"How does it feel to wake up in your room on your twenty-fourth birthday, after four years away from home?" Marjorie's questions are extremely curious visualizing her daughter having breakfast prepared by her.
"It's cool and weird at the same time. It's not like I don't miss you but after the first year you get used to it and it ends up being just another normal day, even more so on a weekly day, like today." Anne explains and shrugs slightly taking a good amount of scrambled eggs to her mouth.
Monday had come and brought Annelise's twenty-fourth birthday with her. She admitted that she had gotten used to the distance and lost the habit of commemorating that date, among so many jobs and exams a birthday doesn't seem that important.
However, being it or not, being with your family after so many months was something to be happy about. And Anne was grateful for that, however, she would be even more so if she didn't have to get out of bed as early as she woke up the day before, on a Sunday where she accompanied her parents and grandparents to Mass.
The reason why she had to wake up so early was not an exciting thing for her either, she would have lunch as a celebration for her entire family. Some people would be there that Annelise didn't like that much and was not at all happy to see them again.
But despite the regrets, the day had started positively. Her mother took her a hearty breakfast in bed with a nice gift.
A pink midi dress with details above the shoulders, low-cut neckline, and long sleeves. He put it on as soon as he got out of the shower after finishing his breakfast.
Annelise brushed her teeth perfectly and combed her blond locks, showing the curves in them. She sprayed his favorite perfume on her neck and wrists and then did a light make-up accompanied by a pink lipstick that would easily go unnoticed.
She put on white heels and did not leave her room before putting the crucifix around her neck again.
It was after seven in the morning when she arrived at the kitchen, all the curtains in the house were open and the main rooms were perfectly clean and organized, she wanted to be surprised by this but it was she who helped her mother to leave everything as it was.
"How beautiful! It was exactly as I imagined." The older one exclaims as soon as she looks at a daughter.
"I loved mom, thank you." Annelise smiles.
Anne compared Marjorie to setting the breakfast table as no one else had woken up yet and helped her get things going for the big lunch. They were interrupted when everyone was at the table and stopped to pray every day.
Around ten in the morning, she was asked to arrive by her family members, who were received with great receptivity by Annelise, who greeted them with a big smile on her face, receiving hugs and gifts.
It could have been a bad festivity with so many people, even though they were family members, but the situation bothered her so much that she blurted her head that she had a ticket to the Vatican late Wednesday afternoon. That is, she would have to tell her parents the next day.
The front door being opened so many times in that icy climate made a blonde feel a chill shiver down her spine. So, as soon as she was sure that everyone had arrived, she went to the kitchen that was, at the moment, empty and made a hot tea.
She leaned his body against the counter and sipped the yellowish, softly sweet liquid watching the fine drizzle that was beginning to fall through the large window in front of her.
"Twenty-four years ..." A strong but soft voice filled the room.
Anne turned her head slightly towards the entrance to the kitchen and saw Joshua. She smiled slightly at him and then turned her gaze to the cup between her fingers, allowing the boy, now a man, to stand beside her.
"While it seems like a long time I haven't seen her, I can't believe that four years have gone by in such a hurry." The loudest one already comments next to Annelise after a brief period of silence.
"But they passed." Sigh costly. "We all have duties and chores, no matter how painful life can be and cannot be stopped because people leave it. " Reflect on admiring the landscape through the same window.
"How sentimental for such a happy day as this. I hope you haven't found an overwhelming passion for the Yale corridors." She speaks, laughing lightly, gently pushing on the shoulder of the youngest who smiles.
"Luckily for you and maybe my bad luck, I didn't find any overwhelming passion at that time." Reveals.
"Bad luck?" He frowns thick eyebrows pretending a disappointed expression. "Am I that bad for you, Miss Gibson?" He inquires in a funny tone of voice.
Anne laughs and pulls her body away from the bench, stopping in front of the tallest, holds the cup with one hand, and guides it free to Joshua's brown fringe, lovingly arranging its strands.
"No, on the contrary, it is too good and that is why I think it deserves a woman who repays this kindness in the same measure." She speaks honestly.
"Anne, I don't want to sound insistent. I just wanted to let you know that I missed you so much and I blamed myself several times in those years for being so insecure and that's why I didn't ask you out." Account.
"Don't worry about it, it's gone and deep down I know that you knew I would refuse, after all, I would spend years away and I wouldn't be able to arrest you from meeting new people here." Anne says staring into his eyes.
"But and now?" Asks and Annelise gently frowns confused. "And now that you're here for real, would you go out with me?" He questions nervous.
"Joshua, I'm sorry." Sighs and removes her hand from his brown hair. "But I'm not here yet, I'm going to take a course in a few days and I'm going to spend a few more months away." Reveals.
"How much time?"Joshua asks.
"More than six months." Says and sees him make a funny face which made her laugh calling his attention to her. "Well, so you don't get so homesick or feeling bad I promise that as soon as I get back we will go out to dinner." She smiled sweetly seeing a beautiful smile born on the boy's lips.
She didn't want to deceive him but she also didn't want him to be feeling bad about it, it would just be dinner with a few laughs. Joshua was a nice person anyway, it wouldn't be a super effort to spend time with him.
"Are you serious?" Asked excitedly taking his right hand to Annelise's waist.
"Completely, absolutely serious. Look forward to meeting me again in a good way." She smiles.
"Please don't get rid of your bangs at that time, you look beautiful." Praise.
"Thanks, Josh." She calls him by his old nickname.
Silence reigned again and Joshua's hand on Anne's waist was used discreetly to bring her closer as he approached. The shorter one had barely noticed this proximity before repairing his face next to hers and the taller look down from her eyes to her mouth again and again.
"Am I disturbing something?" Anne's mother enters the kitchen a little embarrassed.
"No mom, not at all!" She smiles, walking away from Joshua. "I came to have some tea to warm up and ended up meeting Josh, I was telling him about these last few years." Shares openly.