While waiting for her younger siblings to come down from upstairs, Elsie was busily preparing dinner as usual. Usually Jo or Rae would help, but Kat rarely did because she disliked being in the kitchen. However, this afternoon none of her siblings were helping. Elsie didn't mind, she was used to doing this alone or with others. Besides, Leon was always ready to help no matter what.
Elsie began arranging plates and soup bowls on each table, slices of warm, fresh bread, and then the main course with Leon's help, who was reluctant to lend a hand in the kitchen even though he was a man who had lived on the battlefield.
The couple had shared a home, responsibilities, and love for the past few years. In the past, Leon might have suddenly felt awkward when he had to live with four young women, each with their own unique personalities. Especially at that time, apart from Elsie, her three younger sisters were still under twenty years old, especially Rae, who looked more like her daughter than her sister-in-law. Leon had difficulty adjusting—not knowing what to say or do when Josie suddenly cried because the ending of her novel did not meet her expectations, when Kat was upset because she was not bought a new dress, or when Rae suddenly blew something up in the kitchen because of her strange experiments.
However, as time went by, that stiffness slowly faded. Now Leon is not only a brother-in-law to these children, but also the head of the household and a father to them. He also acts as a protector, advisor, and sometimes a house police officer for the Everhart girls.
Then, as usual, when all the dishes had been served on the dining table, Leon, who often seemed like someone who quietly liked to listen, shouted, calling each of his sisters-in-law to come out of their rooms.
"Look, Kat! She ruined my hair!" Josie's cry was the first thing Leon heard from the stairs, along with the sound of footsteps. He looked up and saw the three girls descending the stairs with typical Everhart drama. "She cut it with garden shears. Imagine that!"
"I only cut a little, Jo. Don't exaggerate," Rae replied, her voice sounding half indifferent and half amused.
Kat, who was walking behind them, rolled her eyes. "You two haven't been playing for long, but one of you is already causing trouble?"
"It's not a problem, Kat. Besides, I didn't do it on purpose."
"You did it on purpose! You clearly did it on purpose while I was asleep!" protested Josie, still unable to accept the fact that her sister had cut her hair with garden shears. Even though Rae had only cut a small section at the end of her hair, Josie still didn't like it and reacted as if the child had chopped off all the hair on her head.
Hearing their argument on the stairs, Leon could only shake his head slowly, while observing the interaction between the three Everhart girls, who had now grown into adult women, each with their own uniqueness and brilliance. Every time he witnessed their growth, a warm feeling spread from the bottom of his chest. It was like the feeling of a father who was secretly happy to have raised his daughters. Leon knew that even though he could never replace their late father, he had protected this family as best he could.
"Hair can grow anytime, Jo. But dinner can't wait. Hurry up and sit down," Leon continued, urging the three of them to hurry and sit in their respective chairs.
Josie glared angrily as she plopped her bottom onto the chair. "You're defending her because you know she's the youngest and you all spoil her!"
"That's true, and I don't deny it," Leon replied with a chuckle, then pulled out a chair for Elsie, who had just come out carrying a pot of hot tea.
Elsie patted her husband on the shoulder and whispered softly, "Don't make her angry or she'll cry all night."
Leon chuckled softly, then looked at his wife with a look that seemed to say, "You said it, not me."
Rae, who was now sitting across the table, just grinned proudly as she spooned hot soup into her bowl as if nothing had happened. "Listen to that, Jo. They say you're spoiled and will cry all night. Maybe you should do it more often. Who knows, Leon might defend you."
"Don't call me spoilt!" she snapped quickly, looking very annoyed as she pointed at Rae with the spoon in her hand. "And I never cry all night, okay?!"
Rae laughed scornfully, then turned alternately to her two brothers and Leon. "You heard that, right? She said she never cries all night. So who cries at night just because of a fictional character?"
Josie immediately replied in a grumpy voice, "Hey! Who else would cry over Arabella if not me—her reader?!"
"You always cry too much, Jo. Even Kat never acts as dramatic as you," Rae sneered, narrowing her eyes as she stared at Josie with her signature annoying expression.
