Unveiled: The Survivor's Triumph

Ethan rocked up at the door, lugging a bunch of big bags. We just stared at each other for a sec.

After the initial shock, I weirdly felt super chill. I figured it had to be either Martin or Jason who ratted me out.

Funny thing is, when I bailed, I was fuming, like a balloon ready to pop. But after a few days, the anger fizzled out, and now I felt kinda grounded. And seeing his face now, I realized I sorta missed him.

I dropped my gaze and grabbed the bags from his hands.

"Groceries are here. You can bounce now."

I set the bags down and went to shut the door, but Ethan stuck his arms out to stop me.

I shot him a glare, but he just looked back with this soft smile.

"In this freezing weather, you really gonna kick me out?"

Ethan's voice had this pitiful, almost begging tone.

"In this heavy snow, it's not easy for him to deliver groceries. Let him come in and warm up." Martin chimed in from behind.

I turned to see Martin still clutching the radio, lounging in the wicker chair, giving Ethan a look that screamed, "You had it coming, dude."

Since Martin had spoken, I couldn't really keep Ethan out.

So I let go of the door and bent down to grab the groceries, but Ethan beat me to it.

"They're heavy, let me handle it."

If he wanted to carry them, fine by me. I headed back to the kitchen.

After saying hey to Martin, Ethan brought the groceries into the kitchen.

I stood at the sink, washing veggies, trying to ignore him.

After setting down the groceries, Ethan patted Jason, who was working on the soup, on the shoulder and grinned. "I could smell that from outside. My mouth's watering." I paused, veggies in hand, and couldn't help but snap back, "Then keep drooling; there's none for you."

Jason chuckled, but Ethan stayed quiet.

I kept washing the veggies, but suddenly felt warm breath near my ear.

"Then you guys eat the meat, and I'll just have the soup."

Ethan whispered, his chin almost on my shoulder, his hair brushing my ear, tickling me.

I stiffened, trying to stay cool, and replied, "Fine, we'll let you have the Sopa de Lima we've already eaten."

Instead of getting mad, Ethan laughed and said, "Sopa de Lima is the heart of Mexican cuisine. If you leave the heart for me, they'll have something to say about it."

When the Sopa de Lima was ready, Jason brought it to the dining room.

The Sopa de Lima was steaming, smelled amazing, and looked super cozy.

A small square table, four people, each taking a side.

"It's rare to have you all here. Come on, let's grab a drink!" Martin seemed extra happy.

I blurted out, "No booze."

Martin looked taken aback. Ethan gave me this knowing, warm look.

I thought maybe I overreacted..

So, I mumbled, "Whatever."

Jason, while fishing veggies out of the Sopa de Lima, laughed and spilled the beans.

"Grandpa, Ethan was in the hospital for a few days with a stomach thing. He shouldn't be drinking."

Martin got it and looked at Ethan with a bit of concern but still pointed at him and scolded with a smile. "I told you before, you never listen and don't know how to take care of yourself. You get what you deserve." Ethan smiled helplessly and said, "My bad."

His attitude of admitting fault was good.

Martin gave him a sideways glance, a look of reproach mixed with a bit of affection.

Looking at the boiling Sopa de Lima, Martin thought for a moment and said, "Eating Sopa de Lima without a drink feels like something's missing. I have a bottle of low-alcohol apple cider that won't mess with your stomach. I'll go get it." In no time, Martin brought the cider, saying it was homemade by a fellow villager. Since Martin was retired from a big hospital, people often came to him for medical advice. Martin never charged them. So over time, people felt indebted and would bring him things as thanks, like freshly brewed apple cider and home-laid eggs.

So Martin was well-liked in the village, and everyone respected him.

With the cider, Jason fetched a few glasses and poured a drink for each of us.

The window was open, and outside, snow was falling heavily. Inside, the table was steaming.

When I was little, every winter, if guests came, Mom also loved to make Sopa de Lima. It didn't matter if the food got cold; the key was the vibe.

But today, at this table, I felt a bit uneasy.

After all, I came here because I was mad at Ethan, and they knew it. If I acted normal, it would feel forced. If I stayed angry, it would seem pretentious.

So, during the meal, I was very silent, just focusing on eating.

Because I love tomatoes, I threw a few into the Sopa de Lima.

Martin talked the most, sharing jokes from the village and reminiscing about unforgettable memories from his youth, his stories interspersed with laughter. I stared at the pot, silently listening to Martin. Thinking about Martin's illness made me sad, but I also admired his attitude.

Listening to Martin, I forgot to eat until Ethan and Jason each picked up a tomato and put it in my bowl.

