Little Cherine Book 03 - BPost060

“It is alright love, she did not mean it in a bad way. Not Natalie.” I smiled at her. “I guess you are right. Someone has to or we just let everyone do as they wish. Then we are not a community, just a lot of selfish individuals. They insist I be leader, so I’ll do what I have to.”

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1991

Sam said, “I’m also going to have to talk to Socrati.”

I smiled happily. “See? You thought I was being silly.”

The conversation took off in other directions and I sat back drinking my tea (like medicine - my mother just won’t make me coffee). Themi arrived and I noted that first he went to his brother, picked him up and after cuddling and kissing him he kissed his wives. He turned to Aganthi.

“How is our birthday girl?”

“Themi, I was hoping to make her think we forgot.” I teased. “I started off by thinking only the family would go out to celebrate, then I thought, she will want her sister and friend, so that brings in Socrati and family. There is no way we would leave her pappou out so that brings in another family. I might as well invite all.”

“You are going to have a party for me Roberto?”

“A party where you will be the flower queen for the night. Would you like that love?”

When I was a teenager I thought it is just about the most difficult thing in the world to get a pretty girl to want to kiss me. From the reaction of Aganthi I saw that it is not so difficult after all. As she leaned over me to kiss me I rubbed my hand up her thigh within her dress and whispered, “You want some time alone? I can think of a few things I’d love to do with you.” She giggled and her eyes shone; all the answer I needed.

Nicko arrived, breathless with excitement and rushed over to Dommi, to grab her hands.

“I couldn’t wait, I had to find you to tell you. I’m going to become a father Dominique!! Twice! Both my wives are pregnant.”

My worry did not temper my joy for him and we all congratulated him with enthusiasm. He would not stay for us to celebrate, as he was in a rush to get back to his loves. Worry? What worry? My wives of course. I’d felt their reaction and knew what I would be going through that night. Perhaps I should stay up all night and get some new work done for Alki.

I had been considering while we drifted along, the girls all chatting away. I spoke to our Natalie softly, “If you had the choice of going back in time, would you have chosen Themi, or do you think you could have loved someone else?”

“What a silly question. You know I love him.”

“Yes I do, but you are not madly in love with him. Would you not have liked to feel that way?”

“I’m not a silly teenage girl Roberto. What you talk of, it does not last, unless it can turn to the kind of love I feel for him. Cherine chose very well, he is a very good man and very caring. He treats your mother and me as if he does not deserve us.”

“He doesn’t, but he did get you.” I teased.

“Why are you asking?”

“I’m thinking of her. Who will she have. In their world Robert is not friends with Alki, so Themi is two steps away from them still."

“Do not worry about her, she will find someone to love.”

“I suppose we cannot expect everything to be exactly the same on all the worlds.”

“I think not. I thought that was why they were called alternate worlds.” She leaned closer. “Are you going to make her a Cherinian?”

“No.”

She did not get upset, very little seems to manage that with her. “Why?”

1992

“The Robert and Cherine of her world must do that.” She nodded, finding it reasonable.

“Natalie, would you like to be a Cherinian?”

“I was hoping you would invite me. I would Roberto.”

“Not here, you will spend time with your Roberto and Cherine. Would you like to stay for Aganthi’s and then Cherine’s, our Cherine, birthday in about ten days? Then we can go back to your world and help with Dominique.”

That all arranged we went home where I would have to face a bunch of determined girls. The computer would not have saved me, they were a very determined bunch. I listened to them without arguing.

“Alright. Whoever wants a baby I’ll agree.”

They have become a very suspicious bunch and did not jump with glee as I’d expected them to. “He is planning something, I can tell.”

“I’m not Laura.”

“There has to be a catch otherwise you would not have agreed we all can.”

“No catch, I even include Gilli if she wants. There will be a slight problem of course. If we are going to be over forty within six months this house will not fit us anymore. It is not a big problem, nor unexpected. Even if we somehow make space, when the forty become eighty we will have to solve it.”

They had not thought of the consequences, only of what they want.

“What will we do Robbie?”

