Chapter 45

• The final days of the month felt like a long countdown.
• Daniel was getting more and more phone calls from Europe—sometimes from his father’s secretary, sometimes from the company’s HR department. Those voices came with promises of a clear future: a big salary, a luxurious apartment, business-class flights abroad. A world that once belonged to Daniel now called out again with an equally tempting voice.
• But in the village, morning still arrived with the scent of damp earth and the crowing of roosters. Children still came to the cultural hall, calling Daniel with laughter and hope written on their faces. And Ayu—Ayu was still there. Waiting, loving in silence.