered.

“Just joking! You’re my sister now. And my best friend. You know, no one want to be friends with me. They said I’m too talkative. That’s just nonsense!” Carrie rolled her eyes, feeling annoyed at the thought of her classmates.

“Yeah, I can see why,” Alyssa muttered under her breath.

...ΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩΩ...

...AT HOME....

“Woah,” Alyssa gasped in awe at her new surroundings. ”is this really my house? You’re not joking, right?”

She seemed comfortable in the presence of this family - like she could say anything she liked.

“Yeah, of course! Why would we lie to you?” Carrie smiled.

“Are you okay with sharing a room with Carrie?” Yeong asked from the kitchen.

“Yeah, sure!” Alyssa smiled excitedly.

“This is my room. What’s your favourite colour? Daddy said that I could repaint my room if I scored well for my exams,” Carrie smiled as she lay on the bed.

“Well.. I like the colour of the galaxy. Maybe we could paint it together,” Alyssa suggested, smiling widely.

“Sameee,” Carrie laughed as she stared at the spinning fan hanging on the ceiling.

“I made lasagna!” Yeong shouted from the kitchen. “Looks like you two could make GREAT friends!”

“Not friends, Daddy. BEST sisters,” Carrie pouted playfully as she dragged a chair and sat on it.

“Oooh,” Alyssa stared in awe at the aromatic lasagna. The stringy cheese covered the layers and baked macaroni could be seen in between them. “Yummy.”

The next day, Carrie had to go to school for extra lessons.

“Bye, Daddy! Bye, Alyssa!” Carrie called as she put on her white shoes.

“Are you sure you can go yourself? I don’t need to send you?” Yeong frowned as he leaned on the door.

“Yes, Daddy. I’m already 9 years old. I’m a big girl! My friend has been going and coming home from school alone since she was 7!” Carrie smiled as she pressed the lift button. “Plus, it’s just across the street. You can see me crossing the road through the window. I’m a responsible child, Daddy! Don’t worry!”

Somehow, Carrie’s words made him worry even more.

“Carrie, Carrie! Your lunch! I made you a special melted cheese sandwich!” Alyssa held a blue and yellow lunchbox in her hand.

“Woah! You made it yourself?!” Carrie gasped as she looks at her little sister. “That’s amazing!”

“I always make it at the adoption centre… at night, I would sneak into the kitchen and put cheese between two loaves of bread. Then, I’d pop it into the microwave for a few minutes. Before I get caught, I run into my room and lock the door! It’s best served on a cold night.” Alyssa chuckled at the memory.

“Wow! So my little sister not only knows how to be a good person, but to cook, too?! You have to teach me how one day. I just HAVE to know more recipes from you!” Carrie exclaimed.

“Looks like I can leave the cooking to you girls! It’s time for me to relax on the couch and watch TV like you always do while I’m cooking,” Young chuckled as he observed the conversation between his two children.

“Oh! I’m almost late! I’d better get going. Bye, Daddy! Bye, Alyssa!“ Carrie waved excitedly to her family as she entered the lift that had been waiting for her for ages.

“Bye, Carrie! Stay safe!” Yeong called.

“Don’t talk to strangers!” Alyssa yelled as the lift closed.

...****************...

“I can’t wait to go home!” Carrie talked to herself as she dashed out of the school building when classes were over.

She thought about her little sister who was three years younger than her. How nice it felt to have a sister.

“Hey,” a deep voice rang from behind as the person clutched Carrie’s shoulder. “Look at me.”

Carrie turned around and immediately locked eyes with the person. She couldn’t look away even if she tried. Her eyes watered as they refused to even blink.

The person was wearing a black hoodie with black sunglasses and a black mask. It seemed like the perfect disguise to rob a bank.

The person grabbed Carrie’s hands tightly.

“Let..GO!” Carrie yelled, but no one seemed to hear her.

...----------------...

“Gosh… where IS Carrie! I regret sending her out alone now..!” Yeong muttered as he ruffled his hands through his hair.

“Maybe she went to buy ice cream. She’ll be back soon. Don’t worry, Papa,” Alyssa smiled reassuringly.

“Papa?” Yeong looked at the young child who looked back at him.

“Papa!” Alyssa smiled. “Papa! I’ll call you Papa.”

“Papa…” Yeong seemed touched at the word. “I’ll call you Lyssa, then.”

“My own nickname..!” Alyssa smiled. “How exciting! I’ve never had one before! What do you call Carrie?”

“I call her ‘My little Carrie’ sometimes. But most of the time I just call her Carrie,” Yeong replied.

“Lyssa… how did you get into an adoption centre?” Yeong asked. It seemed impossible for a nice girl like her to get thrown away.

“My parents… they disliked me since I was born. I had 7 siblings, and I was the youngest. They despised me for not looking like my siblings. According to the pictures, my siblings were very pretty and cute when they were small. They thought I looked too thin,” Alyssa explained, tears welling in her eyes.

“They started hitting me. At first it was just small annoyances - whatever they did to me, I took revenge on them. But they started hitting and kicking and throwing me into lakes that I became so weak. It was hard to survive in a lake, especially if you can’t swim at all,” Alyssa sighed.

“I became so weak I couldn’t even stand up. I was…bedridden. But my parents took away my bed, so I slept on the floor. Moreover, I didn’t know how, but they found out about my little revenges towards them. So they started to squeeze me into the washing machine and they turned it on after choosing the highest water level possible. They added the intensive mode, too..” Alyssa cried.

“I don’t know how I survived. My siblings said that it was a miracle. None of them could help me because my parents would lock my door while abusing me. They always banged on it to break it down, but the door was very strong. My parents never allowed me out of my room. They said that my siblings would put ointment on my bruises if they did.”

“When my parents were sleeping one day, my siblings broke into my room through the window and they carried me outside the house. They asked me if I wanted to keep staying in there, and I refused to go back. So I suggested that they leave me on the doorstep of an adoption centre. They took the bus and brought me there and gave me small biscuits in case the adoption centre banned me from eating,” Alyssa smiled.

“Up till this day, I still don’t know WHY my parents hate me that much. I…I just don’t want the same thing to happen again,” Alyssa sighed.

Ding dong!

“CARRIE’s HOME!” Alyssa cried excitedly and dashed to open the door.

“I hate you. Go away, you little pest,” Carrie muttered loudly.