The Black Swan Behind (Beauty of Fire)

91 A Bad Luck

The wind blew hard against Emma’s body. She was driving her sportbike that night. Her whole body ached, especially in her leg that had been hit, but still, she had to force to fight.

Before leaving for home earlier, Emma had checked at the time on her watch which showed 1:00 am. She snorted in annoyance because she had to go to the campus at eight in the morning. Because she was in a hurry, Emma had unknowingly driven her motorbike quite fast on the slippery road. Then, when she crossed the corner...

CRASH!!

“Ugh.. ouch..” Emma groaned.

The sports bike she was riding slipped and instantly fell to the side as she suddenly pressed the brakes.

An old man who had crossed the road at the wrong place, immediately rushed to the figure of a man who was being squeezed under his own motorbike.

“Gosh.. Master.. I’m so sorry. Are you all right?” Asked the old man as tried to lift the motorbike so the rider could crawl out.

Emma was still complaining of pain. It was as if she had fallen and then been hit by the ladder. Her body, which had been in pain from the start, had smacked onto the hard asphalt and squeezed by her big bike. Indeed, being a lonely hero was not easy. For some reason, Emma felt like she’d been having bad luck lately.

Unintentionally, Emma took off her helmet glass visor so she could breathe properly after the crash, “I’m fine. But, can you help me move this bike to the side?” she asked.

.....

The old man, with all of his hair turned white, immediately nodded quickly, “Of course, I can. That is my house,” he answered by pointing to a simple house flanked by two bigger buildings.

With the help of the old man who caused her to crashed, Emma pushed her motorbike to the side of the road.

“Are you hurt? Should I call an ambulance?” Asked the man worriedly.

Emma shook her head, “No need, Sir. Thank you. I’m just going to sit down for a while to calm down the adrenaline in my heart.”

“In that case, please rest for a while inside. I’ll ask my wife to make a warm drink for you. If possible, she will also treat your wound.” The man offered with a face full of guilt. He saw the condition of the biker man whose knee pants were torn and showed a large bloody wound behind it.

Finally, Emma nodded, “Sure then. Thank you.” she said.

Before entering the old man’s house, which did not have a front yard, Emma opened her motorcycle seat and took out the bike cover cloth. She did not want the motorbike to be covered in snow and also to prevent the possibility of an enemy recognizing her motorbike when passing through the already empty road.

Emma stepped into the very warm house. Either the air, the setting, and the smell really describe a warmth.

“You can put your helmet here, young man,” The man said by pointing to a small table near the entrance.

Although she was a little hesitant at first, Emma decided to take off her helmet when she got inside. According to her, she didn’t need to hide her identity from people who didn’t even know her at all. After all, the man was a harmless-looking old man. How could he know anything about gangsters?

“Oh, My.. You are a woman? I’m sorry, I thought you were a boy!” Said the man with a dumbfounded face after seeing Emma’s beautiful face.

Emma smiled faintly, “Yes, I’m a woman who loves automotive.”

“Oh, I see..” The old man nodded. Then, he walked inside and stopped in the living room, “Please sit here for a moment. I will call my wife out,” he asked before going towards the kitchen.

Emma followed the old man’s instruction by sitting on the guest chair with the coffee table in front of her. As usual, Emma’s eyes were immediately busy looking around and exploring the shape and interior of the house.

Even though the house wasn’t big, Emma could clearly feel the warmth inside, which was enhanced by the slightly yellowish light of the lamps. In addition, the house also had a very unique classic interior. Maybe, it’s because the owners were an elderly couple. The smell in the house smelled like freshly baked cookies from the oven. Even in the middle of the table, there were several jars of cookies that instantly made Emma’s saliva pool under her tongue.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Said an old woman with long white hair tied back as stepped out from the direction of the kitchen. Even though wrinkles covered her face, her natural beauty didn’t seem to fade at all.

Emma then smiled at the woman, “Don’t mind it,”

Inside, Emma was a little surprised to see the granny’s tall body. It seemed that the old woman had a height that was above the average height of the women in their country. In fact, it seemed that her body was slightly taller than her husband’s.

“I’m sorry for my careless husband. I’ve often told him to always cross the road in the right place, no matter when the road is busy or empty. But he always seems to be violating it secretly.” The woman shook her head as she put down the tray containing a cup of hot ginger tea and a first aid box.

“It’s okay, Ma’am. Maybe after this, your husband won’t do it again,” Emma smiled.

