Chapter 4

They stared, as his mother continued ranting about anything and everything. " Ella!" " Mom!" They said together out of frustration. " What? " She looked at them with a glint of amusement in her eyes. " My head hurts" Yet again, they said it together. Green eyes stared back and forth between each other.

Zander was closest to his father when he was younger. He remembered the good times they had, but now...

" Well, you two are just creepy." Zander's mom decided to go to the kitchen and cook, something she did when she was angry. Zander's father sighed and looked at him. " We better get her out of there before she decides to empty every last ingredient you have in there." Zander nodded with a full-fledged grin.

" Ella! Come here now... We're sorry! So you were saying? " Zander's father asked his mother, her frown turned into a cheerful smile as she put away all the ingredients in the right place and went back to the living room.

" Antony, Zander, I want you both to solve your misunderstandings." There it was, the topic both the father and son had been dodging like a fireball in the dark labyrinth. What would they even talk about? Would they just evade the topic and act as if nothing happened? But it did happen...

" We don't have any misunderstanding, it was just a small... feud, yes, that's what it was. I'm sure that we are fine now" Antony said, nodding his head while his eyes were fixed at Zander. Zander nodded in agreement as well. He couldn't forget everything they said to each other years ago. But he also knew that both of them only acted out of impulse, they hardly meant any of that damage. He had enough with missing that amazing man, his father was his best friend, he wanted him back, minus the awkwardness.

" Yes, mom. we're all good." He said and looked at the place where she was seated only to find it empty. He heard the door of his bedroom closing softly. " Son, you thinking what I'm thinking?" He asked and Zander answered the question with a hi-fi and a wink, a thing they did every time they agreed on something together. His mom came all the way from Berlin to get rid of the thick ice between the father and son, They were very much grateful that she did that.

Dinner time slid in like a pamphlet under the door gap. The entire family was gifted with amazing culinary skills which they decided to put out to display for dinner. Though the kitchen was small, they managed. Zander and Antony spoke about everything they had been missing on about one another for the past years, though Ella had filled them in about each other, it was a completely different experience to bond directly.

" Why don't you live in the house that we have in this city, Zander?" His father asked as he noticed it was too small. " No dad, I feel more comfortable here, and it's not like I'm living with someone. We can go there when you both decide to come over." Zander was a proud man, he loved the asset that he bought out of his own pocket. Money wasn't a problem for his family, but he knew the difficulty of handling money with the meagre amount he was making.

His father understood this and didn't insist anymore.

Zander's parents stayed for a span of two weeks, in the small apartment with him before deciding to go back to Berlin. Zander presumed his normal routine of checking with his team-mates and their progress in the research of the civilization that was under discussion at present.

Meanwhile, Scarlett's first day in college was a huge success. Though people did bully her for being older than them she managed to clap back at that. She was narrating the happenings of the entire day to her family at the dinner table. They were all happy that she was able to blend in well.

" The campus is so beautiful! I mean the building design and all that is just on point. The professors whom I met today were all giving us the boost talk, they seemed nice enough except for the English communications professor. A grumpy old man..." She went on and on about everything, that was the most that she had spoken in her life. The other four wore an amused expression as she ranted non-stop.

They were never this happy and so was Scarlett. Her chocolate brown eyes were bright with the excitement of her new phase of life. She shared the eye colour from her mother and brunette hair from her father, while her younger siblings had black hair and blue eyes, kind of a rare combination, but they looked good for a rare look, a mixture of the parentals.

Two weeks rolled past in a breeze. Scarlett was always locked inside her room preparing her assignments and studying everyday portions. Every time she had some free time she went out with Marie, to the mall of course. They only return when they are completely worn out of energy to try on another shoe or some more clothes.

Her wardrobe was completely changed with all the old ones gone and new ones taking their place. Being a lawyer's daughter was nice, especially when he is one of the highest-paid ones, but she had to create her own niche in life.

The next Monday was extremely busy. she hardly managed to get onto a bus with empty seats in it. After getting down at the stop before her college she started walking in the direction of the familiar building of her college. Although it looked pretty close to where she stood, it was quite far away. Beads of sweat made their way down her forehead as she hurried. The school kids standing in front of the museum gates weren't making it easy for her to move past them.

She juggled with the thick books in her hands as she slid through the gaps of human hurdles and moved carefully without wanting to step on anyone's foot with her wedges.

She was almost past the wild group of children when her body decided it would be fun to collide with another person. Her books scattered as she fell back on the concrete floor. She hissed at the pain that was induced from the fall, it was the same foot that got injured in the accident. " I'm extremely sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going because of the children. Here, let me help you." The man whom she had collided with, spoke.

He was really tall with brown locks and eyes which were green? Brown? She couldn't make out. He extended his hand out to her, but she stood up on her own. The man shrugged and they both crouched down to collect their books.

" It's alright, it was my fault too. I'm sorry too." She said and ran, not before she heard the man asking her for her name. She didn't want to get introduced to any stranger. She was anti-social, so that explained the awkwardness she felt towards the kind-looking man.