"Get out! Just leave us and get out!" her mother screamed, "You're a cursed child and we never want to see you here again!"
"B—But—!" Belle was on the verge of tears. "No! Out! Leave!" her father yelled, his deep voice digging into her with a malicious tone. Belle's lip quivered, but she nodded her head and turned to walk out the door. "And don't you ever come back!" The door was slammed behind her, making her flinch as the front of the wooden hut moved. She looked back one last time before woefully walking away. Her feet dragged on the ground as she cried. 'I get that times are tough right now, and that the shortage of currency isn't too good... but...' she cupped her hands over her face, rubbing her eyes with her palms, 'Why would they abandon me? I'm their daughter... I could've helped them...'
Then again, thinking about how the past few years have been with her parents, she can see why it was so easy for them to kick her out. Only now with the money issue, they had a reason to. 'I'm barely an adult...' she heard a rumble of thunder, 'I'm not ready to be on my own...'
The poor blueberry shivered, her old, brown robes being too tattered to keep her warm. 'The rain's going to make it worse... I'm going to get sick...' she crossed her arms to carefully rub at her shoulders. It produced a little warmth, but it wasn't enough. 'Maybe if I ask Ethan's father really nicely, he'll let me stay at the tavern for the night.' she hoped. It wasn't much, but it was all she had. Easily making up her mind about it, Belle trudged towards the village. By the time she made it to the door of the tavern, it had started to sprinkle. 'It's still open. Thank goodness.' she frowned nervously, '...Maybe I shouldn't ask...'
Another rumble from the gloomy sky above quickly wiped out any second thoughts she had. Belle entered the tavern, carefully closing the door behind her. When she turned around, she was greeted by the sight of Ethan working behind the counter. The handsome young man was using a hand towel to clean a glass mug. He noticed her immediately and gave her a friendly wave. "Hey Belle! It's been a couple of weeks since I last saw you. How are you doing?" he gestured for her to take a seat at the bar. Belle gladly did so. "I... could be better..." she answered, her voice a little wobbly. 'Don't cry again. You've cried enough today.' she bit her lip. Ethan, thought happy to see her, immediately noticed that something was wrong. "Are you okay?" he asked, setting down the glass he was cleaning. Belle hesitated. 'You've come too far to back out now. Just tell him.' she urged herself. "I... u—uhm..." she struggled for what to say. Ethan rested his arms on the edge of the counter and leaned over to meet her eyes. "Belle, did something happen?" his voice showing his concern. Belle swallowed quietly. "... Y—You know how my... parents are, right?" she responded with a question. Ethan's eyes softened a bit. "Yeah, I know. Those two need to learn how to treat you better, honestly." he said, spiting the two that weren't even there. Belle winced, feeling her eyes glassing over again. 'Don't cry.' she told herself. "About that... they um... I..." she felt guilty asking him, but it was either ask and give herself a chance, or give up and sleep in the rain, "... Would it be okay if I... stayed the night here?..."
Ethan raised his eyebrows, then furrowed them. "I don't know if I'm allowed to do that for you. I'd have to ask my dad." he answered, "If you go home tonight, then I can ask dad and you can stay over tomorrow— if he says yes."
"Ethan, I can't go home." she admitted. Ethan looked confused, then agitated. "Did they hurt you? Do you need me to—?" he started getting fired up. "—No. Not that." she interrupted, a little afraid of what he might say next. Ethan then gave her another confused look. "Did one of them say something to you? Or did you finally tell them off?" he tried guessing. Belle sadly shook her head, then slowly ducked it. She felt humiliated telling him, but again, her options are very limited, as the sound of the heavy rain outside reminded her. "... They kicked me out..." she felt like it was a confession made to a priest. Like a horrible sin that she wished she could wash away. When she looked back at Ethan, she saw the sadness, shock, and anger warring on his face. "That's— They— Those two—... I can't believe they would do that to you." he growled, "How dare they?!"
