The little girl ask a couple of middle school students, a girl with a blue bow tie and a boy with a necktie. They order root beer while the girl eats a cheesecake.
"We studied and participated in after-class activities. It's just as simple as that," the boy replied.
"Aren't you going to school before? Like pre-school, where you get to sleep in the afternoon."
"Yeah, and they don't have to take a complicated class as well."
The boy supports the teenage girl as they both sit on either side of the little girl.
"I went to school before, but it had been so long, and I didn't remember it anymore. I felt this bar has more fun activities than school, right, Mr. Bartender?" She turn to the bartender. He sees her in an uncomfortable position with a shivering body. He stare at both students and then asked them in a deep voice.
"I felt that school is no less important than any other place in town. You cannot run a business if you don't know basic economics from school, right?"
The student's face turned sheepish. The girl rolls her eyes as the boy sighs out loud. Before the girl could defend themselves, the bartender mentioned something about their presence.
"Do you guys by chance run away from your home? I heard on radio channels about missing kids a couple of weeks ago."
"Yes, I think that there are 3 missing children from nearby towns."
The little girl supported the bartender as she took out a flyer from her pocket and showed it to both of them.
The young girl frighten for a moment, then look at the boy, signaling him to speak up about something.
"Yeah, those children are us, but another child is pathetic, so he left us before we got here. We want to go on an expedition, becoming fully mature adults. What is the point of learning in class? It's so boring."
The boy spoke out loudly as he drank the root beer in one shot. An overflow of liquid flow down from both sides of his mouth, making a mess on the table.
"I agree, you don't even know if you get to use any of that in daily practice, like driving or crafting. To top it off, we can not even enter a certain entertainment district because of our age, but from now on we will prove that we are capable of doing it!!!"
Both students put the glass up and cheerfully drink it as the bartender finishes refilling the boy's glasses.
The little girl, who sits between them, feels so frustrated as some of the liquid falls from their mouth and splashes onto the cake.
"Could you just please drink it slowly? That drink is expensive, and my dessert is already soaked with that sweet herb water."
She yells at both of them. They stop making a mess for moments, then proceed to talk to each other over her head. The bartender takes the little girl's plate away. He start cleaning the table and asked them directly.
"Running away doesn't always mean you are en route to an emerald city with nice folks on the yellow brick road. Certain things are reserved for those who can bear the consequences of their actions. If you think you are mentally competent, then pay this bill so at least you know what it like to be a "proper" adult.
His eyes turn cold as he slides the bill over to both of them.
"Hey, why did you charge us at this rate. We are just kids and we don't have that much money to pay it."
The teenage girl argued back. The boy got upset, but he noticed a money pouch in the little girl's skirt pocket. He then has a misshapen idea.
"Hey, you little child. I see you got some money with this town currency, can we exchange it so you know we can pay this greedy bartender?"
The boy handed the little girl a couple of gold coins. The little girl accepts it and hands them two dimes.
They hand out those two dimes to the bartender, who has a very bright, angry face. He accepts it and tosses both of them out of the bar via the door at the end of the bar.
"Heh, that little girl is so stupid, today we get a proper start on adulthood with adults drink hahaha"
"Sure, now let's get out of this place before that senile man comes after us."
After they leave, the bartender prepares another dessert for the girl. As he walks back to the bar, he sees another boy chatting with little girl as he share her a bag of chocolate.
"Hello there, when did you come in? I hardly heard a bell ringing."
The bartender ask him politely. He tell both the little girl and the bartender about the runaway story, as his friend had stolen their parents' car and driven away from another town. He was forced to drive, but due to his inexperience and lack of knowledge, he crashed into the sidelines near the railway. His friends escaped, leaving him stranded in the middle of nowhere. He managed to escape with a few superficial injuries and walked for an hour until he arrived here.
"So you are one of the missing children in the flyer, right?"
The little girl asked the lost boy as she showed him a flyer. He nods his head several times as he reads through the paper.
"Yes, this is us. I always thought this was the worst thing that had ever happened to me. I never agreed to this in the first place. Anyway, have you seen them pass by?"
Before the bartender can answer, the girl speaks up first.
"Yes, they just left. They didn't want you on your journey anymore, as they mentioned to us before leaving."
The lost boy's face turned sad, and then he got tense, expressing his words anxiously.
"I shouldn't have trusted them at the beginning. I want to go home, but all I have is this chocolate coin. I don't have a penny to pay for the bus ticket."
The lost boy starts to cry out loud. The little girl gives him a dime.
"Take this, it is enough to get you back to your family."
"Thank you so much for your kindness, you are the sweetest little girl I've ever encountered. Would you mind if I ask you to wait at the bus stop with me? I am scared."
The lost boy asks the little girl politely.
She agrees as she walks him to the bus stop in front of the bar. They wait for another hour before the bus arrives. The boy hugs the little girl before getting on the bus. The bus left for the boy's hometown.
The little girl enters the bar. She climbs up the high chair and starts to eat the cake with the chocolate coin she had previously received.
"You already knew they are treats when those mischief children ask for an exchange."
The bartender mentions to the little girl as he cleans a trace of root beer from the table, which was left from previous bills.
"Yes, who would have known how foolish they became to trick a much younger child with some things much cheaper than their lives. Anyway, that boy had his lesson, and I'm pretty sure he will never forget it. Here, the chocolate Mr.bartender"
"I agree, at least you get additional treats as well."
The bartender agreed with the girl as both of them enjoyed the chocolate as the night started to drift away.
"I wonder if the next bill is going to be for neat drinks or bland food?" The little girl hummed.