Ruins of Autumn

Epilogue

•Over two years later•
 
   
    Anila had ignored Visara's remark that the pink colour didn't go with her black graduation uniform and had chosen a dark pastel pink dress for that momentous day to pair the outfit with white heels.
 
    She recorded as much as she could on her phone the events of that day, and in her heart the feelings of every moment, when she received orchid flowers from her family, pink roses from Brunilda, and sunflowers from Sidoreli, threw the hat and hugged her parents who were in tears of joy, hugged Visara afterward, Brunilda, who hugged her tightly back, and Anila allowed herself to feel complete comfort in the presence of her chosen sister, and she deliberately left Sidoreli at the end, who waited patiently behind her family, wearing a white shirt with long sleeves, light sand-coloured trousers, and white trainers, serious and judgmental in appearance, but Anila understood very well what was hidden under that look, and threw her arms on his neck, to hug him.
 
    He buried his head in her loose hair.
 
    "Congratulations." He broke away from her to kiss her on the forehead.
 
    "And?" asked Anila. "Tell me all the good compliments for me. I don't get angry at all."
 
    Sidoreli arched his lips and fixed her hair.
 
    "I'm exultant for you, and I hope you don't miss work anymore."
 
    "Which one?" she winked at him, and it took Sidoreli more strength than usual to look as if he was unaffected by her flirtation.
 
    "We'll talk," he cut short, making Anila laugh even more.
 
    "Shall we go now? Visara asked. "We have made the reservation for lunch at the restaurant at one o'clock."
 
    "Yes," Anila agreed, and she got into Sidoreli's car so that they could go together, while her parents, Visara and Brunilda, got into Visara's car. They had decided to have lunch in a restaurant, and in the evening Anila would go to a party with the newly graduated Master's students, like her.
 
••••
    She asked permission, for a few moments, to go and look at herself in the toilet mirror and see how she looked.
 
    When she returned, she immediately recognised Leonora at the entrance of the restaurant, suspected that the man next to her, near the sixties, with similar physical features to her, except for the colour of his eyes, was her father, the woman behind them, her stepmother, and she remembered Graniti when he had saved her one day because she had inadvertently crossed the white lines of the road when the traffic light still had the red light on.
 
    He immediately tensed in alarm when he recognised her and suspected that she would try to hurt Leonora.
 
    Anila understood Graniti's look, his trepidation, and his inquiry for Anila not to hurt his greatest weakness and strength at the same time, because he didn't want to fight against her, but if he had to, in order to protect his sister, he would fight without hesitation.
 
    She envisaged how many challenges he would have gone through to offer Leonora a life as safe as possible, like the older brother who had fallen for him for a part to be, and smiled when Leonora noticed her and arched her lips with joy, that she was looking great.
 
    "How are you?" Anila saw her, gleeful too, that she also looked happy with her family.
 
    "Very well," Leonora replied gently, and she felt more at peace when Anila touched her arm as a sign of greeting before leaving.
 
    Anila looked respectfully at Ardiani along with Zana and Graniti at the end, who thanked her with a look for behaving well with Leonora.
 
    She returned, jubilant, to the table where her family was, looked at everyone attentively, and affirmed with a lifted soul that the complete harmony that she was feeling in those moments was exactly the kind of life that she always wanted to live in the future.

••••The end••••

   
    Thank you endlessly for supporting this book by coming along with me to the end 🤗🤗🥰❤️