Chapter 3 – Happy Home

The room behind the mint green door, patterned with blue flowers, leads to another room in this yellow mansion.

A family of four lives in its premises.

Behind the door, the giggling of soft voices can be heard, childishly chiming in accordance with the atmosphere. Just now, the clacking of heels stopped and a maid dressed in a beautiful white-black dress came in, placing the hot chocolate on the small round table to the right of the room.

The floor being filled with paper and crayons, she had to be careful not to step on anything, which made the carrying of the tray all the more challenging. She smiled as she looked at the wriggled lines in all sorts of colours.

There was a rainbow with clouds and flowers in all forms and shapes drawn onto them. A few of them were drawn more skilfully. It was clear that the older sister, Page, must be the painter of those.

The papers with all the flowers made it seem as if the floor itself was a flower meadow, with its gentle smell and refreshing beauty. Like butterflies freely flying, the two sisters were sitting there laughing and drawing a flower here and there.

It filled all the servants with a warm feeling. They had never known that the laugh of a child could relieve so much stress. Inwardly, they were thanking the two little ladies.

"Ladies, how about you drink a sip of hot chocolate. It is best to get you warmed up after all the rain." The maid suggested, pointing at the bear-shaped mugs.

As the steam danced, the girls quickly got up and raised the sweet drinks to their lips. For some time, the giggling was replaced with them gulping down their drinks.

"Ahhhh~" Ann let out a satisfied sigh and smiled, her hands placed at her hips.

Page had also just finished when she looked up at her little sister.

Like the servants, she bit her lips, as the corners of her lips raised. And she began to giggle softly, trying her best to hold it back.

"What?" Ann asked, trying to figure out why all the people looked like something was happening.

Herself thinking that the situation was too serious began to frown, making the servants and her sister twist their expressions even more.

"What is going on! Ann also wants to find out!"

The way the little girl spoke confidently, was just too much. Several servants chuckled or laughed out loud. Some held their stomachs and others, like Page, had tears in their eyes.

"Ann." Page began her explanation, plagued by chuckling. "Have you grown a beard in the meantime?"

"Huh?" Ann jumped into the air and quickly wiped her mouth with the sleeve of her purple dress. The excessive wiping made some laugh even harder, but not Page. She had regained her composure somewhat.

"You know, you're a cute lil' pumpkin!" She ruffled through Ann's red hair, when the sound of an engine could be heard through the window.

"They're here!" Ann exclaimed and was already jumping over the papers. Running through the door along the corridor, Page followed.

"Thank you, Marianne! The cocoa was really good!" She screamed, chasing after her sister.

***

Only a mere minute later, the little girls were downstairs. While Ann ran and tackled her dad, who picked her up, Page slowed down.

Stopping in front of her loving parents, she bowed slightly and greeted them with a broad smile. The parents, equally happy, smiled back and greeted her with a happy voice. "It's good to see our mature Page and playful Ann!"

The mother bent down and pressed a warm kiss against Page's forehead. The feeling of serenity spread within her once again. Then the father ruffled her hair and sat Ann down.

"Daughters," the father began, giving a nod to the servant standing next to the car, who then instantly proceeded to walk towards the quartet. He handed over a red box before walking back to the black car.

"We have a little something for the two of you." The father got on one knee, as if he was about to propose.

Then he opened the box, in it were the two most beautiful bracelets Page had ever seen. They both were completely red and each bead was shaped like a crystal, cagey and clear. The thread was beautifully golden like honey. Each of the bracelets had a beautiful pendant made out of ruby.

Ann, who was too young to put the bracelet on herself, had hers put on by their mother. Her pendant was a beautiful bouquet of lilies.

Page, who was old enough, took hers herself and put it around her wrist. As if to brag, she raised it against the sun. Her pendant was a dove that looked as if it was flying, so her holding her hand up made it look like the dove could just fly away without any worries. Completely free.

"Thank you!"

The girls echoed and each gave their parents a kiss on the cheek.

"Now then. We still have some work to mull over. We'll see you two at dinner."

"Oki doki!" Ann said, turning to her sister. "Then let us draw even more flowers!"

"Hehe," Page smiled.

"Yes."

All of them were happy, like a bird free and without any visible worries. In that moment, the four of them were a happy family. But happily ever afters only happen in romance novels, this was real life.