A girl and her camera

Chapter nineteen

Another Hanna chapter! I know this is Martha's story, but this one is very important to the story. Another long one too, so I hope you enjoy! No pic above for this one, sorry. I couldn't think of anything to go with the mood.

Their plan was set. After discussing it with both Annabella, and Karoline, it was decided that they were going to smuggle Samuel and Karoline out of the Ghetto. No matter how much Martha and the others tried to sway her, Annabella refused to join them. Bad or not, this was the place where her dear Rafael had passed away. And since the day she agreed to be his wife, she'd vowed, never to leave him. Even if it meant staying in a life of poverty, with his rotting corpse...she'd never break her vows.

As for Martha, she barely knew what to feel. Of course Vera jumped to agreeing to the plan; she was even fixing up the old guest-bed for Karoline in Michael's room. But what would it be like, to live under the same roof as her lover? Of course Vera wouldn't approve of them continuing with the affair, let alone sleeping together. And the worst part was, Martha couldn't even tell anybody of these worries. Not even Hanna.

Hanna, on the other hand, was quite the opposite when it came to her male. Day and night, she could talk about her and Bart; the dates he took her on, the never-ending bunches of her favourite flowers, and most definitely, the goodnight kisses he treated her to, on the Ghereitz doorstep. Hanna had everything she ever wanted; intelligance, a career ahead of her, and now somebody who could love her for who she was. Not that Martha never had-but she was different. What she shared with Bart was the kind of companionship she'd longed for, without even knowing it.

Only...there was just one thing that bothered Bart, when it came to Hanna. Something, she wasn't telling him. Whenever they went out together, everything seemed fine. Hanna was cheerful, a little cheeky, and mostly happy. But whenever he mentioned her family, something seemed to stop Hanna from really enjoying herself. It was like this dark, cloud of dreariness had fallen over her. And whatever the reason, she never told Bart. He wondered if she'd ever told anyone.

He knew he could've asked Martha; she was Hanna's best friend, of course she would know. But if Hanna did tell Martha, it certainly would've been quite confidential. And if he persuaded Martha to break her secrecy, then that could cause a rift in their friendship. Bart didn't want that! He just wanted to know why his girfriend was upset so much. Didn't he have a right to know what affected her?

So he decided to first, just ask her himself. Today he'd take her out for some hot chocolate, then just plain ask her, what bothered her about her family? It couldn't hurt to try, really. And who knows? Perhaps Hanna actually would tell him the truth. Perhaps now that they were officially going steady, she would feel comfortable enough to confide in him.

As he approached her that Wednesday afternoon, Hanna felt the butterflies arise in her stomach. Would he always have that affect on her? She wondered. She sure hoped so. For not even her mother still got butterflies, whenever Hans kissed her. Wouldn't it be magical, she thought, if one could hold onto that sweet, adolesant love forever? Of course love matured with age, but why couldn't things just stay the way they were? Without change? But then, if it weren't for change, Hanna wouldn't even be with Bart at the moment. So she did have to credit change for bringing her and Bart together.

"Are you ready?" He asked her.

"Yep," Hanna slammed her locker shut, slinging her satchel carelessly over her shoulder. "Let's go."

So the two strolled off together. Down the warm, sunny streets, through various shops and market stands, on the sceneic route to the Leiders' tea koisk. As they walked, they held hands. A gesture Hanna felt rather comforted by.

"Hanna," He approached, gently. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course," She said, "What do you want to know?"