International High School of New Orleans, 4th May, 2020

Lee Suhoon’s View

My ears were tugged to a door as I, discretely, heard the conversation between a girl and a boy, even if three bodies were visible through the blurry windowpane. It somehow seemed foggy inside, so I wandered it the fiberglass was made that way or it was shattered from the inside. It seemed like they were speaking about something I could actually relate to, according to my researches. I kept myself near the door, hearing it as if I was magnetically attracted. I knew there was supernatural beings in New Orleans, moving here wasn’t a mistake at all. I in fact am not from here but from New York so it became unclear for those who saw me grow up on the city that never sleeps the reason why I travelled half the country and studied in Louisiana to then become a temporary teacher in New Orleans’ International High School.

There is a lot of diversity here in this high school so I feel like I never got out of home. It was a blessing to find a job here, after all I’m not a fixed teacher, and I’m here to replace a history teacher that had to leave due to a pregnancy. It’s not like a woman can do teacher job while a being develops inside her, I guess. It must be exhausting to have so many paperwork and so many restrictions from the doctors. It’s unhealthy so thankfully she was discharged until next year. I work in this school for a couple months now. I found a lot of things to add to my research.

It felt like I was about to find other things that not only part of my research.

"We have to stop meeting like this and erasing her memories from these moments. She needs to be aware of things. I need to tell her, Kao, we can't hide it. The French Quarter coven spoke to our representatives asking for a werewolf to sacrifice on the ritual they are preparing, under a protection spell because they are preparing a move. They need allies, so, they can’t kill us. That’s the use of the collective protection spell. They need one of each breed."

The boy spoke. "Against the vampires? What about the hybrid they need? All the hybrids are sired, except for a few. Think, Savannah, what about the pack? If we go to the witches’ side the vampires will take revenge on us. We can’t let them do any harm to us."

She sighed. "My gene is triggered since I tried to go hunt on the forest last summer and shoot that person that ended up dying. Don't worry, the witches will track a hybrid. About the vampires, we’ll bite them and impale them if they try to attack. I know they have the hybrid to heal them with his blood, but we’ll be good. The witches will give us protection." She then nodded, steps following through the room. “I think we’re talked, Kao. I’ll offer myself.”

Kao hold out her wrist. "If you help me break the sire bound, I'll go with you. No need of someone else's life being conditioned. I can’t let you go like this. You are just like my sister."

"Are you serious, Kao? I can't let you. The pack needs you." She shook off her head, letting go of his hand. “We may be like brothers but it’s my choice, you don’t have to follow. I will be on the battle front. You are the enemy. You are half vampire. They will kill you once the spell is over. I can’t let that happen.”

He sighed. "I'm just extra luggage. Let's admit it, I'm sired, and I haven't tried to release myself from the bound. So, what do expect them to do with me? Use me for healing and compelling people from the Bayou?" Kao then lowered his head, sighing. “I will promise faithfulness. It’s not like I asked to be a hybrid.”

Savannah looked down and sighed. "There are other supernatural creatures on this school besides us, you don’t have to risk your death, we’ll just track other hybrid, you can’t die… I won’t be capable to deal with your loss. Lorelei's father is a hunter, I've never seen his hunt mark because it's probably incomplete but, maybe she can help us track down the other blood bounds. They will have a protection spell so, if compelled can step away from the witches and all. We need to find people for the spell. The witches tracked a vampire that will bring the witch and they’ll craft the bowl for the spell. Three elements are assured. Four with me."

“Let me go with you, Savannah, for God’s sake. You need a hybrid. Break my sire bound and take me to the witches. It’s not like we’ll die getting rid of vampires. They are a threat to us. Even giving moonlight rings to stop us from turning isn’t enough. We need to take them down.”

Savannah sighed, her eyes gazing into his as she got defeated by his insistent requests. “Fine, do whatever pleases you. Just, don’t get any of us killed.” With that, steps were heard towards the door. “Do me a favor and compel Lorelei. She doesn’t need to suffer knowing all that at once. Wait…”

I was breathing heavily and couldn’t move a single inch of my body. Looking through the windowpane, I saw a pair of hazel, green-like eyes. She found me and spotted me. I widened my eyes and gulped. I didn’t want anyone ripping off my neck apart. The door opened and she frowned at me. I felt will of strangling me on her eyes but thankfully she wasn’t a hybrid from what I knew. I looked into her eyes and widened mine. “It’s not…” Kao squinted his eyes together and soon his pupils dilated as he approached me. “I’m on vervain. It’s not like you can compel me to forget all I know. I know a lot. Perhaps we can talk about it.”

