The woman stepped into the house with him, both of them taking off their shoes.

“You’ve great organisation here, it’s different from your cousins,” she said, scanning the room and running a hand across the table—no dust on it at all.

“Mille isn’t with me anymore… I had to learn how to manage on my own,” he said, walking closer to his aunt and letting her inspect every detail of his place.

“Owww, you still kept that?! And you’ve it in the living room too? That’s adorable…” She picked up a photo from the shelf near the TV—a picture of herself beside a much younger Leon.

“It’s just…” He scratched the back of his neck, a bit embarrassed. “I needed something to remind me of someone I cared about a lot, and I’ve had that photo in my room since I was seven. I didn’t really see a problem bringing it into the living room after all this time.”

He watched her touching the objects around the place, her attention drifting toward the kitchen.

“You’ve… two chairs at the table? Did that come with the house?” She walked into the kitchen, noticing the few decorations.

“No, I bought them after. But I usually eat in the living room anyway. I got those chairs just so this area wouldn’t look so empty,” he said, glancing around with her.

“I suppose I get it. You’ve a high standard for a young lad living in socks,” she said, looking down at his feet as he flexed his toes inside the fabric.

“Well, I don’t have to wear those leather coats or heavy boots anymore, do I? So I figured I might as well let my feet breathe,” he said, crossing his arms and showing off his relaxed style, which made her laugh.

“Liana still wears those pearl necklaces you used to hate,” she replied, stepping out of the kitchen and glancing toward the stairs.

“They used to bother my neck, I don’t know how anyone finds that stylish,” he muttered, and she stopped halfway up the stairs.

“I think I’d be invading your privacy too much going into your room, we’ll just stay down here,” she said, turning back to face him.

“If you think so… then, tea or beer?” he asked, heading back toward the kitchen.

“Tea, I’d say that’s more appropriate for this kind of talk after all this time,” she said, sitting calmly on the sofa and placing her bag aside. She turned on her phone, looking at the screen with a slightly irritated expression as she quickly dismissed a notification.

“How are things going in Limerick with… you know who?” Leon asked, taking a bottle of iced tea from the fridge and pouring it into the kettle to heat.

“Same as always. Shouting, photos, things taken out of context, the usual. Léo even got into a fight with the son of the Serena owner the other day, did you hear?” she said, crossing one leg over the other.

“No, but it’s not hard to imagine,” Leon said, turning on the stove and letting the water heat with the tea leaves. “He knows justice would be on his side if Serena tried anything, even if it’s a big brand around here.”

He stepped back and grabbed the cups he’d use, placing them on the table.

A silence fell. They stopped talking. Leon leaned against the table, looking around the room, his eyes resting briefly on the kettle with daisy details.

His aunt sat with a finger in her mouth, biting her nail until it was slightly damaged. Her legs moved restlessly, and she began tapping her foot faster as her phone kept buzzing with notifications.

Then the kettle was carefully taken off the stove and placed on the table. Leon wore purple gloves, pouring the tea into the cups with steady hands and carrying them into the living room.

When he arrived, neither of them spoke. The woman stopped fidgeting and looked up as he approached, handing her the tea.

Leon sat on the opposite sofa, placing his cup on the table to cool, while his aunt blew on hers and drank carefully.

The clock in the room ticked steadily—tick, tick—filling the silence, until she finally placed her still half-full cup back down.

“Leon…” she began, and he looked at her while slowly sipping his tea, careful not to burn himself.

“You know if you went back to Limerick today, you could even be arrested, don’t you?” she said, hands folded together.

The blond stopped drinking, still holding the cup.

“I know… I’m lucky it didn’t end up involving the whole country,” she continued after a few sips.

“Have you made any friends here to trust your identity with?” she asked, her gaze turning colder as she looked at him.

He coughed slightly and set the cup down on the table.

“No… I haven’t found anyone. But why would I?” he replied, his eyes shaky.

“I just don’t want you to be alone… it’s a long trip from there to here. You need someone else, someone with you all the time, because you know I can’t come here often. I took too many risks coming already—the only reason I managed was because of these cloths and hiding my face,” she said, brushing her hair back.

“Actually…” Leon started. “There’s a boy… I think he’s about my age. He really insists on keeping contact with me, and I told him about this situation.”

“But if you don’t have friends, what does he represent to you?” she asked.

“That’s a good question,” he said, crossing his arms and resting a finger on his chin. “I’m not sure. I didn’t tell him everything, not fully. I gave him a kind of puzzle, actually. I see him as… strange. I can’t figure out what goes on in his head, but he has friends and he’s always smiling. He tries to talk to me and even brought me to my favourite bar in the city.”

“Then why don’t you try to understand him properly, and see if he could be your company, since I can’t come here often?” she asked, standing up and taking both of his hands.

“But… why should I try?” he turned his face away.

“Does he know your name?” she asked softly, holding his hands.

“He does… even my surname,” he replied.

“That’s very valuable information. I don’t know what made you trust him with that, but I hope you talk to him and try to understand him. I love you, my dear nephew, and I just want you to be okay, no matter who it’s with,” she said, leaning in and gently kissing his cheek.

“If that’s what it takes to make you less worried about me… I promise I’ll talk to him,” he nodded, and she smiled. “But I have one condition.”

“And what would that be, little prince?” she laughed.

“You also take care of yourself, and you message me—even if you have to archive my contact!” he leaned closer.

“Hm… deal,” she said.

She hugged him, and he hugged her back tightly, a small tear slipping down his face as the tea cooled on the table. Outside, the wind felt a little less cold.