“We cannot keep on building bigger and bigger houses. We will have to split up.” They did not like that. I sat forward and explained. “There will have to be other changes too. As it is, I do not have enough time to love each of you as often as I would like to. With more of you around I will not be able to put off solving the problem. We will have to have a son and the kids go to live with our son. Otherwise, if you insist on carrying on with me as the only male, I will have to split my time. That means I would spend nearly a full day with you, say twenty three hours and then jump in time and spend twenty three hours with the other half of our family.”

They were relieved, they felt they could live with that. Cherine sat, her face moody, looking at all of them and finally saw they do not understand and she could not contain herself anymore.

“Are you all stupid? Do none of you know how to use simple arithmetic, must I get all of you a calculator? If Robert spends a day and night with us and then a day and night with the rest of us, what do you think will happen to Robert?”

They all stared at her. Dommi, Claudia, Aganthi were not included in the conversation, but even they, apart from Dommi, had not grasped what Cherine was on about.

“He will be living two days for every one we live. That means two years for every one we live. Even if we can live a thousand years that mean Robert will be a thousand years old in five hundred years and he will die. What if the forty have another forty babies? Then he will only live two hundred and fifty years. How long before they also want babies? And more and more…” She began to sob. “I will not live without him for most of my life. I will not.”

If I had said what she did, they might have seen the sense, but would have resented it. By Cherine saying it, all they felt was a horror at what she had said and despair of ever having babies.

Sam was the first to recover and start thinking. “What are we going to do Robert?”

“It is all a matter of time love. I think we have taken the wrong road by mistake. This business of being Cherinians, of seeing the changes, has been exciting and in my enthusiasm I did not face facts. Now we have to.

1993

The first mistake we made was out of ignorance. We let our healers take control. That has to change. You are wondering why I am blaming the healers? When one of you is to carry a child, what does the healer do? It changes the natural period of expecting and that is a clue we should not have missed. It means the healer of the mother is interfering with the foetus and what we thought of as being part of being Cherinian is directly because of that interference.

I must qualify what I am saying by telling you that I am only guessing. Until tonight I had not given it much thought. Let’s pretend I am right and see where it takes us.

What if we can stop the healer from interfering. It must not cause the changes that awaken the foetus so early. It should only see that it has optimum health, that the brain develops so that every child born a Cherinian has a high intelligence. It must not however do anything to change how it develops mentally. Imagine this scenario if you can. Say Meli has a baby, it grows within her for anything between six to nine months. Perhaps the nine months are not necessary, we must go into it with our healers.

The baby does not start communicating and reading our minds. It is born as almost a normal human child is. Although the body will not age, it must in appearance seem to grow a year for a year until the child is a certain age. Say ten, just for arguments sake. At that time we teach it and open the doors to gifts it is owed.

That means no longer will our daughters be born in love with me, expecting to become our wives. They will form their own families.

If that is the case I could agree to have some babies this year. Not all of you at once please, say three per year.”

Claudia shook her head in disagreement. “You are wrong Robert, if the healer does not affect the awareness of the baby, so that it is born as a normal baby, it means it will not have a healer to keep rejuvenating it, so it will age normally…maybe a bit slower than the Normals, but much faster than us. Only when it dances with us in the void and finds its own healer will it stop ageing.”

I nodded. “You are probably right - it sounds even better than my scenario does, thank you, love.”

This had turned into a solemn moment, we were possibly planning the changing of the way all Cherinians will live henceforth. It frightened me.

I sensed a deep sorrow in Cherine. She accepted what I said as being likely and if so, inevitable. I raced through my mind, so as not to look into hers, trying to understand her sorrow. I remembered her promise and dream.

I have struggled, as much as possible, to treat all my loves equally. In this I might not have the right. I will have to hope everyone understands. The problem is that it means that not only will Cherine be treated as being special, so will her daughters and all theirs. I privately let Dommi see what is the problem. She took it upon herself to speak.

