The summer of 2010

It was the summer of 2010. Elan Thomees, a British boy with a slight good looking face, blonde hair and green eyes, is a 20 years old Oxford medical student who lives in London and a boy with a great ambition of viewing the world in a poetic serene. And summer was one of his favorite season of all the seasons, where he will stay at his grandfather's vintage estate during holidays. The estate had an European structure, surrounded by lush greenery, gardens and a pond, it was elegant almost like a fairytail appearance, as though it belongs in a classic novel and Elan adores it because he grew up there.

Elan had just woken up at around 8:25 am in the morning, after spending the rest of the night with his girlfriend Willow, a classmate of him and a law student. Elan once asked Willow about her choice of studying law in such an Ivy League university even after knowing that she is into cosmologies, to which she said that it was her father's choice and that it is a generational expectations. But Elan called it a 'Inherited oppression'.

Willow is sleeping next to him, the white sheets covering her body after the last night pleasures. The thick curtains block the morning sun but then golden light bleeds through the edges. Just then Elan hears footsteps coming up from downstairs and then a knock on his door.

"Morning. Breakfast is ready, come downstairs asap." It was the voice of his mother, Fiona Thomees. She is a cocktail, Italian and American.

"Coming, mom." Elan replied back in an accent that sounds more like a British than Italian: to be honest.

Elan shook Willow to wake her up and stood up to wear his pants and shirt.

"Mom is calling us for breakfast."

"This early?" Willow yawns.

"What do you mean? It's already going to be 9 in the morning."

Then Willow immediately jolts up and started searching for her shirt and wore them. Elan watches her and smirks.

"I didn't mean to flabbergasted you."

Willow was done putting on her short pants, "It's okay. Cmon let's head downstairs I'm starving."

Inside the kitchen, his mom is preparing breakfast for all of us in the cream wooden cabinets, where his father William Thommes was in his best clothes reading a newspaper article and a large window door that is floated infront of us where we could see grandpa watering the hortensia garden and sunlight reflecting the every drop of water.

William was the first one to noticed him and Willow when they stepped into the kitchen.

"Ah! Good morning, it's a lovely Tuesday." William said keeping away the newspaper on the side of the table and looking at them with a genuine smile.

"Yes it is." Willow smiles back before she settles herself into the chair next to Elan. Then Elan plucked out a piece of grape from the fruit basket before putting it into his mouth and swallows it.

Fiona didn't look back from the stove while she was making the pasta, "Eat your breakfast fast before it gets cool."

"Speak of the devil." William and Willow started chuckling at his reply as Fiona looks back at him with quite irritation but didn't seem angry at all.

"Life is short, we may not know which path were waking to until we only realized it at the end." he smoothly claims the quote. Elan indeed had his dad's poetic heart.

William pauses, his teacup hovering to his lips. A faint smile finally touches his corner, "Well spoken". Then he took a slow slip of his tea. "Though I hope your path does not involve living like a vine all summer."

Fiona was halfway done with the pasta as she calmly serves them, sliding a steaming bowl of pasta onto the table. William lowers his cup entirely the faint smile vanishing, "Actually Elan, I have an architecture symposium in Florence tomorrow. I was hoping you would accompany me. It is a rare opportunity." Willow looks entirely confused and looks at William and then to Elan, "What?"

Elan didn't look up at his father's hopeful gaze and started chewing the noodles like he has just heard the worse news and didn't agrees with the plan, "Dad, you know that I can't leave London, I've many researches to do and moreover I'm studying medicine for God sake."

Fiona then looks at him, her eyes flashing with a sudden intensity, "Nonsense, Elan. You must go, Florence is history and are. Do not miss this chance or I'm going to let you wash the entire dishes for the rest of your summer break."

Elan was stunned by his mother's threat, "But Willow–"

Fiona jaws tightens that she cuts his sentence and rolled her eyes as she looks at Willow's nervous expression, "Willow can survive one month without you." then Fiona crosses her arms, refusing to yield, "You're an Oxford student, go and learn something. Pack your bags tonight and I don't want to hear anything of disagreement from you, am I heard Elan?"

Elan then finally gave us, an expression of defeat was paste on his face and he slowly nods, "Yes, mom."

William chucked softly, raising his hands in placating gesture as he watches the standoof, "Your mother is entirely right." he taps his silver watch against the table. "The flights booked out quickly. Besides, you need to broaden your horizons beyond the villa."

Elan nodded, was quite and didn't look up but he could hear Willow's actions as she turns back to the stove with a triumphant huff.

The whole day passed with Elan's desperate trails of convincing Willow as she cried and had arguments in his bedroom but he was patient enough to handle her anger and tears that in the end he was the one holding her tight as she fall asleep on his chest. The next day, it was early in the morning but the sun was bright, the taxi driver and William was securing the luggages into the car, getting ready to go to the airport. Elan stood up near the door, checking his passport and carrying on his blackish French bag which his mother bought it for him when she returned back from France last year. Willow stood beside him, her eyes were fixed on the gravel driveway as if she was afraid of letting him go, "I will miss you." she whispers it softly only for him to hear.

"Me too." Elan hugs her tight and murmurs, "I'll come back soon. Please do not live in longing for me, for the rest of your summer."

Willow chuckled, "It's hard to say Yes, do you know that?"

Elan finally smiles, "Do I? But I'm hundred percent sure that you'll completely forget about me during your girls night."

Willow punch him softly on his arm, rolling her eyes as he teased her and it worked.

Fiona clears her throat loudly, a sharp sound breaking the tension. Willow turns away quickly, walking back towards the villa's front door and watches Elan getting into the taxi with his father and drove away.

"He'll come back again, don't worry." Fiona comforted her.

"He better come back."

Elan and William were finally on the plain, taking their seats. Elan took the window seat: a habit since his childhood whenever he travels around during holidays with his parents.The engines hum loudly as the plain lifts off London's grey sky. William turns his gaze to Elan and to the window, watching the patchwork English countryside shrink below.

"You will find Italy quite different." William remarks, unbuckling his seatbelt to stretch his legs, "Florence is masterpiece."

Elan looks at his father, "You've been there before?"

William adjust his glasses and get took out his research book, "Several times and it never disappoint me. The architecture there is unparalleled." then he lend back on his seat crossing his arms as he looks at Elan, "Michelangelo and Da Vinci left their mark on every street corner. It will change your perspective, Elan."

"But you already knew that I'm taking medicine." Elan took out a novel 'Crime and punishment' by Fyodor Dostoevsky, only to distract himself.

William sight softly, looking at his son's peaceful expression of innocence, "Medicine is a noble pursuit, but the human mind requires beauty to function."

He sees how Elan is flipping over the pages and knows that he was still listening to his words no matter what. "You cannot heal what you do not understand. Read for now but keep your eyes open when we land.