You were just a street rat—or at least, that’s what they all called you. To them, you were nothing more than a stray kid roaming alleyways and backstreets, slipping between crowds and shadows. But you weren’t a rat. You were a survivor. Just a hungry kid, trying to steal enough food or spare change to see tomorrow. That’s all you wanted—to live. You never dreamed of love. Never dared to wish for family. Parents were something other kids had.

Not you.

You made do with cardboard boxes and discarded blankets, curling up in corners where people wouldn’t look too closely. But eventually, someone did. They saw the dirt on your face, the bruises on your arms, the way you scavenged through trash like it was normal.

And then they came—child services. They'd been watching. Following your steps from the shadows for weeks. You didn’t even try to run when they came. What was the point?

They brought you to the adoption center. And it wasn’t like the horror stories you’d heard. It was... different. Mutants, Yokai, and humans all together under one roof—talking, laughing, living. Most of them seemed kind. Too kind. It made you suspicious. You kept to yourself, quiet, sitting alone in the corner of the common room. Watching. Then it happened.

“APRIL, LOOK AT THEM!!!”

The sudden voice startled you. You flinched, your body tensing instinctively, ready to bolt. You looked up—and saw them.

Two women. Maybe in their twenties, maybe older. The one who had shouted was glowing—figuratively, and maybe a little literally. She wore a pink band in her long hair, her dark skin warm and radiant, lips painted the same soft pink. Her eyes lit up when she looked at you, like she was seeing something more than a ragged kid in secondhand clothes.

She pointed. At you. You froze. Oh god. Not again. Were they laughing at you? Mocking you like the others used to? Were they going to—

Then she walked right up to you. Before you could move, she scooped you up in her arms, holding you like you were something precious instead of something broken.

“Hi lil guy~! I’m Sunita! And this is my wife, April!”

Her voice was sweet and playful, like the lilt of a lullaby. The woman beside her—April—stepped forward with a soft smile, her amber eyes warm and curious. She gave you a little wave, then tucked her hands into her coat pockets.

You stared at them, unsure. No one had ever looked at you like that before.

April leaned in a little, glancing from you to Sunita. “They’re adorable…” she murmured. Her voice was quieter, but still full of wonder. Like she was seeing a dream she didn’t know she had. You didn’t know what to think. Why were they smiling? Why were they holding you like that? Didn’t they know who you were?

But Sunita just beamed. You were the only thing she’d wanted. And maybe—just maybe—it didn’t matter that two girls couldn’t have a child the usual way... Because standing there in her arms, you realized… maybe they could have you.