Chapter 27. You Are My Child

Orange light began to break on the western horizon, a gentle breeze blew the hair of a woman standing behind the window of a room on the second floor.

Knock...knock...knock...

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, interrupting her thoughts.

"Yeah, wait a minute," the girl half-shouted.

"How is Dave? Is he still fever?" asked a man right after the door opened.

"Come in," the woman called.

"You eat first, since yesterday your stomach hasn't been filled with anything."

"I'm not hungry Nicho."

"I know you're worried about Dave's condition, but don't let your feelings make you neglect your health, Anna."

"Go on, I've got some food on the table. I'll take care of Dave," said Nicho while raising the blanket that only covered half the body of a small child sleeping on the bed.

"Hmm, okay. Sorry for bothering you," said Anna, took a deep breath, and then turned and left the room.

Nicho just nodded, then walked to the side of the window and closed it.

"Leaving the window open like this could make you sicker, Dave. I don't know what your mother is thinking," he monologued to himself.

Glancing at the watch in his hand, it was now 5:00. Soon night will come.

.

"Anna, I want to go out. Do you want to order something?" asked Nicho as he descended the stairs.

Anna who was cleaning the kitchen turned her head, "No need, thank you," she replied then stopped her activities for a moment and approached the handsome man with an athletic body.

"What time are you coming home?"

"Why? Are you afraid of missing me?" Nicho joked while blinking one of his eyes.

Anna just responded with a smile, "Be careful," she said then escorted the man to the front door.

Waiting until the sports car Nicho was driving disappeared from her sight, Anna came back inside. It was dark outside.

Now, it was just her and Dave in a house this big. The woman then finished everything that was done before.

"Mom..."

"Mom..."

"Yes Dave, wait," the woman immediately went up the stairs, to her son's room on the second floor.

"What is it, honey?" asked Anna right after entering the room.

Dave didn't answer and just took his mother's hand, took it in his arms, and then went back to sleep.

Seeing her son sleeping like that, the memory of what happened five years ago filled her head again until it was tight.

"You're only my child, Dave," Anna muttered while stroking her son's head very slowly, until a few minutes passed, without realizing she fell asleep next to her child.

***

After Leo gave the latest information on Anna's whereabouts, Devan had a new routine of eleven to one o'clock every day.

Like now, Devan sits alone, relaxing while sipping a glass of moccasins at a cafe right in front of Leo's office.

He never took his eyes from the entrance, as if he is waiting for someone.

It's already the third day, and Devan keeps visiting the same cafe. No secretary or anyone else with him. He was alone.

Armed with a few sheets of newspaper which he used to cover his face when he saw someone he knew entered the same cafe as he was.

He had only been there for a few minutes when suddenly Devan's body froze in place. A very familiar person had just entered the Cafe. Soon he used the newspaper in his hand to hide, but it was too late.

"Devan?" called a man in a half-screaming tone of voice and managed to make everyone turn towards him.

"What are you doing here?" asked the man immediately approached him. He is Leo, Devan's cousin.

No wonder Devan saw him here because it was break time and the location of the cafe was very close to Leo's office.

"I should be the one asking you that. What are you doing here?" asked Devan back. He couldn't say the reason why he was here.

"Is the food in your office cafeteria that bad?" he added again.

Leo ignored his cousin's words, landed his body on the bench directly in front of Devan while squinting suspiciously.

"Stop looking at me like that," said Devan.

"Hurry up, what are you doing here alone?" Leo asked again, not without reason he said such things, because there are several, no, even dozens of cafes mushrooming around his cousin's company.

Why did Devan choose this place? not to mention there was no secretary or anyone else with him, indicating that the man was truly alone.

"Are you blind or have no eyes? I'm reading the newspaper," replied Devan.

"You came all the way here just for this? Read the paper?"

"So what? stop asking and scram."

"No, no. How could I leave my cousin here alone," Leo chuckled.

Hearing the man's words, Devan still wore a flat expression.

"Okay, my cousin what if I teach you to read a good and correct newspaper?" Leo said while holding back his laughter.

Devan's brow furrowed, "Hah, Don't...." His words trailed off right after lowering his gaze and looking at the newspaper he was holding since earlier.

The newspaper is upside down.

Instantly Leo burst out laughing and managed to make their existence back into the spotlight.