The morning of the day of Damian's departure came, his mother was already up, and his father was long gone to work. However, considering it was the weekend, his workday was due to end sooner than usual.
Damian merely furrowed his brows; the heat of the morning, as per usual, was getting to him, taking away from his sleep. Turning his hands into fists, he rubbed his eyes before stretching and sitting up. The smell of bacon being cooked hit him right away. In that moment, he heard melodies playing on the radio in the kitchen.
Andrea would nearly always, every weekend, turn the radio on as she worked in the kitchen, waiting for the rest of the family to wake up.
Standing up onto his feet, initially getting into something that was at the tip of his fingers, he walked out into the hallway and right into the dining room.
With a cigarette between her lips as she was cooking breakfast, humming the song that was playing, she turned back to glance at her son walking into the dining room. There, she greeted him with a smile. "Good morning.".
"Good morning," he replied.
"Would you like some coffee?".
Damian pondered the question for a moment before nodding his head. "I can make it though, if you're too busy with breakfast.".
"No, no. I was making some for me now anyway.".
Soon after, breakfast was served, and the coffee was brewed. With them both digging into their food, no one uttered a word. Then, with Andrea looking at Damian, letting a feeling of sadness fill the pit of her stomach, she spoke up, "You're going today...". Her words came more as a remark, a mother's grim reminder.
Damian reflected her words with a sheepish smile, forking the food in her plate. "It came by too fast... I'm excited to go, but I've also never been this far away from both you or dad.".
"I know..." Andrea responded. "But, I won't have to worry all too much, I know my sister will take great care of you.".
"I won't doubt that," Damian replied, taking another forkful of food into his mouth. When he swallowed, he continued, "Do aunt and uncle have a child of their own?".
"Yeah, they have a son and a daughter. Both of whom are in Veursau," Andrea replied.
"So they're well off then, huh?".
Initially shrugging her shoulder, she responded, "I suppose you can say so... Haven't had a chance to see them for a while now. Married off, them both, from what I've heard last.".
--- --- --- --- ---
Noon slowly went to evening, and with Daryll coming home from work and having some dinner, they were all getting ready to see Damian off to the station.
With Daryll helping Damian with his suitcase into the car, both Damian and Andrea sat in the car. Damian was sitting in the front, right by the driver, all the while, Andrea sat in the backseat, in the middle, when she had hand on his left shoulder, merely squeezing it, more for her own comfort than his.
With Daryll loading the baggage into the back, he closed the trunk before sitting in the driver's seat and starting up the car.
The drive didn't take long, with the station located outside of the city, a mere 10-minute ride. And as Daryll turned into the parking, the small smile on Andrea's lips slowly disappeared as her fight to hold back her tears only grew more and more.
Finding a spot and powering off the car, Daryll let his hands rest on his legs, a sheepish smile growing on his face as he turned to his right, looking at Damian. "Well... This is it then, for a few weeks, at least...".
"Yeah..." Damian responded, feeling a slight knot grow in his throat.
"At what time is your train due to depart?" Andrea asked.
"In like half an hour," Damian responded. "Still have some time left.".
"We can go for a coffee before we see you off to the train," his father suggested.
Initially, Damian shrugged. "I really don't mind...".
In the end, they all decided to relocate to the small cafe inside the station, where Daryll bought them all coffees. That is, coffee for both himself and Andrea, whilst a hot chocolate for Damian. The mere chatter and laughter were enjoyed between the two parents and their son, considering that it would be a while before they heard it in person again.
And not long after, the time Andrea dreaded the most came. The time they had to see Damian off to the platform and bid him a farewell, until next time they see him. The train had arrived only minutes before, allowing for the crew to change and for any checks to be complete.
With people slowly entering the carriages of the big train, Damian stayed for a few more minutes with his parents.
"Won't you feel bored staying in Orovac for so long?" Daryll asked, amused to hear Damian's response.
"I mean, if I do, I'll tell auntie to drop me off at the station again. Surely I have enough money to buy a ticket back," Damian replied. "However... Something tells me that won't be the case.".
Andrea nodded her head, hugging her son before kissing his forehead. "And if you ever do feel bored, phone us. If you need more money, tell dad and me, and we'll send you more. For whatever you need, don't hesitate to call us, sweetheart. I'm sure Maria and Jacob will tell you the same.".
The conductor blew his whistle, marking that the train's departure was due in 5 minutes. Andrea let out a sigh, wrapping her hands around Damian, Daryll joining the small family hug. Just like before, Andrea tried not to let the moment get the best of her; however, she couldn't help herself. One tear raced another as she found herself crying into her son's shoulder.