“If what you say is correct Robert, then we must do as you said. There has to be one exception though.” She waited, the moment becoming dramatic as they all waited, holding their breaths. “This cannot apply to Cherine and her children and the children of her children, for all time. Before there were any of us, there were just you and Cherine. A promise was given and accepted, a dream was born and she has the right, out of all of us, to that dream. Did she not promise to give you daughters and their daughters would give you daughters and that all of them would love you and be your wives?”

“She did.”

Cherine suddenly looked afraid, not daring to hope. I ignored her and felt all the others. There was some envy, but not one of them resented her; not one of them did not feel that she deserves to be treated as being special with rights belonging only to her in this matter. My heart swelled with love for all of them.

“Cherine, They all agree. Aren’t they all wonderful? I must qualify what Dommi said. Not for all of time. Would you feel your dream has come true if three generations are exempted? That would be up to our great grandchildren. After that let them be as the others my love.”

“That means Rosie..?”

“Yes love. Her child and her grandchild, if Rosie so wishes it. We have to allow each of them the choice.”

1994

Now, suddenly that her dream was being given back to her, Cherine was more concerned about the others, how they feel. As none of them had carried the same dream as her, she saw they do not mind. All the others, at this time, only care that we, the existing ones, do not have to split up.

“I cannot begin to tell you how much I love all of you for agreeing to this. Please expect that when you do become pregnant you may feel differently. The thought of your child not being part of our circle and someday leaving us to start another family will be difficult to accept. It is understood and we will all support you at the time. As with normal humans we will have to accept that our children will leave us and have their own families. As for circles - the same way we brought Alki, Marian and their children into our circle while they also belong outside our circle, can be done with our children. They will be part of our World.”

“In a way it will be wonderful Robert.” The girls looked puzzled, they could accept what had to be done, the way it would be, but they could not see how it could be wonderful in any way. “When I gave birth to Tina and Cassie I felt sad that I would not have them as babies and enjoy all those things a mother does and experiences as her baby grows. Now we will. I can hardly wait to have my first baby again.”

Just to be certain nobody thinks I am dictating the rules, I asked, “What do you think, should we set the normal childhood till ten or make it later?”

Dommi smiled. “I’m not a dreamer Roberto. They will have to learn to jump early on, how long will it take for them to develop their other gifts? I think some will be much earlier. What is important is that they are not born locked in to our circle, the rest does not matter as much.”

“I could put certain blocks, but I would prefer not to.”

That night they all needed to be made love to, but not one asked to be impregnated. They were all still in shock and just needed the loving and the reaffirmation that our love has not changed. I gave all I had and was totally drained once I’d held the last little body in my arms. At least Cherine and Dommi made it a little easier for me by not minding if they wait for the next night - which by the time we finished was not that far away.

Jade was not playful, poor Cassie having to do without her chum. I sensed her thinking deeply and was not surprised when she jumped to the beach at Dar to be by herself. I sent the protector to watch over her. That a child of her age should stay thoughtful for so long is amazing. I had not imagined she could concentrate on one problem for so long. It was lunchtime when she returned.

“Robbie?”

“You have decided something, my precious?”

“Yes. If you agree.”

“You better tell us then.”

“I was thinking, all those children, it would not be fair for them to not also have their own Robert. A Robert like those in the other worlds. You made me out of yourself. Robbie, when I have your children, I think they must be boys. They should be exactly like you and that means all those girls will be loved as nobody else could love them.”

“But if the kids all grow like normal humans up to a certain age, they will not become fixated on each other love. There is no guarantee they will love each other that way. They could just see each other as brothers and sisters.”

“I thought of that. Robbie, I don’t want to have a child yet. Maybe in three or maybe in five years. If the others can wait, I can have my son first. Then when the others are pregnant we let them sense him and love him.”

I smiled. “I can’t quite see that happening, he would still be a toddler.”

“No he won’t. He will be born as your daughters have. When the others are pregnant, he will make himself a grown up.”

1995

I could definitely see that Jade is part of me. Her way of thinking, of making assumptions is exactly like me. Cherine, Dommi and some of the other girls saw it too and yet, this is the strange part, they all had confidence in her, that her idea will work because she wants it to. Since that is how they feel about my ideas, usually, I did not say anything more, just hugged her tightly.

