LIFE PROMPT !! ⇢ ⎾ WHAT HAPPENED IN FRANCE ⏌
From the crisp leaves on the muddy ground Noah’s eyes lifted to the gates of the formerly properly lively estate. Vines had enclosed most of the bars of the iron gate, the walls that surrounded the property. Everything looked kind of like it was from a different period in time and it really hadn’t seen a lot of visitors ever since then.
The man didn’t realise his nails pressing into the palm of his hands inside his pocket, eyes squinting as he let out a little breath. Calm yourself down, Noah, this is not the time to get all stiff. Deliberately he slowed down his breathing, calming down his nerves. He needed to be fully there, take in everything his eyes caught, it was his once in a lifetime chance.
Noah did not want to disturb the peace, he wanted to keep everything the way it was while he dove deep into the truth of what his family’s life in Marseilles had been like. He swung easily over the stone wall, a perfect landing on the unkempt lawn. There was a driveway from the gate up to the main house, back in the 90′s that must have been impressive for every single person that visited the estate.
Not even in his dream could he imagine that he could have lived here with his family, parents and his two siblings. A normal but kinda privileged family. Damn...he would have grown up speaking French. That’s something he really couldn’t see happening. But as everyone knew the story didn’t go like that, he never had a chance to see this place filled with life and happiness, even if he knew better.
Fingertips ran along dusty furniture, surfaces that already were a bit sticky due to never being cleaned, the floor making small sounds as Noah made his way from room to room. Luckily one of the windows had still been slightly opened, his way in was easy. The main house was like a labyrinth to him, a small room following another small room, almost never ending. And yet he couldn’t find anything that would hint at his family ever living here. No pictures on the walls, no personal items that would hint at the residents. It made Noah grind his teeth the slightest bit.
With a little research he had found trivial information about his parents, a young couple that had happily lived in the luxurious mansion with their young son and daughter, bureaucrat father, stay at home mother. They were apparently living the dream back then. Noah knew from Leon’s stories that his clan wanted to erase their existence, the traitor that had gone against the code he swore his life upon. Might be the reason why he couldn’t find anything. They probably confiscated all evidences and items that had once belonged to his mother and father.
A deep breath left his lips, his shoulders hanging lower than normally. Did he really take the effort of going all the way here to find nothing, an empty building that couldn’t even tell one little story of life inside it’s walls? It couldn’t end like that. Not when he had put in all this effort. The man rolled his shoulders, as if that would refuel his engine. There had to be something. Use your brains, Noah, it’s the strongest weapon you have. Trying to remember as much of the bits and pieces he had read as well as the few stories Leon had told him. Even the few memories Juliette had from her time here.
He scanned through every room again, making sure to mentally label each for its apparent use. He went past his late father’s study, nothing would ever really make him want to learn what kind of person he was. Too close to how Mori wanted Noah to become, too close to the person he was when he was in charge of the mafia in Seoul.
The last room. This should have been the living room, where his mother would keep his siblings, shield them from everything that was going on otherwise, make sure they had a somewhat normal childhood. Juliette had been lucky...Leon hadn’t. Noah stepped inside, scanning the walls thoroughly, checking for anything that seemed off. He was hoping for something, a memento of sorts. His hand places against the wall, there was no chance of a loose board. That would have been too easy. It had to be something clever...or maybe so simple no one would expect it to be true.
Long steps took him over the table, his hand reached underneath fumbling to find what he was looking for, a remnant of older times. His finders touched something stuck to the lower side of the table, carefully tugging it off: A photograph. Slowly Noah turned to see what the picture was showing, and he couldn’t believe his eyes. A woman smiling, holding a young child in on arm with a little boy standing next to her, trying to clutch onto her other arm. His mother, Moon Areum, along with his siblings when they were still young. He could tell it was Leon almost immediately. That frown could only belong to his twin.
It was the first time Noah saw a proper picture of his mother smiling genuinely. She looked youthful, a real beauty. Juliette already sporting her signature light blonde hair compared to Leon’s raven head and frowny face. The two really haven’t changed.
With his back against the wall Noah slid down to the ground still holding the picture. He didn’t expect much but why was he so overwhelmed at this moment? These memories didn’t belong to him, this family really wasn’t his, he never even knew his parents to begin with. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out his mobile phone, calling the first number on speed dial.
“Leon, yeah, you won’t believe what I just found...”