Compared to Rae or Kat, Josie was the only one who had felt the full love of both her parents for the longest time, especially from her father. Since childhood, Josie had often been spoiled by her father. Whatever she wanted was always fulfilled without many questions, as if the girl was the centre of her father's world. Not only her father, but even their grandfather was the same. He treated little Josie with affection and tenderness, simply because she reminded him of his late wife—their grandmother—who he said looked very much like her.
Because of this, among the four of them, Josie grew up to be a little spoiled and often overreacted to things that were actually trivial. But at the same time, she was also the one who was most affected by the loss when her loved ones passed away one by one. So, to escape the grief that haunted her, Josie chose to immerse herself in a world she created herself—a world made of words and imagination, among the pages of books and her writings.
Elsie's story was different. Since she was young, she had never really lived at home. Her love of painting made her ambitious to become a skilled painter, and because of that, she chose to live in a school dormitory rather than at home. And that decision indirectly shifted the centre of attention and affection at home to her younger siblings.
"Well then, since you think my crying is excessive, from now on I won't give you any more pocket money!" Josie retorted, crossing her arms over her chest and lifting her chin high, not wanting to lose the argument.
"Enough, enough." Kat's voice was calm as she poured water into Leon's cup, trying to cool things down before the small commotion at the dining table turned into a big argument. "Please, don't start fighting in the dining room again. Last time you argued about who used up the strawberry jam, Rae burned her oven gloves."
"Big Sis, it really wasn't on purpose!" Rae replied quickly, her cheeks puffing up with embarrassment and annoyance at being reminded of the incident a few months ago in the dining room.
Hearing this, Elsie just sighed, her expression like that of a mother trying to resist hitting her children on the head with a wooden spoon. Her attention then swept over her younger siblings one by one. "What's so hard about enjoying dinner in peace without any fuss?"
"If Jo stopped fussing about her hair, maybe we could," Rae muttered as she spooned soup into her mouth, pretending to be innocent.
Josie spontaneously stuck her tongue out at Rae, childish as usual. But she quickly hid her smile when she realised Elsie was staring sharply at her.
"And don't think I didn't see that, Josianne."
If Elsie called her "Josianne", it could only mean one thing: be quiet and listen.
"Sorry, Els," Josie said softly, grumbling as she looked down like a child who had just been caught stealing cookies from the kitchen.
Seeing her sister fall silent, Rae chuckled softly, looking satisfied that she had managed to provoke a reaction from her sister.
"Why can't you be like Kat?" continued Elsie, turning to the blonde who was sitting gracefully.
Kat smiled—an innocent smile like an antagonist in a romance story, who loves to annoy the female lead. "Because they're not artists like me. But if you ask, I can pretend to fight too. For the sake of aesthetics and justice, of course."
"Please don't," replied Elsie, raising her hands in surrender. If Kat was as noisy as Josie or Rae, it would only make her head spin more. "Jo and Rae are enough in this house. You don't need to change yourself to be like them, Kat."
Kat kept smiling, then nodded slowly, understanding her sister's position, who had to maintain emotional stability in order to deal with three younger siblings with very different personalities. She couldn't even imagine what it was like to be in Elsie's position—growing up before her time and taking on the role of both parents. Because of that, Kat always tried to be a good and obedient child, even though she was far from perfect.
"By the way, Jo, when will your book be returned?" Kat asked, changing the topic of conversation at the dinner table, and of course, Josie was still the main topic. Her eyes darted sharply across the table, full of curiosity. Remembering that she had been there, witnessing Josie's irritability as she talked about her notebook being confiscated by the Major General, Kat laughed and said that was what happened when Josie followed a military official.
Josie, who had just been chewing a piece of bread, immediately stopped moving. She just shook her head slowly in response, reluctant to discuss such a sensitive topic in front of all her siblings. Meanwhile, her face was slightly frowning as she remembered her book, which had not yet returned to her arms.
How much longer would they be separated? she thought, reflecting on her beautiful memories with her favourite book.
"Why would a Major General confiscate your book?" Kat asked again, still not giving up, with an expression of curiosity that was starting to look annoying.
