Fireworks and heartaches

The next morning started hard. Conrad and Valerie said farewell to their friends in the previous evening, so they couldn't even take the smiling picture to uncle Mitsuhiro, because the girls were weeping a lot, and Valerie's eyes remained red and swollen. They said farewell in the morning to their neighbors, The boys were changing their balls, but Het and Valerie still cried a bit, so the picture wasn't taken again.

"You don't seem too sad about having to leave your friends here!" Elie looked at Conrad and stated, as they were leaving the camping ground of the coal mine.

"Liam and Luke lives not far from our house in the real world." Conrad smiled to the woman. "So we will meet at home again! Why would we be sad? We will definitely meet and play together at home."

"Het also lives close to us!" Valerie sniffed. "But it's still a sad thing to say goodbye!" She said, and blew her nose.

"Will you meet at home too?" Elie asked, and Valerie nodded.

"There is a park, close to our house, where she plays with her friends with jumping rope. So we could meet there. Het said I really learned a lot, so her friends will surely let me play with them."

The two adults were smiling inside with happiness. The twins were lucky to make friends and those friendships would continue in the real world too. Valerie and Conrad spent the traveling time with hunting for molecules, it was the usual occupation for them. Moreover they asked a lot from the caught molecules, so Elie wasn't bored at all, until they arrived to the textile manufacturer.

"What do we do while the balloon is mounted?" K.O. asked, after they left the caravan at the service of the balloon manufacturer. Conrad shook his head helplessly. He had no idea.

"We also have an hour until the workshop begins." Elie said.

"Nothing is open yet!" Valerie sighed.

"I an afraid, nothing will open till the evening." K.O. said, and scratched his head. "Couldn't we ask if we could start Valerie's earrings sooner? Conrad and I would also help and then get back to the caravan together in time to find a good parking place!"

Gus was fed up with his niece. With his whole life, too. Until he met the other half of his family, he basically enjoyed the life of the heir of his rich family. He did not miss friends, as he never had friends or schoolmates. He studied at home, under the supervision of his brother and sister. This was how his parents wanted to cut him off from the rest of the world, and spare him for the family. He was the heir of his rich father, and he had to behave like him. Gus never objected to it, as he never knew anything else.

Not until two cheerful children were instilled into this world a couple of weeks ago. The twins weren't sympathetic to Gus at first, all he hoped was them to be able to reconcile with Evie, and he'll have a loose summer with their help. He had to be disappointed. Not only did those two kids not get along with his niece, but they didn't want to stay with the rich family either. Gus didn't understand how they could live in that dilapidated caravan, sleeping on the seats, and be happy nothing, but balls, jumping ropes, and the company of the poor children.

Then pretty slowly he understood, as he was peeping them at the playground of the dirtiest coal mine. The pictures, and the videos, which were sent him by the jumped-out nun revealed two carefree, and happy children. The twins discovered parts of the island where Gus never visited, only learning about them from books. Despite they were also rich. Gus was reading the articles about his niece and nephew winning the Noble race, and breaking all the records. They won a ridiculously amount of money, so they were rich on their own rights. Not caring with the money, they were still staying with that old geezer, and the former nun in a worn-out caravan.

Gus only understood the nun. He also liked the young woman. Very much. Sometimes he wondered what the twins would say if he married Electra. The young woman also showed up in the pictures here or there. Those pictures were Gus' favorites. He loved looking at these pictures and daydreaming about what it would be like to be with them. Not only with the former nun, but also with the twins, and experience all the adventures they have.

But he didn't have much time to dream. Evie's usual screaming dragged him back to the ground of reality.

"What's the matter again?" He asked his mother.

"There is no more empty place in any of the earring making workshops." His mother said indignantly. "We have been only put on a waiting list."

"Why do you even want to go to a boring workshop? Buy her those earrings!" Gus growled angrily. He was tired of screaming of his niece. It's true that at times the little girl rested her vocal cords, but only to make her scream even more annoying later.

