The Alchemists

The next day Finland woke up feeling happy. She dreamed of seeing Caspar and thought of it as a good omen. Now she was with Jean, her best friend, and it was only a matter of time until Jean got his memory back. She was very confident in Lauriel's abilities.

In a few days she would also be able to meet with Lauriel and Aleksis again, as well as Terry, her 'son' from the eggs she sold several years ago. Suddenly, Finland, who was used to being alone, now seemed to be surrounded by family. She felt very grateful.

In a few weeks, she would hopefully meet Caspar in Scotland. She really couldn't wait to see him.

"You look happy," Jean said. "I think this is the first time I've seen you smile."

Finland nodded, smiling sweetly. "I am indeed happy. It feels like my life is slowly getting better..."

"I'm glad to hear that you're happy," Jean nodded too.

They then had breakfast while discussing the plans for the day. Finland told Jean of her life as an orphan who had to struggle to survive alone in Singapore, and how they became friends. She then told Jean how he went through so much to find her father, and that was what now brought them to Colmar.

They arrived at Uncle Etienne's house when it was past noon. When Finland knocked, the door was immediately opened by the bulky middle-aged man. He looked surprised but very happy to see them. He immediately hugged Finland and Jean alternatingly.

"Gosh... look at how well you are... I'm very happy to see you both."

"Hello, Uncle Etienne... Sorry it took us so long to visit," Finland said regretfully.

Uncle Etienne just waved his hand while laughing.

"It's okay. I know Jean was sick at the time and you were also far away in Singapore. Your friend who comes here often always told me the news about you."

"Friend?" Jean and Finland looked at each other in surprise. "Who is our friend, Uncle? Nobody knows about my father except the two of us."

Uncle Etienne looked surprised.

"The first year after you left, a young man came here occasionally. He even bought the land around the church and turned it into a beautiful rose garden."

Finland covered her mouth . She immediately thought of Caspar. Could it be him?

They went to the village and stopped in front of the church where Finland's father was buried. Once out of the car, Finland felt a surge of warmth in her heart. A beautiful and well-maintained rose garden surrounded them.

When they walked to the back of the church, she saw that her father's tomb had been rebuilt. A small monument stood elegantly between two angel statues. The roses around the monument complimented the statues perfectly.

"Ohh... Did Caspar come here and do all this?" Finland turned to Uncle Etienne.

"Caspar? Hmm... I don't know that name. The person who came here said he was your friend, Heinrich. He is German. Colmar is close to the German border, so he can come here often."

Oh, that must be Caspar, Finland thought. She remembered last night dreaming of the man. Apparently, Caspar often came to Colmar to visit Finland's father's grave

"When was the last time he came here?" Finland asked again. "Is he tall, with black hair and blue eyes?"

"Yes, that's right. He hasn't been here for a while. It's been over a year."

"Oh..." Finland was disappointed. She realized that Caspar stopped coming to Colmar after he asked Finland to return his mother's ring and separate from Finland.

At the grave, Uncle Etienne told Jean about Aleksis Makela's story. It was only then that Jean understood the efforts he made to find Finland's father many years ago. In his heart, he was happy because finally he could give an answer to Finland about her family.

Finland herself was becoming increasingly sad because she missed Caspar very much. She did not know Caspar constructed such a beautiful grave for her father and was often here after they separated in Paris.

Caspar was very fond of his parents and he was saddened for decades after losing them. Maybe he also understood how sad Finland felt when she found out that her father was gone.

After chatting with Uncle Etienne for several hours, the two returned to the inn. Tomorrow Jean and Finland would return to Paris and immediately leave for Singapore.

***

Before Finland could buy her tickets to Singapore, Jean's manager insisted on buying her tickets so they could fly together. Finland felt that it would be rude to reject the offer. Their departure to Singapore was to meet Terry and check Finland's compatibility to be the bone marrow donor.

Upon their arrival in Singapore, they stayed at the Raffles Hotel which was close to the Stamford Hospital and wasted no time. They immediately went to the hospital.

Kendrick Chan and Silvya Chan welcomed her arrival with tears in their eyes. They were very grateful because the girl was willing to come all the way from America to meet their child. Finland was also touched when she saw Terry's condition.

The little boy looked like Jean's spitting image and deep down she was grateful that a few years ago, she was really broke and had to sell her egg cells to pay for her grandmother's hospital cost. Now, the Chan family could have a child like Terry.

"Okay... if you are ready, we will immediately prepare for the biopsy," said Doctor Chou.

Jean accompanied Finland during the biopsy because he knew the process and the pain involved. He tried to distract Finland from the pain by talking about various things.

Everyone prayed that Finland could become a compatible donor.

***