I don’t think I should be talking to a stranger.

not a stranger, i am your friend Jade. she is the one who told you about me. don’t you trust her?

I trust her. i’m just scared of how my dad might react if he finds out.

your dad. do you have a good relationship with him?

Yes. I love him a lot.

did he ever hit you, or was mean to you?

Never. He’s really nice. The best dad in the world.

that’s good jade. my family was completely different. i still don’t know if anyone there actually cared about each other, or if they just acted out of a sense of obligation. we barely spent any time together.

I’m sure even if they didn’t spend much time with you, they still loved you.

what makes you think that ?

My dad hasn’t been spending much time with me lately either. One time, I got so upset about it that I broke a vase just to make him mad so he’d stay home for a bit. But when he saw it, he just hugged me and started crying. He said times are hard right now, and that we’d have to push through it until things get better. He even apologized, even though I was the one trying to make him mad. And he promised we’d go out together really soon. I felt awful. I think every parent love their children.

did he keep his promise?

We didn’t get to go out together because of that stupid arcade machine. As soon as he gets home, he’s on it, and he spends all his time talking about it. He’d even said he was going to stop putting money into his collection.

i’m really sorry your dad didn’t keep his words. if you want, we could meet up, just the two of us. i’ve got lots of friends our age you could meet. i’m sure the girls would love playing with you.

I don’t think my dad would have time to drive me to play with other kids. And besides, I don’t even know where you live. What if I got lost?

turn on the TV and leave the window wide open. she’ll bring you here. everyone’s excited to meet you jade.