“Mr. Lee?” Lorelei blinked slowly, shaking her head. “Why are you here? Is it class already? Why are you here?” She looked at her watch and widened her eyes. “It’s lunch break…”

Suhoon looked around and closed the door behind him. “I make research for a couple years now. I know I’m not very old, I’m 24 now. But it happens that my former roommate in college was killed by a vampire. I research ever since. So, it’s not like you’ll make forget everything I know. I’ve been making research about New Orleans ever since I found about all the weird things happening since the witch massacre during the lastly performed harvest. Three witches were massacred and slaughtered and vampires saved the last one and killed all the witches on the cemetery. Ever since there has been a war between those. I heard a few things and I can help. I’m not supernatural or anything but, I can track down people. Nobody is right on this war but vampires killed my roommate.”

Lorelei crawled to the bottom of the room, holding alongside a chair on her shaking hands. “Wait, what? What nonsense are you saying…? That is not true… those don’t exist.”

“Miss Beasley, it’s true, they do. Your friends are both supernatural beings.” Suhoon nodded slowly. “But I know they won’t harm you, they were planning just now on compelling you. They care about you. But, they brought you here with an intention for sure. Are you going to include her as part of that ritual of those witches you speak of?”

Savannah widened her eyes and approached the teacher. “Wait, what?! How can you say that? She can’t be part of the spell, she has the hunter gene. If her father dies she will become a vampire hunter, she can’t become part of the spell… She told us her father had an ink on his hand but he kept hiding it. We can’t see it, so it means he killed some vampires.”

“I know what those are, I did research enough to know the story. The original vampires, the covens of witches, the French Quarter, the harvest ritual, the war, the Bayou… I know you two are part of it too. I can tell from your eyes. I can tell that mister there tried to compel me.”

Lorelei’s eyes widened more and she let go of the chair, which stumbled and fell apart on the floor. “He’s… what…? What are you hiding from me?” She then curled up in a ball and started crying, holding out her head.

Kao kneeled nearby her. “Lorelei… I’m sorry we included you on this… you can’t suffer with all this information shooting. We were compelling you so you wouldn’t suffer. I compelled so you wouldn’t be like that. I’m sorry.” His hand moved through her hair, it gently.

“NO!” Lorelei wiped her eyes. “Don’t you touch me again, don’t you compel me again. I deserve to know. I must know. You are my friends but you compel me not to know what you are. What are you even? You are monsters…” She held out her knees, burying her face on them, sniffing as she shook her head, to let go of his hand. “Leave me alone, Kao.”

“I’m sorry, Lorelei… I really am. I didn’t want you to react like this.” Savannah looked down at her feet and sat down, holding out her own head. “I’m so sorry… I told Kao it was about time but… we didn’t want you suffering.”

“Shut it, Savannah, just cut the crap. I can’t look at you two right now… Teacher was the only honest one. You two hid from me that when my dad dies I will go after people and kill them. I will KILL VAMPIRES once he has passed away. Nobody should compel me not to know what I am. Nobody should compel me to forget what makes me myself. Just, I can’t look at you right now. Especially you, Kao. You disappointed me. I thought… I thought… I thought I could rely on you and now you end up being a possible victim of what I may become. And you hid it from me!

Lorelei stood up and wiped her own eyes, sniffing as she got back to the corridor, walking off of the place she was stuck on, compelled to not hear the previous conversation. I looked to where she went but she dissipated into thin air.

New Orleans, Roses’ Greehouse, 19th May, 2020

Timothy Holden’s View

Davina is not waking up. Soon the sun will set and she stayed unconscious the whole day. I closed the store for her, she technically fainted, so I sent the greenhouse’s owner a message, saying I found Davina fainted on the place. He didn’t come by because I told him not to, saying she was on the hospital, but the hospital would say it was weird on how she got injured, so meanwhile she was asleep I went to the hospital, compelled a few people and got her a few documentation on how she fainted earlier, so she won’t be fired. Once it’s all over, she’ll get back to working on these roses and making them bloom.

