"Hi, Mr. Bear! Thank you for the ice cream!"
"Thank you, Mr. Bear!"
Rome raised a hand in response, then formed a cute heart sign toward the kids before they ran off happily.
When the last of the ice cream he was giving away was gone and the children had dispersed, he let out a tired sigh and plopped down on the curb.
What he was doing was exhausting—standing in the heat, moving around in that heavy costume, entertaining kids—but somehow, the fatigue melted away each time he saw a child smile.
It was strange...
He wasn't exactly fond of children. In fact, he'd always found them loud and irritating. That was why, when raising Gabriel, he had enforced composure and discipline, molding him into what he believed was the "ideal" behavior for a child.
But now… maybe he'd been wrong. Maybe he should have just let Gabriel enjoy his childhood freely, the way Sylvia raised the twins.
