Chapter 623 Poor Richard

Without hesitation, Ashley moved towards the bullied boy and stood in front of him like a shield, ready to take whatever was thrown at them, just to protect the kid. She looked back at Richard, who stood quietly behind her. Pity formed on Ashley's face as she saw the tears that started falling down the little boy's face. Then, her expression changed to anger as she turned to the noisy kids in front of her. They kept murmuring with each other and still wouldn't stop with their abusive words. Her eyebrows furrowed deep into her forehead as she heard every single word they said in hushed voices before she spoke, "That's enough! Stop it, all of you!

He is your friend, too, isn't he? I mean, he is just like you. Here's a reality check, you don't have anyone else other than the rest of you here, so shouldn't you all be united? Shouldn't all of you stick together and comfort each other? Not go against one another, because you have no one else but each other in here. Now, think about the words you just told him. What if someone else said that to you? How would you feel? You would feel hurt too, right?"

Ashley stared at the kids and heaved a deep sigh. She didn't say anything more, knowing that these kids wouldn't understand that much. They only thought what was fun for them and nothing else. In short, they were too young to understand sympathy and empathy.

Besides, scolding these kids wasn't what she came here for. It was better to just get to the point as soon as possible and get this thing done and over with.

Seeing that Ashley was done talking to the kids, Selma pulled Ashley aside and crouched down at eye level with the children in front of her. She smiled at them and asked, "Do you know where the orphanage director is? We need to talk to her about something. Can you help us and tell them that we need to talk to someone from the office?"

One of the kids standing in front of the group nodded and said, "Sure, please wait a minute."

The kid then ran into the building without another word. The rest of the kids smiled at Selma. While they waited, some did not dare say a word as they felt scared of how Ashley looked at them.

Ashley's scolding face was enough to make them quietly stand aside and just shifted their eyes among Richard, Ashley, and Selma. Shortly after, the kids felt bored and went to play among themselves, not really minding Ashley's upset look.

As soon as Selma stood up, she grabbed Ashley's sleeves and said softly, enough for only Ashley to hear, "Maybe, turn that frown into a smile. They are just kids, you know. You did not really have to scold that way. After all, they still don't have any sense of morality and could not distinguish right from wrong. All they care about now are fun and games."

Ashley heaved a deep sigh and relaxed her face. She knew that she was too impulsive and probably even too harsh towards the kids. She did not really have any right to scold them, but deep down she did not regret doing it. Perhaps, being an orphan herself like Richard made her empathetic. She too grew up in an orphanage, and even now, she was still a bit sensitive about it.

Ashley then looked at Selma and sighed, "I know, but still, they were going overboard. I'm not sure I'm not the only one who thinks that what they did was bullying, verbal abuse to be exact. I know they are just kids, and maybe they don't really know or mean what they say, but words are still the most painful weapon, because it will leave a scar for the rest of your life. Moreover, once words are released from the mouth, it can never be taken back, and even if you could, it would have already left a scar in the heart. Whether or not the boy will remember these bitter memories for the rest of his life, I still will recall this moment wherein a boy was being treated this way and I did something about it. Anyway, I just could not help it."

Selma looked at Ashley and took a deep sigh

ley said, "Well then, I will leave him back in your care."

As she said this, Ashley slightly pushed the boy towards the director, but the boy knew what she was doing and immediately held on to her hand, refusing to let go.

Ashley frowned. She crouched down and looked at Richard at eye level and smiled at him. "You're home now. You'll be all right." Then, she stood up and gently removed his hand from hers, immediately turning her back to them and left before she could do anything that she might regret.

Seeing Ashley leaving, Richard's eyes welled up and stepped forward, ready to run and catch up with her, but the director was quick and caught him before he could take a step. "Where are you going, boy? The orphanage is this way. Make sure you don't run away again or else, I won't even think about taking you back in next time." The boy struggled a little and wanted to go, but the director held him tightly on his wrist and said with a stern voice, "Oh, come on, can't you obey me just this once? Don't you even have a sense of discipline in you?"

Ashley and Selma hadn't walked that far and clearly heard the director's words and tone.

Even with the scolding and threatening tone, the boy continued to struggle to break free from the director's grasp. Despite not being able to speak, the boy tried to make some noise to call out to Ashley, wanting her to come back and take him away from this awful place. With her back turned, Ashley did not know how the director stopped him and did not want to know how, but eventually, she could not hear his struggling voice anymore.

As soon as Ashley and Selma were out of the orphanage property, Ashley stopped, feeling the weight in her steps. She looked at Selma and smiled bitterly. "I was wondering, did we really have to leave that child in that orphanage? I'm worried about how the director could not even give him a smile, let alone the other kids, who all looked like they get along except him. He's miserable in there!"

Selma looked at Ashley with a confused expression and shrugged. "Well, what else can we do? He belongs in this orphanage, and this is home. Regardless of how awful he is being treated inside, it has nothing do with you, and you have no right or power to change that. I mean, you can't just scold the orphanage director for treating him unfairly, can you?"

Selma gave out a chuckle at her own joke, but after seeing the serious expression on Ashley, she suddenly realized what Ashley was trying to say. Selma gasped in surprise and asked in disbelief, "Wait, Ashley, you don't mean... You want to adopt that child, don't you?"