Aster Veren
Episodes 184

- Esther

"Aster!" Uncle shouted outside the door, almost shouting. I who heard it immediately rushed out of the room to meet him.

"Yes uncle?" I asked half-conscious after opening the room door.

"You just woke up?"

"Yes, I was late for bed." I answered while leaning my body against the door frame and rubbing one of my heavy eyes. Then hurried to shut my mouth when I felt like I was going to yawn.

It felt so hard to open my eyes in the early morning like this because it was still sleepy. But if I don't wake up now, then uncle could nag me again like he already did.

"Hah~ go shower then breakfast." He said after sighing deeply before leaving before me.

I saw my uncle's back move away, somehow making my heart feel bad. I never even thought we would stay together again after the incident that day.

Recalling when uncle tried to eliminate me alone made me shudder in horror, but now? I think I was treated well by him. Although at first I hoped that uncle would eliminate me as he had wanted to. But not materialized, there uncle keeps me alive no matter what. And subconsciously my fear of him disappeared somewhere?

Thanks to Uncle Albert's help, my uncle and I were able to live peacefully in a city far from where I used to live. Access to the road to my house is now not too difficult, but also not too easy. It's just that public transportation is a bit difficult to find because it is scheduled at a certain time. Not free to pass by, passing will only spend fuel because residents here rarely travel far and not as much as residents in the city center.

After finishing cleaning myself and changing clothes, I decided to meet uncle and have breakfast with him before helping uncle at the store.

"You're awake? Come here." Come here." Said a beautiful woman next to uncle.

The woman was named Nina, she was the wife of the uncle she had married not long ago. I can't remember when, obviously, she's my aunt and she's pregnant right now.

From what I've heard, her gestational age has reached 6 weeks. "Aren't you going to continue your school?" The question made me a little surprised to suddenly talk about school.

"... no, I don't want to take any chances. If I go to school, I might be found." Obviously after shaking weakly, thinking of father finding my whereabouts. We all agreed not to talk about it anymore. But why talk about it again now?

"But—"

"Have it, don't force him. Even though Aster doesn't go to school, he's still studying hard with Dean and Sarah, right?" Cut the uncle before reaching for his drinking water and gulp down the water.

Is correct. Ever since I moved here, I've been friends with Dean after meeting him at the market by chance. From that meeting I also became friends with Sarah who had been close friends with Dean from childhood. Reminds me of Carel.

And lately I've been meeting with them to spend my boring free time not being able to contact anyone. Even though I miss Carel and the others so much, I can't contact them because the news of my death has spread.

"I'm sorry Aster ..," aunt muttered to me confused, especially when she saw her sad look that disturbed me.

"Why apologize?"

"Because of my idea and Tesar, you have to change your appearance, even your name is also—"

"I like how I look now, so there's no need to apologize constantly." I immediately cut her off as I remembered the days before my uncle and aunt changed my appearance.

Before changing my appearance, they constantly asked my opinion and tried to change my mind. They gave me the idea and I agreed to it because of the brilliant idea. But after agreeing to it they hesitated to do so. After that, there was no day without the apology I heard from aunt's mouth.

"After everything improved and the situation was safe, Aster was able to extend his hair and act like a girl in general again." Then the uncle tried to calm his wife who was too worried about me.

"Uncle is right, so there's no need to worry aunt. After all, hair will continue to grow even if it is cut as short as anything, right?"

"Yes but—"

"I can be a boy like my uncle and aunt suggested. I don't mind, and in the future please call me by the name of Faren. I'd rather it's because Aster was already rumored to have died in the fire that day, if anyone heard they'd misunderstand right?" I said making the two of them look at me with a look that was hard for me to understand. I don't know why they were surprised by what I said.

"... when you can choose to wear fake hair." The aunt muttered looking at her dinner plate that still had half the rice left on it.

"Here you go, Aster uncle goes to open a shop. After breakfast, come to the store as usual." The uncle immediately got up from his place and gently patted the aunt's shoulder before peeling her forehead.

***

"Good morning Faren!" Sarah exclaims entering the store with her boisterous voice followed by Dean's steps behind her.

"For Sarah, Dean."

"You guys are so diligent." Said the uncle who just finished putting warm bread in the bread basket.

"Uncle's for." Sapa Sarah and Dean together make their uncle smile when they meet them.

"Yes, good morning kids. Choose the bread you like, I give you geratis." He said as he walked back to the kitchen.

"Eh seriously? It's cool!" Sarah looked excited and immediately picked the bread that caught her attention.

"You're always busy as usual." Said Dean who was standing next to me with both hands he put in his pants pocket. Standing close to him makes me a dwarf because Dean has a body height that is superior to me. My height is about the size of her shoulders.

"Wouldn't you go to school with us?" Sarah still chose bread in front of her.

"I'm not—"

"You want to reason that you don't have an entrance fee for your school anymore? You better keep your mouth shut, you piss me off huh. Though your uncle's bakery is quite crowded and makes a lot of money. At least enough for your school fees." Sarah began to grumble as usual. Looks adorable.

"Sarah's right. In addition, the cost of school admission here is not as expensive as the cost of school in the city center. Your brain is also diluted, you can get a full scholarship." Suppose Dean approves of Sarah's babble, whereas I can only show my smile because I can't give other reasons that can refute their words. Even so, I no longer want to go to school.

"It's very diluted instead." She gave me three loaves of bread with one bottle of cold milk.

"really. It pisses me off, how can a smart kid not go to school? And I'm the one in school losing to a kid like this?" Dean chuckled at me, especially when his hand reached the top of my head.

"You praise me too much, after all, who taught me many things." Put all the bread in a plastic bag.

"That's not true. You are the one who taught us so much. I'm the only one who has trouble with maths lessons who can easily learn it if you help me."

"Sarah's right. Thanks to you I also have no trouble in foreign language lessons." Nod Dean again approved of his little friend's words, and he put his hand back in his pants pocket.

"In situations like this you're very compact huh?" I muttered inexhaustibly with the behavior of the two of them, when usually they were always noisy and at odds.

"You're gone, don't miss the bus and be late for school." I can't keep them lingering in the store.

Sarah quickly glanced at the wall clock behind me and grabbed the plastic bag in front of her, "you're right. Let's go Dean!" He immediately walked away from the store.

"I'm leaving."

"Yes, learn the right thing!" I said to Dean who followed Sarah's departure.

"They're gone?" Ask my uncle to surprise me. I saw uncle coming back with some bread in the tray he was carrying. The next hot bread ready for sale.

"Yes." Yeah." Assume I intend to tidy up all the bread that uncle brought.

"It seems like you're getting used to your voice, huh? If it's just me you can rest and use your voice. Must be hard to keep up with the heavy sounds typical of boys?" My uncle made me a little surprised by the attention he was given.

"I'm fine."

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Thanks for reading...