Charlotte paused for a moment, instinctively looking at Joe.
Joe immediately crouched down and patiently explained to Ben and Anna, âBaby
penguins need to live here, with their parents, to survive. If we take it away
hastily, it wonât be helping it at all; in fact, it might harm it.â
Joeâs tone was serious, and Ben and Anna involuntarily suppressed their last
thoughts of taking the penguin with them.
Having dissuaded Ben and Anna from their impulse to keep the penguin, Joe
finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Seeing them somewhat downcast, Joe made a promise to them, saying,
âAlthough we canât take it home, you can take care of it until we find its family or
bring it to a rescue station, alright?â
The eyes of the two children, which had dimmed, immediately lit up again.
They nodded enthusiastically, âOf course! No problem!â
Anna tightened her down jacket around the penguin, afraid it might get cold.
Looking at the penguinâs round head, Charlotte couldnât resist and reached out to
pat its little head.
âBe careful; it might bite you,â Joe reminded her from the side.
Seemingly understanding that Charlotte meant no harm, the baby penguin just
tilted its head and let out a couple of calls, then allowed her to pet it.
Feeling the unusual texture of the little creature, Charlotte couldnât help but sigh,
âIf it werenât for the constraints of reality, Iâd want to take one home, too.â
Joe looked at Charlotte, full of anticipation, and chuckled helplessly.
They quickly found the expedition leader with the baby penguin. The leader was surprised to see such a small penguin and suggested contacting a nearby
research station.
âThis little guy is lucky to have run into you; otherwise, it might not have survived the night,â the leader sighed after inspecting the baby penguin.
In a place like Antarctica, without the protection of its parents, it wouldnât have
stood a chance.
Before leaving, the leader told Ben and Anna that it was fate that brought them
together with the penguin, and they could take care of it for a while longer.
Ben and Anna immediately cheered with joy.
Their cheers caught the attention of Samuel, who was not far away. His eyes
widened when he saw the penguin in Annaâs arms.
âWhatâs this?â
Samuel couldnât believe his eyes as he stared again and again, âHow did you
guys get a penguin? You caught a penguin!â
âWe didnât catch it!â Anna retorted defiantly, âWe rescued it! The expedition leader
said that this penguin would have starved to death without us!â
Samuelâs envy was almost overflowing from his eyes. He leaned closer to Anna,
âCan I hold it?â
âNo!â Anna turned away, âYou threw a cake at me before. I donât want to let you
hold it.â
Perhaps realizing he was in the wrong, Samuel didnât dare to insist and just
grumbled, âI donât care! Iâll rescue one myself!â
After saying that, he left in a huff.
Noah and Harper, feeling embarrassed about their sonâs behavior, apologized to
Charlotte and Joe before quickly following Samuel.
Ben and Anna paid no attention to him and focused on the baby penguin.
Charlotte and Joe didnât think much of the incident either. However, an hour later,
Harper came running towards them, looking panicked.