After giving instructions, I realized it was almost 3 o'clock.
I carried Ginny into the bar, poured her a glass of lemonade, and then carried her upstairs.
In Alven's room, Ginny stood on the floor, her fingers intertwined, unsure where to put her hands.
The expression on her small face was a mix of inferiority and anxiety.
Alven took off his torn plaid shirt, rolled it into a ball, and wiped his chest with it.
He squatted down to Ginny's eye level, pointed to his chest, and said, "Look, I'm fine, Daddy is very strong!"
Ginny, surprised, rushed to Alven, her small hands feeling all over his chest, trying to find the wounds she had caused.
In the end, she only found four faint scars, barely visible without a close look.
Ginny breathed a sigh of relief, and a smile returned to her face as she stammered, "Daddy, strong, Daddy."
Ginny, who had some difficulty communicating, had some words stuck in her heart that she couldn't express, making her a little anxious, and she adorably scratched her head.
Alven lovingly tidied her somewhat disheveled hair.
He kissed her forehead and comforted her, "Ginny, you're very smart, we can take our time."
He then kissed her again.
He took Ginny's hands and caressed the spaces between her fingers, where there were still traces of dried blood.
He asked, a little pained, "Does it hurt?"
Ginny tilted her head and thought for a moment, understanding that Alven was concerned about her.
She smiled happily and said, "Used to it, doesn't hurt."
As she spoke, she thoughtfully used her finger to smooth Alven's furrowed brow, saying, "Ginny, good, Daddy, not scared."
Alven felt his heart melt; his daughter was showing concern for her dad.
He thought, even if she had two knives or two guns in her hands, he would still love it!
He hugged Ginny tightly, walked to the window, and motioned for her to come over.
Ginny walked over curiously, and Alven found it amusing that Ginny, being so small, couldn't see outside when she stood by the window.
He watched her as she gripped the windowsill with both hands and strained upwards, barely managing to peek out with her eyes.
He picked Ginny up, pointed out the window, and said, "Ginny, different, Daddy, also different."
There was no one in the alley outside at that moment.
A thick, dark green vine shot up from a ditch, straightened itself, and reached Alven's window.
Alven gently squeezed the pointed tip of the vine, and the Venomous Flower Vine shivered contentedly, seemingly pleased.
Then, Alven directed the vine to wave at Ginny.
Ginny's mouth dropped open in surprise as she looked at Alven.
Alven smiled and nudged Ginny's head with his forehead, saying, "See, Daddy is also different, so Ginny is Alven's daughter.
We are different from everyone else."
Ginny smiled purely, enjoying Alven's affection, and nodded vigorously, "Ginny, Daddy, different from others."
Alven affectionately rubbed noses with Ginny and then waved away the Venomous Flower Vine.
He put Ginny down on the floor, patted her head, and said, "Daddy's going to change clothes.
Daddy will take Ginny to buy clothes, okay?"
Ginny looked at Alven and smiled, "Ginny wants Daddy, not clothes."
Compared to his chubby son from his previous life, who wanted everything he saw, Ginny was on a completely different level.
Alven put on a new plaid shirt, then a grey jacket, paired with dark blue jeans.
Overall, he looked like a farmer from the North—rustic, simple, but also dependable.
He put a baseball cap on Ginny's head and said with a smile, "Let's go, my princess."
He took her small hand and ran downstairs.
Downstairs, they found that most of the restaurant's patrons had left.
Only a middle-aged man with a full beard, looking somewhat down and out, sat in a corner, holding a cup of coffee, lost in thought.
This was none of Alven's business; this was a restaurant, and you could sit as long as you liked.
In a good mood, Alven asked Jessica to bring the man a beer, judging by his expression that beer would be more fitting than coffee.
Then he smiled and said to Jessica, "Come with me, the boss is giving out benefits—I'm buying you clothes."
Jessica, who had just delivered a beer to the middle-aged man, let out a joyful shriek and asked, "Are we going to Fifth Avenue?"
Alven patted his pocket, thought for a moment, and said, "To 27th Street, Shirley's Apparel."
Jessica let out a disappointed "Oh," but quickly cheered up; after all, the boss was giving a gift, wasn't he?
She quickly took off her apron, skipped out the door behind Alven with her hands behind her back.
Alven, holding Ginny, stood at the door and instructed Old Kent, "Old Kent, call two lads to clean up my attic.
Move all of Mr. Nick Custer's things to the attic.
Mr. Custer has wanted to live in the attic for a long time, and this time he'll get his wish.
Because our little princess needs his room.
Also, find Old Juan to get a set of furniture for our little princess—it needs to be pink, and ready before bedtime tonight."
Old Kent happily agreed, playfully bowing with an imaginary hat, "Gladly at your service, Your Royal Highness!"
After speaking, he called a few young men and went to the second floor of the restaurant.
No one noticed that when Alven mentioned Nick, the down-and-out middle-aged man's face showed a strange mixture of "guilt," "longing," and "fear."
When he heard Alven was sending Nick to the attic, he was angry; when he heard the attic was Nick's wish, he was happy.
It seemed Nick's joys and sorrows always tugged at his heart.
Listening to Alven proudly show off his daughter, he looked incredibly envious.
He told JJ to keep an eye on Jason, then got in the car with Ginny and Jessica, drove around the block, and arrived at "Shirley's Apparel" a block away.
This store specialized in women's clothing, and of course, they also had children's wear for girls.
Shirley, the owner, was a beautiful woman in her forties, whose attire, though not luxurious, was always exquisite.
A few carefully chosen, inexpensive accessories always made her radiate with splendor.
Alven could tell she was a woman with a story, but that had nothing to do with him.
Once inside the store, Alven grandly waved his hand, gesturing to Jessica with an air of extravagance, "Buy!"
The proprietress, amused, stopped Alven's rustic behavior.
She first pulled Jessica aside and helped her pick out several outfits for Ginny to try on.
Princess dress, beautiful, one set of each color!
Sportswear, beautiful, one set of pink, yellow, and green!
T-shirt and button-up shirt with overalls, plus a denim jacket, so cool!
Add a baseball cap, perfect!
Alven fist-bumped Ginny, laughing and standing with her in front of the large mirror.
They looked like a perfect father-daughter pair, not at all strange despite their different skin tones.
Seeing how much Ginny loved it, and Alven loving it even more, he waved his hand and said, "Ten sets!"
With Jessica's help, all the miscellaneous shoes, socks, underwear, pajamas, and other items were purchased.
After that, Jessica's clothing selection experience was much less generous.
Denim shorts and a crop top, "Boss, does this look good?"
"It's not hot out, who are you showing your belly to?"
Floral mini-skirt, "How about this one?"
"Why is the skirt so short? Aren't your legs cold?"
Jeans and a T-shirt, "This one?"
"Hmm, pretty good, that's it, get two sets!"
Jessica angrily rushed up to Alven and complained, "Boss, you're too much! These are the clothes I wore when I came!"
Alven paused, "They do look good, though; get a few more sets to wear interchangeably."
Jessica angrily stomped her foot on Alven's, then turned to Shirley, the proprietress, and said, "Except for this one, please pack up everything else.
Hmm, two of each color.
Charge it all to the boss's account."
Is it really okay for you to add so much drama, young lady?
Not offending a woman when she's angry was a lesson Alven learned the hard way in his previous life, through blood and tears.
Considering you helped my daughter pick clothes, I'll put up with you.
Amidst Jessica's suppressed giggles, he paid with a wry smile.
Fortunately, it wasn't expensive, only a little over nine hundred dollars in total.
Hmm, when he had more money later, he'd take his daughter to that Fifth Avenue to shop around.