Stefan shook his head. "No, It was a joint project. I'm from the East. My mother eventually fled in '89, while my father...well he had a history... He died when I was quite young though." He then proceeded to correct the man. The man seemed quite intrigued, but certainly delving into German history or his father's background wasn't a topic one typically discussed at the dinner table. Fortunately the man had managed to quickly shift the topic to his own occupation, even if it made the man uneasy. Supposedly he was a detective, and detectives generally worked with cops. Not wanting to bring up his own disdain for law enforcement officers he just silently nodded in approval. The whole situation quickly reminded him of his own experiences though. 

[i]"Frau Merzdorf?"[/i] The two officers had been banging on the door of the flat, hoping to get an answer while young shy Stefan who had been playing outside proceeded to hide behind some bushes. He had mostly been oblivious to everything, but one thing he knew was that officers generally didn't come knocking on one's door unless there was something serious going on. [i]"Frau Merzdorf, your husband is dead."[/i] Those had been the first words young Stefan had managed to take in while eavesdropping. His father dead? How? It had been a lot to take in and so sudden, but it was the next word he had heard that left the young boy in shock as the two officers left his doorstep. Nazi. So they knew about his father's past? Surely it had been filtered from somewhere as the boy knew his father was unstable, perhaps partially due to past actions. 

It had been that same afternoon that too prompted changes in the young Stefan. He had realized there was so much he did not know and would intend to get to the bottom of. [i]"Mother, that man called father a Nazi. How would he know such things?"[/i] Naturally, Stefan's mother had given him a puzzled look, but proceeded to answer her son's question anyway. There had perhaps been some things not worth hiding any longer. 

[i]"Stefan, That was the past. You know your father is not like that, but apparently not everybody believes it..."[/i] Stefan's mother had gone on to explain many things to her son such as how authorities liked to monitor them, but perhaps at the cost of his sanity too. Paranoia. It was dangerous road to walk down, yet it had begun to infect more than one of the Merzdorf family. At not even thirteen years old it had begun consuming him, leaving him to withdraw from much of the world he knew.

 "Well this should be good. I can smell it." Despite being deep in thought, Stefan had been interrupted once the scent of food began flooding his nose once again. This time various scrumptious dishes began being lined all down the table, prompting others to sit down for dinner. Surely there would be other introductions over dinner, much to the man's relief, not wanting to reveal anything too sensitive at this point. His father's past was one he was ashamed of himself and one he realized it was probably smart not to draw attention to. Somehow many of the people on the island seemed like misfits though so at least he knew he likely wasn't lone. Certainly the others had skeletons in their closet too.