The aroma of coffee filled one of the apartment units located in the center of Munich.

The breeze that trickled in due to the open window, really managed to bring quite a cold air. But for the person living in the unit, the wind was just a friend to get through the loneliness.


Valerie Genneth inhaled the aroma of coffee deeply, as if savoring how it spoiled her sense of smell.

Isn't a warm cup of coffee and a gentle breeze the perfect combination for a lonely girl like Valerie?

Until the cell phone rang faintly, as the flat object was still in the bag Valerie had placed right on the bed.


Sighing softly, Valerie got off the chair where she had been curled up. Half-heartedly stepping away from her cup of coffee, the German-born woman still tried to pick up the incoming call.

"I'm here, Ma."


Valerie's voice connected the inter-city call, as the mother on the line was far away in Heidelberg.

"What are you doing, Val?" Her mother's distinctive voice broke through Valerie's ears, but it didn't stop her.

With her cell phone pressed to her ear, Valerie returned to finish the blackish liquid she hadn't fully drank.

"Just finished my shower," Valerie replied shortly. Three seconds later, she was back sitting curled up in the same chair.

Glancing down at her coffee cup, she continued. "And you? How are you, Ma?"

"Not fine," greeted her mother. Valerie could hear an audible sigh on the other end of the line, but she still chose not to talk about it. "Did Versa call you?"

Hearing Versa's name in the air somehow made Valerie blink her eyes for a long time.

There were things that her extended family did not know about, things that Valerie kept close to herself and never even mentioned to anyone. Except, to one of her best friends who was none other than Pedro Viscout.

It seemed like years ago, but somehow there was still a throbbing in Valerie's heart every time she heard her sister's name in the air.

"No, not yet," Valerie answered honestly.

There had been a few messages from Versa on her cell phone, but Valerie hadn't had time to reply. After all, they were just simple questions, such as; 'Have you eaten yet?' or 'What's up, Val?'

"Did you tell her to call me?"

"Not specifically," the mother replied. "I asked her to help persuade you to accept the arranged marriage with Viscout. She said she'd call and talk to you, but it seems she's still busy because Gosse just bought a new apartment."

If Versa's name had triggered a throbbing in Valerie's heart earlier, then now another name that she heard was still making it difficult for her to breathe.

The man's name, a name Valerie had been trying to forget.

Not because he never looked at her, but for one reason only, Valerie had to stop hoping.

"Ah, is that so?" For whatever reason, Valerie really tried not to change her tone of voice. "So, they're moving into an apartment now?"

"Something like that," Valerie's interlocutor replied. "You know your sister always wanted to live on a high floor, and that's probably why Gosse chose an apartment unit on the 28th floor."

Taking a sip of her coffee that was already starting to go cold, Valerie hoped that the liquid passing down her throat would stop at the bottom of her heart.

"Maybe she's busy," Valerie tried to reply. "Besides, why would you ask her to persuade me, wouldn't my answer always be the same?"

If only Valerie could see, then she would have noticed how her mother was looking down with a rather dim light in her eyes.

"Come on, Val." Her mother rubbed her face slowly. "I don't think there's any candidate as good as Pedro, if only you'd make the effort to open your heart just a little."

This seemed to have been repeated over and over again, causing the throbbing in Valerie's heart to now move to her head.

"Mam...."

"I heard Pedro went back to Heidelberg," interrupted her mother quickly. "He even visited you in Munich, right? Didn't you meet and talk a lot?"

"That's right." Valerie massaged her temples. "We did meet, but that doesn't change anything about our relationship, Ma."

"Valerie."

Her mother's tone was echoing, and this time it broke through the defenses Valerie had built for herself.

After Versaline Genneth's marriage to Gosse Armour, Valerie had once vowed to never open her heart again. Because it turned out that all she faced was a long-lasting heartache, unable to give voice to a love that could not even be fought for.

"Think carefully," pleaded the middle-aged woman across the phone. "Doesn't Pedro represent everything you want?"

Does he?