Many years had gone by, but Cristofer still kept the habit of leaving the light on when he went out. After thinking for a moment, Estelle decided to enter his room and turn off the light for him.
She quietly opened Cristofer’s bedroom door, even though he wasn’t there. Estelle moved like a cat, trying not to make any noise. When she noticed the bedside lamp was on, she approached it to turn it off. However, in the process, she accidentally knocked over a small, unframed photo from the bedside table.
The photo was lightweight, almost like a piece of paper. Just before it hit the carpet, Estelle reached out quickly and caught it.
She let out a sigh of relief and whispered to herself, “I’m glad I caught it. Cristofer must value this photo since he placed it on his bedside table. If it had fallen and gotten dirty, he’d be upset.” As she spoke, she put the photo back in its original spot. Out of curiosity, she glanced at it and was taken aback. She stood there, holding the photo, in stunned silence for a long while.
The picture was taken during a trip to the amusement park they had gone on together a year ago. In the photo, their children were beaming with happiness. Cristofer and she stood side by side, their smiles bright and their hands intertwined. It had been a long time since they had such a joyful moment together.
Estelle gently stroked the photo again and again as if she could experience the happiness that day again by doing that. ‘If I can turn back the clock, I’m willing to pay any price for it. If I can go back in time, I’ll tell my past self how much Cristofer loves me,’ she thought.
After staring at the photo for a long time, she reluctantly put it back on the bedside table. She vaguely remembered that the photo was placed with its back upward. Just after she turned over the photo, her attention was attracted by the words on the back of it. The words were written in italics, and Estelle recognized Cristofer’s handwriting at once.
“My Star…” she read the words in a trembling voice. ‘So, he still cares about me, right?’
After hesitating for a while, Estelle put the photo into her pocket, wanting to keep it as a memento. Then she went back to her bedroom and went to bed. Tonight, she had a good sleep and dreamed about Cristofer. In her dream, she saw Cristofer, who was in his youth. He ran towards her and said that he would take her to watch the stars.
The next morning, Estelle was woken up by noises in the corridor. In drowsiness, she vaguely heard Luke’s voice and the servants’ quick steps. Not knowing what they were doing, she wrapped herself in a thin coat, rubbed her sleepy eyes, and walked out of the room.
“What happened?” she asked when seeing Luke.
With messy grey hair, Luke said anxiously, “Estelle, the children, and Mr. Hans are missing! We can’t find them!”
Several minutes ago, he went to the children’s room to ask the three kids to have breakfast as usual. But when he opened the door, he was surprised to find that the children were not there. Their small beds were tidy, and the quilts were folded up neatly, which meant that the children had not slept in the room last night. Then, he began to look for them anxiously.
Hearing his words, Estelle was shocked and became wide awake. Then she thought of something and patted her head, saying, “Uncle Luke, don’t worry. I was with them last night. I know where they are. Come with me!” After saying that, she turned around and ran towards the stairs as fast as she could. With a confused look, Luke quickly followed her.
In a minute, they arrived at the terrace on the top floor and saw Cristofer and the three children still sleeping soundly. Cristofer was sitting in a wheelchair with Yvonne and Christina in his arms, covered by his big coat. And Christina smacked her lips from time to time while sleeping. Seeing this, Estelle and Luke heaved a sigh of relief and shook their heads helplessly.
“Oh, my God. I was nearly scared to death just now,” Luke said as he wiped the cold sweat on his forehead.
Estelle walked over to Cristofer and gently tapped Yohan on the shoulder to wake him up. But Yohan was sound asleep next to Cristofer and mumbled something incoherent. He was snugly wrapped in his coat with the sleeves tied around his neck.
Estelle figured Cristofer had done this to keep Yohan warm. She turned to Luke with a smile and said, “Uncle Luke, let’s take the kids back to their room together. I’ll carry the girls, and you can carry Yohan. Afterward, we’ll come back here and help Cristofer downstairs, okay?”
As she talked, Cristofer frowned slightly and slowly woke up from his pleasant dream. He opened his eyes, still half-asleep, and mistook Estelle for a dream. Smiling affectionately, he called her by her nickname, “Star.”
Estelle was surprised by this and looked at him in amazement.
Cristofer, holding Yvonne and Christina, noticed Estelle’s attire and expressed concern, “Star, it’s chilly in the morning. Put on more clothes. I’ll ride you to school later on my bike.” Lost in his memories, he thought they were back in their youth.
Estelle had heard Cristofer say similar things many times when they were students. Back then, they used to go to school together every day to spend more time with each other. Cristofer even bought a bike with a comfortable rear seat. Every morning, he would take a detour to her house, wait for her, and then ride her to school.
Thinking of those fond memories, Estelle’s eyes welled up with tears. She wrapped her arms around Cristofer and smiled, replying softly, “Okay.”
This sudden clarity brought Cristofer back to reality. He quickly regained his composure and said with a stern look, “Just forget what I said earlier.”
Luke observed their interaction and couldn’t help but chuckle. Just then, Yvonne and Christina woke up, stretching and rubbing their sleepy eyes.
Estelle picked up Christina and held her little hand to prevent her from rubbing her eyes, concerned about keeping them clean. She also asked Cristofer directly, “How did you get here last night?”
“What? Estelle, didn’t Mr. Hans come here with you last night?” Luke asked in surprise.
Shaking her head slightly, Estelle replied, “No, I thought you helped him up the stairs and into this place. But it seems that wasn’t the case.”