Things I Didn’t Know Because It Was The First Time

16 – Isaac Crimson

Winter came quickly after the opening of her shop; Scarlett was extremely busy.

On a cold Wednesday morning in December, Scarlett came down to the first floor wrapped in a thick wool cape.

A wide smile spread across her face as she looked around the lovely shop bathed in the morning sun.

First, she built a fireplace for Andrei, who hated the cold. As the warm wood fire blazed, her watches began to emit a mysterious light.

A large grandfather clock was displayed on the wall, and wristwatches were exhibited in glass boxes.

The purple silk for the small square cushions the watches rested on was chosen by Andrei himself. These little cushions, handcrafted by the two of them, had become the symbol of Scarlett Crimson’s watch shop at Andrei’s insistence.

She swept the floor with a broom and dusted the glass cases. When she finally took out her foot mat that said ‘Welcome’ and laid it out in front of her door, she was done.

At precisely ten o’clock, her only employee, Andrei, appeared. He gave his bag to Scarlett and opened the awning that was too high for Scarlett to reach.

Meanwhile, Scarlett, who had put the bag on Andrei’s seat behind the counter, got on her bike.

“I will be back,” she said.

“Don’t be too long.”

Knowing that Wednesdays were dedicated to seeing Isaac Crimson, Andrei went into the store and started preparing coffee for future clients.

Scarlett pedalled towards Crimson House, wondering if it was okay for the staff to be more ambitious than the boss.

As she passed by 7th Avenue at the same time every Wednesday, she was greeted by the merchants she knew, and Scarlett waved back at them.

She left 7th Avenue and followed the tramway line all the way to Crimson House.

Scarlett got off her bike and walked into Crimson Street with her tiny handbag. She saw her cousins Marilyn and Arnold and the siblings’ friends having a leisurely lunch break together on the porch side.

“Well, if I had gone to Dumfelt instead of her, I wouldn’t have come back like this, Marylin said softly.”

As Scarlett pretended not to hear, a piece of bread flew and hit her on the head.

As she paused, Arnold stepped in front of her, blocking access to the door.

“What is the world coming to if a divorced woman can wander around like this?” He said, displeased.

Scarlett, who had become accustomed to Arnold’s taunts, ignored him and went towards the house. Furious, Arnold grabbed her hair and pulled her back.

“Where are you going? Are you ignoring me?”

“Stop it.”

“Stop it? What are you going to do? There’s nothing you can do!”

Arnold groaned as he grabbed her hair and shook it.

“Am I wrong? If you had abandoned your brother and ran away, you should at least have captured your husband’s heart.”

Scarlett closed her eyes tight as she couldn’t even scream, lest Isaac heard. Then she heard slow footsteps coming down the central staircase. It was Isaac, leaning on the handrail and his cane.

Arnold glanced at Isaac, whose eyes were covered with a clean cotton cloth that the caregiver changed daily. He released Scarlett.

“It’s pitiful to have a child save you. Even if your brother is like this, I can fight you.”

Since he rarely went outside, Isaac was very pale. He quickly smiled. 

“Scarlett, let’s go up,” he said, looking in the direction Scarlett’s voice had come from.”

Hearing his words, Scarlett picked up the fallen kerchief and ran to him.

“Why did you come down? I was coming up.”

“I came to meet you.”

As he couldn’t see, he merely gave a bashful smile.

Scarlett carefully supported Isaac and took him to the attic where he lived.

“It’s cold,” Scarlett murmured, putting down her handbag, and lighting the brazier.

Laying in his bed, the child was still turning his head towards the sound of her voice.

From the day Isaac lost his sight in a carriage accident, he had been cared for by his older sister. It hadn’t changed after she got married.

Scarlett locked the door and pulled a potion out of her handbag. It had cost her more than half of the money she had received from Gregory.

The day Scarlett woke up after her interrogation, she found this potion in her room. In addition, in her wallet were written instructions on how to obtain the drug.

It was a drug that Scarlett had purchased at great risk in the market where pirates’ goods were traded.

The little boy lay quietly and motionless while Scarlett dripped the potion on the cotton cloth.

“Will it really work?”

When Scarlett spoke first, Isaac smiled as if he had been relieved of his paralysis.

“I hope I can see you. Otherwise, your money will just fly away.”

“Don’t worry about that.”

With the cost of this drug, she could have opened a second shop and bought a bicycle. 

It was an astronomical expense. Since few pirates were left, it was nearly impossible to get the medicine containing magic that existed on the pirate’s island. But Scarlett didn’t mind the investment in the slightest.

No matter how much their uncle wanted to own the fortune, Isaac was the Crimson Earl and thus the head of the family. But since he was young and blind, their uncle Abel Crimson had taken guardianship, and Isaac hadn’t been able to reclaim any of the property yet.

Once Isaac opens his eyes, their uncle could no longer claim guardianship, thanks to the potion. However, there was no guarantee that the potion would restore Isacc’s sight. There was only hope.

He had been taking the medicine she had barely obtained for half a year, but he showed no sign of improvement. Maybe they had been deceived, they both thought. However, neither of them expressed their fear, considerate of each others’ wounds.