Her lips had a hint of a smile, and I smiled back at them. She was wearing a luminous and charming red lipstick, not that red, more like it was a rosy, vivid crimson tone. It made her lips tempting and I kept staring at her eyelashes, lined by a thin layer of a black straight line, drawing her eyes’ shape. Natural rosy cheeks with a hint of was also visible. I decided to it gently, sitting nearby her and kept on cleaning the table with white and red scarlet roses. I put them somewhere other than where they were and then I realized she kept my violin. It was now fixed. It had a lot of roses nearby it, some changed to white, and others were red.

I took it on my hands and placed them on the other table, to then smile gently at it and pick Davina up on my arms. I needed to place her somewhere else than the ground. I now was getting worried. Did they take her down? They couldn’t… they needed her. I needed her.

Lifting her up carefully from the floor, I placed her over the table I had taken the things of. She seemed so calm sleeping, it was disturbing to know she wouldn’t be the Davina Claire I knew when she’d wake up. But, she would get back to normal. I placed her down and sat again. She had a red rose on her palms, and a few of its petals were slowly fading to white, so it ended up stained. The result was truly beautiful, and I then kept on watching her. The sky was degrading from yellow to orange, gold, blue, lavender, and most of it looked like the color on her lips. Something was appearing on her hand. I thought she would wake up soon. But she didn’t. So, I kept waiting and felt the urge to play some violin.

Holding it out against my neck, I grinned by meeting my past lover, my dear violin. Both my lovers, even if I had to take down the woman I love. I felt heavy. My chest was heavy. But, we needed to make them pay. They tried to kill me and kill her. Why did she even defend them? For me? For the vampires who saved her on the Harvest where she was supposed to die and rebirth? It wasn’t fair. She was pure. She was all I had.

My hands grabbed the violin’s bow and I rested against my chin, verifying if the chords were tuned. Tones a little bit misplaced but still close enough. And then, I started playing a melody. I was so dragged by it that only when I finished I understood a voice called me.

“Tim…” It was Davina’s magical voice. “What are you doing?” I then looked at her, placing the violin in place carefully. She smiled gently. It was her smile, her usual smile. Perhaps the witches haven’t changed so much about it. Her hand had an ink with a compass rose. Maybe when it faded again, she’d be back to normal.

“Hmm… I was playing the violin. I missed it. I was waiting for you to wake up actually and I… hmm, let myself drag. I love it as you know.” I smiled wide and stood up, help her climb down from the table.  “How do you feel, Davina? Are you fine?”

She frowned slightly at her name being called and shook her head quickly. “Davina? My name is not Davina. Not anymore.” She then smirked at me. What was happening? What did I do? “My name is Daphne. Now… let’s go craft a bowl.”

Outside of The Penthouse Club, New Orleans, 24th April, 2020

Kim Hanbyeol’s View

It’s my mother’s birthday today and, because it is Friday, she invited the whole family to go have a dinner with her at Red Fish Grill Restaurant and maybe spend some quality time in family. Finally, my father took a break from his work on the embassy and decided to come home for a few days and be with us. He did the same with my birthday because it actually was a few days ago, on the 20^th, so, he basically took some vacation. I now am 21, so, it means I can be considered an adult wherever I go. And my father wanted to congratulate me on that.

I followed Social Studies on college, even if they would rather have me be a politician. I prefer Social Studies because it’s something I know better than anyone else. I know several languages I studied at school – English, French, Spanish, Korean and Mandarin – even if I’m only fluent in two of them and conversational in other two. I never thought my dad would approve.

Actually, I had a present for my mother that I went pick early, after I was discharged from the college classes at the campus. I study on Tulane, so it was hard leaving unnoticed. But what matters is that I at least succeeded on that.

Wondering if Sangwon was leaving from the Apple Barrel Bar early, since he is doing some cleaning before it’s open to public, I decided to go towards the bar, which is pretty far, a few blocks, more like, a few miles. Arriving to the Frenchmen Street, past the French Quarter, I realized the bar was closed already and his motorbike wasn’t parked nearby so I decided to call.

“Sangwon… pick up…” I mumbled as I approached a bus stop and blinked. “, the next bus is in 40 minutes…” I sighed, still hearing the phone beep. He had network and had his cellphone. Maybe he was driving?

“Yeoboseyeo?” He finally picked up the call and I happily laughed. “Hyung? Is it you?”

