Five people sat in a room around a light brown rectangular table. The room's right-side square window let in soft golden light while the vent above it spewed fresh air into the space.
No one seemed least bit interested in finishing the neatly presented plain bread that had been sprinkled with pistachios. Everything happened as a result of one of them being so adamant about what he wanted from the moment he entered the home.
"I'm hoping you can help me in finding my relative, Miss Savior."
When everyone heard the hazel-eyed man's plea, they all fell silent. It wasn't expressed with optimism, but it sounded serious, especially to Brissia. She could tell without even looking at his eyes. Nevertheless, it wasn't the silence that bothered her.
Alessia seemed to be considering something as she kept returning to Veron's gaze. Veron then shook off the silence that had arisen by abruptly rising to his feet and glancing at Harris without emotion.
"All of your relatives with the surname Reister…"
Brissia, like Harris, was anticipating the continuation of Veron's words. She wasn't planning on being curious at first. However, if they received the answer that day, it would be well worth the voyage and their endeavor
"…Have died."
Clang!
The sound of the knife falling to the floor startled Brissia and Ashley, but not Alessia and Veron. Alessia looked at Harris with slight concern, while Veron didn't seem to soften his gaze from the man who was younger than him. Contrary to their expectations, Harris winced in pain as he waved his left hand.
"Ouch… It's too sharp to be a butter knife," Harris said while wiping the red liquid running down his palm with a napkin. "Just like your words."
Unbeknownst to anyone other than the recipient of the stare, Harris flashed Veron a meaningful grin. As a result, Veron's brow furrowed.
"Aren't you surprised?"
He responded to Veron's cynical question with a faint smile. "If my presence continues to bother you, please allow me to leave as soon as the sun rises."
Harris got up from his seat, walked the other way. All eyes were on him. However, just a few steps away from the dining table, he then stopped and turned to Brissia.
"Oh, and if you really want to leave this place, you can certainly come with me, Brissie."
Brissia stared in shock at Harris, who gave her a brief smile before walking out of the house. 'If she really wants to leave that place'? Had she not come to the house because of him? And 'she can come with him'? Since when did she ask permission for that?
"Thanks for the breakfast," Brissia said as she got up from her seat, turned away from the dining room with a straight face.
Following out of the house, Brissia found Harris walking down the hill. She hastened her steps, ignoring the strong gusts of wind.
"Stop, both of you!"
Veron's exclamations at Brissia and Harris brought them both to a halt. When they turned ttheir heads, Harris was slightly taken aback. He didn't expect Brissia to follow him.
Veron approached them with Alessia and Ashley. The dark blue-eyed man then said, "Instead of going around alone, it's better to come with us to Ruxuis."
"What kind of place is Ruxuis?" Harris asked.
"Hm... you could say, the most fertile plantation area on this island," he replied before turning around to Ashley. She took his hand, asking him to quickly leave together. Thus, Alessia motioned for Brissia and Harris to come with them in another direction.
Eventually, the two followed Miss Savior's family to a distant hill. The sky was not any longer dull when they arrived. Farmers of fruits and vegetables appeared enthusiastic about sowing and harvesting their crop. They put them in big baskets, which the middlemen then transport to a fruit and vegetable market right next to the orchard.
As Harris relaxed in the shade of a tree next to the market, he sighed. His hazel eyes were fixed in one place as soon as he heard a girl laughing warmly. Brissia. Despite being bathed in orange light, the girl appeared brighter than usual.
Ashley, who had a tiny lime leaf sticking to the tip of her nose, caused her to laugh. He'd heard Brissia say she couldn't talk to kids, but seeing the two of them interact was quite comforting to him. But then, a voice broke his reverie.
"Today's lovers no longer entwine their fingers, do they?"
A fruit seller made him turn his head in surprise. The woman with a slight frown on her face glanced at Harris before turning to Brissia.
"There are still some, ma'am. Maybe they just happened to not show up here," said Harris with a faint smile and a softer voice.
"Hm? So you're telling me that I only see lovers admiring each other from afar here?"
