HEJ, MY LOVE

HEJ DÅ

*Hej då=Bye

"I," they said in unison.

"You first, Sierra."

"I'll be back soon."

"You better otherwise, I'll come and fetch you myself," Jonas said. He turned the collar of her trench up and tugged on it to kiss her.

During this time, Leone hugged Rufus, who sighed. The dog had given up; his new master was no joke. Rufus accepted any of affectionate Leone's whims.

Jonas picked Leone up, "prends soin de ta mere pour moi [take care of you mom for me]. The man exploited his linguistic skills more, prompted by Sierra's efforts to learn his language.

"Eh, I'll do my best dad, I don't know what this little body can do, but I'll make sure mama is okay," Leone said, tapping on Jonas's chest.

"Thank you, Leone," Jonas didn't understand a word, but he imagined his son responded to his request.

"Now boarding Air France flight KL1116 to Paris CDG."

Jonas gave Leone to Sierra and pulled her close to hug Leone and her all at once. He took a deep breath and let go.

"I'll call you as soon as I'm home, "Sierra said.

"Okay."

Jonas watched Sierra walk away with Leone looking over her shoulder, "Papa," he yelled.

What was going on?

Why was he staying behind? "Papa," Leone repeated.

Jonas waved. Leone took out his little hand and did the same. Perhaps it was a day trip, and they'd come back at nightfall.

Leone's hopes drowned as he saw the planes doing maneuvers on the tarmac. His lips turned downwards, and he prepped to drop the tears, "paㅡ."

The boy stopped; he said he'd protect his mom. If he cried, she was sure to be sad. Leone sniffed instead.

"Please don't cry, Leone," Sierra said in a shaky voice menacing to break, "we'll be back soon. It's the last time, I promise. It's the last time we'll ever be a part," the woman tried to reassure herself more than her child.

She didn't look back; leaving would be impossible if she did. Sierra showed her boarding pass and passport and got on the plane.

Jonas immediately left the airport. She was gone, and the man felt like an empty nutshell. He told Sierra to take her time to do things properly, and she made him promise they would not get married without his brother Lars being present.

Lars risked sixteen months of imprisonment and a hefty fine. Jonas was already willing to pay in full, but his family said it wasn't his burden to carry alone and that they would help.

Dirk advised Lars to plead guilty. The judge would not drop the charges, but he could get probation for his white-collar crime. Lars had no criminal record; this would play in his favor, at least it's what the Potsmann hoped.

Jonas prayed for such an outcome, for Sierra was firm. She knew how much the man loved his siblings, and she refused for Jonas to look back on their wedding day or photos with the regret of his brother's absence.

The verdict was in a week. The couple would be fixed then. In the meantime, Sierra would be in France, and he would wait.

Sierra arrived at Charles de Gaulle airport a few hours later, where Jacob welcomed them, "well, I guess I better get used to this."

Leone bubbled; he jumped from his mother's arms to his uncle's, "wow, Leone, calm down."

"Uncle Cobbs, I saw papa, nana, and many people who had papa's eyes. Some dogs went woof-woof. I'm so sad, but I promised to take care of mom. So I can't cry."