“Please pour me a glass of wine,” a tall officer wearing glasses raised his empty cup. Nhanyi held the champagne bottle with both hands and filled his glass. He scrutinized her through his glasses.
As she filled his drink and was about to retreat to her original position, the man suddenly pulled her into his embrace, examining her closely. “Black eyes, black hair, how rare.” He kissed her cheek, “What a little beauty!”
Nhanyi struggled to push him away. Her fierce resistance spilled his wine and soaked his military uniform. She knew his rank was not low; anyone attending this banquet would not be a low-ranking officer.
She hurriedly found a handkerchief to wipe the wine stains from his jacket. Her handkerchief brushed against the oak-leaf-patterned medal on his chest, and his cold gaze shot through the glass lenses at her, as if mocking her ignorance.
“Philip, my friend, you really came late,” his figure appeared on the stairs as he quickly descended. The bespectacled officer smiled and stepped forward to embrace him in greeting. Seizing the opportunity, Nhanyi clutched the wine bottle and stepped aside, realizing their friendship was quite deep.
“Ryan, I’ve been here for a while, but you’ve been surrounded by women, and I couldn’t get close to you.” He smiled, spreading his arms, wrapping one around the bespectacled officer’s broad shoulders, and pointing at his prominent nose. “Don’t make excuses; heaven knows which woman kicked you out of bed to come to me.”
The bespectacled officer showed no annoyance at the finger pointed at him and continued, “I would have loved to stay in that woman’s embrace, but I wanted to see you more—my elegant Atlantis knight in black.” He emphasized the last few words.
“Philip, you’re mocking me again…” He raised his empty glass toward Nhanyi. “Fill it for me and him, darling; I want to toast this sharp-tongued fellow.” Nhanyi poured the remaining wine from the bottle into their glasses, and after filling both cups, there was hardly any wine left in the bottle.
“Congratulations, Ryan!” The bespectacled officer raised his glass to him.
“Thanks to your kind words…” He wrapped his arm around the officer’s shoulder and raised his glass high.
The two men clinked their glasses and drank the fine wine, and she took the chance to escape back to the basement.
She closed the door, her heart pounding. After finally calming down a bit, she was startled by the sight before her.
The little gardener Charles was in her room. He hadn’t turned on the light, and his black eyes sparkled in the darkness, nearly making her scream. “Charles, what are you doing here? Didn’t I tell you to hide? There are Nazi officers outside; if they see you, they’ll throw you into a camp.”
“I slipped in through the back door, Gianna. What’s wrong?” He had intended to scare her, but seeing her flustered expression made him concerned.
She shook her head, calming herself. “It’s nothing, really.” She had just been dealing with two wolves; although she hadn’t suffered any losses, she was still shaken. Those Nazi officials looked so well-dressed and refined, yet each one was deeply dark inside.
“I’m just glad you’re okay. Actually, I came to tell you that today is my birthday.”
“Happy birthday! Charles! But I don’t have any gifts to give you.” Nhanyi blurted out without thinking. She truly wanted to give him a gift, but she was utterly broke and had nothing.
Charles blinked his long-lashed black eyes. “I want you to play a piece for me.”
“Of course! What do you want to hear?”
“Just the one you usually play.”
“You know I play the piano?” Nhanyi was a bit startled; she thought she had kept it secret enough.
“Don’t be nervous, Gianna. I heard you through the window. The study is close to the flower garden; you’re really a talented girl!”
“Actually, it doesn’t matter that you heard me. That was a folk tune, adapted into a piece called ‘Jasmine Flower,'” Nhanyi said softly.
“‘Jasmine Flower’… how nice! I love Jasmine. I heard Uncle Sean say that next spring, the flower garden will introduce many new flower seeds. I’ll ask him to get some jasmine seeds, and then I can see the jasmine bloom and hear you play!” His excited tone suddenly turned somber. “But because I became the general’s gardener, I was spared, while my family was all taken away by them.”
Nhanyi held his thin shoulder gently, looking at him with warmth, trying to give him support. “Charles, you have to be strong. This war will pass, and your family and friends will be found! Until then, you must live well, just like I do…”
“Yeah, Gianna, you’re really strong.” The boy nodded, showing her a smile with his little tiger teeth.
Nhanyi’s gaze darkened. “Actually, I once thought about dying, but it was that little flower you gave me that reignited my hope for life. In this hellish world, we can only survive by helping each other and keeping warm together.”
Charles nodded, his black eyes suddenly filled with courage, as if making a solemn promise, he said to her word by word, “Gianna, if anyone bullies you, you must tell me. I will avenge you!”
“You silly boy! You’re just a child!” Nhanyi’s earlier gloom vanished, and she laughed at him.
“Don’t call me a child; don’t you believe me? I’m a man. In the eyes of us Jews, 16 is already adulthood. I can protect you!”
“I believe you,” she took his hand. “Come on, let’s go to the study. I’ll play for you now. They’re all in the front yard and garden, so they won’t notice us, but I can only play a short piece.”
“Great!” He jumped up, looking more like a monkey.
