The silver-gray-haired boy began to panic when the ten-year-old little girl in front of him started crying, shedding unending tears. Her eyes were already red and swollen from crying too much.

"I'm sorry. Stop crying already. I'm not mad at you. I'm not scolding you as well. I'm just concerned about you, that's why I had spoken those words. Shhh..." the boy started consoling her by explaining his action towards her.

But the girl just continued weeping and shedding tears before him. On impulse, the boy pulled her into a hug and started stroking her hair. "Alright, go and cry all you want. I won't stop you."

He didn't know how he would comfort her anymore. He just let her cry in his arms. Little did he know, that simple embrace was already enough to comfort her. That's what all she needed at that moment… a shoulder to lean on.

Later on, the girl had stopped crying and she finally calmed down. The boy heaved a sigh of relief. He tried to talk to her again. This time he was gentle, not raising his voice anymore.

"What happened? Why are you here? Why are you crossing the river? You were not supposed to be here. Someone is waiting for you out there. You should go back." He asked her one question after another.

"I'm searching for my parents. I'm calling them, hoping that they will come back… that I will see them again. I'm so scared. It hurts here. I'm in pain." said the girl while pointing her finger into her heart.

The boy fell silent for a moment. He was just observing the girl. After a while, he asked her again with a very serious tone.

"Do you know that they were already gone? That they are not coming back… you are aware, aren't you?"

The girl just lowered her gaze, nodding her head while biting her lower lip. The boy just sighed deeply when he got her response.

"So you decided to follow them by drowning yourself in the river, didn't you?" the boy arched his eyebrow, restraining himself from scolding her once again. He was trying his best to be patient with her.

The girl nodded her head once more as a response. The boy could no longer hold back as he hit her head, not too strong and not too soft.

"Aww!" The girl grunted and looked up at him with her teary eyes. She rubbed her head using her hand.

"What a foolish girl!?" he mumbled, squinting his eyes at her. "Do you think your Mom and Dad will be happy when they see you acting like this?"

The little girl just remained quiet, not answering his question. The boy grabbed her shoulders, turning her around.

"Look at your surroundings. What can you see?"

The girl looked around and peered at her surroundings before giving him an answer.

She glanced back at him and said, "I see a river, a mountain, a bridge, trees, flowers, birds, sky, cars, and people."

"They are beautiful, aren't they?" the boy asked her again.

"Yes, beautiful… very beautiful indeed…" the little girl said, her eyes were fixed on the boy's handsome face. He was smiling at her with gentleness in his eyes.

Her dull eyes that were filled with sadness and sorrow finally sparkled with light when she gazed at him. Her lips also curled up into a faint smile.

After crying for so long, she smiled again because of this boy. His smile was contagious. It somehow helped her lighten the burden she was carrying in her heart moments ago.

"But do you know what is the most beautiful gift among all of these things?" The boy had spoken again.

The girl had the urge to answer "It's you! The most beautiful thing I have ever seen." However, she just kept it within herself and didn't voice it out.

"What is it?" She asked him instead.

The boy looked at her straight into her eyes and answered, "It's life… life is the most beautiful gift that we received. Please always remember that."

"So live it and cherish it. Appreciate everything that you have right now. We may lose some things and some people in our lives but never ever give up on your life."

The boy sighed inwardly. 'She's just a little kid. Why am I saying this to her? I don't know if she can understand what I am saying or not. But I hope it will make sense to her when she grows up and becomes older.'

Though he was thinking that the little girl would not understand him, he still continued sharing some wisdom and meaningful words with her.

"Be grateful for the good and the bad in your life. Failures, trials, and challenges would shape you into a stronger and better version of yourself." The boy stroked her hair once more.

She was just staring at him, listening to every word he said. Though she could understand deeply the meaning of his words, she knew that the boy was telling her that she should never give up on her life no matter what.

Her life was a precious beautiful gift that she should cherish.

"Another thing I want you to remember… there's always a rainbow after the rain and there's light at the end of the tunnel."

After listening to him, the girl felt like the boy just lifted the heavy burden off her heart. She was able to clear her mind now.

Though her parents were gone, she remembered that she still had her grandmother who loved her unconditionally.

If she would leave this world then her grandmother would be left alone. Her grandmother would be sad as well if something bad happened to her.

"I'm sorry, grandma…" she mumbled softly at the realization.

The girl felt grateful to the boy. Because of him, she realized that what she did moments ago was wrong.

The girl immediately pounced on him, embracing him tightly. "Thank you! Thank you for reminding me of this."

The boy could finally relax the moment he heard that. It seemed that the girl came back to her usual self now.

"Go back now. Return home. Your grandma is waiting for you."

The little girl released the boy from her tight grasp. Her cheeks became red. It seemed like she wanted to tell him something but she was embarrassed to speak up.

"Do you have something to tell me?" The boy urged her to speak up.

"Before I go back to my grandma and return home… can I… can I ask you something?" She said shyly.

The boy let out a soft chuckle before nodding his head. "Sure, what is it?"

"If I come back here, will I ever see you again?" The little girl asked him after mustering up her courage. She was looking at him with her hopeful eyes.

The boy was taken aback for a moment after hearing that. He could see the hope in her eyes and he didn't have the heart to crush that hope.

'We will never see each other again here. Besides once you return home, you will forget about me. I will have to erase your memory about me as if you meeting me here didn't happen at all.'

'Sigh, I talked too much but in the end, she would still forget everything I said here.'

The boy patted her head and nodded at her with a gentle smile. That's the only response he could give her.

The girl smiled brightly after getting his response. She was looking forward to seeing him again.

"By the way, I am Selene. How about you? What's your name?"

The boy was about to tell her his name but suddenly Selene woke up. She didn't get to hear his name because it was Eros's voice she was hearing right now.

"Selene, wake up! I'm back!"

She opened her eyes only to see Eros in front of her. She felt like crying because Eros interrupted her dream. She was about to get the boy's name but she was suddenly awakened by Eros.

"Hey? What's wrong? Why are you giving me that kind of face? Did you have a bad dream?" Eros asked her quizzically.

Selene just pouted her lips. There was a look of disappointment on her face.

'It's not a bad dream! It's a good dream but you interrupted it!' Selene lamented to herself.