Two Days To Auremont
Country: Aurivelle
City: Cressford
Alvara
Morning didn’t arrive loudly.
It crept in.
Soft light first… slipping through the curtains, spreading gently across my room like it wasn’t sure it had permission to be there.
I blinked slowly, still half caught between sleep and awareness.
For a moment, I didn’t move.
Just lay there.
Staring at the ceiling.
Listening.
The house was quiet.
Not silent… just alive in a quiet way.
Distant sounds from the kitchen drifted in.
The faint clink of utensils.
Soft movement.
The rhythm of someone already awake.
Home.
I inhaled slowly.
The air here always felt the same.
Familiar.
Safe.
But today… it carried something else too.
Something I couldn’t quite name.
A weight.
My eyes closed for a second.
Then it opened again.
Today.
The word settled in my chest like it had been waiting there all night.
I pushed myself up slowly, running a hand through my hair as I sat on the edge of the bed.
I stood and walked into the bathroom.
Cold water hit my face the moment I splashed it on.
Sharp.
Real.
It pulled me fully back into myself.
I brushed quickly, then changed into something simple… soft cream top, loose joggers, and my loafers.
Comfortable.
Normal.
When I stepped out into the hallway, the smell reached me first.
Breakfast.
Warm. Familiar. Inviting.
I followed it down the short corridor and stopped at the kitchen doorway.
And just… watched.
Mom was already there.
Moving with that calm, steady ease she always had in the mornings.
Like she had never known chaos a day in her life.
Leo stood by the dining table, trying to arrange the plates with exaggerated seriousness.
One tilted slightly.
He fixed it.
Then another shifted.
He sighed dramatically.
“Why do plates have an attitude this early in the morning?” he muttered.
Mom didn’t even look up.
“That’s not a real thing.”
“It is to me,” he replied. “They don’t respect me.”
A small smile tugged at my lips as I leaned against the doorframe.
Neither of them noticed me at first.
Just the sound of home filling the space.
It felt normal and peaceful.
“Good morning,” I said softly.
Leo looked up first.
“Finally,” he said. “The celebrity wakes.”
I rolled my eyes, walking in.
“Good morning to you too.”
Mom turned, smiling gently.
“Did you sleep well?”
I nodded. “I did.”
Leo held up a plate, inspecting it like it personally offended him.
“Why does this look crooked?”
“Because you’re holding it crooked,” I said, taking it from him and placing it properly on the table.
He frowned.
“I was doing fine.”
“You were not.”
“I was.”
“You were struggling.”
“I was adjusting.”
I looked at him.
“Adjusting what?”
He paused.
“…details.”
I smiled slightly. “Exactly.”
Mom shook her head lightly, amused as she continued plating the food.
“Both of you… leave it and sit down.”
“Yes, ma,” I said immediately, taking a seat.
Leo sat too, still muttering under his breath.
“I would have finished it perfectly.”
“Of course you would have,” I said.
Mom brought the food to the table.
Simple.
But warm.
Eggs.
Bread.
Tea.
The kind of breakfast that didn’t try to impress…
But always satisfied.
We started eating.
Quiet at first.
Just the sound of cutlery.
Small movements.
“So… what’s the plan today?”
My hand paused slightly.
Just for a second.
Then continued.
“I and Isabella are going to the Maison Aurelle to see Mrs Clara,” I said.
“That’s good,” Mom said, nodding.
I took a sip of tea, steadying myself.
Not now.
Breakfast ended slowly.
Not because we were still eating…
But because no one was in a hurry to leave the table.
Leo was still talking about something I wasn’t really listening to.
Mom was clearing the plates.
And I just sat there.
Watching them.
Memorizing it.
“Mom…” I said softly.
She paused and turned slightly.
“Yes?”
Leo looked up too.
I swallowed.
This was it.
“I need to tell you something.”
The air shifted immediately.
Not heavy… just attentive.
Mom wiped her hands and came to sit across from me.
Leo leaned back in his chair, suddenly alert.
