Chapter 66 Departure
Chapter 66 Departure
$5 Free Coins
Thinking about how Aiden had lost his parents at the age of six–and how Louis would never think to take him to places like amusement parks–Freya simply couldn’t stop feeling sorry for the little guy.
The next morning, Aiden woke up very early. He opened his eyes and turned his head slightly toward the window. The pale gray curtain was faintly glowing with early light. The sun hadn’t fully risen yet. He glanced at the small alarm clock by his bed
it wasn’t even six o’clock.
Louis usually got up at six sharp and would wake him up right after. Aiden lay still, not daring to move too much for fear of waking Louis. Compared to his old room at the villa, where he had a huge bedroom all to himself, sleeping here felt much better. For the first time, he felt truly close to Louis.
He was close to Louis, yes–but not completely without distance. Living here now, with a real rhythm to daily life, sometimes gave him the illusion that he was still living with his mom and dad. And he liked that illusion.
“You’re up?” Louis’s voice came from behind, startling Aiden slightly. He turned his head and saw Louis already sitting up under the covers, looking at him. His expression was neutral as always, but the just–woken drowsiness in his features made
im appear gentler than usual.
“Yeah, just woke up,” Aiden replied, quickly sitting up and pulling his clothes on. Louis didn’t lift a finger to help–Graham family children were expected to be independent from a young age.
They walked out of the bedroom together, both instinctively keeping their footsteps light. After reaching the bathroom, they began washing up. In the mirror above the sink, one tall and one small face came into view–both handsome, and with a clear family resemblance–as they brushed their teeth in sync.
After brushing, Aiden tilted his head and asked, “Uncle, should we go wake Freya?”
“No need. She gets up on her own.” Louis watched him finish drying his face and placed his towel back on the rack.
Freya usually woke up at six as well to start breakfast. Louis and Aiden would typically head back to their room to do their own things. Aiden hesitated for a second, then asked, “Uncle, Freya works hard cooking every day. Why don’t we just go out for breakfast today?”
Louis gave him a look, “What you mean is–she always works hard, right?”
Aiden scratched his head, then gave up trying to rephrase. “Fine, 1 just think we’re not so broke we can’t afford to eat out. She doesn’t need to cook every day.”
“That’s her way of living.” Louis didn’t explain further. He only said that one sentence, then grabbed Aiden by the collar and carried him back into the bedroom to read, leaving the boy looking thoughtful.
Just as they returned to the room, Freya came out. Her footsteps soft and rhythmic, she went around drawing open all the curtains. When she saw the clear blue sky outside, she stretched with a smile.
Perfect. It looked like it was going to be a beautiful day.
Breakfast ingredients had mostly been prepped the night before, so there wasn’t much to do. About half an hour later, Freya called the two of them over–just like usual–and they ate together before getting ready to head out.
But..
“Why do we have to carry backpacks?” Aiden looked at the small backpack hanging on his own shoulders, then glanced at the larger one on Freya’s back, completely baffled. “Wearing this while walking will be really tiring. And there won’t be anywhere to put it once we’re there.”
“Don’t forget–we’re broke now,” Freya said matter–of–factly. “Things inside amusement parks are ridiculously expensive. It’s all the same stuff, so of course it’s smarter to buy snacks outside and bring them in. Don’t worry, your bag only has light snacks. It won’t wear you out.”
