My heart beats with an erratic rhythm. Christ slowly stretched out his left hand. And it made me hold my breath.
"What's wrong with you?" Christ asked me.
"Huh?" I said as I opened my eyes.
It turned out that I had unconsciously closed both of my eyes. Christ was reaching towards the back seat for something using his left hand. It seemed like he was trying to take one of his purchases from earlier.
"You closed your eyes on purpose, right?" Christ was still trying to reach the plastic bag located on the left side of the back seat of this car.
"No. What do you mean?" Because I was nervous earlier, I reflexively closed my eyes.
"You pretended not to see, so I wouldn't tell you to take this, right?" Christ said after successfully reaching a plastic bag.
"Of course, to make it difficult for you to take it." I hid my real reason from him.
"You're always hostile towards me. Maybe my agreement with Bie will end without any results." Christ said that sentence while holding out the plastic bag he had reached for earlier.
What does he mean? All I can understand is that the agreement with Bie will end soon, if I continue to be hostile to him. But what results did he mean?
"What do you mean?" I asked him for an explanation.
"Take it, these fruits are for Bie." Christ even explained the purpose of his offer of this plastic bag.
"Not that one." Without taking the fruits I waited for his answer.
"Do you have any events on New Year's Eve?" I thought, Christ deliberately changed the subject.
But, what is the meaning of the question? New Year is only two days away. Ah, maybe he wanted to take Bie to see the fireworks. And he must know that I will always follow Bie wherever she goes.
"Okay, if you don't want to explain, I'll find out myself." I took the plastic bag from him, then I immediately opened the car door.
After getting off I closed the door while carrying my bag and the fruits from Christ. Instantly Christ lowered his window, then he looked at me before driving away.
"I'll explain it to you when it's all over, Emily," Christ said, then he smiled half-heartedly as he drove his car.
I still don't understand the meaning of his words. The drizzle of rain made me realize something. I left the umbrella I borrowed in Christ's car. How could I forget? Maybe later I can ask Bie to send a text to Christ. It's possible that he threw the umbrella away on purpose. Then he will use the excuse that the person who washed his car is responsible. He must still be holding a grudge because of the incident at the bookstore yesterday. But how can I return the umbrella? I even forgot to ask the owner's name.
***
"Mom, Bie wants to buy that." Bie asked while pointing.
I looked in the direction Bie was pointing earlier. The place he pointed to was surrounded by many children. There are many vendors selling various kinds of snacks there.
"Let's go there, Bie." Katty started to embrace my daughter.
"Let me do it, Kate," I said, using her nickname.
"It's okay, Em. You can walk around to find a place first. "Later, when you have a place, you can call me immediately." Without waiting for an answer from me, Katty and Bie immediately went to the place that was pointed out earlier.
Tonight, Bie, Katty and I are in the city park. We want to celebrate New Year's Eve. Many people have gathered here, because there will be a fireworks party in this park. Earlier we wanted to invite Aunt Jane but she refused. She said that her legs were not strong enough to walk for too long. So Aunt Jane decided to watch the fireworks on television instead.
"Hey. We meet again." A man was standing in front of me.
It turns out he was the man who borrowed my umbrella the other day. Today he looks different, it seems like this guy dressed up a bit. This man styles his hair with gel and he also wears perfume. Maybe he's with his partner.
"Hi. Do you also want to see the fireworks with your partner?" I asked casually.
"Partner?" The man asked in surprise.
"Well, maybe your girlfriend or your wife." There's no way he came here alone, right?
"I'm not married and I don't have a girlfriend either." He said while scratching the back of his neck.
He looked flustered. There was no way he didn't have a partner. This man has quite a handsome face. He has a well-proportioned body posture. Especially with his brown skin color, I think if he tried to approach a woman, no one would be able to resist him.
"Actually, I have an appointment to meet someone here. But, it seems like the person won't come." The man explained to me.
"Surely he will come. Just a little late, maybe." I said trying to cheer him up.
"How about we chat while we walk." The man seemed to be voicing his disappointment.
I think it would be okay to accompany him for a while. Besides, he was a nice guy. No one would lend their umbrella to someone they didn't know.
"Sorry, I didn't bring your umbrella. I didn't know we would meet here." I said as I remembered the umbrella.
I still don't know how to return the umbrella. Because this man's umbrella was still in Christ's car. As for Christ, I don't know where he is. I haven't seen him for two days. Last time, he asked if I had anything planned for New Year's Eve. But, until now he has not sent any message to Bie at all. Even though he promised to explain something about his agreement with Bie to me.
"No problem. You can keep the umbrella for yourself." The man's voice beside me brought me back to my senses.
"I feel bad," I said.
"You don't need to feel embarrassed." The man turned to me.
"But we just met. How can you be so nice to me?" I asked, surprised by his attitude.
"Okay. In return, how about you treat me to a meal. Then you don't have to feel embarrassed anymore." That seemed like a good suggestion.
"Then, what do you want to eat? There are many food stalls here, I can treat you." I asked while looking around the park.
It turned out that the stand selling food was located quite far from where we were. Meanwhile, the closest one is a drink seller's stand.
"Next time." The man refused.
"Why?" I immediately stopped my footsteps.
"This time, let me treat you. You can treat me another day." The man also stopped in his tracks.
"Why do you have to treat me too?" I asked again while looking at his face.
"Just think of me treating you as a sign of our reunion." The man smiled as he looked at me.
I just nodded and started walking again. Suddenly I realized what he said. Our first meeting again, what did he mean? Could it be that he meant that we met again when we last met at the mall? And now is our second meeting. While I was happily walking, I accidentally kicked a stone. Reflexively, I pulled the hand of the man whose name I didn't know yet.
"Be careful Emily." The man said spontaneously.
How does he know my name? Because we haven't had the chance to get to know each other. This man immediately took me to a very large rock in this park. Then he sat me down on this rock. Then he started looking at my feet.
"Which leg is injured?" He looked at me while waiting for my answer.
It's not the pain in my leg that I'm thinking about now, but I'm curious about this man who is still crouching down while looking at me.
"Who are you?" I asked without answering his question.
*Continued*