Chapter 88: Chapter 88: System's Sadness

Lena noticed they were short on food for tomorrow's breakfast.

As she approached the door, her mind preoccupied with thoughts of Elio and the day's tasks, the sudden sound of knocking jolted her from her reverie. It wasn't the gentle tap of a neighbor or her son's rhythmic knock. This was different: loud, insistent, almost threatening in its urgency.

She glanced towards the kitchen, where the younger children were still cleaning up after dinner.

The knocking came for the third time, so powerful it seemed to shake the very foundations of their door. Lena's heart raced, but her hand remained steady as she reached for the doorknob.

♢♢♢♢

Lena opened the door to find two figures: a young man she vaguely recognized as Varick, the spoiled boy who used to bully her Elio at school, and an older man she didn't know.

Varick, with his usual arrogant bearing, seemed to be in the middle of a complaint directed at Ivan.

"I'm telling you this is too much," Varick grumbled. "Why do I have to be..."

Ivan cut him off with a brusque gesture. "Because you're the only one who knows Elio's mother, his other friends are..." He stopped, his tone weary. "Lucien said you used to hang around the community school in this section just to bother him."

Varick's father and Elio's had never gotten along, and that animosity seemed to have been passed down to the next generation.

"What... what's going on?" Lena asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

The memory of that day when Farbe... Receiving visits like this was never a good sign.

Ivan opened his mouth to respond, but Varick stopped him with an abrupt gesture.

"I'll tell her," he said, his voice laden with an emotion Lena couldn't identify. "That day on the wall, I kept quiet. That day I couldn't do anything. So now I'll do what I must..."

Varick stepped forward, his face unusually serious. "Ma'am... uh, Elio's mother," he began, clearly uncomfortable. "We need to talk."

The older man, Ivan, intervened. "Varick, perhaps we should go inside. This isn't something to discuss at the door."

Lena, confused and increasingly worried, nodded and let them in. She led them to the living room, where the younger children were playing. Seeing the strangers, they froze, looking on with curiosity.

"Lola," Lena called to her oldest daughter, "take your siblings to the kitchen, please."

Once the children had left, Lena turned to the visitors. "What's happening? Is it about Elio?"

These words seemed to penetrate the fog of grief surrounding Lena. She had promised she would accept her son's decision... Slowly, she nodded.

"Alright," she said, standing up with difficulty. "Children, gather what you can carry. We're leaving."

The next few minutes were a whirlwind of frantic activity and silent crying. The children, still in shock, packed some essential belongings. Lena moved as if in a dream.

♢♢♢♢

Finally, the family was ready. They left the house, Lena looking back one last time.

Ivan and Varick guided them through the city streets, now shrouded in gloom. Lena walked like an automaton, holding Rian in her arms while tears continued to fall silently down her cheeks.

Lola and Jeanne comforted the younger ones as best they could, while struggling with their own grief.

Upon reaching the wall, Varick stopped. "Ivan," he said, "take them to Lucien's section. I have to go back."

Ivan frowned. "Go back? Why?"

"I need to talk to Lucien," Varick replied. "With things as they are, I need him to get permission once and for all."

Ivan nodded, though his expression showed some concern. "Be careful," he warned. "Things are tense."

♢♢♢♢

An explosion echoed in the distance...

Lena, holding Rian in her arms, looked at Ivan with eyes full of fear and confusion. "What was that?"

Ivan shook his head. "I don't know, ma'am. But we have to keep moving. Lucien's section isn't far."

As they moved away, Lena couldn't help but look back. Part of her wanted to run back to her house, to deny everything that had happened. But she knew she couldn't. For her children, for Elio's memory, she had to push forward.

"Come on, children," she said softly, adjusting Rian in her arms. "Elio... Elio would want us to be strong."

♢♢♢♢

Varick was running when an explosion shook the air. He stopped abruptly, turning towards the source of the sound. Without a second thought, he launched himself in that direction.