Reino's POV
March 14th.
"Take me right now! There's no time. Hurry!"
With hurried steps, he followed the old lady from behind. How can an old grandmother but her steps are difficult to align with his steps. Reino became increasingly suspicious and anxious about the old grandmother, but he had put forward his curiosity so that he could no longer turn around to get away from the old grandmother.
The old grandmother suddenly stopped at an old building with fragile walls here and there, which showed the form of red brick inside.
Reino's breath was gasping as he arrived in front of the old building. He still couldn't stop thinking, how he was so tired of walking with an old grandmother who he believed with his eyes that he was walking very slowly.
The old lady moved forward to enter the green wooden door of the old building.
Slowly Reino stepped into the door. An empty room completely unfurnished. There are only four chairs placed in a circle.
"Sit there!"
Reino gasped from his astonishment when the voice of the grandmother suddenly loudly ordered him to sit on one of the carved chairs in front of him. Reino nervously obeyed the grandmother's orders. He sat on the circular chair.
Suddenly a dazzling light caught his eye. He couldn't look around, even to see his own body he couldn't. The dazzling light swallowed Reino whole.
****
Reino blinked his eyes. He then got up from his sleep position in panic. His whole body was suddenly drenched in sweat. He looked around him. Thankfully, he woke up on the bed. Apparently, he had a dream.
"What a terrible dream."
Reino rubbed his face which was wet with sweat. He then got out of bed and rushed to take a shower. The clock he glanced over at the nightstand was already at ten in the morning. His coffee shop has certainly started operating. Today he had to come to the shop because Juan was bringing a girl who would work as an extra waiter on the weekends.
**
Reino parked his car on the sidewalk in front of his coffee shop. Reino opened his car door and walked over to his coffee shop. He looked up, staring at the wooden planks hanging in front of the shop door. Butterfly's Caffe, the name he chose when he first opened his coffee shop. The name butterfly reminds him of a fairy tale from his childhood when he was with his biological mother. A fairy tale about a princess who becomes a beautiful butterfly. Maybe this is one of the reasons why he doesn't want to date just any woman. He also wants to have a life partner who is the same as the princess in his childhood fairy tale. But of course, it is very difficult to find especially in modern times where the majority of women are more aggressive than men.
Reino entered his coffee shop at exactly eleven o'clock in the afternoon. The shop atmosphere on weekends is always busy. As usual, he went to Juan and asked him to make Americano coffee and three of his favorite croissants.
Reino sat in the corner chair in the room. He spread his gaze around the room. The majority of visitors to the coffee shop are teenagers. But some parents enjoy black coffee which is a mainstay in their cafe.
Then suddenly his eyes caught a girl with the typical appearance of a maid in his café. With the black apron that covered the bottom of the shirt and hat he was wearing plus the black tray containing the orders of the visitors, it was clear that the girl was a waitress in his shop.
Reino thought quickly, his brain was processing yesterday's memory.
'That girl must be Juan's friend who works part-time on weekends only.'
Reino didn't really care about the girl, he didn't immediately notice her face
Reino took a sip of his coffee cup. He enjoyed the hot daytime inside the shop by staring out the glass dividing the shop. The habit he always did when he was thinking about something. He remembered his dream last night. His dream last night seemed not a dream, he felt very real meeting the old grandmother in his dream. And he believes that last night he went to Baran's club. But how could he, he woke up on the bed in his room.
"I have to go to the Baran club tonight," he muttered.
He had to find an answer to his confusion. And Reino got an alarm ringtone from his cell phone.
'Ah, it's March 14th. Today the cafe must be open 24 hours, 'Reino muttered when he saw the warning note on his cellphone.
Every March 14, almost every year Reino has to remember that. A special date that he never forgot.
Flashback on ...
Little Reino was standing looking at the rows of flower plants that were blooming in color. He really likes the smell of flowers. Because his biological mother is a florist. His mother often took him to the flower shop where he worked.
And at that moment Reino saw several beautiful butterflies approaching the flowering plant. Reino also looked happy to see the butterfly.
"Vanetta!"
Reino turned his head towards the source of the sound. Her mother stood holding a bunch of flowers from her arrangement. Reino wondered why his mother called out a name. Vanetta, if he heard correctly.
"Mama!" Reino then approached his mother.
But Reino saw a sad look on his mother's face. What's the matter, why does his mother seem sad?
"Reino, Mama might become Vanetta."
"V-Vanetta, what do you mean Mama?" Reino didn't understand what his mother was talking about.
"Mama hope that when you grow up, never forget this!"
Her mother crouched down and whispered something to her, "Mama will turn into a beautiful butterfly. Become a Princess Vanetta."
Reino didn't understand what his mother was talking about at that time. Because since then, Reino has not found his mother at home anymore. And his father, instead, brought another woman to his house.
Reino tried to find his mother to where she worked. But the shop owner didn't want to tell him where his mother had gone. And she just left a thick book for him.
Reino received a book of classic fairy tales entitled "Princess Vanetta."
Flashback end.
Reino then went upstairs. To his private room. He remembered something.
Arriving there, Reino then opened his personal locker. Inside there then he took out the thick book that had accompanied him all these years.
Then he called all the cafe employees, including a loyal employee named Juan.
"Tonight, March 14th. Every year our cafe every that date we will be open 24 hours!"
Juan and the other employees took a deep breath. This means that his weekend evenings will be spent at this cafe until tomorrow morning.
"Boss, how about Ruby come to work tonight!" Juan gave the idea because if there was Ruby, at least the overtime nights wouldn't be tight.
"No, I don't want any female employees tonight. Just tomorrow morning!"
Reino then disbanded his employees again. He slightly heard the whispers of other employees who were curious about why they had to work late tonight. Exactly March 14th.
Reino just smiled at that. Indeed he didn't have any clear and compelling reasons to tell all his employees. It's all just because ...
Reino then opened another book of fairy tales from his biological mother.
Was it wrong for him to hope for a miracle if his belief used to happen He remembered that his mother had said that he would become a butterfly-like Princess Vanetta?
And Reino had read the book hundreds of times. Until he memorized it by heart. The fairy tale of Princess Vanetta who turned into a butterfly.
Reino is an adult, but somehow his little heart often hopes that a miracle will appear. He will again meet his biological mother who has turned into a butterfly.
And March 14th is Butterfly Day. He hoped that that day his mother would appear in front of him.