“I guess it is up to you girls, you want to start having your babies now or wait for Jade?”

They all decided to wait. Dommi also agreed to wait.

“I will also wait Robert,” Cherine said. “I’ve had Rosie and I can wait for the others before I have another baby.”

I sighed dramatically. “Nobody wants to have my baby!”

They were about to ignore me, knowing I was teasing, but suddenly my little imp, Cassie laughed. “No, you can have a baby Robbie - with Lynda.”

“You’re joking.”

Suddenly they were all excited, the young ones. Cherine, Dommi, Aganthi and Claudia just sat there looking bemused.

“You are wrong Robbie. She wants to have your baby.”

“That may...”

“She does Robbie.” They were all trying to speak at once, determined to convince me. I put up my hand.

“May I finish what I was about to say? I will not have a child outside of our family. There is no way she would agree to leaving her baby with us.”

“Of course she would. She has a career.”

Em-e interrupted the others. “Robbie, you will have other babies outside our family.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Have you forgotten, you promised. Agapi and Klo.”

“I thought they had got over that silly idea.”

“Of course not. Klo is just waiting for Agapi to also be old enough. Even their parents want it.”

Meli cut in again. “Robbie, that thing about Cherine being the only exception? I think it is not right.”

I was disappointed in her. “What now Meli!”

“You forgot Orshiir and Solace. They also have to be an exception. The Anadir and Sparklers would be hurt if you did not agree. I also think that Gilli should be an exception.”

I was cross with Meli. “If you wanted to suggest that you should have done it without them present. If I say no, now they will be disappointed, you’ve got all of them excited and hoping.”

“Roberto, can I speak to you alone?”

I went with Dommi to the office.

“Meli is right Robert.”

“I know she is. I was just annoyed she did not think of the consequences if I refused.”

“You could say that for them you only agree to their first child marrying you. The rest to grow up as the others.”

“No. We suggest that as a possibility, but not as a condition.”

“I can feel you Roberto! The idea of their children as your wives excites you.”

1996

“No comment. Dommi, stop being a wife and just be a friend on this.”

She laughed. “Any normal husband asked his wife that would be looking for a divorce or at best a kick in the balls.”

“I’ll take the kick.”

“I thought you would, you’re a real coward.”

“Hell, I haven’t even married the two yet!”

“Any ideas about that?”

“Yes. I know where we will get married.”

“What do you mean?”

“Where can the Sparklers and the Anadir come to?”

“Oh, on Meli’s world.”

“Wrong. You are going to love this one.”

“Tell me.”

“You think I should tell you? Before the kick or after?”

Laughing I walked back to the sitting room. Dommi followed and grabbed my ear.

“Tell us damn it!”

I was still laughing too much to talk and she told the others what we were discussing. They all wanted to know, all making wild guesses. I wiped my eyes.

“Okay, I’ll tell you. In the void, but not our World as some of you suggested. On the beach of the Sparklers.”

I should have guessed that it would cause Solomon and Ordinx to appear. I had been right, the girls are in contact with them somehow.

“Robert, do you mean it?”

“Solomon, when I suggest something crazy, don’t I usually?” Being in the mood I was, it was only natural that I continue. “Dommi, can you arrange the catering please? How many billion guests should we expect Solomon?”

By now the girls were all giggling and with me. They all started asking Dommi, could we have chocolate eclairs and so on. Cassie got the biggest laugh.

“Dommi, mummy, will you bake the wedding cake or buy it from Varsos?”

The whole matter was so important to Solomon, Ordinx and their people and here we were playing the fools. I tried to apologise between the laughing, but it did not sound too good. They looked at each other and then grinned.

Solomon asked, “Dommi, could we have little balls of our energy food fried in fresh butter please? One ball per Sparkler will be enough. About one and a half trillion.”

Dommi took it well and I caught her glancing at Cherine. I looked and my heart felt it was bursting, I have never seen her so happy and the reason was not difficult to guess, since she was staring at me raptly.

“Solomon, how many billions of years have your people existed? In all that time has there ever been a wedding with so many guests?”