Seeing Harris dumbfounded, the woman let out a chuckle that sounded warm and friendly. Before Harris could deny, she gave him a strawberry. Harris spontaneously stood up and received it.
"I've never seen a strawberry this big before," Harris muttered, observing the strawberry with the size up to three-quarters the width of his right palm.
"Try it. Don't forget to make sure the girl tastes it too."
Harris smiled dubiously. "You only gave me one. How can I do that?"
The fruit seller smiled at him. "Split it in half. If you like it, come here again. When that time comes, I will give you more strawberries."
"Hm," Harris muttered while rubbing his chin. "Alright. Thank you, ma'am!"
Harris walked away from the fruit stand. The woman selling fruit had a smile still on her lips. A faint purplish light flashed from her brown eyes.
As soon as the woman turned away from the market, her brown hair darkened to black with purple undertones. Her white apron and shabby blue dress transformed into a black hooded gown with a tail that hung down to the ground.
"Brissie!"
Seeing Brissia turn her head immediately when he called her, Harris smiled. However, his smile vanished as soon as he saw something on Brissia's face.
"Why are you crying?"
"Huh?" Brissia raised half an eyebrow.
Harris remained silent as he watched the clear drops fall down Brissia's cheeks. His jaw tightened. Where did the girl's light laughter go? Who had brought sorrow to her face which had been quite radiant before?
He quickened his way to Brissia's side, pointed his finger at his own eyelid as if he wanted to tell Brissia without attracting the attention of Alessia and Ashley who were busy talking while looking at the merchants.
"Are you tired? Do your feet hurt? Or who bothers you?" Harris asked. He asked the last one with a haughty look on his face, rolling up his sleeves, which made Brissia laugh.
When her laughter had faded, Brissia said, "If anyone bothers me, they're the ones who will cry."
"So you admit to being tired and having foot pain?"
"Oh? No… I was standing in front of the onion stand for too long when I accepted Ashley's challenge of who could hold it the most."
Harris raised an eyebrow. He glanced at Ashley, who was wiping her eyes that looked watery. "Princess, are you crying?" he asked in disbelief, spontaneously attracting Alessia's attention.
"No! I didn't lose! It was Sister who cried first in front of them!" Ashley exclaimed, making Harris burst out laughing.
"Hey! Don't laugh when a child is crying!"
"Ouch!"
Harris glared at Veron, who smacked his head lightly. The blue-eyed man appeared out of nowhere beside him, looking at him coldly.
"Why did you hit me?! I laughed because of the challenge they did! Not because—"
"I know."
Seeing Veron nod indifferently as he hastened his steps beside Alessia, Harris gaped with an irritated look. He didn't want to lash out at Veron, though, because Brissia was right there by his side.
"Brissie, you don't hate strawberries, do you?"
Alessia, who overheard Harris's question, chuckled spontaneously. "What are you asking? Are you flirting or being paranoid?"
"I'm not flirting!"
"Alright, alright, don't get too angry," Alessia said with a slight grin. "I bought a lot of strawberries for strawberry shortcake, so I'll clean one for you later."
The sun had set by the time the five of them got home. While Alessia and Ashley were baking the cake and Veron told Brissia and Harris to wait, they went outside to get some fresh air. Like all aspects of the earth, they gazed serenely at the moon.
"The moon resembles your eyes."
Brissia chuckled at Harris, who sat next to her and had a serene expression on his face. "You do realize that my eyes are not silver, don't you?"
"I do. It's just... the soothing moonlight is very similar to the look in your eyes."
Harris's words stopped Brissia's laughter. She immediately thought of Veron's remarks at breakfast.
"What will you do after hearing Veron's answer?" asked Brissia carefully.
Harris was silent for a moment with a straight gaze.
"I will not give up."
He paused.
"I purposefully avoided asking whether the other Reister family members were still alive. If they're gone, I hope they'll show me their graves. But if they're still alive, I will do anything and everything, using my own methods, to find them."
Brissia's heart ached as she heard Harris's calm response. The wind gently brushed their hair as it blew the leaves on the trees around them.
Their hope was like a glint of moonlight in the night sky. It was only a matter of time before the heat that lit up the sky dashed their dreams.