Stepping away from the bus stop and following towards Bourbon Street, I stopped in front of Apple Barrel Bar once more. “Hallelujah! It was about time for you to pick up. I’m on Apple Barrel. Are you still here or did you finish already?”

“Oh, sorry, hyung, I left early today, I came to the mall to buy a present for umma Kim. What are you giving to her? What is Taemin giving to her? We better not buy her the same.” Sangwon said on the other side of the phone. “Wait, don’t tell me you knitted a shirt to her like last year.” Chuckles were heard from the other side. He was bugging me just now.

I pouted and whined lowly as I kept walking through the road, heading directly to Bourbon Street. “Yah, it wasn’t that bad! It actually looked pretty, umma worn it on Christmas Eve alongside with Taemin’s hairclip. Those suited well together in fact.” I nodded, as if he was actually seeing my gestures. I was used to nodding whenever I was calling someone or not.

“Fine. Well, what do you think of me giving aunt a coupon to a spa? Like, I don’t know, she gets most of it paid. There are some in promotion here. Like, I give a coupon to someone and they give her… a seaweed mascara treatment. Or… a shiatsu massage. You know, aunt works so much, she needs a good present. With this cleaning salary I am able to save a lot, really.” I could hear Sangwon’s proud posture of himself from this side of the call and I was proud too.

“Well, I made a few savings from the part time jobs I had on summer and I bought her a silver bracelet. I hope she likes it, it is vine and has crystals, I know how much she loves those so I think she will like it. I hope she does. In fact, Taemin and I are splitting the gift in half, he bought a matching pair of earrings.” I was happy that we both gathered money enough to buy those. Also, our father wanted to help on the purchase and gave her a matching pair of silver shoes, that actually looked good with the dress she had received on Christmas, and brought them directly from Washington D.C. That was the main point for us to look for gifts for our mom so we took the shoes in consideration and searched for those based on what would look good on a outfit with those items and others. “Appa helped us a little too, fine.”

“Well, it’s not like you need much help. You have more fashion sense than Taemin-ah and abeonim together.” Sangwon replied with a chuckle. “Well, have to hang, it’s my turn to buy eomeoni a present.”

“Yah, pabo-yah! What are you giving her?” I whined on the phone since he hadn’t given any clue of what he’d offer. He spoke of a spa coupon, perhaps it was it?

He chuckled. “You’ll see when I arrive the restaurant.” And then he hang up.

“This dongsaeng, not being respectful at all to his hyung…” I chuckled to myself as I kept roaming through the road, passing by the street with my hands on my pockets now, under a dusk. The sky was painted like a flaming rose was on it, the tones were the same, it was beautiful. It was spring and the street had some vases on some of the windows. The air was scented thanks to it and I felt good passing by it. The birdies flew around back to their nests and a cat was scratching a window above me as he saw me pass by, stretching and passing its long fur through the window like he had never seen someone like me before. I smiled gently and the cat mewled.

I finally arrived at the end of Bourbon Street, and was actually ready to go to the restaurant, but the sound of a coin falling by my feet in the middle of the busy, now ready to rest street startled me. I saw a couple of guys nearby some other restaurant, Felix's, it said on the neon placards that reflected its toxic, addictive shine, and, just by its side, a tall ivory, sunburst yellow building, with straight lines and iron fences painted in black, decorating those, adorned with black framed doors that seemed made of some expensive marble. On the top of the building there were those classical rooftop decorations, triangular friezes, which made the building even fancier. But it was a strip club in fact, The Penthouse Club, it said on the neon sign nearby the main entrance door. Along the street there were other buildings, but those were the first ones I spotted first, the first buildings I saw. This because the noisy males surrounded a boy that seemed beat up, tattooed arms – he seemed younger than me though, he shouldn’t be in such a place for my opinion. Probably he being messed with by the others and he was clearly defenseless. He surely was in trouble so I threw the coin back at them.

“Just leave. Leave them for me, it’s not your business.” The young boy replied to my gesture, his teeth clenched as a fist tackled him to the ground, his skin ripping where the concrete road scratched him, spitting blood and sighing. I couldn’t help but stare and freeze. The other guys looked towards me. It was a black guy, an Asian and a few other with masks and hoodies on. Then they turned their back at me and kicked the guy a couple times, leaving through the alley on a rush. I was about to rush and call the police with trembling hands.

