"Diane, don't be afraid. I'm here." Emily hugged Diane and coaxed her softly.
Diane still trembled. Emily was worried about her and wanted to take her to the hospital.
Suddenly, Diane laughed.
"Mommy, it's so fun." Diane laughed as her whole body trembled. Just now, when riding the pony, she felt like she was flying. She had never played such a fun game.
It turned out that she was not scared just now. She was holding back her laughter.
"Stupid Diane." Chris was angry and knocked Diane's head. He was so worried just now.
Diane found Chris' frightened expression interesting. She smiled and fell into Emily's arms.
"Diane, don't do it next time. You scared us. Do you understand? We're done today. Let's go back," Emily reminded Diane.
"Mommy, no! I still want to play." Diane squatted and refused to leave. She struggled to stop Emily and the others from pulling her up.
Since Louise knew Diane, Diane had always been a cute and obedient little girl. Louise had never seen Diane so willful.
"Diane, look, the sun is tired and going down to rest. We should go back, too. Your favorite pony is also tired." Louise tried to reason with Diane, but it didn't work.
"No! I want to be with the pony!" Diane cried.
Chris wanted to wipe away Diane's tears, yet his clothes got dirty from her kicks.
Emily pulled Chris up and helped him clean his clothes. Then, she pulled up Louise who was bending down to talk to Diane.
"Diane, come home with me now, or you can stay here and continue to cause trouble. Louise and I will take Chris home." Emily's voice was cold. She couldn't tolerate Diane's willfulness and spoiled Diane. Otherwise, Diane would solve all the problems with such a method. Emily didn't want to see it and had to help Diane correct it.
Diane paused for a moment and continued being unreasonable. She didn't believe that Emily would ignore her.
"I'll give you five minutes to consider. After that, we'll leave." Emily wasn't swayed by Diane's cry and started the countdown.
The people around them had all left, and the staff who had come to apologize had been sent away by Emily.
"10, 9 ... 2, 1. Time's up. Let's go." Emily picked up Chris and left.
Louise stood in place awkwardly. She felt that it would be dangerous to leave Diane alone here.
"Louise," Emily called out to Louise when she noticed that Louise wasn't following them.
Louise looked at Emily and then at Diane. She stomped her foot in embarrassment. She thought that Emily would never harm Diane, so she turned around and followed Emily.
The surroundings had quieted down, and the footsteps of Emily and Louise had also faded away. Diane stopped covering her eyes and looked around. Only the pony was there, wagging its tail and eating grass. There was no one else around.
Diane sniffled. This time, she wanted to cry, but Emily and Chris were not around, and no one cared if she cried. She sniffled again and held back her tears.
She stood up. Her clothes were stained with mud and grass, and her clothes were dirty all over. She bit her lips and tried to pat her clothes. She was a beautiful little girl, yet she could not clean her clothes after she tried. On the contrary, her little face was also dirty, making her look more pitiful.
The sun went down, and it was getting dark. Something seemed to be hidden in the darkness. The wind blew through the grass field and made a noise.
Diane held the pony's head in fear. The pony was eating grass with its head lowered. Diane's breath made its ears itchy, and it shook its ears.
Suddenly, a bell rang. The pony raised its head excitedly and strolled in a direction. It was time for dinner, and he was going back.
Diane held onto the reins of the pony tightly. She did not want to stay there alone, and she was hungry.
"Pony, slow down. Wait for me." Diane ran anxiously. She could run fast because her legs were still too short.
When she returned to the stable, the food trough had been filled. Diane's stomach rumbled out of hunger, and she squeezed into the stable.
"Pony, you have so much food. Will you share it with me? If you don't agree, just tell me. If you don't speak, I will take it as a yes." Diane swallowed hard and tiptoed to take out an apple from the trough.
"I eat very little," Diane kept muttering. When she was nervous and scared, she was likely to be talkative. "When my mommy comes to look for me, I'll give you a bag of apples. My mommy and Chris are awesome. They will come to get me."
Louise, who was hiding in the dark, almost went out. She was stopped by Emily, and Emily shook her head.
"It's about time." Louise lowered her voice. If she went out now, Diane would follow her home.
"Wait a little longer," Emily said softly. Her gaze never left Diane, and her eyes were filled with worries.
Chris covered his mouth. He was afraid that he would shout in a hurry.
After eating the apple, Diane climbed onto the pony's straw and lay down. She was tired and fell asleep as soon as she lay down.
Her small body was almost one with the straw. If one did not look closely, he would not be able to find her.
The pony stood beside her as if he was guarding her.
After a while, Diane sobbed in her sleep, tears streaming down her face.
"Mommy, I was wrong. Mommy..." As Diane talked in her sleep, she felt someone pat her gently. She smelt a fragrance, which was similar to her mom's.
Diane opened her eyes and saw Emily looking at her tenderly. She thought she was dreaming and threw herself into Emily's arms.
"Mommy, I'm sorry. I miss you so much." Diane sobbed and couldn't even speak properly.
Emily patted her gently.
"Mommy, I was being willful. I was wrong. Can you take me home?" Diane continued, sobbing. She didn't feel ashamed no matter what she said since she was in a dream.
Emily pinched her cheeks and said gently, "Alright, I'll take you home, little kitten."
Louise was worried for a long time. She didn't expect Emily to be so good at dealing with children. She smiled as she looked at Diane in Emily's arms.
Diane raised her head and looked at Louise with her red eyes. Only then did she realize that she was not dreaming. She cried out and hid in Emily's arms, pretending not to see anything. This way, she wouldn't feel awkward.
Chris shook his head helplessly at Diane. When would his silly sister remember her lesson?
Emily and Louise thanked the staff who had secretly taken care of Diane and waved goodbye to the pony. Emily paid for extra food for the pony, thanking it for sharing its apple with Diane. Diane had promised the pony a bag of apples, and Emily kept the promise.
In the evening, after taking a shower, Diane was clean and smelled good again. She lowered her head and scratched her fingers in embarrassment.
"Mommy, can I go to see the pony next time?" Diane asked in a low voice.
"Of course. However, the pony has its home, and so do you. After playing together, you have to go back to your own home," Emily told Diane.
"I understand, Mommy." Diane was embarrassed. Then, she secretly looked at Chris beside her and whispered, "Chris, I'm sorry. I made your clothes dirty today."
"I won't forgive you," Chris said. Seeing Diane's depressed expression, he added, "Unless you give me the eggs tomorrow morning."
Diane didn't like to eat eggs, so she would secretly put them on Chris' plate every time.
"Chris, you're so nice." Diane laughed as she threw herself at Chris.