Kostos' grandparents were visiting Valia. She and Kostos' grandmother (Eleni? Eva? Something with an E in it), were talking in speedy Greek while Mr. Kostos (name unknown) was gazing out the window. She assumed they were talking in part about her, judging by the way Valia kept gesturing at her, but had no idea was being said.
It was a frightful side effect of not knowing the language of the place she was in that she was often bored and lost. Effie and her Grandfather had filled the emptiness, but now they were gone. Which left her plenty of time to think. And things kept jumping to forefront of her mind, things she would rather have forgotten.
She tried not to look down. It was on her mind all the time. She should have just stopped wearing it, but for some reason she didn't.
Kostos had cheated on her. That seemed to be a developing pattern in her relationships.
"Lena! I'm so excited for you!" Everyone crowded around her, examining the ring (it was a single diamond, square cut, on a silver band) and asking how it had all come about. The ordinariness of it seemed to destroy the beauty that Lena had felt. They wanted a story that was exciting and thrilling. Going to dinner and getting a proposal were not.
But the thing about Paul was that he knew she didn't want fireworks. He knew that she wanted a simple quiet engagement, and a simple quiet life. Lena felt joy in such a different way, in such a tentative way, that sometimes she wondered if experiencing things the way Bee did would kill her.
Even Effie had embraced her, and kissed her on the cheek. "I'm happy for you, Lena," she had said softly. For the two of them the past years had been a slow drift apart, but in that moment she felt so close to her sister. She grabbed Effie's hand and gave it a small squeeze.
That had been a wonderful night. All her friends had come over, and then their parents, in what had turned into a giant impromptu party.
The next day Lena's face felt odd. And then she realized her face was sore from smiling.
Valia was talking to her. "You will paint Mr. Kostos. A nice portrait. One they can hang for company and such. You will, Lena?"
So that was what the conversation was about. "Of course. No problem."
Valia relayed that message for her.
The grandparents stayed for lunch, a lengthy affair that left Lena entirely excluded from the conversation. She wondered why Kostos had not come. Maybe he was too busy?
Eating meant that the sun was glinting off the ring on her finger.
Maybe she should pawn it. Maybe she should keep it. He hadn't asked for it back. She hadn't told him she was leaving. Technically, the engagement was still on. She wondered if he knew that she had left. She wondered if he would be angry that she had let another boy see her naked. And it had been a boy who had touched her before. Kissed her before. Said he loved her once before, and then left her.
Tears gathered at the back of her eyes. The sun was bright in the little house. Valia and the other grandmother (great-grandmother now, she thought sourly), were obviously thick as thieves. She looked up at Mr. Kostos. He was watching her with bright, sad eyes. She tried to offer him a weak smile.
Instead he reached his sun-browned hand across the bright blue tablecloth and held Lena's hand for a moment. Just a moment, then it was gone.
The moment of connection reverberated in Lena. She missed connecting. Missed Paul. Missed Carmen. But she would not think about that.
She would never think about what Carmen had done.