Alexander washed his hair. Now he sat by the window, watching the night as he waited for it to dry.
Evelyn finished her bath and came upstairs. She handed Alexander half of the wooden bench.
"Alexander, why haven't I seen Iris's husband?" Evelyn turned to ask him.
"He passed away many years ago," Alexander said quietly.
"Oh." Evelyn paused, feeling a bit awkward.
Alexander then told her about Iris and her husband.
Back then, Iris was the first girl on the island to study abroad. She was smart and beautiful. She met her husband and stayed with him despite her family's objections.
To support the family, he took on dangerous work.
Later, Iris became pregnant and gave birth to a daughter. The baby was born almost at the same time as Alexander. Back then, Alexander was hungry and cried all day.
Iris would feed him alongside her own child.
That's how Iris became Alexander's nanny.
"What happened to Iris's daughter?" Evelyn asked curiously.
She hadn't seen her since arriving on the island.
"She was lost as a child," Alexander said softly.
"Lost? Oh..." Evelyn's voice dropped.
Her heart ached for Iris.
Her husband died young. She had a daughter, but lost her too.
At least she had Alexander. Otherwise, Iris would have no family left.
"Did Iris return to Misty Isle because she was too sad?" Evelyn asked.
"She came back for me," Alexander said.
"Oh?" Evelyn looked at him, confused.
"When I was young, I was very sick. A fortune teller said I couldn't thrive at home. I had to be given away. Not to relatives or friends. I had to be sent far away—to the mountains or an island. My parents didn't know what to do. They were about to send me to the mountains. Iris said, 'Give him to me. My mother's home is on an island.' So she brought me back to Misty Isle. I don't know if the climate here suited me, or if the fortune teller was right. But after I arrived, my health slowly improved. I didn't return home until I was ten." Alexander stared out the window as he spoke. "Iris is my second mother. Without her, I might have died young."
He turned to look at Evelyn.
Evelyn nodded. "I'll be good to Iris, just like you."
Alexander smiled and stroked her head.
That wasn't what he meant. He just wanted her to understand why he brought her here.
"Evelyn, has anyone ever told you that you're actually very smart?"
"No," Evelyn shook her head.
People usually called her stupid.
"Then I'm the first," Alexander said with a smile.
Evelyn smiled too. She didn't know why he suddenly said that, but her heart felt warm.
That night, Evelyn curled up in Alexander's arms. She fell asleep to the sound of the waves.
In the morning, they woke to the cries of seabirds.
Alexander was already up.
Evelyn got out of bed and walked to the window. She placed her hands on the frame and took a deep breath of the sea breeze. The sun was shining. Seabirds flew happily over the water.
She looked down and saw Alexander sitting in the yard. He was helping Iris replace the broken tiles.
She remembered him fixing the TV for Lily Thompson last night.
Alexander knew more than she did.
Evelyn changed her clothes and went downstairs. Her footsteps clattered on the wooden stairs.
Even that simple sound felt like music to her.
Alexander turned his head and smiled. "Good morning."
"Good morning," Evelyn replied.
Compared to him, she had woken up a bit late.
She grabbed a towel and toothbrush and walked to the sink. She washed up properly.
Then she went into the kitchen to help Iris prepare breakfast.
Maybe it was because of what Alexander told her last night. Evelyn felt more respect and love for Iris.
She thought about how hard Iris's life had been.
So even though Iris was still cold to her today, Evelyn kept smiling. She responded to Iris's words with a warm tone.
Whatever Iris asked her to do, she did it without complaint.
"Why do you smile so much?" Iris finally looked at her and asked.
Evelyn paused for a moment. Then she smiled again. "Iris, isn't happiness supposed to make you smile?"
"What's there to be happy about? Smiling all day like that. You look silly."
"My mother said stupid people are lucky. And people who smile are lucky too. Iris, you look good when you smile!" Evelyn said as she set the table.
"What's so good about it? I'm just an old woman," Iris said, annoyed.
"Iris, no. You really do look good when you smile."
"Stop flattering me. When did you ever see me smile?"
"Last night. You looked really good. You reminded me of my mother. She looks good when she smiles too," Evelyn said seriously.
Iris glanced at her. She didn't say anything else. She just told Evelyn to call Alexander for breakfast.
Evelyn nodded and walked out of the kitchen to call him.
Iris watched Evelyn's retreating back. She looked away. The corner of her mouth lifted slightly.
Do I really look good when I smile?
She smiled again. She believed what that silly girl said.
After breakfast, Alexander continued fixing the tiles in the yard. He pried up the broken ones, replaced them with good ones, and smoothed the gaps with cement.
Evelyn couldn't do much, so she squatted nearby and watched.
"How do you know how to do everything?" Evelyn asked admiringly.
"When you face enough problems, you learn," Alexander said, turning to look at her.
"I've faced a lot of problems too. I still don't know how to do many things," Evelyn muttered.
"It doesn't matter. I'm enough for you," Alexander said as he spread cement over the gaps.
Evelyn blushed at his words. Her heart felt sweet.
"Are you thirsty? I'll get you some water."
"I suddenly want those tomatoes you made before. Can you make some?"
"Sugar tomatoes?"
"Yes." Alexander nodded.
"But there are no tomatoes here."
"There are tomatoes in the vegetable field below. Take a basket and pick some yourself."
"Okay!" Evelyn answered and grabbed the bamboo basket hanging on the outer wall.
She walked down the stone steps to pick tomatoes.
As she walked, she hummed, "The little girl picking mushrooms, carrying a little bamboo basket..."
Then she saw the pretty girl from yesterday. She was squatting in the vegetable field.
"Hello, Hazel."
Hazel looked at her coldly. Her face didn't have yesterday's smile.
Evelyn paused. She didn't know if the girl remembered her.
So she introduced herself. "I'm Evelyn. I'm Alexander's wife. We met yesterday afternoon. Do you remember?"