The beautiful flowers that will never wilt, the beautiful scenery that encompasses the entire village, the lush and fresh scent that can always clear the mind without a girl being caught between confusion and need.
"Haaa this is making me dizzy, I'm almost at my wit's end."
The pile of papers on the study table contains some information about her grandfather's debt that she has been lamenting for almost a week, carmila who cannot do much can only wait for a miracle from her uncle to be kind enough to forgive her grandfather's debt. She only thought about what if her grandmother found out about something so troublesome like this. Carmila was reluctant to even say a word about her grandfather's debt to her grandmother.
"This will only make my grandmother worse, she just lost her grandfather from her life."
Debt that was a type of fraud tricked her grandfather into selling assets to join a carmila ranching business who didn't expect that the assets sold by her grandfather were mostly owned by her uncle The 15-year-old was forced to think about things she shouldn't have to think about, but she had to anyway
"I don't understand why this is happening, didn't grandpa always tell grandma the truth about everything he did, even the smallest things?"
Her hand held a letter, it was a reply to the letter her uncle had sent her the previous day to beg her to forgive her grandfather's debt and also to refuse his offer to become his young wife. If the girl accepted his offer, then the grandfather's debt would be paid off.
"What's this about me refusing his offer, he even threatened me to tell grandma about this and he even gave me advice to ask my brother for help."
She thought that if her grandmother found out about something like this, it would be difficult for her to get forgiveness from her grandmother, even if she acted rashly and agreed to become her uncle's young wife, it would provoke great anger for her grandmother and brother. Moreover, the relationship between her uncle and brother is not very good Jerl The brother who does not like his uncle who always cornered his grandfather for being poor even he also often insults their father for not deserving the Emerald family name which is famous for the kayak family.
The annoyed expression on his face was so clear that he even swore at his uncle.
"Ah... How annoying this old man is, he's always interfering with our lives since brother Jerl isn't here."
"Brother Jerl has also not been here for (7) seven years, actually I am very proud to have a brother who has the title of warrior in a city called RIVER. a big city led by a respected nobleman."
The girl sat on the chair and rocked the chair with her body leaning back and her face facing upwards while closing her eyes. The wind coming in from the window made her calm down a bit as her head felt empty instantly. Soon someone called her name several times.
"Carmila... Carmila..."
There was a woman's voice, the woman was a maid who worked at Carmila's house, Carmila who heard the call from Aunt Ami immediately came down from the second floor (two) slowly down the stairs while looking at her grandmother who was also there.
"Yes, auntie... What's wrong?"
She seemed to feel a gripping atmosphere, instantly the temperature in this room seemed to change seeing the grandmother's gaze fixed on the front door of her house, the girl glanced and asked who was at her door. There was a shadow of three people. A shadow that looked like a man she didn't know who was at their door and wondered why that person didn't come in.
"Carmila. ...."
The voice that came out of her grandmother's mouth sounded soft but she felt like someone was punishing a thief.
"If I can get an honest answer from your mouth without asking what happened. Tell this grandmother of yours why the man outside is looking for you."
"..Wha..what does grandma mean?"
"If you're so curious, see it with your own eyes, Carmila."
The girl descended the last step and walked slowly to the door, her irregular breathing making her almost faint as she walked, remembering the letter and her uncle's threat to tell her grandmother. Her steps quickened and stopped right in front of the door, the girl's eyes widened as she was surprised that the person in front of the house was the one she was thinking about.
Her body went limp as her trembling legs held tightly to the door handle to prevent her from falling to the floor.
"Hello Carmila... How are you?"
The old man called her name with a sly smile on his face.
"How carmila have you prepared what I asked for? Oh you even refused my offer. How my heart hurts..."
"You didn't even tell Mrs. Emerald about this, so I told her... my behavior..."
The girl was speechless again carmila just fell silent in front of winter and her grandmother, while slowly turning her head towards her grandmother how surprised she was to see the expression her grandmother made an expression that was disappointed because carmila had lied to her. She lowered her gaze to keep her tears from falling to the floor with the contents of her head wanting to explode.
"Mr. winter! Didn't I get the letter from Tempo the other day? You also promised not to tell this to my grandmother."
Winter who replied to carmila's conversation answered with casual words as if she didn't mind whatever happened.
"I did promise you that. But you refused to make you my young wife. Was I wrong Carmila?"
'This old man' Carmila muttered in her heart as her emotions overflowed as the atmosphere in the room was so tense that even an argument broke out between the girl and the old man.
"Mr. winter" a stern voice "why are you telling this to my grandmother, you know she has just recovered from her illness haa.. do you want to see her die in front of you ha....."
"You think I care about that carmila..."
