𝐃𝐘𝐍𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐘 ── 𝒄𝒓𝒂𝒛𝒚 𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒂𝒏𝒔. ✔︎

𝟬𝟭𝟰.

RAMONA AND NICHOLAS YOUNG sat acorss one another inside Ramona's Tysersall Park bedroom as they both enjoyed some food. "You know, I've been wondering all along if you were really okay with losing the house," Ramona observed.

Nick considered what she'd said for a moment. "I think part of me always resented Tyersall Park in a subconscious way, because everyone always associated me with the house, and I could never detach from it when I was younger. I think that's why Colin and I became such good friends...I was always 'the Tyersall Park Boy' and he was always 'that Khoo Enterprises Boy.' But we were just boys."

"It was like a curse in a way, wasn't it? I remembered being the Tyersall Park Princess. It's amazing how we managed not to let it define us," Ramona remarked.

"Well, at some point I made my peace with it, and getting away also helped me appreciate it in a new light. I realized how much the place nurtured me, how I found my adventurous side climbing trees and building forts, and how spending all those hours in the library reading all my grandfather's old books-Winston Churchill's memoirs, Sun Yat-sen's letters-got me fascinated with history. But now it feels like I'm seeing my entire childhood sold off to the highest bidder."

"I know, Gor Gor. It's been so painful even for me. I just can't believe how it's happening so quickly, and how our aunties who also grew up in the house don't seem to care about letting it go."

"Even though Ah Ma's will clearly states what it does, I don't think she would have wanted Tyersall Park to be demolished and forgotten like this. To me, there are so many things that just don't add up with my grandmother's will and everything."

"That's been my suspicion all along too," Ramona said with a frown

"I wish I had more time to dig deeper and figure out why my grandmother wanted the house sold off like this. But things are moving so fast with our aunties."

"Wait a minute- our aunties can move as fast as they want, but you heard them yourself, nothing is going to happen without Dad. And as far as we know, he's somewhere in Sydney sipping a well-made cappuccino. And how about Alistair? He's got a stake in all this too."

"Hmm...come to think of it, Alistair hasn't been around the house much over the past few days, has he?" Nick said.

"If dad, Alistair, you, and I join forces, the four of us have enough votes to block any sale."

Nick kissed Ramona's cheek excitedly and leaped up from the pavement. "You're brilliant, you know that?"

"I'm not sure that required much brilliance."

"No, you're a genius, and you just gave me the best idea! Let's go call dad!"

"Are you fishing on your dock?" Nick asked when their father picked up the phone. He could hear the crashing waves along the seashore.

"No, I'm doing the cliff walk from Bondi to Coogee right now."

"I love that hike."

"Yeah, it's a good day for it. You know your mother invited Daisy, Nadine, Lorena, and Carol to Sydney? The whole gin gang's here, and it's such a toilet-seat-down invasion, I needed to get out of the house. The ladies are busy hatching some kind of plot... I think involving Tyersall Park."

"Hi Daddy!" Ramona cheered, joining the conversation, "That's the reason we were calling, Dad. It looks like things are moving far too quickly with the house. Your sisters seem really primed to sell it to the highest bidder, and I don't even want to tell you what those developers have planned."

"Does it even matter? Once we sell it, the new owners can do whatever they want."

"But I feel like everyone's losing sight of the big picture," Ramona argued. "Tyersall Park is a unique property, and we need to make sure that it's preserved. I mean, I'm at the house right now, and even just looking out the window onto the gardens-the rambutan trees are bearing fruit, and they are flaming red. There's nothing quite like it."

"I think you're being too sentimental, honey," Philip said.

"Maybe I am, but I'm just surprised that no one else cares about this house in the way that I do. Everyone's just seeing dollar signs while I see something so rare that needs to be protected."

Philip sighed. "Nicky, Yuètù, I know for you this house was like some never-never land, but for the rest of us, it was a bit of a prison. Living in a palace was no fun as a kid. I grew up with nothing but rules. There were so many rooms I wasn't even allowed to enter, chairs I couldn't sit in because they were too valuable. You have no idea because, by the time you came along, my mother was a very different person."

"Yes, I've heard the stories. But surely you must have some good memories?"

"To me, it's just one gigantic headache. Don't forget, I was shipped off to boarding school practically as soon as I could walk, so it never truly felt like home to me. Now, even the thought of having to come back to Singapore to deal with all these property folks fills me with dread. Do you know how many ACS old boys have called me up out of the blue to invite me to lunch, to golf, all that nonsense? People I haven't seen in eons are suddenly behaving like my best friend because they can smell the money."

"I'm sorry that's happening, Dad. But let me ask you something." Nick took a deep breath as he prepared to make his pitch. "If I can somehow raise the money, would you consider leveraging your thirty percent stake and joining me, Romi, and possibly Alistair to buy everyone else out? If you give me a little time, I know I can find a way to make it financially worthwhile for us to own the estate."

The line went silent for a moment, and Ramona wasn't sure if their father was upset or if he was just on a particularly arduous stretch of the hike. Suddenly he spoke up again. "If you care that much about Tyersall Park, why don't you handle this whole house sale? Do what you think is best. I'll give both of you permission to act as my proxies, power of attorneys, whatever they call it. In fact, I'll sign over my thirty percent stake to you kids right now."

"Really?" Nick said, not quite believing what he was hearing.

"Sure. I mean, it's all going be your and Romi's one day anyway."

"I don't even know what to say." Ramona smiled

"Do whatever you want with the house, just keep me out of it," Philip said, climbing along the edge of a beautiful cliff-side cemetery overlooking the South Pacific. "Nicky, Romi, I'm up at that cemetery by Bronte now. Will you make sure-"

"Yes, Dad, you've told us many times before. You want to be buried there. You want to have a view of the humpback whales doing backflips for all of eternity." Ramona sighed

"And if they run out of lots, you'll find another ocean-side spot? New Zealand, Tasmania, anyplace but Singapore."

"Of course." Nick laughed. He hung up the phone and found Rachel and Theodore staring at them curiously, each sibling-in-law holding a twin.