1997

Though I was grinning when I said it, everybody sobered up as they were caught up in the wonder of that fact. Even the two ‘brides’ looked intimidated by the idea. I went to them, who were holding on to each other. I got on my knees.

“Here we are joking about our getting married, but we have not asked you whether you want to marry us. Say no and we’ll all die.”

Dommi spoilt it. “Don’t let that worry you girls; he’ll just come back to life.” She had got them all giggling again, just when I’d tried to be serious. It did not help that I joined them.

Solace asked seriously. “Has there ever been another proposal where everybody was laughing so much?”

“I don’t know. I rather doubt it.”

“Then I’ll accept. Orshiir?”

“I don’t know. I want to ask Ashiir, she did warn me about Robert.”

Nothing would satisfy them but that I go and get Ashiir. I refused. “We have a birthday party on tonight. Ordinx, make her a body and I’ll bring her soul.”

“No, I’ll do it. She will need some time to adjust Robert.”

“Then you better bring her now. May I suggest she be about eighteen in age and you make yourself a man of about twenty five. Don’t dress her, appear in our bedroom and the girls will find something really pretty for her to wear.”

Ashiir was wonder-struck. “I thought that because I have eyes like you, we see the same. Everything looks so different.”

“One thing looks the same. I see Ordinx modelled your looks on your Anadir face. Either way you are truly beautiful.”

She put on a haughty look. “It is too late for you to change your mind Robert, I now love Ordinx.”

I looked devastated. “You would break my heart? Not even give me one more chance?”

“Ordinx, he is flirting with your girl. You are supposed to sock him on the jaw.” Sam told him.

He thought the idea silly, but since Sam said so, he carefully took his shoe and sock off and flapped it against my jaw.

“What was that supposed to prove Sam?”

She fell for it, thinking he was serious and got hysterical, carrying everyone with her.

“Ordinx,” Ashiir said, “I see Robert has been a bad influence on you.”

“Oh yes, he has.”

“Ashiir? Are you happy with the dress?”

“Why? Doesn’t it look pretty?”

“They should have chosen one that shows more of those lovely legs, I suppose the girls felt they couldn’t stand the competition.”

Ashiir did not understand, but Sam, Meli and Bernie who had dressed her protested, laughing.

We arrived at the club in a very good mood, finding all our party waiting for us. I sat my birthday girl by me, with her pappou on her other side. I placed Solomon on the other side of me, since he was alone, his friend Ordinx sitting with Ashiir.

I felt Dommi nudging my mind to listen in.

1998

“..seen him like that. Wasn’t it wonderful to see him laughing and being so silly. I used to think, when I first met him that I would be able to make him laugh like that. I never thought you would be the one to manage it.”

Dommi replied, “Why? Am I too serious?”

“Sort of.”

“Actually, I did not make him laugh, he just used me. He was in a teasing mood and it got out of hand. I thought I’d die when Solomon and Ordinx came, all excited, and he carried on laughing and being silly.”

Earnestly, Cherine said, “I didn’t. All I cared about was that he doesn’t stop. Anyway, they know him too well now to get upset.”

“Fried balls of energy! We don’t often hear Solomon making jokes.”

As I’ve said before, Cherine has a one-track mind so she ignored what was said about Solomon. “I wonder why he suddenly felt so happy tonight.”

“It just happened Cherine. You can’t make moments like these happen on purpose.”

I had heard enough and withdrew. If that is what it takes to make her so happy, despite what Dommi said, I’ll have to engineer some, more frequently.

When we had settled, Ashiir saw couples dancing and she wanted to try it. When she was on the dance floor they had every eye on them. With her lovely face and long, very long slim legs and his lean tight looks, they make quite a couple. There was a couple who were just swaying to the music as the girl had her arms about the man’s neck so Ashiir did the same. As she pressed her body to his it was as if electricity had jolted through them and they stood swaying, staring into each others eyes.

“Solomon, it looks like Ordinx has fallen in love with Ashiir in her human form also.”

He stared at them. “Robert, would you dance with me like that, I’d like to feel what it is like.”