“Okay,” she said gently. “What is it?”
I let out a small breath.
“We’re moving.”
Silence.
Leo blinked.
“Moving?” he repeated.
Mom’s brows pulled together slightly.
“Where?”
“Auremont.”
Another pause.
Deeper this time.
Leo leaned forward.
“Wait… as in the Auremont?”
I nodded faintly.
“Yes. The Auremont.”
Mom studied my face carefully.
“Alvara…”
I didn’t look away.
“On Tuesday.”
That landed.
Leo straightened instantly.
“Tuesday? As in… two days from now Tuesday?!”
I nodded again.
“Yes.”
“Alvara…” Mom said softly, like she was trying to understand it slowly.
“I’ve been planning it,” I said. “For a while.”
“How?” Leo jumped in immediately. “Wait…how do you just plan something like that without telling us?”
I reached into my pocket and brought out the card.
Black. Sleek. Simple.
I placed it on the table.
Both of them stared at it.
“This…” I said quietly, “was given to me by Mrs. Hawthorne.”
Mom blinked.
Leo leaned closer.
“That Hawthorne?” he asked.
I nodded.
“The day I won best designer of the month.”
Mom’s eyes widened slightly.
“You never told me…”
“I didn’t know how,” I admitted. “It didn’t feel real at first.”
Leo picked up the card carefully, like it might disappear.
“This is… a black card,” he said slowly.
I nodded.
“It is.”
Silence settled again.
Different this time.
Not confusion.
Awe.
“I used it,” I continued, “to buy a house.”
Leo almost dropped it.
“A house?!”
Mom’s hand lifted slightly to her chest.
“Alvara…”
“In Auremont,” I added. “In Aurelian Heights.”
Leo froze.
“That place… where all those rich people live?”
I gave a small nod.
“Yes.”
“Oh my God…” he muttered, leaning back.
Mom was quiet for a moment, processing everything.
Then softly…
“Isabella?”
“She’s coming with us,” I said immediately.
That eased her expression a little.
“And her father?”
“They’re moving too. We got a twin property… two houses facing each other.”
Leo snapped back in again.
“You bought two houses?”
I shrugged lightly.
“It made sense.”
He just stared at me.
Long.
Then shook his head like he had given up trying to understand me.
Mom stood slowly from her seat and walked around the table.
Before I could even react.
She pulled me into a hug.
Tight. Warm. Quiet.
“I don’t even know what to say,” she whispered.
“But I’m proud of you.”
My chest tightened.
“I just wanted us to be comfortable,” I said softly. “To have more.”
She pulled back slightly, holding my face.
“You’ve already given us more than enough.”
A tear slipped down her cheek… but she was smiling.
Leo stood up, running a hand through his hair.
“This is insane,” he said, half-laughing. “Like actually insane.”
Then he looked at me.
“Wait… does this mean I’m going to university in Auremont?”
I nodded.
“Yes.”
His eyes widened.
“…okay,” he said slowly. “I take back everything I’ve ever said about you.”
I raised a brow.
“Everything?”
“Almost everything,” he corrected quickly.
I let out a small laugh.
“And…” I added, glancing between them, “since the company will be investing in my brand and setting up my startup funding… I think I’ll focus on getting everything in place first.”
Leo gasped dramatically.
“Oh, she’s gone.”
I laughed.
“She’s officially rich,” he said, pointing at me. “Next thing she’ll forget us.”
“Leo,” I said warningly, still smiling.
Mom shook her head softly.
“You deserve it,” she said.
“Everything you’re stepping into… you’ve worked for it.”
I exhaled slowly.
Leo dropped back into his chair.
“Tuesday…” he repeated.
“Two days…”
Then suddenly he grinned.
“I need to start packing.”
I blinked.
“Already?”
“Of course,” he said. “I have a reputation to build in Auremont.”
I shook my head.
“Unbelievable.”
But even as I said it…
I looked at them.
Really looked at them.
And I felt it settle in fully.
This wasn’t just a move.
It was the beginning.