Everyone was done with dinner later in the evening. Every dish was wiped clean, leaving only crumbs, bones and traces of sauces. Even the elderly couple ate a lot more than usual tonight.
Ruediger, Lariette and Madeline worked together to clear the table before loading them into the dishwasher. Then, they joined Felicia and the elderly Walter couple in the lounge.
Outside the sliding door, snow fell softly from the sky as the wind howled. Fairy lights were strung under the eaves, their golden glow stread through the glass panels.
"Rudy, how about so chess?" Mr. Walter asked with a grin. He had already grabbed the chessboard.
"Sure."
Then, Ruediger found himself sitting across from Mr. Walter with a chessboard on the table between them. His hand hovered over a pawn before moving it forward.
"Hmm," Mr. Walter murmured as he studied the board through his silver-rimd glasses, "Tsk, Rudy, you always open the sa way. My old brain keeps forgetting that."
Ruediger drew his lips into a playful smirk, "Are you sure, Grandpa? Maybe it’s not your brain’s fault. Perhaps I want you to think that."
Mr. Walter smacked his thigh, "Oh-ho! Trying to trick an old man now, are you?"
"Grandpa, it’s chess. Of course, I’ve to trick you," Ruediger answered with a shrug.
Their banter filled the lounge as the ladies lingered nearby. Lariette sat with Mrs. Walter, a soft smile dancing on her lips as she watched the two n.
The sight of her man battling chess with Mr. Walter pulled at her mory, reminding her of her own grandfather. Her heart blood with longing toward the old man.
Ruediger often sat across from her grandfather in a similar posture as they were caught in their chess ga. She enjoyed watching them banter as they tried to trick each other.
Lariette held back from laughing. She couldn’t help but think all these n shared a mutual solace from the black-and-white board. It would be fun if Mr. Walter t her grandfather. Perhaps they could be good chess buddies.
"Lari, dear."
Felicia’s gentle voice echoed from the kitchen, catching Lariette’s attention. She turned, gazing away from the chess ga.
"Yes, Aunt Felle?"
"Co here for a mont please."
Upon hearing that, Lariette assud she was needed to help with sothing. She hurried over to the kitchen, her slippered feet padding across the floor.
The kitchen was already spotlessly clean from the afternoon’s activity. Not even a trace of oil or spices remained. The air freshener filled the space with the scents of magnolia and peony.
Lariette saw Felicia standing by the kitchen island. She was pouring rose tea into two delicate mugs. The pale pink hue glowed under the soft light.
"Aunt, do you need help with anything?" she asked while approaching the older lady.
"Sit here," Felicia said gently, motioning to a chair by the island, "We haven’t really talked just between us, haven’t we?"
"Oh... okay, Aunt."
As Felicia placed both mugs on the counter, Lariette sat, a little curious. White steam swirled from the mugs, carrying a faint yet calming floral scent.
As the ladies sat side by side, neither of them spoke for a mont. Beyond the kitchen, they heard the occasional tap of chess pieces, Madeline’s laughter as she teased Mrs. Walter, as well as Ruediger and Mr. Walter’s faint conversation.
Felicia’s gaze softened as she saw the hint of curiosity and worry on Lariette’s countenance. She began, "Lari, you know, I’m glad Rudy found soone like you. Thank you."
Lariette blinked, caught off guard, "Aunt, you don’t have to thank ."
Felicia smiled. She wrapped her hands around the mug, "I want to talk about him in the past. Would you like to listen?"
Lariette quickly nodded, her heart tumping with anticipation. She fidgeted with her mug without saying anything, knowing that Felicia still had more to say.
Felicia took a sip of her tea. Her gaze was a little distant. She lifted a hand to push a strand of hair behind her ear. Then, her voice echoed softly in the kitchen.
"That boy... I’ve adored him ever since he was born. He was a bright child. Always happy, always optimistic. Then, that happened."
His mother’s untily demise and his kidnapping, and then being blad for everything.
After a brief pause, Felicia spoke again, her voice more wistful, "When he ca to us with a broken heart all those years ago... he’s nothing like his usual self."
Lariette’s breath hitched. As her chest tightened in pain, the ache suffocated her from the inside. She understood what Felicia ant.
The incident back then had changed Ruediger. The once bright and sunny boy was no more as he hid his true self within a shell, afraid and disappointed with the world.
"He didn’t talk much, didn’t ask for anything," Felicia continued, her voice low, "We’re all worried. A child that young... he hid his wound. It took him a long ti to smile again. And... even a longer ti to laugh without forcing himself."
Felicia’s eyes glistened as she recalled the distant mory. She exhaled a sigh, carrying her past regret and current relief.
"You know, sotis I’d catch him in a daze. His gaze... was older than his age. At that age, he’d seen too much, felt too much of the ugly side of the world."
Another ache struck Lariette’s heart. She had glimpsed that sa heaviness from Ruediger before.
The day when Matthew Alvord showed up for the first ti flickered in Lariette’s mind. The older man had viciously taunted Ruediger when he ca to get her. He had also revealed more of his scars when he brought up his mother and the incident.
She had never seen him so vulnerable, as if he would break into pieces with a re touch. During those monts, he seed so distant, as if he would vanish in the next second.
The feeling was akin to desperately grasping at sand, only to have it slip through her fingers.
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