“As long as you don’t fall in love with me.” I joked.

“Sparklers don’t fall in love.” he earnestly replied.

I gave Aganthi a kiss and went to the dance floor. Solomon had aged himself, but he still looked more like a fourteen year old and I got a lot of scowls when they saw him press his little girl body against mine. He put his arms around my neck and stared into my eyes. I stared back, noticing that they were almost the colour of Sparklers, just deeper and darker. I felt a tingle, a thrill go through me and my body reacted to the pressure of the lithe warm young body against mine. As I stared I felt as if I were being drawn deep into her and I wondered why I had never noticed how lovely she is.

“Jesus. What did you do to me Solomon?”

“I thought you did it.”

Sam advised me, *It was the Sparkler motes in your soul, made you feel an affinity for him.*

I spent the rest of the evening lavishing my attention on Aganthi, who was so happy she really did look like a flower queen. She had been spoilt all day by her daughter Irene who kept on returning to sit and talk with her. I saw the way the eyes of Aganthi follow her all the time.

“It still seems unbelievable that you have a daughter, never mind one so lovely and sweet?”

“How could I ever imagine Roberto that I would sit here still a teenager, with a real body of a ten year old, watching my daughter dancing in the night club I used to sell flowers in. I’ll never forget what you did for me.”

1999

“I didn’t do anything for you Aganthi, you are not in my debt. You were such a lovely person, and pretty too, I just had to have you for myself. I think it is I who am in your debt. You’ve given me such a wonderful love and a daughter any father would die to have. She has a magic to her, when I am troubled she comes and sits in my arms and without saying anything she brings peace to me. You named her well.”

The daughters of Apostoli came, giggling, and took Aganthi. All the girls followed to the stage and down on one knee they surrounded Aganthi. The group began to play a tsifteteli song and Aganthi danced. She also did a hasapiko and strangers from the crowd were throwing flowers and calling for more. When she returned to me, flushed and eyes shining, I looked at her in wonder.

“You looked fantastic, like a gypsy out of a fairytale. Aganthi, your spirit shows when you dance; there is a strange wildness to you. Yet you are one of the most gentle girls I have ever met. Never mind your loyalty to friends and family. Girl, how could you dare to think you are in my debt!”

Alki came over and kissed her, telling her she made him proud. Then Savva came over and teasingly said to her, “That’s my girl. You showed them we Albanians are the best dancers.” She nearly cried when he called himself an Albanian because of her brother and sister.

If anything else could have happened to make her happier I don’t know what it is. The early hours of the morning when we went to bed were spent with her in my arms, loving each other with that wild abandon she sometimes shows. I first made love to her as an eighteen year old which I think calmed a fear that I might not love her as an adult. She then shrank back to her normal appearance of a ten year old, a slightly gawky girl, but made even more enchanting by it, as she lay in my arms being cuddled. It did not take long for me to get aroused by her tiny body, though it is still strange to make love and half an hour later have to break through her virginity again.

I think we must have just fallen asleep when there was a knock at our door and Marian came in. “Come on lazybones, all of you get up. We’re waiting for you outside.”

“Marian, if you were hoping to come in and see me in the nude, I’ll see to it for next time.”

“I’ve seen you, nothing special there that I could see. Wait till you grow up and become a real man like my Alki, then you can brag.”

“What is it? Why are you here?”

“Get up and find out. Aganthi, bring your passport with, I’m told the officials want to see it.”

She did that on purpose, phrased her wording carefully so as to give us a scare. We washed and got dressed fast while we all calmed Aganthi, telling her she is not in trouble, we will take care of anything, and so on.

“Your coffee and toast is ready. Come on, hurry up, we don’t have all day to wait for you lot.”

I had sensed a crowd outside in our garden. I also know my girls and sensed they were all trying hard to hide something. With the excitement in the air we did not stay to eat properly and I led Aganthi before me as we came out the door. The whole crowd of Cherinians were there.

Alki came forward. “Aganthi, we could not have everything ready yesterday. All the Cherinians got together for your birthday and bought you a present. None of us have forgotten that brave little girl who ran away, against orders, and followed this idiot all over the world, trying to keep him safe. We felt this birthday is the perfect occasion for us to show you how we feel. This is yours, from all of us.”

