Chapter 2

I just shook my head, stunned, but Dad had already pulled out a wooden slap board from behind his back.

"When you mess up, you have to face the consequences," he said.

Dad smacked me ten times. Good thing my hands were already numb from the cold, so it didn't hurt much.

Viggo peeked out from behind Mom, his eyes blinking innocently.

"Casimir, I'll let it slide this time, but no more fibs next time, alright?" he said.

He revealed a strawberry lollipop from behind his back and handed it to me.

I hadn't had candy in forever, so I didn't even care about my aching hands. I just grabbed it and shoved it straight into my mouth.

The taste was kind of off, but with Mom and Dad watching, I ate it obediently.

But in the middle of the night, I found myself struggling to breathe.

When I touched my face, it was all bumpy.

I staggered into the living room and saw a mango pit in the trash can.

Grandpa said I was allergic to mangoes, so I couldn't have them.

So that was why the lollipop tasted weird. There was mango juice on it.

I rummaged through the medicine cabinet, but there was nothing inside, not a single thing to help me.

I looked at Mom and Dad's tightly shut bedroom door and took a few steps back.

Mom had warned me not to bother them while they were sleeping.

But my throat was swelling up, and I could barely breathe.

All I could do was turn on the faucet and let the icy water fill my stomach.

It took a long time before I finally felt like I could breathe again.

But then the cold air hit me, and my stomach started cramping.

I rushed to the bathroom, only to find the door locked.

When I turned around, Viggo was standing right behind me, grinning.

"The toilet's broken. You'll just have to hold it," he said.

I wanted to ask him about the mango, but my stomach hurt so bad I could barely get the words out, "My stomach hurts. I really can't hold it anymore. Can I please go in?"

"Casimir, are you really going to ignore your big brother and be a bad kid?" Viggo teased.

Viggo jerked his thumb toward the door.

"There's a restroom out in the park. Go use that," he said.

When I didn't move, Viggo just opened the front door and shoved me out.

Outside, it was pitch black, not a single star in the sky.

I mustered up the courage to use the bathroom in the park nearby, then came back and knocked on the door.

But I knocked and knocked, and no one answered.

I called for Mom and Dad, but the wind was howling, and they must've been fast asleep and didn't hear a thing.

Viggo's room was still lit, but even on my tiptoes, I couldn't get anywhere near the window.

After standing there for ages, not knowing what to do, I just curled up by the front door and hugged myself tight.

I couldn't fall asleep unless Grandpa told me a story every night.

But after Grandpa collapsed and got sent to the hospital, he hadn't visited me in forever.

I was exhausted and drowsy, and I just couldn't keep my eyes open anymore.

In my dream, I saw Grandpa again.

He still had that kind, gentle face, and as he patted my head, he said, "Zane, you have to take good care of yourself."

Mom and Dad never said it out loud, but I overheard the neighbors gossiping about it.

They said my parents thought I was bad luck, that I was the reason my brother died.

They'd rather adopt someone like Viggo, who looked just like my brother, than let me live with them.

I didn't get what death was, but having Grandpa around was all I ever needed.

Grandpa was always there with me, for as long as I could remember.

Mom and Dad came to visit me once, wanting to bring me to the city so I could go to school there.

But I couldn't bear to leave Grandpa behind, so I refused.

They looked really upset when they left, and Mom even said, "If I'd known you'd grow up to be such an ungrateful brat, I never would've had you."

Grandpa said Mom didn't really mean those things.

He told me that if I grew up and was good, they'd like me too.

But one morning, as soon as I woke up, I saw Grandpa collapsed in the yard.

His head was covered in blood. I ran to the neighbor for help, and together we took Grandpa to the hospital.

After that, I never saw Grandpa again.

Mom and Dad brought me to this unfamiliar home, and that was the first time I met Viggo.

They told me to treat Viggo well, said he was the family's little prince, the one we all had to listen to.

So when Viggo made a joke about giving me a new name, Casimir, Mom and Dad didn't even hesitate. They just agreed.

I remembered Grandpa once telling me, "Kites are the freest things in the sky."

He always hoped I'd be like a kite too, able to fly higher and higher, no matter what.

If I could get through tonight, maybe I would be a little tougher.

Morning came, and it was Dad who found me and woke me up.

He was taking out the trash when he saw me huddled up by the front door.

"When did you end up outside?" he asked, barely glancing at me before telling me, "Go eat, you're going to be late for school."

But I felt miserable. The bumps on my face started itching all over again, and my head felt fuzzy.

I couldn't help shivering, feeling weak and out of it.