At first, Erik simply followed Doreen inside and took a stand next to the living room wall. He kept chasing her visually as she moved around to find a place for the flowers. However, the moment she spoke his wife's name his smile faded into a completely straight face. The phrase "it looks very much like the one I left for Cynthia at your family memorial." echoed in his ears. Truthfully, it wasn't that it bothered him... he was actually relieved in a way, knowing that Doreen was aware of his past, at least partially. However, he had hoped for himself to be the one to bring this topic up at some point... and her words came as a shock. His perplexity stopped him from focusing on what Doreen was saying for a few seconds.
"Why did I you might ask. Well, I wanted to learn something about her, about the woman who brought such a fine young man into this world, the woman who made you happy....." - "......who's shoes I want to fill and to whom I asked approval to....."
Hearing this commentary was illuminating. Finally, at least some of yesterday's confusion was starting to dwindle. His eyes were now betraying an air of curiosity as he concentrated on Doreen. Within her contemplative pause, he replied calmly "Go on..." He didn't know what else to say yet, so he just wanted to hear all she had to say now.