“Well.. Hopefully, he will be careful next time. Maybe things could be worse than this, right? Humans can only understand after receiving punishment.” She pointed to the porcelain cup that was already on the table, “Please drink it while it’s still hot. Oh, right.. you can also try these cookies. I just finished making them this afternoon with my granddaughter.”

Emma immediately took the pretty cup and sipped its contents which tasted sweet and seemed to immediately warm her body, “Thank you.. This is very delicious.”

The woman nodded with a warm smile, “By the way, what’s your name, Honey? I’m Hellen Andreson, and my husband’s name is Mathew Andreson. I’m sure you two haven’t had the chance to get acquainted, because my husband is the type of person who will have a long chat with strangers first before finally remembering to introduce himself.” Said the old woman, as giving out her right hand in front of Emma. From the look on her face, Emma could tell that she must really love her husband.

Emma chuckled as she nodded and shook the warm hand, “You know him really well, Mrs Anderson. My name is Emma Hilland. You can call me Emma. By the way, where is your husband?”

“Nice to meet you, Emma. My husband is upstairs. He’s in the shower. Hh.. I hope he’s not making a lot of noise. I’m afraid my granddaughter might be wake up to it.” Hellen muttered with her face turning fierce.

“Oh.. Your granddaughter lives with you too?” Emma asked by pointing to the jar of ginger-man cookie that had been making her drool earlier, “Can I open this?”

“Of course.. You can eat all you want,” Hellen replied as she opened the antiseptic wipe and a red medicine drop, “This is a traditional medicine that our family has been using for a long time when it comes to bleeding wounds. Would you allow me to treat your wounds?”

Emma looked at her knees which were exposed because her pants were torn into circles there. Then, she shook her head, “I think I’ll take care of myself later at my house. It’s a bit troublesome when I’m wearing pants like this. Thank you for the offer, Mrs Hellen.”

“Ah.. I think you are right. I’m sorry to say this, dear.. But it’s actually not good for girls to roam too late at night, especially on motorbikes. Besides the slippery roads, sometimes delinquents are wandering the streets.” Hellen whispered.

Emma nodded with an awkward smile, “Thanks for worrying about me, Mrs.”

Hellen gave a small smile as she looked at Emma meaningfully, “You are very much like my sleeping granddaughter. You are a lady, but a bit tomboyish like a man.” Then, she remembered something and slapped her forehead while shaking her head slowly, “Oh.. sorry. I think you asked if my granddaughter lives here with us, huh? Why would I talk about things? Haha.. I’m that old, indeed.” She laughed.

“It’s okay, Mrs Hellen. But I think I already know that you all live together in this house.” Emma answered.

Hellen nodded, “Right.. It looks like you two are the same age. My granddaughter lost both of her parents when she was a child. Since then, my husband and I have been raising her. I feel sorry for her. We are very old already.. When we leave this world, then, she will be alone. Even we can only leave an old building on the side of the road for her to survive in the future..”

“You and your husband are still very healthy, Mrs Hellen. I’m sure you still have plenty of time to see your granddaughter succeed.” Emma said softly. Then, she glanced at her watch. It was almost two in the morning. She was a bit surprised and hastily finished her drink and put the cup back on the tray, “I’m sorry Mrs Hellen. Looks like I have to go home now. It’s already too late.”

“Oh.. You’re right. Sorry, I told too many unimportant stories. Let me walk you out. But, are you sure you can go home like this?” Hellen asked.

Emma shook her head, “No need, Mrs. It’s very cold outside. And I’m still strong enough to go back home. There’s no need to worry.” she answered as stood up.

Hellen gave Emma a guilty expression, then, she remembered something, “Oh.. Wait a minute, Emma.” She stepped to the back quickly, then came back with a large women’s brown coat in her arms, “You have some rips in your jacket. Please put this coat on.”

“Is it okay?” Emma asked.

Hellen nodded confidently, “You can return it at any time, or if necessary, you can keep it for yourself. I don’t know what more appropriate way to apologize for my husband’s carelessness. Please, at least you accept this pointless offer..”

“You don’t have to mind it, Mrs Hellen. It was an accident.” Emma replied by taking the coat and putting it on, “Thank you. It’s very warm and pretty.”

“I’m sorry if my husband can’t take you. He’s the record holder for the longest shower taker in Handway City.” Hellen said with an uncomfortable face as she opened the beige-painted wooden door of her house.

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