Hannie who was watching the argument between the two of them made her dizzy her old body was unable to hear the loud voices slowly she
Walking towards her seat after sitting down and catching her breath she started to open her mouth to speak.
"Mr. winter let's settle the matter sitting down, this old lady can't stand any longer."
"Very well, Mrs. Emerald."
The old man smiled sweetly as he headed to the chair where he would sit.
The old man named winter was the grandfather's youngest brother who was still related by blood, Hannie who felt that her husband was innocent of all this because the assets that were sold also belonged to her husband who was the eldest brother in the Emerald family.
"Winter it's not that you and my husband are still related by blood but why are you so clean about your brother's debts, moreover you are offering a concubine position with my granddaughter. Aren't you going to trigger Jerl's anger and you know my granddaughter is only 15 years old."
Winter hearing those words made her laugh as if Hannie's words were a jokes"
"Mrs. Emerald I don't care about any of you including you and Jerl. I'm just asking for my rights, if you can't pay Mr. Moyes Emerald's debts please approve your beautiful granddaughter to be one of my wives, but if not please pay those debts."
"And isn't it good for a young and beautiful woman to marry at such an age, however I will also let her stay in school until she finishes?"
Carmila who heard this made her hurt when she saw the old man making fun of her grandmother. Her emotions were unstoppable as if her chest wanted to explode. She knew that if she lost control of her speech, it would be bad for the future. She slowly opened her mouth and began to speak
"Grandma..." The look on her face was full of hope that her actions would be approved by her grandmother.
"It's okay grandma if I become his wife as long as his grandfather's debt is paid off isn't it good grandma if the debt is paid off he will be calm in heaven there"
The old man's face was so happy when he heard the words of the young girl he had been dreaming of for years that it was like getting a gold mine for free, but who would have thought that the prize he was supposed to get was snatched back when Hannie made her mouth shut.
"Carmila ....!"
A stern voice immediately rang out making the girl's body instantly shiver as she had never once seen the expression she was making now.
"If you become his wife, I will make sure that you will not be able to meet me and Jerl until our deaths."
Carmila who heard her grandmother's words made her immediately drop Ari's eyes to the floor of the house the scene was seen by the old man and their housekeeper how could the girl not be able if she did not meet her grandmother even her grandmother was the one who took care of them from childhood when their mother and father had died
Hannie emerald who immediately made a decision with a cool head and she wouldn't even think about the future as long as her granddaughter survived the old man in front of her.
"Mr. winter please take my house. I would rather lose this house than my grandson but give me 1 month to contact my grandson."
"Grandma.... But this house is the only thing my grandfather left me."
Hannie's index finger went straight to Carmila's lips signaling that the girl should not speak first.
"How about it Mr. winter...isn't this an interesting offer...!?"
Winter, who immediately smiled sweetly, signaled that she had won a fierce battle.
"Well, Mrs. Emerald, it's a pity your grandson can't be mine."
"Then I'll excuse myself, Mrs. Emerald, goodbye."
Instantly the living room became silent as the girl just stood there looking down, unable to do anything if she hadn't hidden something like this from her grandmother, maybe they wouldn't have lost their house. The tears she held back slowly fell to the floor hiding the sound of sadness so as not to be heard by her grandmother but Hannie saw that it was all her grandchildren who had struggled in everything so that she would not be burdened.
Slowly Hannie began to walk to Carmila's side embracing her who was hiding her tears.
"Why are you crying dear? It wasn't your fault in the first place."
"I just feel like I failed to protect my grandfather's house, if I had told you this wouldn't have happened in the first place."
Hannie, who immediately embraced Carmila, felt guilty for not knowing that her granddaughter was carrying such a heavy burden at such an easy age.
"My dear Carmila, don't ever hide anything from your grandmother, if anything happens to you, how embarrassed I will be to meet your parents in hell."
"You, Jerl, are the entrustment of those who are currently in my arms. I'm willing to lose anything in this world as long as it's not you two, just your mom and dad..."
Hannie's grandmother's words touched the girl so much that even if Carmila acted alone and something happened, how disappointed she would be and blame herself.
"Even mom and dad would be ashamed to see you, grandma, because they left us when we were young."
Their lips smiled broadly how radiant the old woman's face was seeing her very beautiful granddaughter shortly after that aunt Ami who walked towards them carrying a piece of paper and envelope along with stamps carmila who wondered what the paper was for saw her grandmother writing word by word carmila who noticed the writing and saw several sentences that read under grandmother will send me alone to the city where her brother works
The girl's eyes immediately widened and immediately stopped her grandmother who was writing.
"Nek why.. why am I the only one going in that letter...!?"
Hannie knew that the expression the girl was making indicated that she was not willing to part from her grandmother.