The beat up guy stood up shivering and had enough guts to approach me and take my phone on his hands, throwing it into the concrete ground, shattering it into pieces. “Don’t you ing dare call the cops. You saw nothing, I just happened to have an accident and I’m alright. Now ing move on with your damn life. I’m a stranger, this is nothing of your business.”

“That is precisely why you need to go to a damn hospital. Lean on my shoulder, I’ll help you get there.” I kept insisting. No matter what that guy was caught into, he was severely hurt and needed medical care. Even if those were the ‘right guys on the picture’ and the beaten up was a bad guy. They lost their reasoning the moment they beat up the younger guy.

The guy pursed his lips and looked away, wiping the blood from his mouth. “Just ing piss off. I don’t care, flower boy. Leave me be. If they kill me it’s not your ing concern.”

“Shut up, okay? I’m trying to help.” I got so angry at that guy that I held onto him, dragging him away, as my eyes became a little heavy. I reviewed myself on him, myself from the night I tried to take my own life. He could be a stranger but he probably didn’t have anyone to rely on, or he would have not been like that when someone offered him help. “I’m not the type to quit on someone who clearly needs help. Now, lean on my shoulder, I’ll call a cab.”

The boy sighed. “No need to call a cab, I know a medical center nearby, I can easily go by foot myself. Thanks for your concern, but there’s no need of it. I’m fine.” He said as he let go, shivering as he held out to his hip, walking with a lot of pain, almost falling down to his knees.

“You clearly need help. Come with me, I’ll take you there.” I walked towards him and huffed. Such a stubborn guy. I held out his arm and made him surround my neck with it, helping him walk. He probably had fractured bones, I could see him try and not cry in pain. He could barely walk. Now that I didn’t have my phone – since he smacked it on the road – I could only get to the nearest hospital with him.

I didn’t know the French Quarter well but he seemed to know it, since he was the one giving directions just now, despite the panting and shivering. If I wasn’t there, he’d be ended for sure. “…Thanks…” He mumbled. This guy seemed to have a lot of pride, because he couldn’t even thank me properly. He was softening now though, even if he was so harsh before. He probably endured a lot and didn’t want to seem weak. I myself was weak so I felt proud of myself for helping a stranger. We stayed silent until I felt a sounding and gentle smile nearby me. “I didn’t… catch your name.” He now planned on being nice?

“It’s ‘you smacked my phone on the ground’.” I mumbled, chuckling to myself. “Call me Hanbyeol or Han, whatever you feel like calling. It’s not like I’ll be mad or anything.” I then shrugged. He looked over with that beat up face, pursing his cut lips together.

He then looked down. “Sorry about your phone… I was afraid you’d call the cops. If they track me down, I might end up on jail.” He sonorously smirked, a tad challenging. “That’s a pretty gay name, just saying. Glad some stick with the Han part, Byeol makes you all ‘twinkle-twinkle little star’ sort.” He ended up laughing and I held out his wrist as in a threat of leaving him there. “Sorry, man. Hwankyu here.”

I smiled softly and widened my eyes then a little. “Other Korean guy, hmm. Good to hear. It’s not like I find a lot of Koreans in here. It’s either French, plain American or locals.”

“Yeah, seems like it.” He smiled small. I could see he was much more at ease and speaking eased his aching body, or at least made him forget about it. “Welcome to the 2,1% of Asians in New Orleans.” He chuckled to himself and then stopped walking. “Thanks for the ride, man. It’s my stop, time to get on going with your life.” He pursed his lips on a firm line, getting a cold look back on his eyes, carelessly gazing with mine, getting in.

I went right behind him. “I have to confirm the statement of yours in case you get in trouble in there. I helped you, I go in with you, there’s no taking me back.” If he was going to be as stubborn as me then I was going to reply back with stubbornness. My mother’s birthday was a priority too but this guy needed my help as well. So, she would understand if she knew what happened. He was injured and couldn’t go by his foot so I helped him and changed my route, so I ended up arriving late. “Go sit, give me your wallet and I’ll make a registry.”

“ no! It’s my wallet! I’ll go with you.” Hwankyu was stubborn, and even not being able to walk properly, he got in New Orleans Urgent Care with no problem at all, holding to the door step, his other hand holding out his blood stained shirt above his hip, on his ribs.

I got in and the person behind the check in received the papers and spoke to me. “Are you his legal guardian? He is a minor so we’ll need your ID’s too or his guardian’s.”

