Dark Lanterns Lane

Chapter 15: Family Portrait

"Luke!" The father's voice sternly echoed from the hallway.

The boy acted as if he hadn't heard anything. If he was lucky, they would forget about him and he would remain unpunished.

"Luke!"

But what if it's just his imagination? Maybe Dad doesn't really want to scold him and just has something to ask. Why immediately expect the worst?

"OK, my son, enough playing silent! If you don't come out now, I'll come looking for you... and I will definitely find you."

The boy was sitting quietly in his room playing "Minecraft" on the computer, not wanting to make a sound. But eventually, his dad found him within a few minutes — their house wasn't very large, and hiding in it without a trace was almost impossible.

"Listen, Luke, this is not acceptable. Your behaviour is getting worse and worse with every day."

"Dad, I've explained this to you a hundred times..." the boy showed a desire to defend himself, but was cut off mid-sentence.

"It's not just about the fight, it's about you in general. Your school performance has started to decline, even though your grades were excellent until recently. You hardly help us with household chores anymore and you're constantly disappearing after classes. Mom is afraid you've fallen in with a bad crowd."

"I don't have any friends at all."

"That's not good! You need friends. Good, normal friends."

Ah, these adults only know how to lecture. But where could he find friends, especially normal ones? Among Luke's peers, there simply weren't suitable candidates who could share his interests with him.

"Beginning from tomorrow, we're going to seriously work on reforming you."

***

The boy didn't have the opportunity to visit Aliya for the next few days. Indeed, he wanted to see her just to communicate with, but he had to focus on his responsibilities first. Luke had no other choice.

The boy had a pile of school assignments to tackle, along with helping out around the house to make up for an incident he wasn't even responsible for. This kept him busy for the whole week. Luke felt a bit frustrated because he really liked talking to Aliya and spending time with her. She was the only person in the whole world who supported him anyway.

He wondered how the girl was doing and if she was still thinking about their conversation. He hoped she understood why he couldn't visit right away. Luke planned to see her as soon as he could, once he finished his tasks at home and caught up with his school assignments.

Finally, that day has come. This time, Luke proved to be a better mahjong player, effortlessly collecting tiles and quickly racking up points. His moves were strategic and thoughtful, impressing Aliya. The girl, on the other hand, kept pace — not only supporting the game with her light-hearted commentary but also preparing a delicious green tea. What could make an autumn evening even better?

Suddenly after finishing one more board game, Luke Campbell got absorbed in looking at old black and white photographs hanging on the wall in the living room. Oddly, the photos immediately caught his attention. They depicted a family seemingly setting out for a stroll. Next to an old car stood four people: a man with a cheerful expression, likely the head of the family, his wife holding flowers, and two young children.

The man was dressed in a classic dark suit, possibly with a vest and tie. He looked somewhat restrained and strict. His wife wore an elegant summer dress with delicate patterns. Her auburn wavy hair was neatly styled.

The two children, likely siblings, also drew attention with their carefree appearance. The older boy was probably a teenager. He was dressed in shorts and a light-colored t-shirt. The younger girl was a toddler and wore a simple summer dress and smiled genuinely, holding hands with her brother.

And that little girl... Something enigmatic and at the same time familiar was hiding in her eyes.

"How beautiful these photos are!" Luke exclaimed with enthusiasm. "They must be quite old, aren't they?"

"Very old." It seemed as if the girl's gaze was directed not at anything specific, but into emptiness itself. Her eyes were indifferent and seemingly empty, devoid of any hint of emotion.

"Look at this little girl," the boy pointed to one of the photos, "She seems to be no older than three, but she looks just like you, like two peas in a pod! Almost like she's a close relative of yours!"

Aliya smiled faintly and mysteriously blinked, flapping her long, beautiful eyelashes - they were as black as coal and sharply contrasted against her fair complexion. The girl in the photo was also a blonde in a white dress, and her lashes were just as enchanting as Aliya's.

"Is this your family?" Luke ventured to ask.

"I don't have a family and never did. Have you forgotten?" Aliya replied.

"Alright, so now you live entirely alone, without any evidence of your existence. But you must have been born at some point, so you must have biological parents. Or at least they existed in the past."

Luke was already accustomed to Aliya either changing the subject or simply avoiding answering when she didn't want to. This time, the girl also fell silent and began blowing soap bubbles - a gesture that spoke louder than any words.

"Since when do you even remember yourself?"

"I only remember that I've always lived in this house on Dark Lanterns Lane."

"But someone must have taken care of you before that, right? You couldn't have just appeared as you are now."

"Dark Lanterns Lane has always taken care of me and always will."

"I'm not talking about your home! I mean people, Aliya. Someone had to raise you, teach you to speak, read, cook and everything else. Eventually, one day you'll grow up and surely want to find your family."

"It's impossible to find those who never existed."

Luke's patience was wearing thin. The girl seemed unable to grasp what he was explaining to her.

"You don't want to reveal the whole truth to me."

"Yes, I don't! I'm not even going to deny it," the girl giggled brightly and blew another soap bubble.