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The Park

Author: Ethel
last update Last Updated: 2025-04-01 12:32:30

Ava

Parks, they say, are the one place on earth where even the most caged souls can taste a little bit of freedom.

Granted, I have no idea who they are, but surely they must be right because the look I see on Kira's face as she runs through the park—one of the less crowded, more private ones, of course—is one filled with pure excitement.

Black curls bounce with the wind as she waves at me, her lips stretched thin and smile wide as she spins around right there in the middle of it all.

I wave back at her, my heart full.

Getting Nikolai's approval was surprisingly easy.

Too easy.

I'd expected resistance or, at the very least, his disapproval. But he'd been, surprisingly, willing.

I watch Kira chase a butterfly, her giggles mixing with the sound of the other kids in the park and I can't help the warmth that spreads through me at the sight.

She looks so happy. Free. The complete opposite of the girl who'd wandered into my studio yesterday.

Settling onto the bench, I pull my coat tighter ar
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