He handed a large envelope to her. She took it, looked at me, I shrugged, and she opened it. She read the first page and started to cry. Alki took her in his arms.

“If you don’t like it we will get you a better one, you don’t have to cry.”

She could not speak and turning handed the papers to me. They were the title deeds for an apartment they had bought her. Even I was stunned. When I saw the price I nearly fainted.

“Alki, this is too much!”

“Everybody has given what they could, even your wives. This is a gift with two purposes. Firstly it is meant to be a birthday gift and secondly, it was also our way of thanking her for being such a wonderful and brave girl.”

2000

The flat is at the top of Ekali, just where Politia starts. It is a double story house with a separate entrance for the owners of the ground floor. Aganthi has the top floor. Three bedrooms, dining room, living room, two halls, master bedroom with bathroom en-suite. The balcony is large and has a view of Mt Ymittos, Athens and Mt. Parnitha. It is beautiful and someone (Claire) had filled it with very expensive furniture, some of it very precious antiques. The furnishing and Persian carpets must have nearly doubled the cost.

Aganthi walked around, to touch each piece and caress it and the tears kept falling. She does have a bit of a practical kind of mind and when she saw the kitchen she cried out. It has every kind of gadget she could have dreamt of and everything is only the best, none of it made in China. The house is ready for a family to move in.

Everybody enjoyed her excitement and happiness. When she left us and went and stood on the balcony we were all surprised to sense a deep sadness come over her. She looked out at the view for a long time while we all looked at each other in puzzlement. She came back inside and sitting, serious now, she called me to sit opposite her.

“Roberto, you did know about this.”

“I did not. I was just as flabbergasted as you were. What is wrong Aganthi?”

“You are sure you did not know? You did not arrange this so as to get rid of me?”

“What the hell are you talking about!” She sensed I was not only puzzled, but also angry.

She waved around at everything. “What was I supposed to think Roberto. If it was an empty flat I could think they want me to rent it out. It is not empty Roberto, I cannot rent it like this, the things are too expensive. Then I thought of how specially nice you were to me and thought you were saying goodbye.”

Claire came forward. “Aganthi, I’m sorry, I was not thinking. I wanted you to have a dream home, a place you would be proud to bring anyone. Roberto did not know.”

“You did the furnishing?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“Next home I get I must get you to decorate it for me, you did a beautiful job. Aganthi, I am hurt and disappointed. Did you truly think I would do anything like you think without talking to you? Is that what you think of me? That I am deceitful and a coward? Yesterday and last night was because I love you so much, how could you ever think I would want to get rid of you?”

“Robert, the evidence does…”

“Don’t even try it Dominique. I understand her fear that I might not want her anymore. I thought though that she knew me better than to think this of me.”

*Robert, you are turning something that was meant to give her and the people who gave this present joy, into a moment of pain!*

“Aganthi, forget what I said. I keep forgetting what kind of life you lived before I met you.” I slid onto my knees in front of her and took her hands. “If I live a thousand years, the day I die it will be a sorrow in my heart that I will not see this face I love so much again. Whatever you see or hear, never believe I can stop loving you.”

There were tears again, but these were cathartic and afterwards she was able to smile and look at her home with a quiet pride. We all felt how deeply she has needed to feel that she owns a home.

“You do not need the rent my love. Keep it as it is. You can jump here whenever you need to be alone or when you have guests. Even if you just come here, look at it and hug yourself with joy as you say, ‘this is mine’, it will be worth it for everyone.”

“Pappou?”

“Yes my little flower?”

“Is it too late to change the name of the owner?”

“Why? What name do you want?”

Next [Book 03] - Post 061

I hope you enjoy reading this story of fantasy, adventure and love - and should some of it be true for our reality, I hope you will love our Cherine.

Αλέξανδρος Ζήνον Ευσταθίου

(Alexander Zenon Eustace)
^{15th September, 2019}

* posted on Steemit: 15th September, 2019

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