The Second Calling by Hans S. Reinders

Author:Hans S. Reinders
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Darton, Longman & Todd LTD
Published: 2016-05-15T00:00:00+00:00

44.

Alonso Is Very Upset

Peter Entwistle’s handsome appearance had enchanted Claire more than she was ready to admit. As soon as he appeared in the dining hall, which was the place where they were most likely to meet, she couldn’t keep her eyes off him.

There was something about the young Englishman that appealed to her and made him appear a precious gift, something to keep wrapped up in silk paper, and definitely not to be smudged by sticky hands, or by sarcastic jokes, for that matter. His presence made Claire aware of something that had not much troubled her before. This was not the right time however, and definitely not the right place to get involved, but deep down inside she had an unfulfilled heart.

In the meantime Bethany had found its peacefulness again, except for the hustle and bustle at mealtimes, but that was okay. Especially in the evenings, mealtimes did not only mean food, although that was important, but also stories, laughter, songs, and, occasionally even dancing. Lucie seemed to thrive on the general merriment, simply because she didn’t draw the negative attention she was used to before, when everybody found her annoying.

This change was definitely the work of Maria and of Peter Entwistle. They succeeded in making the girl keep her seat and not start roaming around in the dining hall. When this nonetheless happened, as it sometimes did, she would be taken outside for a brief walk. Within a few weeks, her two assistants succeeded more and more in having her attention during mealtimes. They learned that being connected to her within a few minutes was crucial. Once she was at ease on her chair and focused on her meal, she was okay.

Her two assistants switched off and on between breakfast, lunch and dinner, just as they did in her apartment and the pottery. This meant that whenever it was their turn to take over, they started with new energy, just as Claire had anticipated when she brought up the idea of short, alternating shifts. This was very important. Assisting Lucie without lots of energy was not possible; that they had learned the hard way.

Peter and Maria arranged between them to have Lucie in a corner seat at the dinner table, so that she had the one in front, and the other beside her. It was not before long that this arrangement was interrupted. Frequently another person had taken the seat in front of her, and turned out to be an unexpected ally in assisting Lucie during mealtimes. It was Alonso.

The two were clearly attached to one another. Alonso always made funny faces at the girl, which was something he couldn’t help doing. When she had a hand on the table, he would put his out to play with her fingers. ‘Wuz,’ as he called her, was ‘thweet.’ This he would repeat whenever Peter or Maria would compliment her with a spoon that went in her mouth instead of on her t-shirt, ‘Wuz thweet.’

After some time, his affection for the girl took him to the next level of their intimate friendship.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.