A Young Woman's Heart

Episode 1: Valentine's Day Special - The Little Match Girl

On a cold, snowy night, a thinly dressed girl curled up against the wall at the entrance of an alley.

Although there was a wall between us, I could still feel some of the warmth.

Well, it's only a little bit; more than that, it's probably just a psychological comfort.

It was the dead of winter, but she was only wearing summer clothes; she didn't even have a long-sleeved shirt, let alone a cotton-padded coat.

Half of her fair, exposed arm had turned slightly blue from the cold.

"Matches for sale... Does anyone want to buy matches?" The little girl, who looked no more than eleven or twelve years old, called out softly in a trembling voice.

She hadn't eaten anything for two whole days, and even with all her might, she couldn't make a loud sound.

Snowflakes fell on her long, golden hair, which hung loosely in curls over her shoulders, making her look beautiful yet weak.

Actually, she did have a linen coat. Although it wasn't very thick, it at least provided some warmth in the cold winter.

But the noble children mischievously splashed several buckets of cold water on her, forcing her to take off her coat, otherwise it would freeze and make her body freeze even faster.

She pressed her body as close as possible to her rough gray dress, hugging her pale, bloodless thighs tightly to reduce heat loss.

"Ah, this snow is so beautiful."

On the roof of the house next to her, a little boy wearing a thick cotton-padded coat spoke to the adult beside him.

"Hehe, this year's snow is exceptionally heavy and exceptionally beautiful. Look, the pure snowflakes melt as soon as they land in your hand."

"Let me touch it, mmm, it's cool and so comfortable."

"Excuse me, sir... do you need some matches?" the girl asked pitifully, grabbing the hem of a passing young man's shirt and straining her eyes to see.

"I'm sorry, I don't need matches," the other person replied somewhat coldly, though they were hiding their unease.

The little girl's hand was gently removed, and the latter hurriedly fled the scene.

"Excuse me, does anyone want some matches? These are very good matches, look... they light right away..." the little girl said, striking a match.

The warm firelight temporarily soothed her bluish-purple little hands, but the match quickly burned out completely.

"Excuse me, beautiful lady, would you like some matches?"

“Matches? Hmm, if you were selling flowers, I might buy some,” the gentleman standing next to the woman said elegantly. “After all, it’s Valentine’s Day.”

The couple left, chatting and laughing. The little match girl was so cold she could barely move, but she still tried her best to call out her wares.

She needs to sell at least some of the goods before she can return to her home, which, even in its coldest weather, is far better than this freezing cold outside.

"Sir, would you like some matches?"

"Matches? I have a lighter."

"Miss, would you like some matches?"

"unnecessary."

"Matches for sale! Anyone want to buy matches? Top-quality matches..."

"The store sells three Inari, but here you can exchange one Inari for two boxes..."

"Selling matches..."

"matches……"

There were quite a few people coming and going, but few paid any attention to her.

Those who occasionally paid attention would merely indicate that they didn't need it and give her a pitying look.

The girl was completely curled up, lying face down on the ground, like an inconspicuous clump of straw.

She gradually began to feel her body getting hot. The cold weather suddenly stopped being cold, and she even felt so hot that she wanted to take off her thin clothes.

A thick cotton-padded coat was draped over her body, and a slightly cool hand touched her forehead.

"Are you alright?" came a rather unpleasant voice. The voice was neither mellow, nor steady, nor solid, nor weathered; instead, it sounded somewhat frivolous. And because the tone of the voice was slightly high, it sounded as sleazy as a thug.

"Hmm..." She looked up and saw a plump man dressed much thinner than the noblemen, but who didn't seem to feel cold.

He was about twenty years old, but he looked as fat as those noblemen.

However, he was clearly not a nobleman; although he was dressed reasonably well, he was still dressed like a commoner.

He didn't have a well-groomed aristocratic beard; he only had a tangled, weed-like mustache around his chin and lips.

He wasn't fair-skinned, nor was he dark-skinned; his complexion was rather yellowish, and there was a layer of rust-like red on both sides of his cheeks that seemed impossible to wash off.

"Matches...do you...want them?" the little girl whispered, she really didn't have much strength left.

"What...what do you want? What are you selling?" The young man seemed not to have heard him clearly.

"Matches..." the girl said weakly.

However, the thick cotton-padded coat draped over her had gradually stabilized her body temperature, which had suddenly risen, and now she felt a little cold again.

