Chapter 5

Bellina did frequent a certain café at the street-level floor of her block (the part of a Kaleido tenement where the shops are), back when she still had enough dough. Today she meant to ask for a job, which she did lunching with the family. When she got around to begging for work so she can keep her promise to her family…

"I don't blame your folks, to be frank. I would do the same in their shoes."

The matchmaking?! "Not you too, Mr. Taylor!?" cried Bell.

She turned a quick eye on the two children seated next to her and enjoying their ravioli. Trini, the younger of the two children, carefully twirled a strand of cheese from her ravioli onto her fork. Her brother, Theo, glanced up with mild curiosity, but then returned to stabbing at his pasta. The girl did not seem fazed one bit by her conversation with their father. Why would she? She’s only a grade-schooler

"Pa, I wanna get married at eighteen, too!"

“No you don’t!”

Mr. Taylor chuckled, his warm baritone carrying a gentle amusement. "Relax, Bell. I’m not saying you need to march down the aisle tomorrow. But from a parent’s perspective? I get it. They just want to make sure you’re secure, taken care of. It’s not about matchmaking—it’s about peace of mind.”

Bellina crossed her arms, pouting slightly. "Well, I don’t see how sticking me with someone I barely know is supposed to give me peace of mind."

So this is another one of those little culture shocks. Back home, people thought a girl who fails in school should be married off at the soonest. Here, a similar thought pattern held that only a gifted few could make it to pricey uni and high-paying corporate or platform jobs, live in Sofiya, join the elite technician and engineer class, and that virtually everyone was expected to work the family business, marry early, and have kids after high school—this was seen as a positive. And Kaleido tacitly backed that view (in the interest of keeping the fertility rate above 2.1, whatever that meant to Bell) by very stringent scholarship qualifications and a policy of allowing only work immigration, and only allowing small business owners and their dependents to avail of welfare, free housing and all.

"You’re independent," Mr. Taylor said, leaning back in his chair. "I respect that. But independence doesn’t mean shutting out help—or the idea of partnership."

Bellina sighed, resting her chin in her hand. "Help I don’t need, Mr. Taylor. I moved to Kaleido to stand on my own, not to get pushed back into someone else’s shadow."

He nodded thoughtfully, taking a sip from his coffee before replying. "Fair enough. But let me offer you some advice, from someone who’s lived a bit longer. Security doesn’t have to mean giving up your dreams. Sometimes it just means finding people you can rely on, people who can walk alongside you—not ahead or behind."

His words gave her pause, but she quickly shook it off, feeling the weight of her earlier frustrations pressing in again. “That’s assuming those people exist,” she muttered, barely loud enough to be heard.

Trini chose that moment to pipe up, her voice bright and innocent. "I think Miss Bell should marry a prince! Then she could live in a castle and have pasta every day!"

Bellina blinked at the child, taken aback by another sudden input. Mr. Taylor let out a hearty laugh, ruffling his daughter’s hair. "Hear that, Bell? Straight from the expert on happily-ever-afters."

But now Bellina couldn’t help but crack a small smile. Someone like Kyle Banner? You get a pass. "Thanks, Trini. I’ll... keep that in mind."

The little girl beamed, clearly pleased with herself, while Theo rolled his eyes in that way only an older sibling could.

After the meal Theo stayed behind at the table with Bell whilst Trini joined her father to help her mother at the counter. "Hey kid, you look smart. Wanna be an engineer? At the platform."

Theo stared at her and shook his head. "Nuh-uh. I'm farming."

"Oh. That would be a neat retreat for the weekend."

"No-no. I wanna farm for life."

"…"

"…"

"Eh...?"

"I wanna farm. I don't like it here in the city anymore."

Bell blinked as if still trying to make sure of what she just heard. "But... But where would you… you know… farm?"

"With Granny. At Monticello Woods."

Bellina's mouth opened and closed as she tried to process Theo’s words. "Wait, Monticello Woods? Isn’t that like… way out in the middle of nowhere? Oh! So that’s the point. It’s quiet, there’s fresh air, and you can hear birds instead of drones buzzing around all day.”

"That’s where they put the old people."

"…"

Come to think, she did hear that Kaleido gave its retired no fixed pensions, only stock shares. To pad it out, the city leases them agricultural land for organic farming in the foothills, where tribal families live and help with the farm work.

"You wanna be old!?"

"I wanna farm."

"…"

"…"

"But…" Bell’s brow furrowed. "What about school? Your friends? The city’s got everything you need right here. Don’t you like going to the arcade? And what about your... holo-games?"

"Granny said I can learn everything I need to know out there. I’m done with holo-games."

Bell stared at him, utterly baffled. She glanced out the window, where the glittering spires of Kaleido’s skyline rose like a shimmering mirage against the backdrop of the Kalash Range. To her, the city was opportunity incarnate—messy, overwhelming, and brutal at times, sure, but also the place where dreams could be built. And here was this kid, ready to walk away from it all for… a farm?

"You just lost out in Dungeons and Dwarves," she remarked.

"Guh—!"

"Gotcha." Wink.

"No fair!"

"Well, what’s so great about farming, anyway?"

Theo’s face lit up as though she’d just asked the most exciting question in the world. "Everything! You get to grow stuff with your own hands, and it’s like… magic! Granny says you plant a tiny seed, and if you take care of it, it turns into food! Real food, not that 3D-printed stuff. And you can keep animals, too—like chickens and goats!"

Bellina winced slightly at his jab about her diet but couldn’t help being struck by the boy’s earnestness. It was the kind of passion she hadn’t felt in… well, a while.

"But aren’t you scared of… I don’t know, snakes? Bugs? What about bad weather? Farming isn’t easy, you know," she countered, searching for a reason to poke holes in his plan.

"Granny says hard work feels different when you love what you’re doing," Theo said matter-of-factly, his expression as serious as an old man’s. Whoa so does wanna be old, huh? "I think I’d love farming."

Bellina stared at him, speechless. This kid—barely old enough to tie his shoelaces properly—was ready to turn his back on Kaleido’s endless conveniences for a life that sounded, to her, like one giant struggle.

"Well…" she finally said, scratching her head. “I guess if that’s what makes you happy, then… go for it?”

Theo beamed at her, clearly satisfied with her reluctant approval. "Thanks, Miss Bell! I’ll send you pictures of my first carrot!"

She couldn’t help but laugh at his enthusiasm. "You do that, kid. Just don’t forget to come back to the city every now and then to remind us again what real food tastes like."

As he launched into a spirited explanation of his future carrot farm, Bellina found herself wondering if maybe, just maybe, the simplicity he craved wasn’t as crazy as it sounded. Kaleido had its allure, but there was something oddly grounding about the idea of Monticello Woods and its quiet, steady life.

Maybe the kid was onto something after all.