-We're almost there. - He said he stopped.
-Why don't I see your house?
-Nellie and Erica were asked to blindfold you.
-What?
-It's a surprise.
-Why?
-They wanted you to remember this day for the rest of your life.
-Yes... they can.
-That's for sure. Please get out of the car and close your eyes.
I got out, closed the door, and then my eyes. A second later, Ian was already blindfolding me. I couldn't hear the noise of the car anymore - Ian muffled it. Suddenly he picked me up.
-What are you doing?
-What do you think? - He answered the question with a question. - It's part of the plan.
-What? What plan?
-Then you'll find out, but in the meantime, press closer to me.
-Why?
But he did not answer. I decided to follow his instructions. As soon as I pressed him firmly, I felt like I was flying. My hands were wrapped around Ian's neck. I knew we were closer now than we were then to my house. It made me feel even better. It was even nicer to have Ian's one hand on my waist and gently wrapped around it. Now, for some reason, I thought it was so perfect, and that it couldn't be any different. I was so calm... so easy. Suddenly, Ian didn't put me down, but my hands stayed around his neck, and then crawled down on my forearms. Then I felt like Ian reached for my head and took off the bandage. I finally saw it all with my own eyes. I saw Ian's face again, his eyes. I somehow felt the tenderness coming from him. Ian was the first of us to wake up. He took my hand and led me on. A few meters later, I saw a large two-story house. I started to worry again. I looked at myself.
-You look beautiful. - Ian said with a smile. But I didn't calm down. - Honestly.
I was worried anyway. Suddenly I saw Nellie. She came up to us.
-You look great. Just...
-What? -I was disappointed.
-There's only one thing missing. - Nelly said and looked at Ian. And he walked back into the woods and came back with a little lily flower in his hands. He broke his leg off the flower, only left a small part. Nellie and I were standing there waiting for Ian to come to us. As soon as he came up to us, he reached out to my head with a hand of flower. He put a flower in my hair, and then, as he was taking his hand away, he held it on my cheek for a while. And I, a little embarrassed, turned my eyes on the ground.
-That's great now! - Nellie added. - Let's go. - She said, and she took my hand and took me with her.
We came closer to home, and I saw that the house was decorated with lilies, my favorite flowers. How beautiful ..." I thought. Then we entered the house, and there were lilies too. I looked around the whole room, and then I looked at the stairs. Erica and Karl came down the stairs first, followed by two strangers - a woman and a man. They were a little older than Ian, Nellie, Erica, and Carla, five years old, no more.
-Hello, Leela! - Erica said. - Meet Julie and Mike, our foster parents.
-What? I was amazed. - А... Hello...
-Hello, Leela, and in reality, you are even more beautiful than we imagined. - Julie said.
-I imagined you differently, too. - I said with a little smile. I looked around again, everybody was wearing a festive dress.
-Well, shall we go to the gazebo? - Erica suggested it.
-To the gazebo? - I said I didn't expect this to happen.
-Yes." Nelly answered my question. - Come on, don't be afraid.
-Yes, I'm not afraid, I just wasn't expecting it.
We went to the gazebo. They asked me about different things. And then, until the evening, they showed me the house, telling me in passing where this or that thing came from. Eventually, we went to the room where the piano was standing. Nellie sat down at the piano and started playing, and Julie sang to her.
-How beautiful! - I said when the song was over.
-It was Erica who came up with the words! - Julie answered me.
-Oh, you're a poet! - I told Erica.
-You can say that, too. - She answered. - This talent was given to me ... from birth. - She looked back at Mike and Julie. I didn't realize what it was all about, so I looked around. Everybody was confused. What would that mean and why did everyone react to Erica's words like that?
-What was wrong? - I asked, wanting to defuse the situation.
-No, no, it's okay! Well, what are you all still doing? - Mike said.
-Oh, yeah! It's getting late. Leela, you need to go home now, right? - Ian asked.
-Yes, of course. Soon my parents will come home, but I'm not here. They must be worried. - I answered, realizing that Ian didn't want to drag me into anything.
-Come on, I'll drive you.
We went out of the house and headed for the car.
-What was it? - I asked when we got into the car and started driving.
-When?
-Well, why did it all stop... when Erica said she was born with talent? And why did she stop herself before adding "from birth"?
-Just something you're not ready to hear yet.
-Yes?