The sun was just beginning to filter through the trees when Melody burst into the small shop where her brother Bastian was sleeping. With boundless energy, she shook the young gypsy until he woke up.
"Good morning, Bastian, wake up!" she exclaimed with a radiant smile as she placed a steaming bowl in front of him. "Look, I brought banana muffins for breakfast. I made them for you with the other girls. They're a little burnt, but they're delicious, I promise! Here, I also brought milk."
Bastian blinked several times, trying to adjust his eyes to the sudden brightness of the day. He looked at the bowl skeptically, but before he could say anything, Melody was already waiting for a response.
"It's delicious, right?" she asked, brimming with enthusiasm.
The young man took one of the rolls and took a bite. To his surprise, the taste was much better than he had anticipated. "Not bad," he admitted, before taking another bite. Then he took a sip of milk and looked at his sister with a mixture of amusement and resignation. "Melody, I shouldn't have given you so much apple pie last night. Sweets make you too rowdy, little sister."
The girl crossed her arms, feigning indignation. "Of course it's delicious! And now that you mention it, the other girls have told me that I could dance with them and earn more money. They're doing well, and they've taught me some dance moves. I'll show you..."
Before she could continue, Bastian interrupted her firmly. "Don't show me anything, Melody! You're not going with those girls. You'll do the same thing you did yesterday." His tone was stern, though his eyes reflected concern. He knew that the women Melody wanted to associate with were not exactly paragons of virtue, and he feared that someone might take advantage of his sister's naivety.
"You're so bitter, Bastian, you know that!" protested Melody, pouting childishly and sticking out her tongue.
"That's my final word, Mel. If you don't agree, you'll stay here until we leave to go back to the village. Sister, I'm doing this for your own good. It's not easy to see those bastards touching and humiliating our women, and the worst part is not being able to do anything about it." He tried to soften his tone, moving closer to her to tickle her and make her laugh. "Come on, stop that face and give me a smile."
Melody tried to resist, but soon gave in to her brother's jokes. "Okay, Bastian! You win, brother, but please stop tickling me!" Laughing, she wiped the tears from her cheeks. "I'll go get ready to go out earlier today and see if I can get more than I did yesterday. I'll go out and play the violin, like you want."
"I knew you'd come to your senses," said Bastian with a triumphant smile. "I'll wait for you outside to take you back to the place I took you yesterday." Without further ado, he left the tent in search of water to wash his face and finish stretching.
He walked to a nearby stream, where he leaned over to wet his face. The water was freezing, but revitalizing. "It's cold, very cold, but I needed this," he muttered to himself as he rubbed his skin. He looked around to make sure no one was watching him; he wanted to take a quick bath. He knew that in his gypsy village, no one would have thought twice about seeing him naked, but there, in foreign territory, things were different.
"Bah, I'll be quick, but by the gods, I need this bath," he said to himself, beginning to strip off his clothes. He placed them carefully on a large rock and entered the water, which barely reached his knees. He sat down and began to rub his tanned skin, removing any traces of dirt. Meanwhile, eyes as blue as the sky watched him from a distance, full of curiosity and amazement.
The young woman, who had come to the stream for water, couldn't help but sneak closer. She had never seen anyone in that situation before, and something about the scene captivated her. When the boy stood up, drops of water slid down his muscular back, leaving her momentarily speechless.
"I'm sorry, miss!" Bastian apologized, visibly embarrassed.
Despite his sun-tanned skin, a deep blush covered his cheeks. "I swear, I just wanted to take a bath. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable!"
He ran to the rock where he had left his clothes and began to dress hurriedly. He had never felt so embarrassed in front of a woman before, but something about this girl made him nervous. It was clear that she did not belong to his world; her bearing and manner of speaking gave her away as a resident of Aldremir.
"Calm down, young man," she said calmly, covering her eyes with her hands. "I was just here for some water. I didn't mean to scare you. I would have waited for you to leave before coming closer."
"Even so, I apologize. You can take your hands away from your face now. I'm dressed," replied Bastian, still uncomfortable but grateful for her understanding.
The young woman slowly lowered her hands and gave him a friendly smile. "Don't worry. I won't say anything. You were just taking a bath, and I was reckless to come so close. I should have waited."
"Thank you, miss. I appreciate you not screaming," said Bastian, feeling the tension begin to dissipate. "You're from Aldremir, right?"
"Yes, I'm from here. But don't worry, I won't cause you any trouble," she replied sincerely.
"My name is Bastian. What's yours?" he asked, feeling more relaxed.
"Arian," she replied with a smile. "I hope to see you again under better circumstances, Bastian."
"Thank you, Arian. Hopefully luck will smile on me and we'll meet again," he said, smiling back at her before returning to his camp.
The midday heat enveloped the small backyard where Melody waited, the sun filtering through the leaves of the trees and casting dancing shadows on the ground. She had been there for almost an hour, sitting on the edge of the dry fountain, watching her hair move in the wind, time passing with exasperating slowness. Every minute seemed to drag on, feeding her frustration until she could barely contain it.
"Bastian, I've been waiting for you for almost an hour!" she finally shouted, standing up abruptly and crossing her arms. "I'm tired of you always doing this to me. If you don't come in a minute, I'm leaving without you. Brother, you always make me wait... It's not fair."
Her voice trembled slightly at the end, mixing irritation with a touch of disappointment. Although she tried to remain firm, her eyes glistened with held-back tears, the result of accumulated helplessness.
Meanwhile, Bastian ran toward her, his shirt slightly wet and his hair dripping. His face was flushed, not only from the heat of the day but also from the effort of having rushed to get there. When Melody saw him appear, she had to stifle an involuntary laugh. It was impossible not to find him endearing, even when he drove her crazy.
"Mel, I'm here! Are you ready? We're late!" he shouted, panting as he tried to catch his breath.
Melody looked at him with narrowed eyes, her expression a mixture of annoyance and reproach. She crossed her arms more tightly, as if to protect herself from his carefree charm.
"We're late? Sure, according to you, it's my fault. What were you doing? You said you were just going to wash your face. That doesn't take that long," she replied sharply, although deep down she knew she was being a little unfair. After all, it was Bastian. He had always been like that.
Bastian smiled charmingly, scratching the back of his neck with a guilty look. He approached her slowly, as if trying to prevent his sister from exploding.
"Oh, I also took a bath," he confessed with a nervous laugh, looking down for a second before facing her again. "Mel, I'm sorry, but temptation got the better of me. Will you forgive me, little sister? I'll make it up to you, I promise."
His affectionate tone managed to soften Melody's heart a little, although she continued to pretend to be upset. She watched him for a few seconds, biting her lip to keep from smiling. She knew it was useless to stay mad at him; he always got his way.
"You better, brother. You better..." she finally muttered, although her voice no longer had the edge it had before. She turned around to start walking, but couldn't help but smile a little when she heard Bastian's soft laughter behind her.
He quickly caught up with her, whistling as if nothing had happened. Melody shook her head, muttering to herself,
"It's impossible to hate you, you idiot."
Together, they began to walk down the path, leaving their little argument behind as the sun continued to shine down.