“He is.” He answered for me and left me speechless, hanging in there. “He’s a long lost relative of mine.” I watched Hwankyu lie with all the teeth on his mouth. He probably feared jail that much. But, why lie? He had nobody else?

“Please specify the situation on this document and sign it, we’ll call you as soon as you can.” The woman sitting on the desk in front to the screen handed a digital writing support for me to write on and a paper and a pen for me to sign as his guardian. I did as I was told and he looked at me typing, not objecting anything.

“I found him like this nearby home, I think he has a fractured rib, he could barely walk on our way here.” I helped him out with his lie, omitting that in fact it was the first time I saw him. He seemed severely hurt indeed, cut lips, dark stained cheek, cuts and scars through his body, since he rolled around on the aggressive concrete floor, like sandpaper was passed through those until it bled. His backpack was spread open now and he took a sweater to wear, to cover himself up, the tattoos his crop tank top unveiled alongside with the scars. Hwankyu was hurt real bad and wanted anyone to evaluate his state besides the doctors.

I went to sit on a chair and helped him walk until there, sitting nearby him. “Once more, thanks… hyung.” He still was hurt and looked towards the wall, not wanting to look at me in the eyes. He was thankful for me covering him up. “I presume you’d like an explanation to this.”

“Yes, I’d rather know what you just got me into. Next time I won’t be here to cover you up. If it was someone else I don’t think they would have agreed on helping you out.” I chose to be honest with the boy. “And you’re a minor?” I frowned as I mumbled. There was a lot to be told. He already had inks, he had cigarettes on his backpack and he was illegal?

“I’ll be turning 18 soon. I honestly wasn’t expecting you to be older than me at first but I soon realized by your posture that you’re older.” Hwankyu didn’t bother to nod or look. He just kept a low profile and hummed lowly. “My father’s a drunk since my mother divorced him and moved away to Kenner with my stepfather. He doesn’t do so I dropped out school. I work since then and went away from home because it’s unbearable there. So, I tried to keep up with my living and I ended up trying weed and , but I refused to get all high so I dropped out those and the guy who sold me said that to pay my debts to him I have to help him sell. He said I paid everything but some guys came after me to get some extra cash today. That’s why I told you to back off but you were ing stubborn so.” Hwankyu sighed. I was startled for a while and kept blinking at his unveiling. His voice tone was so low it seemed like a pleading.

“What?” I widened my eyes as I was able to react, to then calm myself and settle the information, mumbling. “You take drugs?” I was too shocked, but even so I gazed at him.

“Not anymore. I quit on the beginning of the year, after taking those like five, six times. I wondered, ‘what am I doing with my life?’ I dropped school, became a drug passenger for the guys from The Penthouse and let myself involve in those illegal things at the age of seventeen, it’s not something my father would be proud of either drunk or sober. I was there because I was going to tell the guys I have no debts, but they beat me up and stole my money instead.”

“We’re on the same boat, Hwankyu-ah.” I mumbled lowly. “I tried to commit suicide on New Year’s Eve. The difference between you and me is that I’m more of a coward with no reason to do that much compared to you. Around you, it was falling apart, around me I have a rich family who cares even if they seem not to give a . I’m just some spoiled brat that got mad at everyone just because they couldn’t be here. I was discriminated at school and some people avoid me on campus too, but it isn’t a reason to go suicidal. It was a mistake, we all make mistakes, but at least it was stopped on time, if I wasn’t I’d be ash now for sure, I could have hurt others too. And, well, both our mistakes were mistakes but we got up, and I tell you, your path was much more dangerous to get up of. That’s why I decided to help. I knew you were in trouble. I was suicidal and was helped on the very edge. Now it’s my turn, I thought.” I smiled small and nodded, resting my hand on his shoulder, chuckling at one of his shivers. “Sorry.”

“Thanks, hyung.” I saw his lips curve up slightly as someone called him.

“Go in, I will be here when you’re out. I need to make a call first though.”

He stood up and pursed his lips, looking down with regret. “I’m sorry I broke your phone, I will pay its fixing bill. It’s the least I can do. I screwed your phone and you even help me out…”

“It’s fine, I have money to fix it myself. I understand your reasons now. Thanks for telling me. I praise your honesty. And, you can count on me from now on. I will help you how I can.”