Five years later...
Spring Days
A woman looked out the window of her new found home. She moved in that place just yesterday afternoon and she already loves it so much. Her golden yellow hair waves following the gentle breeze of spring air that afternoon but she didn't mind the strands that keep on floating in front of her face. It has been so long since she let her hair fall down. She spent five long years of her life with her hair kept on a bun to keep it from falling whenever she is in the operating room; saving lives of people she doesn't know but care about. Now it shouldn't be like that. She is now free to do anything she wants with her life. She is now free to spend it anyhow she likes. The idea brought her joy and sadness at the same time. She loved being a doctor, she loved saving lives of other people, but she realized lately that she'd ruined her own life in quest of this noble profession of saving others.
She breathed hard and erased the thoughts bugging her mind. The world is beautiful, this new place she has found is fantastic. She leaned on her palm, her elbow is resting on the window pane of her room and looked at the sea in front of her. This place she is renting, well she can't say it is extravagant, it was actually just a simple studio type room residing above what seemed like a bakeshop. She can't tell because the space under her room is closed, for how many months or years, she doesn't know.
Her space though has a small living room connected to an equally small kitchen which is opposite a small room where she put all her things for the mean time. Then there's this room, it is bigger than the other one and it was facing the sea.
She didn't expect much, really. When she got to this place in Le Touquet, she already set her mind that she might be living in a totally opposite life she had in America where her room is exactly where a doctor such as herself should be. Extravagant it is, but not as beautiful as this new place. Her room in New York is facing the busy city, if you look outside the window all you can see are the people walking fast like they are all after something so urgent and the loud thumping of horses with cariages in all corners of the street. While in this place, you have the peaceful view of the sea, and the clouds meeting it.
There is also this beautiful plum blossom tree she didn't even know existed in France. Typically the tree would be found in Asian countries such as China and Japan. The flowers of the tree attracted her eyes the first time she saw it yesterday. It was right beside the house of the Barker family who owns this place. She can see it because it was planted in front of the right side of the house. When she passed by it yesterday, she noticed that it was facing a huge window on the second floor which she concluded as the master's bedroom. How nice could it be to wake up each morning and be greeted by such a lovely tree towering outside the window pane, she thought.
She smiled at herself with what she just thought, usually all she could ever think of were hospitals, patients, scrub suits and blood. Now she's thinking about this other side of life.
"Bella, come back here!!!" Shouted a small voice of a boy.
"I swear I'm gonna tell daddy!"
"No, you won't Billy!" The little girl replied giggling.
"Bella, just come down here, will you!?"
"No! Have to get the last egg from here!!!" Replied the little girl again. The woman looked out to see where the voices were coming from. The kids were speaking in French and she hardly understand what they were saying. All she understood were their names and the eggs the little girl mentioned. They are probably looking for eggs. That was only then she realized that today is Easter Sunday.
She looked down and saw the kids playing around the plum blossom tree. The little girl just jumped from it to her surprise.
"What if you fell Bella?!" The little boy asked before he helped the little girl fix her dress, beside him is a Shetland Sheepdog.
"Well, I didn't right?" Replied the little girl giggling before she took off the boy's hat and ran off. The little boy started running after her in chase of his hat, the dog was also running after the kids. When he reached the girl, he took off her headband instead of his own hat and they both laughed so hard.
The woman smiled as she watched the kids. Both of them have red hair and they were almost the same height. Probably twins, she concluded. Aside from those two kids, the only member of the Barker family she met was Toby. He was the one who helped her yesterday when she moved to this house and she was glad the young gentleman can speak English. She learned from him that they were actually from London. Well, that was all she knew about them really. Toby is a little awkward although he was very kind and helpful, he wasn't much of a talker.
She decided she wants to experience the sand outside and look for a decent place where she can eat later so she went out of the room.
She was surprised when she walked passed by a young couple heading to the Barker family's house. The woman has golden yellow hair like hers, the man who seemed like her husband is holding a toddler about a year old. She walked slowly and heard Toby excitedly inviting them in.
"They are outside, playing while Dad and I are preparing dinner." He informed them before he closed the door. She just shrugged and walked near the beach. There, she saw the kids trying to build a sandcastle with their hands. She planned to just watch them as she sat on a huge rock until the little girl looked up to her and smiled before she went close to her.
"Bonjour!" The little girl greeted her when her feet stopped in front of her. The woman smiled at the little girl.
"Hi!" She said and waved her hand to the beautiful kid with red curly hair in front of her.
"Are you French?" She asked frowning. She looked so cute and innocent when she did.
"No." The woman replied and the little girl smiled again showing a deep dimple on her right cheek.
"My name is Bella Barker." She said in English as she offered her small hand to her.
"He is my twin... Billy, come over here!" She shouted making the woman giggled silently. The little girl is actually a bossy type.
"He's my twin brother, Billy." She introduced the boy who got up and shyly went up to them.
"Hello, ma'am." His voice was so soft and he offered her his hand as well.
The woman was mesmerized by the kids in front of her. They look so wonderfully and beautifully alike. Except for the color of their eyes. The little girl has grey eyes and the little boy has chocolate brown eyes.
"How old are you?" She asked.
"We're five years old." Said Billy.
"We turned five last Christmas day!" Bella added. The woman smiled, they talk in English fluently and barely had baby tongue.
"Are you staying upstairs for good?" Asked Bella.
"Do you have kids we can play with?" She asked again. "Or a puppy, Boo can play with?" She added as she wrapped her arms around the neck of their dog.
The woman giggled again, Bella looked more beautiful when she talks. Her eyes has a very long and curly eye lashes and her small pointed nose reminds her of an eagle's beak, her lips were like ripe cherries. Billy has the same features as well, only that his jaws are visibly stronger for his age.
Lucky parents! She told herself.
"Yes, I'm staying for a long while, but not for good... I don't have a baby, and I don't have a puppy."she smiled, Bella frowned again, so did Billy.
She wanted to touch their faces but she stopped herself. "They aren't yours." Said a voice inside her head.
"Why did you ask?" Both of them looked at her.
"Cause we want to play with lots of kids. We only see other kids when we attend school." Bella pouted again.
"Hmmm... A baby was in your house just this afternoon." She informed them when she remembered the couple she saw awhile ago.
"Really?! Johanna is here now?" Billy excitedly asked and jumped happily.
"Johanna..." The woman repeated.
"Johanna is our eldest sister. The baby is Kylie. She's a year old." Bella informed her. The woman frowned slightly, if she remembers correctly, Johanna has blue eyes, she noticed that when she walked past them awhile ago. The twins have brown and grey. Toby had brown as well.
"What do you do ma'am?" Bella
"Do you fish?" Billy.
"Why'd you ask that?" She asked them.
"My dad fish, he's good at fishing."
"I see."
"But he stopped fishing recently." Bella added.
"Why?" She asked.
"Well he said, so he can look after us more." Billy said in a sad voice.
"What about your mom?" She asked and looked at the kids' eyes. They suddenly turned sad.
"Mom can't take care of us..." Billy said softly.
"Is she sick?" She wanted to touch their faces again because of the sadness in their eyes.
"No... Dad said mom isn't sick anymore. She's just up there! She can't take care of us but she's always looking after us."
The woman frowned following Bella's hand pointing to somewhere. The tree...
