Vol 5 Chapter 4 (2/2)
“I don’t know And apparently I have to become a watchmaker if I want to marry her Then I have to inherit the company”
“Why not?” His ry
“Mom! I wanna be a soldier like Dad and Cato! You’ve raised ht you’d at least know that much”
“I do But do you want to become a soldier just because you’re part of the Hepburn family? Or because you really want to?”
“Both I want to be a soldier because I was born into this family”
“I won’t stop you fro into the military, honey But you should think of it more as one potential choice out of many You’re only 15—you still have plenty of time to think about your future”
“Wouldn’t Dad get upset, though?”
“Your father agrees with me, honey”
“…What?”
“We never talked about it at home because it’s not the happiest topic, but the Confederation er”
“…Maybe”
“After the Mural was found, the cold war ended So naturally thedownsized They even ended conscription, too”
“Which is why career soldiers will be in higher demand!”
“And that’s a sound argument But you know, honey We’re happy to produce soldiers in the Hepburn family, but we’d be just as happy to produce businessmen and other professionals too”
Larry was silent
“I’ to say that if you really come to love Stella, you’re free to take a different path from the rest of the family”
Larry remained silent
“Remember, there are so ; you shouldn’t settle on one thing so soon”
The next day The 25th
It was the 11th day of the new term The weather was cloudy Larry walked to school alone
He walked out of the neighborhood and onto the ot to school, the more students he spotted
Things were clearly different that day He could feel the students’ whispers the azes
It was obvious why; so Larry decided not to worry and fell into thought
“Maybe I should tell Seron after all But what if I’ at the intersection in front of the campus
The intersection was packed with luxury cars dropping off students at school
“Hey, it’s hiuy from yesterday?” “What does she see in hi about them now”
“C’et to you,” Larry said to hiates
“SC Hepburn…”
He heard a soft voice beside hi in his left hand
“Huh?”
Larry turned to find none other than Stella She looked up at him blankly
“Good ”
“M-et here?”
Instead of answering, Stella clung to his aran to walk just as they had the previous day
The other students stirred for a ain the subject of azes
“School’s starting to look a lot like a chapel,” a student joked as Larry passed through the gates
Larry glanced at Stella’s left wrist
She was not wearing a watch
During a long break between second and third period
“Hey there Thanks for your cooperation”
“Not at all, SC Jones I’ fan of your paper”
Jenny was on the grounds talking to a second-year girl
On the grounds were tooden benches placed back-to-back
Jenny sat on one, and the girl on the other Because they were looking in opposite directions it siers
The self-proclaih to be a model She seemed excited to be able to contribute
“This is so cool! It’s just like a secret investigation! Ask , SC Jones, and I will spill the beans It’s about Stella, isn’t it? Everybody’s talking about it! How she’s dating the senior-classman with stupidly nice blond hair!”
Jenny concealed her notepad in her left hand and held a short pen in her right
“I hear Stella’s supposed to be mature, but she doesn’t have a lot of friends”
“H breaks, and she goes hoht after classes But nobody hates her or anything”
“I could tell fro bad about her”
“Right? She never talks behind anybody’s back since she’s so quiet to begin with That’s the great thing about Stella If you need anything, she helps you out And she’s nice It’d be great if she could make some friends”
“I see Anyway, about yesterday”
“Yes? Yes?”
“Those ruuy spread awfully fast, don’t you think?”
“Yeah Everyone who saas talking about it, and even Stella said it was true—”
“She did? Personally?”
“Yeah We were in Roxchean class that afternoon and someone asked her about the senior-classe in mind’! The class exploded, I swear We didn’t quiet down even when the teacher showed up Then Stella had to explain again and the class exploded again!”
“…So she really said so herself? I’m surprised”
‘Ruht Let’s rewind a bit Do you know about the ru senior-classman?”
“You bet! Stella and the gorilla That was the biggest piece of gossip last terether too”
“Really? When did this ruo?”
“Well, a bunch of people said they saw Stella and the gorilla talking alone in secluded places It started about a year ago, I think? Wait, it was the term we started here, so it must have been earlier”
Jenny quickly jotted down the information
“So it was pretty soon after you started secondary school?”
“Yeah”
“How did the ruo?”
“I mean, Stella almost never talks with boys, so nobody believed it at first But once a ether It sounded like a total urban legend Someone told Stella to tell a teacher if the senior-classht-up that he wasn’t stalking her Then everyone stopped worrying Well, I mean before this completely overshadowed it!”
“When did you see theether?”
“Last ter of the seventh month”
“That’s pretty recent Where?”
“I was visiting a friend on the top floor of the dorms and happened to look out theThey were by the library—”
“Secluded place Check What was it like between them?”
“See, that’s the thing I didn’t tell anyone because no one would ever believe me…”
“Tell me”
“It looked like he couldn’t possibly be a stalker or so like that”
“Then?”
“It looked like they were a couple”
Jenny’s hand froze over the notepad
“…What made you think that?”
“Because it was really…nice”
“Specifically?”
“They were looking at one another and—”
Jenny got off the bench
“Thanks You were a big help”
“Happy to help! If you need any more info, you knoho to ask!”
“Call the office if you re else If no one picks up, call my house”
“Sure thing! But I don’t have your number”
“Check the scrap of paper under your bench”
The girl looked down There was a neatly folded piece of paper pinned under a small rock
“Wow! It’s just like a spy film!”
“See you”
Jenny and her inforaze The school bell rang to signal the end of the break
Jenny went into the building and glanced at her notepad
And she reread the last sentence
‘looking at one another and s Stella never looked so happy and adorable’
“So you’re on to so the notepad in her bag
“Sure How could they not be the talk of the town, acting like that every day?” Natalia re a piece of meatloaf into her mouth
It was lunchti together to eat as they had the previous day
The difference was that all four of the cafeteria food Everyone had ordered meatloaf and salad, but Natalia also had an order or clam chowder
Just like the previous day, Larry and Stella sat at another table some distance away as if in a world of their own Stella had once again brought a hoain watching uncomfortably
“Soured out I was friends with Larry and started hounding me about ‘em How am I supposed to know? Arumbled
“A girl from the drama club asked me in class as well ‘It looks like the boy who helped us out during the su a junior-classman Shouldn’t we call the police?’ She askeda boiled carrot slice into his mouth
“Everyone is too ether, that is that It is a very good thing,” Meg said angrily
Seron sat across froht of her face
Natalia continued once she had finished off her meatloaf
“Anye didn’t get any new info What’s the chief say? Anything?”
Seron put down his fork and wiped his mouth with a napkin Then—
“No Nothing notable so far”
“Right”
Natalia asked noher attention to her clalinting
“Mh eaten by yours truly,” she co off the rest
Seron changed the subject
“How are the dramica?”
“They are doing very well! They are flowing!” “Quite well”
Meg and Nick replied Meg continued
“Ms Krantz is very hardworking as well President Sears and Vice-president Ulericks look to be happy But rehearsals will continue We cannot go to the club office again today On our behalf, please tell Jenny sorry”
“I as well Other than Larry’s recent state of near-wedded bliss, has anything noteworthy happened?” Asked Nick Seron’s response was brief
“No”
</if></no,></yes></if></of></in></hine></so></but></my></indeed></hm>