EP5

~~

[Alexus’ POV]

 

[I need to see you.] she said.

 

“Why? If you have problems you can talk to Johani.” I told her. I just sat down. What is she up to?

 

[It has to be you. You’re the only one who understands this problem.] she added. She made a stifling sound of a sob.

 

I sighed. “Where are you?”

 

~~

When I arrived at the fountain in the plaza of Central Town, she was sitting by herself on the edge of the fountain. Her head was hanging down. She was fidgeting her feet and her hands.

 

“What?” I say as I approached her.

 

She looked up at me and smiled. Her eyes were red and there were traces of tears that fell down her cheeks. “They just filed for divorce.” She said with a smile. Then, she started crying.

 

I absently pat the back of my head. “Let’s go somewhere else. It’s uncomfortable here. Everyone will think I made you cry.”

 

She laughed. “You did make me cry, though.” She says, “for the whole week.”

 

I understand it’s hard for her to accept her parents’ divorce. She didn’t have to say that. “Listen. I don’t think I’m the right person for you to talk to about this.” I began. “But, I hate it when you make things uncomfortable for the people around us—they be strangers or not.”

 

“Sorry. I just want to talk to you.” She says. “I actually feel comfortable with you the most. SO I called you, instead of Johani.”

 

It doesn’t sound that way to me, though.

 

“Stay around for a while, even if you don’t want to hear what I say.” She sobbed. “If you hang around for a bit, it’ll make me feel better... instead of when I get through this by myself.”

 

I feel bad for her. But this is not how she should face her problems.

 

“Alright. I will sit next to you for a bit.” I sat next to her at a respectable distance. “But, don’t be too dependent on others.”

 

“Thank you.”

 

~~

After I walked her to the Biology Residence, I started to walk back to my own residence.

 

I suddenly got thirsty when I arrived. I went straight to the kitchen to grab a drink. I took a bottle of iced tea from the freezer, then went to the dining room to sit down and watch television.

 

I opened the bottle then took a swig. I was about to put it down when my peripherals caught Arin. I immediately turned to check it out. She was holding a basket. Even with her hood on her head, she was recognizable. She’s the only person that I know of that bounces when she walks.

 

What’s in that basket?

 

She entered through the back door. She was headed to the dining area—or maybe the common room?

 

The moment she entered the dining area, our eyes met.

 

“Ora?!” she jumped.

 

“What?”

 

“You startled me!” She looks cute when she makes a pouty face. I wasn’t surprised since I already knew she was still walking around.

 

“Why are you still up?” she asked.

 

“I’m supposed to ask you that question.” I took another swig of iced tea.

 

“Well, I wanted some apples... so...” Her voice trailed off. So she went to the greenhouse. And there were apples inside that basket.

 

She bounced her way to my table. She took the seat opposite mine, then, placed the basket on the table between us.

 

“Want some?” she offered me an apple. I took it and thanked her.

 

We ate the apples in silence while watching random shown on TV. She would complain from time to time about how noisy I was when I chew. I would just tell her it’s actually the easterner’s way of appreciating a delicious food.

 

While I was changing the channels, she started to talk about something.

 

“Hey, um, why did you go out just a few hours ago?” she asks. “It’s not that I’m being meddlesome. I just couldn’t help but get curious.” She suddenly looked at me. “Well, it’s just that... actually, just something to talk about. I feel kind of bored. But, you could change the subject.”

 

She likes to talk, huh?

 

“Well, it’s not something to keep secret, I guess. We’re friends, so I can tell you stuff.” I told her.

 

“Soudesuka..”

 

“Don’t speak in Japanese when you’re with me.” I tell her. “I wont understand anything.”

 

“But you said you have a dictionary.” She finished the last apple.

 

“Yeah, which is completely useless if I cant identify if you’re saying phrases or words.”

 

She laughed. Surprisingly, the way she laughed just now tugged at my heart strings.

 

“Why are you looking at me like that? Do I have something on my face?” she asked.

 

The way she looked at me made me gulp. I didn’t notice this before. Arin’s the kind of pretty that you can appreciate so much because it radiates from her light personality. When she smiles like that...

 

She suddenly gave me a chop on the forehead. “Ah!”

 

“I was talking to you.” She pouted.

 

I cleared my throat unnecessarily.

 

“Sorry, I spaced out a bit.” I told her.

 

At that moment, someone comes in, waving a flashlight in our direction.

 

“What are you two doing still up?” That voice. It’s the College of Engineering President. She walked towards us after turning off her flash light.

 

“We wanted to have a snack.” Arin says, showing her the basket filled with all the apple cores we left.

 

“Ah... I’ll let you two go tonight. But if you want to have a snack, do it in your respective rooms. If someone else saw you, it’d be a huge misunderstanding.” She says.

 

“Okay.”

 

Arin and I cleaned up the table and threw away the apple cores. We walked to the lobby together. After saying goodnight to each other, we went upstairs to our respective rooms.

 

~~

“Dude, you’re so diligent as always.” Hyo says. “Let’s go out somewhere. It’s a waste to stay here.”

 

“No, thanks, I have to finish this new code for the updates of the game.” I told him. Hyo and I were helping out with his cousin’s MMORPG’s Updates. It’s an RPG where players are given specific societal roles (from peasant to warrior to royalties) and they play the game according to how they want it to be.

 

“Why don’t you play the game, Princess? The Hana Kingdom requires your assistance.” I . With that, a throw pillow hit the back of my head. I just laughed at him and continued my work.

 

“Unbelievable.” He mutters. “I’m going to see the kennel.”

 

“Kennel?” I ask, casually.

 

“Oh, you didn’t know? There’s a pet shelter here.” Hyo says. He dials someone on his phone.

 

“Yo, Arin.” He began.

 

Arin? I turned to him. He was leaning against the counter while talking to someone on the phone.

 

“Can I come over today? It’s your shift, right?... Oh, Danielle’s there too?... Aaahh, really... Say, I’m coming over, is the vet there?... okay! Thanks a lot!... Yeah, see you.” He hung up.

 

He was startled when he looked at me. “What?”

 

I suddenly became aware of how I gaped at him, so I turned around and started typing again. “Nothing.”

 

“You’re really fishy lately.” He clicked his tongue.

 

“How so?” I ask, still typing.

 

“Arin sparks you’re interest lately, doesn’t she?” He said it right in my ear. His mouth was almost touching my earlobes that I felt his breath as he said those words.

 

It gave me quite the goosebumps that, out of impulse, I stand up and stepped away from him. “What are you doing?!”

 

“Hahahaha! Sorry, but really man. Does she or not?” He laughs.

 

Sure, Arin is interesting, but...

 

“Ah, go away. I need to finish this code.” I sat back down.

 

“Fine, fine. But don’t you want to see the kennel?” Hyo was putting on his sneakers now.

 

“Nope. Just go already, I cant concentrate what with you talking too much.” I tell him without taking my eyes off the screen.

 

“Later, man.” Hyo left.

 

“Yeah.”

 

While I was typing, my mind wandered all of a sudden. I found myself thinking about it.

 

Sure, Arin does spark my interest. She is interesting, but...

 

[Snip]