"Please... please, keep safe. Call me whenever you get a chance," she merely whispered through her sobs. "I'll miss you so, so much.". Giving him one final kiss on the cheek, she let Daryll say his farewell to Damian before they let him board the train.
Quickly finding a rack where baggage was placed, he sat in his seat by the window, seeing his parents a second later. Daryll had his hand around Andrea, who dried her tears with a tissue. The sight was nothing short of heartbreaking for Damian. He felt tears well in his eyes.
The emotions that flooded his body were comparable only to the time he bade his farewell to both Daina and Daniella when they left for Arittoria.
And in that, the conductor blew his whistle one final time, before a mere beeping sound was heard. The doors of the train closed, and with Damian waving his parents his final goodbye, the train set off, slowly moving faster and faster with each passing second.
--- --- --- --- ---
Back in Orovac, Maria and Jacob just parked in the front yard of their home, 5 baskets full of fresh cherries stacked in the backseat of their car. Just as Maria stepped out of her car, she heard her phone go off. Taking it out and checking it, she saw she received a message. It was from Andrea. 'Damian's train just left now.'.
Maria felt a small smile grow on her face. 'Super. Jacob will be waiting for him.'. She was excited to see Damian after so many years of the Kovacs being away from Orovac.
"Jacob, Andrea just texted me. Damian is on his way.".
"That's great. When's he meant to arrive again?" he asked back.
"Around 9:30, I believe," she responded. "We can go to Annalise and Frederick before you leave, which will give them a chance to see Damian too after many years of him being away.".
Jacob nodded his head, but then merely stopped and looked at his wife. "But I wouldn't like to barge in with Damian there, out of the blue. You know Annalise as well as I do, she'll go all out making food and whatnot for him.".
She pursed her lips before nodding her head, acknowledging Jacob's words. "You're right, you're right... and she'll bite my head off for not telling her earlier whether or not we'll be going over to their house. She knows he's coming tonight.".
"I think it'll be better if we stay at home. He'll also be wrecked when he gets off the train. We can invite them over tomorrow for a coffee and to see the young man again," Jacob explained, earning a nod of approval from Maria.
"You know, I was thinking just that too...". Moving a few steps back and opening the back seat doors, she continued, "Now help me with these cherries...".
--- --- --- --- ---
Dozing off every so often during his ride, Damian let his head rest against the headrest of his seat, all the while having earphones in both of his ears. The darkness outside grew the lower the shining sun sank toward the horizon.
A beautiful hue of indigo spread more throughout the summer sky the more the time went on, stretching past a few clouds that made their accommodation over the warm, hazy air.
The first stop on Damian's journey was an hour into the train ride. It in the small town of Kravici. This was the first of three stops on the ride to Fortezza del Porto, Damian's stop, Konsweg Station, being the second one on the line.
Primarily used for tourism, the train line was adjusted and modified in accordance with when the tourism seasons were at their peak, in both Summer and Winter. However, predominantly Summer.
With the train allocation for the line being so common, Damian had the luck of booking a less-packed train than he initially expected. A muffled whistle from the outside was heard, before a faint beep echoed through the carriage, and a moment later, the train pushed off. The buzz of the engines merely vibrated the carriages as the vehicle powered on, gaining more speed with each passing second.
What was once a light show on the other side of the glass pane very soon dimmed out as they left the small town, driving further and further away.
Their next stop was Konsweg, 3 hours from Kravici. Upon merely shaking himself awake, Damian looked into his phone, which still played music through his earphones, to check the time. 6:45.
And as if something was looking over him, just as he was about to let his screen darken, letting the music play on, he received a message from his mother.
'Hey, honey. How's the trip going?'.
He proceeded to write a response. 'Alright, I suppose. We just passed through Kravici.'.
Three dots appeared on the bottom of the screen a few seconds later, and very soon, a new text popped up on Damian's screen. 'Alright. If you see a number calling you soon enough, just know it's your aunt, Maria. I gave her your number so she can get in touch with you about when you're getting close to Konsweg.'.
'Duly noted.' Damian replied, and with that, he let his phone back down on the small table before him. Closely watching the screen, he awaited a reply from his mother, but with each second that passed, the screen got darker, until it we out completely.
When he got the idea that the conversation was over, he let his eyes close, resting his head against the back of his seat.
The music played on, his playlist varied with music of diverse genres. One song would be something rocky, while the next, a slow love ballad.
He let himself rest, with the volume of music allowing him to do so, consequently leading him to doze off again.
Hope filled him, for the trip to come to an end quickly enough, along with a knotting feeling in the pit of his stomach. It wasn't a new feeling; however, with it being a feeling he rarely felt, it made him aware of something. This summer was to be like no other.
A summer to remember.