After arriving in Spain, where they were staying, Moreau went straight to her room as she needed a long rest. Exhausted and guilt—ridden were two inseparable combo packages. She barely understood why being with Abihirt... made them so good at hiding the truth. Still lingering was the memory of Barbara's enthusiastic welcome. The woman was even too impatient when she wanted to touch her gold medal.
There was no refusal. Of course. Moreau had let Barbara's fingertips feel the solid sphere of precious metal. The woman smiled broadly, briefly, but said nothing more as the moments passed. The euphoric reaction was indeed too brief. After all, no one expected any exaggeration. Moreau breathed repeatedly while trying to sleep. She began to drift off to sleep and suddenly the sound of a knock on the door from outside drew all her attention to look behind her. Barbara unexpectedly stood there, then immediately closed the door simply stepping into the room. She had somethinBarbara's one goal was to get to her husband. She smiled slightly as Abihirt's large, sturdy shoulders drew near. The man had been busy keeping the abandoned dog company for some time with one hand stroking the soft tanned fur, though sometimes it took a great deal of theatrics to get her husband's attention. Impatiently. Barbara's arm immediately reached out to touch the line of that shoulder. She curled her lips wider as Abihirt looked up in pure reaction to the action that had been taken. The instinct of caution had always been a part of the man's actions. "You will keep Chicao company all night here?" Barbara asked as a matter of course. How she wanted her husband. Now began to take implied action. Abihirt would probably understand, even if the man didn't specify. Only returning the touch of the back of her hand that still rested on the solid shoulder. Barbara did not know what thoughts were in Abihirt's mind. She was sure the man would not mistake the act of p
Froy's existence was never imagined to be on the meeting list. However, Moreau couldn't say anything when they were engaged in the same place. The man kept looking at her as if something was left behind, wrong and they needed to resolve. There shouldn't have been. Moreau was sure Froy had already considered his earliest decision the right choice. Hadn't the agenda to marry Lewi been stated by the man's own mouth? It was not surprising anymore—if anything, it was most likely that Froy was just saving some things to talk about. At the very least, still overwhelmed by the need for restraint. Not here. The moment where they had just paired off at the entrance, while Barbara was dealing with the mature woman who had introduced herself as the man's mother in front of Moreau, Gloriya... and was Abihirt's sister. Moreau still did not understand the genealogy of her stepfather's family. It just so happened that Abihirt did not come along on the jou
"Are you sure you'll bring your dog along?" Roger piped up after what seemed like an eternity of preparation. He only needed to drive, as Abihirt had just had a blood transfusion and as a doctor... there was no permission for his cousin to travel far. After all, Roger was also invited to join in on the family gathering. It wouldn't be too bad to go on a trip, though Abihirt's decision almost went against his principles when it came to doing activities that simply didn't involve pets. Now it took some effort when Abihirt even put Chicao onto his lap. "Are you sure your wife won't be upset by this decision?" Once again, Roger spoke up after being sure Abihirt wouldn't say anything to the previous question. The man was just busy rubbing the dog's fur or perhaps... in a vague way having a conversation so he wouldn't hear anything. Roger did not despair. He glared for an answer. Abihirt would understand him by saying something. "Barbara will not be an
Perhaps something wrong had involved the situation between them. Moreau could hardly believe that Gloriya would ask such a question directly. The woman was so inquisitive, while Moreau's only need was to stare at the pair of mother and son before her in turn. How was Abihirt treated when he became a surrogate father? Perhaps Moreau could describe many peculiarities. Sometimes too kind, or even apathetic to the various things that were part of the man's basic demeanor. She almost subconsciously thinned her lips when she then directly said half-knowledge, though it was not entirely true. "Abi is a little complicated. If there isn't anything important, he won't say much. But, so far so good, Auntie," Moreau said after a moment of considering the answer at the back of her throat. Gloriya seemed satisfied with her answer. She smiled broadly, quickly said goodbye and slowly walked out of the kitchen. Froy followed without saying anything important. Moreau didn't ex
Everyone enjoyed Gloriya's birthday party, but only one revealed no interest in getting involved in any of the scenes. Moreau was surprised to learn that Chicao had been brought all the way to the countryside and was now keeping Abihirt company. The man, dressed in a white collared shirt, was rubbing the dog's fur with rapt attention. Perhaps Abihirt had no significant intention of simply being in the middle of a family gathering. In fact, in moment ago, he had tended to shy away, despite Barbara's occasional attempts at persuasion. Now Moreau's attention was slightly distracted when she noticed her mother taking a step closer with a slice of birthday cake in hand. The woman's smile was wide after plopping down on the sofa, right next to Abihirt, though there was barely an enthusiastic reaction to the woman's arrival. Abihirt gave her a brief look, then went back to the business of brushing the dog's fur. "I haven't seen you touch anything in a while. Have some cake, Dar
Moreau hardly ever thought about how she should behave when they were in the same room together. "Because you know I'm getting married." It made no sense. It would take a lot of effort for Moreau not to be completely ignited into an odd feeling. There would be more often than not a desire to avoid this kind of man's attitude; narcissistic; self-confident. How she regretted ever harboring certain feelings and also longed for their relationship to be okay. Gruffly, Moreau blew air out of her lips, then said, "It's none of my business anymore. Whether you get married or not, I don't care and don't want to know anything about your and Lewi's relationship." "Because you're jealous?" The thought in Froy's mind was unbelievably absurd, prompting Moreau to glare again, this time adding a cynical reaction. "I'm not jealous." She replied calmly, but let Froy gather the rest of the man's will. "I believe that you act
Moreau did not understand what kind of purpose Abihirt had when the man told a false statement. Barbara was not looking for her at all. Instead, it was unfair to make accusations out of thin air. Barbara mentioned that she was only seeking attention by deliberately coming over while the woman was talking about something with Gloriya, to which Roger added between them. However, after all... that was a few hours ago. Gloriya's birthday celebrations had even been finalized with most of her stepfather's family having left the countryside. Only a few remained, who had been involved in making preparations from the start. Like her mother who indirectly became part of the family. "Where are you going this afternoon?" There was a beautiful meadow, but Moreau felt no need to answer Barbara's question explicitly. She just stared at the woman for a while before finally summing up the short statement at the top of her head. "I'd like to take a
"Your father is waiting, Chicao." While kneeling, Moreau did not forget to add a light stroke on the top of Chicao's head. The dog's tongue stuck out. Had she been able to reveal a more specific expression, she might have been able to tell that the well-groomed animal was showing excitement. Every now and then, Moreau took the determined action of glancing at a spot over there. It seemed sudden when her stepfather unexpectedly spoke with someone on the other side of the phone. No idea when. It was good that Abihirt would not pay attention to them. Now there would be some leeway until the man's business was done. Moreau was soon walking fast, half running, letting Chicao catch up with her and they stopped at the edge of the lake. There were no ripples in the water. It was a completely still surface, refracting the remaining shadows of the skyline along with the leaves of the large trees. "We'll stay here, Chicao." Patting the surfac