The young man finally noticed the matches in the bamboo basket placed to the side. They were stacked neatly, and each box was exquisitely packaged.

"How much for all of this?" the young man asked, looking around warily and seemingly nervous.

"The total is...fifty...Inner."

“Okay, I’ll buy it.” The young man placed a beautiful blue banknote in front of her; it was a whole sheet of fifty Inari notes.

"Thank you..." The girl breathed a sigh of relief, but she didn't know if she would be able to take the money home.

"You're welcome," the young man said, hanging the basket on his arm as he picked up the girl in his arms.

"Huh..." The girl was a little surprised, but she was too weak to struggle anymore.

"Didn't you say you'd buy it all, fifty inel? You, and these matches too?" the young man asked nervously, looking down.

The girl was too weak to answer, but she felt good being held in the young man's arms.

He smelled of gunpowder, which wasn't pleasant, but at least it wasn't foul.

Her full and supple body radiated a heat hotter than a furnace, and even her bare feet were held tightly in his large, warm hands, keeping them warm.

"Are you hungry?" he asked, looking down in a voice that wasn't pleasant to hear, like a clown in a circus.

The little girl nodded silently.

"Okay." He nodded, then carried the little girl step by step toward a warm house.

He walked slowly but steadily, his slight swaying making her feel a little sleepy.

However, I was quickly awakened by several "Welcome" greetings.

The cold was finally kept out; this was a bright and clean restaurant.

The clean shop window allows you to see outside, but it feels like two different worlds.

The little girl was placed on a wooden chair. This wasn't a fancy restaurant, but it was the first time she had ever been inside one.

The people dining here are mostly middle-class; there aren't many families of three today, but rather couples.

She suddenly remembered that a gentleman had said that today was Valentine's Day.

The young man nervously rubbed his hands together and asked in a low voice, "Are you still cold?"

"Much better, thank you."

"No need for honorifics, just call me 'you'." The chubby young man stroked his messy mustache, and his face broke into a silly grin again.

"What would you like, sir?" the waiter asked with a polite, insincere smile.

"Uh, please give me a whole roasted turkey, two steaks, a plate of macaroni, tomato flavored, a bowl of vegetable and meat puree, a dozen hot fruit juices, and a glass of red soda."

"Please wait a moment." The waiter took down the order and left.

The young man looked at the girl somewhat awkwardly, while she shook her long golden hair and tilted her head to look at him.

“You…” The young man withdrew his outstretched hand and pointed to the top of her head, “There’s some dust in your hair.”

"Mmm..." The little girl gently rubbed her head. "Uncle... thank you for bringing me to eat."

The young man who was called "uncle" seemed a bit taken aback, his chubby face fell, but thankfully the food had already been served and placed on the table one by one.

The roast turkey was placed in the center of the table, while the young man pushed the vegetable and meat stew and steak in front of the girl and poured some hot juice into a small cup and handed it to her.

This was the first time the girl had ever eaten such exquisite food, and it was also her first time eating steak.

She wasn't very good at using a knife and fork, because she usually ate with her hands.

"Take it like this." The young man smiled nervously and awkwardly, seemingly a little concerned about the stares of those around him, but he still carefully taught the little girl how to use the knife and fork.

This is a sumptuous dinner.

After eating, the blonde little girl felt warm all over.

She didn't mind that she had unintentionally sold herself out, because if it weren't for this young man, she might have frozen to death outside.

So she obediently, but somewhat awkwardly, wiped her mouth with a napkin and asked softly, "Sir, are you... going home with me next?"

"Ah, cough cough, of course."

"This time I can walk by myself. I've eaten my fill and have the strength now."

"No, no, no, I'll carry you." The young man quickly shook his head vigorously. "You'll freeze if you walk barefoot on the ground."

The girl tilted her head, looking somewhat puzzled.

She had never seen a master who cared so much about his slaves.

The young man paid the bill, walked to her side, and picked her up in his arms, just like when he came. He held her two small feet tightly with one large, warm hand to keep her from getting cold, and then waddled like a fat duck to a narrow building at the end of the street.

This narrow building is probably only three or four meters wide, like a structure built in a narrow crevice.

The young man's home was on the third floor, which was the top floor of the building, and the staircase leading to the attic looked mysterious.

His house was completely unfurnished and cluttered, with the lower level seemingly a work area, as she didn't see a single bed or a partitioned room.

In the very center was a large pot containing some cooled liquid that emitted an unpleasant glue smell.