CHAPTER 30: THE AFTERMATH

"Thanks for the game," Anna whispered lowly, smiling weakly as she offered a handshake toward the enemy.

"Good game." Radha Devan nodded, accepting the offer before starting to set back the chessboard into the original position. "You did well today, but you like to overcomplicate almost everything, even a simple attack that shouldn’t be a problem, like the first check that I did with my knight earlier. I did it just to reroute my knight back to the center, and you only need to move your king away from the danger zone. However, you took almost ten minutes to think of an action and finally take my knight, making it look like you get a chance to develop, while in reality, it only gave me the space advantage." He suddenly gave advice, albeit using broken English with a strong Indian Accent.

This was likely one of many wholesome moments that made people fall in love with the game. Even though it didn’t happen in every game, most of the veterans would always be willing to offer one or two advice for the youngsters, no matter where they were, just like what Radha Devan did to Anna right now. They both would probably never meet each other again in the future, yet here he was, giving advice like grandma handing a cookie to her grandson.

Anna frowned a little bit as she tried to think of the situation that Radha Devan talked about, and in the end, she nodded her head begrudgingly, could see where did he come from. They talked a little bit about the game for a while, mostly with Anna asking questions and Radha Devan answering them, before Anna was finally satisfied, showing her gratitude and walking away from the hall. Even though the defeat sucked, at least she was able to get out with something here.

What Anna didn’t expect, though, was that her little sister had already been waiting for her in front of the entrance of the hall. The little girl had teary eyes, and once she saw her big sister coming out of the hall, she didn’t even hesitate to jump and latch onto her like a koala.

"Big Sis!" She sobbed silently with her eyes red.

"Why are you always crying like this?" Anna couldn’t help but sigh in exasperation. However, there was a tiny smile formed on her face, hidden beneath her tough expression. "It is me who is losing here, right? Don’t cry, come on. How is your game, by the way? Did you win?" She asked, trying to change the topic. In return, Claudia just nodded silently, still hiding her puffy face underneath Anna’s sleeves.

Anna sighed helplessly, yet secretly, she enjoyed this feeling. This had been lasting for the last few years, but Claudia was always her biggest fan from the start of her chess career. The little girl would always be on the sidelines, cheering her the loudest when she won, while also crying the loudest when she was defeated. It didn’t change even after Claudia went for the chess too, as the little girl would always wait for her while also watching her game with shining eyes. Honestly, she treasured this feeling, always using her little sister as a motivation to go further.

"Oh, does she finally stop being a crybaby?" Sheva’s voice suddenly greeted the siblings from behind, interrupting their heartfelt moment.

Claudia snapped her head instantly, glaring at the boy with the fiercest expression she could muster. However, with how red and puffed her cheek was, if anything, it only made her look more adorable, forcing Sheva to hold back the urge to pinch her cheek.

"You insensitive jerk!" She cried, stomping on his foot hard. "How could you say something so... Heartless like that! You jerk! Tactless! Obtuse! Insufferable scoundrel!" She kept her rant for a while, hitting Sheva’s chest and forearms pretty weakly. The boy himself didn’t say anything, just letting her vent out her emotions here. In the end, after she got tired, Claudia finally stopped her doing, looking embarrassed at her bratty act.

"So, you done?" Sheva smirked infuriatingly. At the sight of Claudia nodding weakly while Anna just stared at them both with eyes full of amusement, his gaze softened before he gave them both two large cups of chai tea. "Here, I bought this outside. Drink more sugar, it is good to drive away your negative emotions." He said as a matter of fact.

"Um?!" Even Anna was surprised that she got one here. "Are you sure? Should I pay you later?" She couldn’t help but ask.

"Meh, don’t think too much about it." Sheva brushed this off easily, and he really meant it. As a person from a poor family, he was used to living in constant frugality, and it was rare for him to indulge himself in such a treat as this chai tea. However, the price offered by a small stall outside of this building was so cheap, and he could even get three of them for the same price as he would get for two cups in Jakarta. That was why he didn’t hesitate to buy this. "Anyway, so you are defeated, huh?" He glanced at Anna carefully, trying to ignore the sharp glare from Claudia.

"Yeah, and it is not even a close game," Anna admitted casually, showing that she wasn’t that bothered by the defeat anymore. "He cornered me from the start of the game, and the combination of bad opening choice and bad judgment put me in a bad place." She explained.

Sheva stared at her for a moment, and when he didn’t see any negative emotion on her face, he sighed in relief. "Glad that you didn’t freak out over one defeat, not like someone among us here." He said jokingly, glancing sideways at Claudia, whose face flushed red in embarrassment. Anna giggled at their interaction, finding it funny how they could become the best of friends after their hostile first meeting.

"So, who will be your opponent tomorrow?" Sheva asked once again.

Anna frowned for a moment, trying to remember her schedule. Unlike Sheva and Claudia, who played in the open session where their next opponent would only be determined after every round was over, Anna played in a close tournament, and her schedule had been determined from the start.

"If I am not wrong, it should be against one of the local rising stars here, I cannot pronounce his name, though." Anna finally said. "He is a FIDE Master with the rating of 2344, probably two years older than me. Should’ve been at the same age as you, right?" She asked Sheva.

"Well, if your guess is right." Sheva shrugged.

"Yeah, he should be your age." Anna nodded once again, confirming her words earlier. "Tomorrow will be another tough match for me, and I don’t know if I can get a good result or not. I guess I should be prepared for losing a lot of ratings in this tournament." She shrugged as if what she said was nothing, ignoring Claudia, who was about to complain and cry again. What she didn’t expect, though, was that Sheva would approach her and pat her shoulder gently.

"Don’t worry, I know you can bounce back after this defeat." He said reassuringly. "Don’t think too much about anything else, just try to enjoy the game, savor every chance of playing against a stronger opponent. What doesn’t kill you will make you stronger, right?"

Anna was stunned, not expecting to get moral support from him. A small, genuine smile suddenly formed after that as she said jokingly, "So, what you want to say is for me to be more like you?"

"Exactly."