Silver's Childhood Promise

The melodious doorbell rang, echoing throughout the illustrious halls of the Silver family’s United States mansion. With cheerful laughter, the three Silver siblings made their way to the stairs, dismounting the steps towards the front entrance.  Each of them had an innocent smile sprawled across their face, not yet understanding the nature of their guests’ visit.  They would learn soon enough, but for now, it was safest to keep them in the dark.  The less they knew during their adolescence, the better.

Laughing, their mother and father emerged from the living room, watching as their precious little angels hurried to greet their visitors.  Mary shook her head, admiring her adorable children.  The priceless family heirloom around her neck twinkled, “My, my. You all look very excited to see our guests.”

“Remember, children,” Gideon began, wrapping his hand around the entryway’s gold doorknob, “I need you all to behave. I don’t want to hear about any arguments while the Dahl family is here. Do you understand me?”

All the boys nodded, but Gerard, the oldest, spoke up, “Yes, father. We understand.”

Gideon flashed his children an approving smile before opening the front door, revealing the family of three waiting outside. Putting his arms out, Gideon welcomed their guests inside, speaking fluent English, “Lincoln Dahl, it’s nice to see you again.”

Lincoln Dahl stepped inside, followed by his two children. He firmly shook the SilverCorp owner’s hand, accepting the invitation inside, “Well, that’s very kind of you to say, Gideon, but the pleasure is always mine.”

The adults continued to greet one another while the children stood idly by. Despite their silence, each child had an excited twinkle in their eyes. It had been months since the Silver and Dahl children had last seen each other, and frankly, neither family had many other friends their age. Afternoons like this one were few and far between, but both the Silvers and Dahls longed for them.

Mary could see the excitement in the children’s eyes. Giggling, she hunched forward, nearing eye-level with the younglings, “Gerard, how about you take everyone down cellar? There’s plenty of games and activities down there to keep you all entertained while we do boring adult stuff.”

“Yes, mother.” Gerard nodded, gleefully smiling. Suddenly, he waved his arm, signaling for the other children to follow him, “Come on, everyone. Follow me.”

Joyously, Gerard led the children downstairs to the finished cellar. A fluffy red carpet lined the basement floor, contrasted by gold lighting and white walls. There was a pool and foosball table near the far wall, which the children immediately drifted towards.

Laughing, Lance aimlessly twirled one of the red foosball rods, spinning a set of two players, “I’ve been waiting for our rematch, Gerard. You and Gary beat me and Christina last time, but I’ve been practicing. We have a table at our house now, just like you.”

Gerard laughed, positioning himself with the opposing team. His German accent was thick, but his English was much more refined compared to his siblings, “That’s neat, Lance, but I don’t think that extra practice will help you against me and Gary. We’ve never lost together.”

Lance twirled the metal rod again, making his foosball players do aimless backflips, “Well then, how about we even up the odds a little bit?”

Gerard removed the tiny white ball from one of the nets, preparing to roll it into the playing field, “What do you propose?”

“Let’s play one-on-one.” Lance smiled, challenging Gerard to a game, “You and Gary might be the better team, but this will let us see who the better player is.”

“You’re on.” Gerard chuckled, setting the score notches to zero, “I’m not going to lose to an American.”

Before the boys started, Christina bashfully spoke up. She shyly rubbed her wrists, avoiding eye contact with the older children, “Wait a second, Lance. I want to play too.”

Lance didn’t even turn around to face his sister. He was too busy positioning his goalkeeper in the perfect spot, “Sorry, Christina, but you’re just going to have to wait. We’re playing one-on-one right now.”

Peering out from the corner of his eye, Gary Silver saw the disappointment littered across Christina Dahl’s face. She was crushed. It had been months since the last time she and her brother had played with the Silvers, and here she was, getting sidelined at the last possible moment.

Gently, Silver took Christina by the wrist, leading her away from the foosball table. With a heavy German accent, he spoke softly, “Come on, we can play something else.”

A surprised gasp escaped Dahl’s lips as the second-born Silver boy led her away from the table. Reluctant, she peered over her shoulder, watching as her brother conceded the first goal, “Where are we going?”

Eventually, Silver came to a stop, leading him and Christina Dahl to a handcrafted chess set. The board and pieces were intracity designed with small details and elaborate carvings, custom made for the SilverCorp founder himself. Slowly, Silver looked up from the board, gazing into the young girl’s frosty blue eyes, “Do you know how to play?”