"It would be high time for her to make friends from her own contemporaries!" His mother hissed at him. "Participating in a workshop is a great opportunity for achieve this goal."

"But they don't want to let me take part in it!" Evie cried out form her grandma's embrace.

Gus was staring at them. Before he got to know the twins, this fact would have outraged him and moved heaven and earth to get the little girl into that workshop. But now he was just caught up in a feeling that he wouldn't want to see his niece either if he was leading that workshop. However, his mother stared at him impatiently, expectantly. She waited for him to take action, as he always did.

"Your hand device beeped." He told to his mother.

"Evie! There is a free place!" She smiled on her granddaughter happily. "Look! Dress up, we have to be there in half an hour.

Evie suddenly vanished in the back of their caravan, and judging by the sounds, she threw her half wardrobe to the ground.

"You have luck this time!" His mother hissed on Gus in a low voice.

"Why? Making her participate in an earring workshop is a terrible idea. She is too old to make such childish things." Gus whispered to his mother. "Dress up quickly!" He cried to his niece. "I drive you there!"

Eve Noble had to see that her son was right. As the polite hostesses introduced them to the VIP room, she could already see that it made no sense for Evie to come here. All the little girls were much younger than her. The average age was 7-8 years, and each little girl attended the session with her mother. The twelve-year-old granddaughter and she, her grandmother, stood out painfully among them. None of them went to them to introduce themselves, and the little girls were also uninterested by the big girl.

"Have fun!" Gus told them, and left the room before she could ask him to stay there with Evie.

Although this program could not have been more embarrassing with him, being there. Eve Noble did something she hadn't done in a long time. She smiled and tried to endure the unpleasant program.

"Thank you very much to let our Evie to participate in the workshop." Gus said seriously to the hostesses.

"Please, we're glad we were able to help the Noble family!" One of the hostesses replied him with a fake smile.

"Fortunately, one of the participants had to hurry, so their place was freed." The other one told him also with a fake smile. Gus did not take their behavior to his heart. They probably had to kick off a participant to put Evie in the group.

"Oh. I understood." He said seriously. "I would also like to pay the other participant's fee if allowed."

The two hostesses looked at each other. The Noble family had driven every jewelry company crazy over the past two days. It seemed that not every member of the family had such an unpleasant personality.

"If the little girl couldn't attend, I would like her to be sent a voucher for another workshop. Including all the extras." He said, and pulled out his hand device.

"There's no need!" One of the hostesses apologized to him. "They started earlier, so they are using the equipment in the service area, not to confuse the others."

"May I say thanks to them?" Gus asked the women.

"Come with me!" The older hostess told him and opened the door to the service area.

The heir of the Noble family almost collapsed, when he saw, who was the one, who gave her place to Evie. He stopped the hostess, and signed her to be in silence putting his finger on his mouth. He was watching, as Valerie, Conrad, and Elie was working seriously with their old friend.

They were spreading the yellow balls in one layer after the other. They were sometimes chatting, laughing, and so at all, they enjoyed the work and the company of each other. It was heartwarming. Gus would have watched the pleasant scene for any length of time. In fact his every nerve wanted to get him to belong to them. But he knew it was impossible. So he tore himself away from the sight of the other half of his family and went back to the front desk. A confused hostess followed him.

"I am sorry." He said after he gathered himself. "It was quite a shock for me."

The two hostesses looked at each other again. It seemed the only normal member of the Noble family is a total crazy.

"Those kids are the grandchildren of an old friend of mine." He explained in a low, sad voice. "My father and him was get into a fight, and never reconciled. I am glad to see his family is healthy and happy, but a meeting wouldn't be a good idea. Not even with my mother and niece. Could you prevent their meeting?"

The hostesses were cooperate. They also had an interest in avoiding a fuss between their customers. Gus paid, and left the store. His heart was aching, but he had to wait for his mother and Evie.

Gus later didn't know how they got home. He remembered in shreds that Evie was screaming and her mother was growling indignantly. He was protected from them by the sight of the merry collaboration of those four.