Daffodil's Sunshine

Chapter 10 - Stars in the Sky

In the morning, when mildew clinged onto the fresh grass, and the wind rustled against the orange leaves of trees, Irene huddled beneath her blankets, putting together an arrangement of gifts from boxes that Jonathan and Mari had given her.

"Belgian chocolates, here, a necklace, there, a plushie, over here..."

"You know, Irene," Casper began, throwing a pack of fruit snacks into the box. "You should probably tell Areum what was so special about those blueberry truffles."

"I was planning on telling her," Irene commented. "Hopefully she'll understand my point of view then."

Casper smiled. "She will. I'm telling you, she has a good heart."

"I know that."

Irene's phone rang.

"Oh. It's an incoming call from Areum. Could you get out of here please?"

"Wow, ok. I guess you don't need my help anymore." Casper stood and headed out of Irene's room.

"I will need your help later. Don't get comfortable just yet," Irene called out, but Casper was already away.

Click. "Hi! How are you doing, Irene? Have you been eating well?" Areum's chirpy voice rang through the phone, bringing a smile to Irene's face.

"Yes, I just had breakfast. I'm putting something together for you. What are you doing right now?"

"I'm just trying to brainstorm some new songs, but my brain isn't cooperating too much. What are you putting together for me? Is it a surprise?"

The green-eyed girl hesitated at first. Her fingers trembled as she came up with ways she could put her words together, like if they were part of a painstaking cross-stitch.

"Yes, it is a surprise. You'll know what it is once I send it to you. I also have something else I wanted to talk to you about."

"Hmm? What is it?"

"Remember those blueberry truffles you gave me?"

"Of course I do! They were really tough to make, but hey, they were worth it!"

"Well, those blueberry truffles meant a lot more to me than you might think."

"Really? How so?"

It was impossible to put into words. Not a single coherent sentence could probably portray just how much those blueberry truffles actually meant for her. If only Areum was there to see how Irene broke down when she got home, relishing the newfound warmth that reminded her of how her mother used to make them. They tasted identical to those she got every day her mother came home from work. When her biggest worry was how Casper would steal the last one.

The younger girl sighed deeply. "B-basically, my mom used to make them for me when she came home from work. She was an international English teacher, so the days that she came home were really special for my brother and I. The ones that you made for me that day tasted identical to the ones she used to make."

Her heartbeat rang through her chest as she heard light humming coming from the other end.

"That she used to make? Has she passed on?" Areum asked softly. Her tone was like the smell of blueberry pie. Comforting.

"Y-yes. She committed suicide when I was 9, after my father died."

A slightly audible gasp came from the other end. "Oh, I'm so sorry.. You don't have to go on! I know how hard that can be."