Dahl looked down at the beautiful chess set, admiring the detailed pieces. A shy smile crept across her face as she slowly nodded her head, “Yes, I do. My grandma taught me when I was really little.”

Silver slowly nodded, returning his eyes to the chessboard. The pieces were already laid out in the proper starting position, awaiting their next battle, “Which color do you want?”

Dahl thought for a moment, surveying her options. Then, she decisively pointed at one side of the board, “I want to be white.”

“Very well,” Silver acknowledged, taking a seat behind the black chess pieces, “You can go first.”

Dahl surveyed the board, attempting to recollect all the strategies that her grandmother once taught her. Suddenly, a cluster of excited screams emanated from the foosball table, drawing Dahl’s attention. Her eyes quickly settled on her brother, seeing the jubilant satisfaction on his face after scoring a goal. It was obvious that he was having more fun playing without her.

“You’re not going to skip your turn, are you?”

Silver’s words snapped Dahl out of her trance. Frantically, she made her first move, ignoring any ounce of strategy, “Oh, yes. Sorry about that.”

Silver watched as Dahl’s attention once again drifted towards her brother and his siblings. Advancing one of his pawns, he exhaled, “It’s your turn.”

Distracted, Dahl hardly noticed that Silver even made a move. She shook her head, moving another piece forward on the board, setting up a reckless attacking strategy that was purely coincidental. Upset, she murmured under her breath, “I hate when Lance thinks I’m weak.”

“I don’t think you’re weak.” Silver quietly remarked, strategically plotting his next move.

Hearing the older boy’s words shocked Dahl. Slowly, she examined the second-born Silver child, studying his features as if it were the first time she had ever seen him, “What did you say?”

Silver lifted his eyes from the board, meeting the young girl’s innocent gaze. His thick accent seemed to magically dissipate, “I don’t think you’re weak.”

Dahl narrowed her eyes, watching as Silver made his next move. She was hardly focused on the game, keeping her attention fixated on Gary Silver, “You don’t?”

“You sound surprised.” Silver remarked, positing his second piece in an excellent defensive position, “Should I?”

Dahl surveyed the chessboard, noticing that she had opened the game with a series of poor moves. She shrugged her shoulders, tactically moving one of her pawns forward, “I don’t know. It’s just that… Well, Lance never wants to play with me anymore. He thinks I’ll hold him back because I’m a girl.”

“That doesn’t make much sense.” Silver bluntly responded, articulately making his next move, “There are plenty of women who are stronger than men.”

Dahl couldn’t take her eyes off Gary Silver. His demeanor seemed cold and distant, but his words were warm and heartfelt. Slowly, Dahl lifted one of her white pieces, contemplating her next move, “You’re not just saying that to make me feel better, are you?”

Silver watched as Dahl made a logical maneuver, blocking one of his avenues of attack. He shook his head, “No. Just look at my mother. She bosses men around every day and makes lots of money.” Silver paused, smiling as he thought about his mother. She was right upstairs, but just thinking about her warmed his heart, “She’s one of the strongest people I know.”

While Silver took his turn, Dahl once again turned away from the chessboard, staring across the cellar at her brother. She sighed, “But how am I supposed to make lots of money when Lance is set to inherit Daddy’s law firm?”

“Look at me.”

Silver’s words sliced through the air like a knife, cutting the bleak thoughts that clouded Dahl’s judgment. She quickly gave Silver her undivided attention, noticing the genuine glimmer in the boy’s ocean-blue eyes.

Silver continued, putting Dahl’s worries to rest, “When I take over my father’s company, you will be the first person I hire. We’re friends, Christina. I promise you won’t get left behind.”

Dahl smiled, batting her eyes to fight back the tears. Given her stature, Christina didn’t have too many friends, but Gary Silver had always been there for her, even when he was residing in Germany. Quietly, she asked, “Do you really mean that?”

Silver nodded his head, forgetting all about their chess match. A genuine smile snuck across his face, “Of course I do.”

Dahl didn’t have anything else to say. She gracefully rose up from her seat, giving Gary Silver a friendly hug. He accepted it, giving Dahl a sense of security that she didn’t know she needed. Silver had faith in her. He thought she was strong. Now, it was time to prove him right.

Related Characters: Gary Silver / Christina Dahl / Gideon Silver