34 Years Later…
Far away from the bustling heart of the city, there was a serene and beautiful place. Vast gardens stretched endlessly, open fields of grass shimmered under the sun, and children of all ages ran about, laughing, playing, losing themselves in joy. Among them roamed many gentle creatures...dogs, cats, and other pets...adding to the lively chaos.
And in the midst of this harmony stood a magnificent white building, radiant like purity itself:
The Gentle Heart Institute.
It was no ordinary school. Here, children were given free education.....not just of the world, but of life itself. Within its many classrooms, young minds studied eagerly. And in the center of the schoolyard, there stood a majestic tree.....tall, vast, and crowned with blossoms of pure white. Its branches swayed softly, carrying hundreds of little paper slips tied with threads. Wishes, prayers, dreams… every branch bore the hopes of those who tied them.
Beneath the tree, flowers had fallen like blessings upon the grass. Children and young students sat around, writing on small slips of paper before tying them with thread, fastening them carefully to leaves and branches.
Among them was a little girl, just ten years old. Her name was Uni. She clutched a folded slip of paper, her tiny hands trembling with both excitement and hope. Looking up at the tall tree, she asked a kind-hearted older boy, who himself was tying a slip, to help her.
The boy smiled gently, lifted her up with care, and tied her wish upon the swaying branch.
On that slip, she had written:
"Miss Fate… please don't let it rain tomorrow, because tomorrow my parents are coming to visit me."
As soon as her wish was tied, Uni slipped back to the ground, her eyes glowing with gratitude. She bowed lightly to the boy and whispered, "Thank you," before running off with a heart full of joy.
She did not stop until she reached the most special room in the entire institute.
There, upon a chair, sat a woman...her hair silver with age, her body frail yet carrying an aura of boundless warmth. She was around sixty now, but her presence commanded love and reverence.
Uni rushed to her, her voice filled with affection as she called out:
"Big Mother…!"
Climbing into her lap, Uni nestled close, her small hands clutching the woman's robe. Looking up with innocent eyes, she asked softly:
"Big Mother… what is today's lesson for me?"
The old woman embraced her gently, her wrinkled hands stroking the child's hair. A tender smile spread across her face, though her eyes glistened with unspoken memories.
She whispered, her voice deep with truth:
"Today's lesson is this… we must always trust the work of our destiny. Even if, in the beginning, everything seems broken, slipping out of our hands… destiny is never wrong. Whatever happens, happens for the best."
Tears shimmered in her eyes. Not tears of sorrow, but of memory...memories too heavy, too eternal, to ever fade. Her gaze drifted beyond the present, into a past that had carved her soul.
And then…
Flashback.
The story returned once more to the days of the past…
Just a few weeks later…