"Grandma, if I go! Where will you live? I don't want that."
Hannie immediately explained what she meant and why only Carmila would go to see Jerl.
"Carmila, I'm going to stay with Aunt Ami, you know Aunt Ami is like our family, and the reason why you're not coming with me is because I don't want you to be bothered by the men in this village who are crazy about you."
"You know as well as I do that I am not able to travel far in my old age do you want to see your grandmother die on the way to meet Jerl and I will make sure I will always keep you informed Carmila."
The girl had mixed feelings on the one hand she could not be away from her grandmother but on the other hand if she continued in the village then Mr. Winter would always disturb her. Even though her grandfather's debt had been paid off by giving up their house, the girl knew that the old man must have a way to get her. Carmila, who was thinking about her grandmother's words, was right after all, she was not yet an adult in taking action while her grandmother had experienced various things.
"Take it easy, Miss Carmila, you are healthy in my place and the house that is now mine was also given by Mr. Moyes Emerald."
"No, you can't. The house is already the property of your aunt, so you live there."
Carmila immediately approached Aunt Ami and hugged her in a hug that seemed to express her gratitude for always being there when we were in trouble and even the aunt never left us.
"Anyway, Miss, the village where your aunt lives is very beautiful and the air is very cool there, there is no air pollution, everyone uses horse-drawn carriages."
They smiled simultaneously with happy faces how beautiful it was to see the three of them complementing each other as grandma saw it was getting late in the afternoon.
"Yes already carmila you rest and I also want to rest. Tomorrow deliver this letter Carmila"
"Yes, my dear grandmother"
After that moment Carmila went straight to her bedroom she dropped her body to the mattress and took a breath. The day that was so tired, she lived with mixed feelings that blended into one, Carmila did not expect the incident she avoided to happen today.
"Ah... this is really really tiring"
While placing a hand on her forehead. After daydreaming for a while Carmila got up from her bed and walked towards the window of her room. It was already dusk when Carmila turned her gaze towards the sky which began to show an orange color while enjoying the twilight breeze. The country air is still very clean with minimal pollution like in the middle of the city. Looking at the birds that would return to their cages from the sea to find food.
"The birds are very free, flying here and there in the sky. But sometimes their freedom is hampered by the hands of dirty humans who are thirsty for hunting."
Then Carmila closed the window of her room preparing to clean herself, she slowly entered the bathroom and took off her clothes one by one and began to wet her body. Pouring soap into her hands, she cleaned from her shoulders to her chest to her toes. After a while she slowly exited the bathroom wearing a handbag heading towards the bed to put on the clothes she had prepared earlier. Moments after getting dressed she began to climb onto the mattress and rest her body.
"It's been a rough day from grandpa's debt problems, uncle winter to correspondence to brother, I'm pretty sleepy as I'm not going to eat dinner for today and tomorrow I have to deliver the mail as well."
Turn off the lights and prepare for bed.
*****
15 days after receiving the letter back from her brother and 2 days after the letter arrived she immediately prepared herself to leave for the station. The day she had to say goodbye to her beloved grandmother, the look on her face showed that she didn't want to go far from her grandmother.
"My dear Carmila, take care of yourself dear, help the people who helped your brother."
"Yes, grandma... I also need to take care of your health since I'm not around."
Carmila, who immediately hugged her grandmother while shedding her tears, looked at her aunt Ami who she expected to take care of her grandmother.
"Bik, I'll leave your grandmother, thank you so much for helping and taking care of her when I'm leaving.
"Miss Carmila, don't say that, we're like family and Auntie also promised to send a letter to tell us about her condition.
Emerald"
For the last time they hugged the three old ladies Hannie who had to be willing to let go of her favorite grandchild to go far away without her accompanying her.
"Thank you, auntie, grandma, I love you very much."
After that carmila entered the train to her seat, she looked back at her grandmother and aunt from the window, while waving her hand a farewell that was so touching. tears could not hold both of them because carmila was never far from her grandmother. As the train slowly moved on, the grandmother's face disappeared, and Carmila could only contemplate and endure her sadness. Then she recalled the contents of the letter that her brother replied.
"Carmila you may not be old enough to understand what your grandmother said, but I agree with what your grandmother said, so come to the area where I work, when you get to the station in River City I will send my friend to pick you up and bring this letter just in case and when I return from the battlefield, let's talk. I know how you feel right now but your sister can't talk about it here, so let's go see Carmila, I'll be home in six months."
"Just hearing your brother's words I already know that he is very worried, but let's focus on the future I will help my brother as much as possible and will return to grandmother after this matter is over."
While looking at the scenery from the train window, she felt that this was the first time she had traveled far and taken a long time.
"What is the river city like?"