Belonging

C20: Trust

His lips curve upwards. "Sounds fun. You should get some more."

"Maybe."

Our grandfather walks in then, the dish of food in his hands. He sets it in the middle of the table and Aleksander's eyes shine with hunger before he eagerly grabs some.

My grandfather takes some too, however when I expect him to drop it down onto his plate he puts it onto mine instead.

"Thank you." I whisper.

"Take more if you want it." He says, smiling at me again as he gets his own.

He begins to talk to Aleksander about something as I start eating the delicious, tasty, rich food. Eventually they both turn to me.

"What are your friends called?" Aleksander asks.

"What?" I whisper.

"Your school friends?" He clarifies.

"Oh." I sag a little bit. "Uh.. erm.."

"Too many to name?" Aleksander questions with a smirk.

I feel my cheeks heat. "One is called.. Lily." I lie, feeling horrible as I do so but maybe if my grandfather thinks I have friends then he won't talk to the people at school about how he thinks I'm being bullied. "And.. Olivia and Penelope."

"No boys though, right?" Aleksander asks teasingly.

"It's an all girls school." I reply.

"I know, it was a joke." He responds easily.

"Oh." I say.

An awkwardness settles over us until my grandfather breaks the silence.

"How's your back been feeling?"

"Better." I whisper.

"Good." He smiles. "It'll be healed soon, I think. In a few days we'll go back and she can take another look at it."

"Okay." I say, my voice small.

I curl my arms around myself, leaning back as I continue to pick at the food in front of me. I brush hair behind my ear and then look at my grandfather.

He glances at me too, his gaze lingering for a moment. "Are you finished?"

I nod.

"You can go to your room, if you want. Or the living room."

"I.. I'm gonna get ready for bed." I whisper.

"Okay, любов." He says. "I'll come check on you in a little bit, but if you're already asleep then goodnight."
(Translation: Love.)

I smile. "Goodnight." I say to both of them before leaving the dining room. I go up to my room slowly, taking my time to look around because I realise I've never properly explored this house, only gone up and down the familiar paths to my room, the kitchen and the living room.

I turn a random hallway, feeling like a spy in a movie as I open the first door I see. It's a small, seemingly unused office. A thin layer of dust coats the desk and I draw a smiley face in it with the tip of my finger. I'm about to leave when I see the row of books on the shelf behind the desk. I round it, then begin to read the titles. For a second I think my brain is foggy, but then I realise that everything in here is written in a different language.

I leave the room and debate whether to stop. My grandfather has never encouraged me to look around, so what if he doesn't want me to? But he's never told me not to, either. So I go to the next room, and the next, a little disappointed when I discover that they're all plain rooms or small libraries with books I can't understand.