Their actions were so in sync that even Martin was caught off guard.

I ignored Ethan and smiled at Jason, saying, "Thanks."

Martin kept chatting while sipping his drink, and the room was filled with the delicious aroma of Sopa de Lima and apple cider.

Getting more into it, Martin went to grab his stash of old photos.

Probably because he noticed I wasn't really joining in, Martin kept showing me the photos and explaining them.

Martin later picked up a photo and stared at it for a long time, then pointed to it and asked, "Jason, this is you when you were little. Who's this little girl next to you?" Ethan and Jason both looked over, but sitting across from Martin, I hadn't seen it yet.

"She looks familiar," Martin added.

Jason laughed and said, "Grandpa, the little girl in the photo is sitting right in front of you now."

Martin got it, looked at me, then at the photo.

"Is it Emily?"

Martin seemed a bit incredulous and handed the photo to me.

"Emily, is this you?"

I took a look, and yep, it was.

In the photo, I was standing on a big rock, and Jason was standing below it. I remembered that the photo was taken by a friend we used to play with, but we lost touch after moving and going to different schools. Recalling those days, Jason smiled warmly and said, "You insisted on standing on the rock back then, refusing to admit you were shorter than me. How silly you were."

Talking about those past days and our childish antics, I couldn't help but laugh.

"I wasn't!" I refused to admit it.

Once we started talking about the past, I couldn't stop.

Ethan didn't seem surprised that Jason and I had known each other since childhood; he just fell silent as the topic unfolded.

Martin suddenly asked Jason, "So, you didn't want to move back then because of little Emily?"

I looked at Jason in surprise. Jason just smiled and didn't deny it.

But because of Martin's comment, the atmosphere suddenly got awkward.

Ethan took a sip of the apple cider in front of him and forcibly changed the subject. "This apple cider tastes pretty good."

Thinking about Jason's kindness back then and now, I suddenly felt a bit flustered and quickly drank the apple cider in front of me.

Martin suddenly picked up a photo, looked at it again and again, and couldn't put it down.

"Look at this photo."

Jason leaned in to look and laughed. "That's Grandma when she was young."

Martin gazed at the photo with a gentle look and sighed softly.

"Yes, your grandma was very beautiful when she was young."

Talking about his late wife, Martin's face softened.

"She was beautiful and smart, a college-educated girl. When we first got married, she moved to the countryside. She was so pretty that a bunch of young guys were always around her. I was scared she'd leave me, so I wrote her letters and love poems every few days, afraid she'd forget me. Whenever we met, I treated her like a queen. I didn't dare treat her badly, or she might have run off with someone else."

I couldn't help but feel that Martin's words were hinting at something.

Martin then shared many stories about him and Grandma. Despite the inconvenient transportation and communication back then, their love was exceptionally faithful, and their romance was enviable.

Martin was very happy during this meal, and all of us finished a whole bottle of apple cider.

After the meal, Martin went for a nap.

Jason and I competed to wash the dishes, but when Ethan said he'd do it, we both tacitly put down the dishes and left them to him.

He stood there for several seconds, his face clearly saying, "I've been tricked."

Watching him silently carry the dishes into the kitchen was quite pitiful. This scene should be accompanied by a sad piano tune; it was almost tear-jerking.

The snow was still falling, and the ground was covered with a few more inches.

I squatted under the eaves, playing with the snow. When I looked up, I saw Jason building a snowman nearby.

I couldn't remember how many years it had been since I last did that. We were no longer kids, but seeing this scene, my childlike spirit was rekindled. So, I went over to help him.

Jason reminisced about playing in the snow as a kid. We used to have snowball fights, throwing snowballs recklessly. Once, he hit me on the head with a snowball, and I cried for a long time while he tried to comfort me.

Thinking back, I felt quite foolish and had secretly vowed to get revenge for that snowball hit, but so many years had passed, and I never did.

But, as they say, revenge is a dish best served cold.

I quietly made a snowball and threw it at Jason while he was focused on building the snowman.

Unexpectedly, he reacted quickly and dodged it, so I missed.

And so, a fierce snowball fight began. Snowballs flew back and forth, and we ended up covered in snow.

As another snowball flew towards me, I was suddenly pulled into an embrace, my head wrapped in a coat.

When I looked up, I saw Ethan's face covered in snowflakes.

I looked at his face and started laughing uncontrollably.

Ethan wiped the snow off his face, looking at me with some frustration.

Remembering that I was still mad at him, I stopped laughing and turned to leave.

But he grabbed me, turned me around, and pinned me against a nearby tree.