Aster Veren
Episode 22

- Esther

"Non?" The sound of the driver's man breaking down my daydream.

"Yes?" I asked while commenting on the smile when I saw the look in his eyes reflected by the rearview mirror.

"We've arrived non." The driver replied with a smile making me look at my car glass, and sure enough we had arrived in front of my uncle's house.

How long have I been daydreaming? My mind can't stop thinking about Aunt Claretta's words.

"Thank you for picking up Aster today, sir." I said before getting out of the car.

A half-brother, huh? My mind again while walking towards the door.

"Welcome, miss." The sound of Hana's voice greeted me as I opened the door.

I also saw Brother Hana already smiling widely at me, somehow I became smiling too when I saw the expression of sister Hana who looks different. Like more–ceria than usual.

"I'm home." I said as I closed the door of the house and walked towards Hana's brother standing.

"It turns out Tomi was right ...." The familiar voice of a boy caught my attention, I quickly turned to him sitting on the living room sofa.

"Ka–kakak that time?!" I said when I saw her smile thinly, so her name was Carel .... In my heart, I forgot to ask her name.

"Eh? Miss already know den Carel?" Hana's asking made me nod quickly. Then I quickly ran up to the boy and stood in front of him.

Although it had not met for a long time, but his expression was still cold. My mind cannot turn away from its handsome face.

"Hallo Aster, it's been a while...how are you now?" He immediately got up from his sitting position.

"Ba–good." My answer.

"Then you should change your clothes first, after that you can play with den Carel." Sis Hana made me look at her.

"Ka–then Aster change clothes first. Brother Carel wait for Aster ya." I said before I ran out of the living room.

***

A few weeks earlier after my grandmother's departure, I was crying in the garden of the compound when it was raining heavily.

That afternoon I cried hysterically at the loss of my long-time pet cat with my grandmother. It broke my heart when I saw him dying in front of my eyes. My tears could not stop flowing, my body was also drenched due to the rain.

I don't know how long I crouched down and cried over my pet cat, when it was on the sidelines of my cry I kept babbling asking my cat to wake up. But the animal didn't heed my call.

Wh why? though usually you always answer my call, why .. Your body is also cold. My inner self realized something I couldn't accept.

"Goddessa ... Hang on, hiks .. don't leave Aster alone. Stay with Aster hix," I said when I saw my cat stop moving.

"If you go too, Aster will really be alone hyster." I continued to remember the day of the departure of my mother and grandmother alternately along with the tears that continued to flow soaking my face that had been wet due to the rain.

"Stop crying." The voice of a boy who was standing next to me and shading my body from the rain.

"Hiks ...." My sobs while looking at the figure of the boy beside me.

The tall posture with snow-white hair and glowing red beads made me unable to turn away from him for a while.

"Haa.. cat ...." He said as he glanced at the cat in front of me.

"Hiks ... wake up! Don't leave Aster alone, hiks .. wake up! I said wake up!" I asked again, shaking the body of the cat, but still he would not obey my orders.

"He's dead, we'd better bury him." Said the boy while crouching beside me, making the big umbrella cover our back bodies from the splashes of rainwater.

"No, don't bury him. He must have woken up again hiks ...." Refuse me to feel annoyed by his words.

"Hailway... Aster doesn't want to stay alone." My screams ignored the presence of the boy beside me and shook my cat's body again.

"Calm down, don't cry. Help me bury him first, if you keep crying. Your cat will feel sad, you have to let him go so he's happy." He said as he grabbed the top of my head, and I saw the look in his eyes feeling warmer than before.

"Hiks... will he really be happy?" I asked to immediately get a quick nod from him as well as his thin smile.

How could he be happy to leave me? Are mom and grandma happy after leaving me alone? My mind feels pain in my chest.

"But, Aster is not happy .. If it was Aster, Aster would not be happy to leave people who love Aster." I said as I squeezed the clothes in my chest.

"What did he say?" The boy muttered while digging up the ground to bury my cat.

"Certainly because Aster is troublesome huh? So grandma left Aster?" I continued when I remembered my days that always troubled my grandmother, whining to meet my mother.

Then I lyric the red bead, it turns out that the child has been watching me with questionable eyes.

"Aster help the grave deh, so that the cat can meet the mother and grandmother in heaven hiks ... his cat will be happy if Aster let go?" I dug up the ground to bury my cat.

"A–" The boy's voice sounded heavy, then the next second I felt his hand pull my body into his arms, leaving his black umbrella lying down.

"A–ada what? the umbrella ... Your clothes are wet." I said that I was worried as well as excited as she hugged me suddenly, but there was no answer from her, only her embrace was getting hardened and warm.

***

"What are you thinking?" Carel's voice surprised me.

"Eh, ti–no." I answered with a thin smile.

If you remember, Carel is older than me, right? Even though we are both SD 3rd class. Should I call him brother? My mind wondered as it propped up my chin with both hands and watched Carel sitting in front of me being blocked by the round table between us.

"I didn't think you were Arsel's nephew." He said as he glanced at me and closed the thick book in front of him, I don't know what book he's been reading since.

"Yes–I also never thought that I still have a family ...." I said while confirming my sitting position and upholding my body.

"Thank God ...." He said with a smile I had never seen.

"Ah sister Carel–" My words were immediately cut by her.

"Call Carel instead." Her speech.

"Ba–baik, Ca–carel know what kind of half-brother relationship?" I asked, somehow I wanted to ask her when I remembered my conversation with Aunt Claretta again. I tried to forget it, but it didn't work.

"Sister-in-law?" Ask.

"That's ... Aster heard that if our parents remarry someone who already has children, then his son will become our half-brother. But–what has a half-brother is fun?" I'm obviously a little stammered.

"Hem .. I don't know. Some say it's fun, some say no. I didn't experience it anyway, why would I suddenly ask like that?" His answer made me throw my eyes out of his sight.

"Bu–it's nothing .. te–temen Aster there's something like that to Aster, but Aster doesn't know, so ask Carel. Was about to ask uncle but his uncle was out of town again, hehe ...." Obviously lying.

"Hee... So his parents want to marry again huh? If your friend is an only child, it would be nice to have a half-brother. Moreover, his half-brother is good." He said while rendering his body the tenderness of the chair.

"That's so ...." I muttered remembering all the treatment Kalea had for me all this time.

He's definitely not gonna like me being his half-brother .... I continue in my heart.

.

.

.

Thanks for reading...