Josie sighed, then cut her bread again into several pieces with excessive force. The pressure on her hands made Rae and Elsie glance at her before returning to their own meals.
"Maybe General Raymond likes Josie," Rae commented suddenly, innocently as usual, while dipping her bread into the steaming cream soup in front of her.
This comment successfully made Josie choke on her food. "Ahem—Rae!" she exclaimed with a cough, then quickly gulped down the water in her glass. Her cheeks immediately flushed, whether from the heat of the soup or her youngest sister's words, which struck at the heart of her anxiety over the past week.
"Don't just assume things!" she protested, almost shouting, then stared at Rae with wide eyes full of panic. "Why would he like me? That doesn't make sense!"
"Why not?" Rae asked back, shrugging her shoulders. She then scanned the table, hoping for support from the others. But Kat just smiled amusedly, Elsie remained silent, and Leon stayed focused on his food as if he didn't want to get involved in the women's affairs in the house.
Rae sighed softly, disappointed that none of them seemed to support her theory. She then added, "Jo, you're beautiful—though not as elegant as Kat, but you still have charm. Maybe he actually likes women with a unique side like you."
Kat flashed a proud smile. "Thank you, Rae," she said cheerfully, even though it was clear that the compliment was meant for Josie, not her.
Josie glared, trying to hold back the sarcastic comment that was already on the tip of her tongue.
"I'm just telling the truth, so don't be angry. And isn't it obvious? Ever since you first came to Raventon Hall, he never really told you to leave. He even asked you to entertain him."
"It's not because he likes me, okay!?" Josie retorted quickly, almost too quickly. "It's just because he has a grudge! Because I stalked him!"
"Oh? If he had a grudge, why didn't he arrest you and throw you in jail? Instead of keeping your book and asking you to come every day?" Rae continued to press, asking questions that could make Josie feel uncomfortable at any moment.
Elsie, who had been silent until then, finally turned her head and interrupted with her characteristic calm voice. "Because Leon vouched for him, Rae. Don't jump to conclusions."
Rae only returned Elsie's gaze for a moment before turning back to Josie with meaningful attention, as if she had another theory still lingering in her mind. "Or maybe he can't let you go, Jo. That's why you're still there now."
Josie froze in her seat for a moment. Not a word came out of her mouth. Then, with a sudden movement, she stood up, nearly dropping her soup spoon. "Yup! Dinner's over," she said in a voice that was too cheerful and sounded a little suspicious.
She hurriedly picked up her plate and turned around. "I'll wash the dishes tonight. No need to help, thank you," she added stiffly without turning her head, then walked hastily to the kitchen, trying her best to hide the redness that was quickly spreading from her cheeks to her ears.
Rae stared at Josie's back as she disappeared behind the kitchen door, then sipped her still-warm tea. "Look at that. She's trying to escape. Every night she writes about men and women who are drawn to each other, but when she herself is drawn to someone, she immediately runs away."
"What an irony of life. A romance writer who is afraid of falling in love," Kat commented, shaking her head.
Elsie just sighed, then suddenly put down her cutlery calmly. "You two, stop bothering Josie. No matter what, she's doing all this for her book."
"Yes, that's true," replied Rae with a small chuckle. "But don't worry, she won't be angry. At most, she'll return to Raventon Hall tomorrow morning, sit on the long sofa in the Major General's private room, and pretend to entertain the man who clearly makes her half to death with nervousness."
"And hope her book is returned," added Kat, playing with the ends of her blonde hair. "Even though we all know that's just an excuse to see him again."
"Agreed!" Rae nodded enthusiastically. "Because who would willingly come early in the morning just to entertain a military man if not for personal reasons?"
Kat, still playing with the end of her hair, then looked towards the kitchen. "Poor Jo. She thinks she's writing her novel, when in fact she's getting into it."
And that was the atmosphere at the Everhart's dinner table, as usual, lively, warm, full of laughter, and always colourful with new stories from each of its residents. Though there were always minor arguments, none of them would trade it for sibling rivalry. For the four siblings, home was where love and chaos coexisted in harmony.