"This triple date is fun." Luke commented while he walks between his two tall guardians.
"What triple date?" Andrei asked as he held his head, a little dizzy after spinning on a teacup ride. They just got off and were strolling to find their next ride.
"Well, there are three of us, so shouldn't we call it a triple date?" the kid replied.
Larson chuckled at the child's response. "Kid, it doesn't work out that way."
Luke stared at Larson and blinked. "It doesn't?..... It's alright. It's still fun."
Larson thought for a while and then ruffled the little boy's hair. "You're right. It's fun. Let's hang out again next time! The three of us!" he declared with a smile and then put an arm around Andrei's shoulders. "I think I just found my soulmate."
Andrei narrowed his eyes as he give Larson a side glance. "What are you talking about? I'm not gay." he muttered.
Larson raised his eyebrows and chuckled again. "Neither am I. I like women, but I just decided I want to hang out with friends for a change. Women are so needy and expensive." he replied before turning to his new buddy. "Say Andrei, what do you do for a living?"
"He's a soldier. You don't want to mess with him." Luke interjected.
Larson was stunned. He glanced at Andrei's smooth, gentle and cute face. He's really a soldier? He can only sigh afterwards. "It's good. I have never had a soldier friend before. Are you on vacation?"
"No. He's in a mission right now." Again, Luke answered for Andrei. By now, Andrei has been giving him weird looks. How did the kid knew so much? "He'll probably continue to serve until he finds someone to marry." the child added.
"Luke, stop talking nonsense." Andrei warned him with a frown. Where did the child hear all those? Those were his secrets. However, how can he stop a small kid from devulging such sensitive informations? "Do you want some ice cream? I'll buy you some. Come on!" he said as he shook off Larson's arm. He picked up the child and carried him before rushing towards the ice cream shop in a distance.
Larson was left standing there, baffled as he watch Andrei hasten with the kid. So he's a soldier in a mission? He wondered what that mission is. And what's with serving until he gets married? It looks like Andrei is really an interesting person. He felt that way ever since the first time he saw him. He really peaked his curiosity.
***
"Luke, where did you hear all that?" Andrei asked while they were waiting for their ice cream.
Luke looked up and studied Andrei's face. "Hear what?" he asked innocently.
"That I'm a soldier, and the rest of what you told that guy. Who told you those things?" he asked.
Luke tilted his head. "You did." he replied. "After my mama's funeral, you told mommy who you are; your mission and the person who sent you."
Andrei's eyes widened. He was able to retain all those informations? But he was still very small! He didn't think the child would understand it when he revealed those secrets to Charmaine in front of Luke. He was three years old! Now, he's kind of regretting it. "Listen, kid. What I told your mom is a big secret. You can't go on telling people your friends' secrets."
Luke stared at Andrei for a while before lowering his head. "I'm sorry. I won't do it again. I'll remember."
He will remember? Yes. He bet he will. He remembers quite a lot. "Tell me, what else do you know about me serving until my marriage?" He wondered. Surely, he only know of the concept and not the details, right? But Luke disappointed him.
"One night, you were sleeping over with us and mommy asked you a question. Then you told mommy about your engagement. And how you didn't want to get married so your father was so angry that he gave you a choice. Get married, or enter the military. You didn't want to get married so much that you chose to serve in the military. Your dad said you can't inherit anything from him and that you can only come back after you get married. Your grandfather took you in ever since you enter the military. He put you..... " Andrei quickly covered Luke's mouth with his palm. He can't listen to it anymore. What if more people finds out? He trembled as he look at the boy's surprised expression. What kind of a child is Luke? He definitely isn't an ordinary one.
Sitting on a bench nearby, Larson can see Andrei and Luke chatting from the shop's glass wall. He's beginning to figure it out. The person who join the military to run away from an engagement. He has heard of that story before. So, he was right about Andrei? He really is that person? That was very brave of him. Larson on the other hand wasn't as tough. All he can do is mess around and flirt with countless girls as a sign of rebellion. Andrei was much better than him, he thought with a sigh.
***
"Are you sure you want to get in?" Charmaine asked as she turned around to look at Leo. The man just transfer his gaze towards the dark entrance ahead of them for a second before looking back at her.
"What? I'm afraid of heights but not darkness! And I've never been to a haunted house before. Let's just check it out for a bit!" he replied.
Charmaine wasn't afraid of the dark nor the ghosts either, but she still think there's something oddly creepy in that place. Like she had been there before, or somewhere as scary. She held onto Leo's hands and entered the darkness with him, finding comfort in the fact that she wasn't alone.
Leo glanced at the woman clinging to his arm whose hands were cold. They said women easily gets scared in horror houses and such but she didn't think Charmaine could be one of them. He put an arm around her shoulders and held her tight to reassure her that she was safe, before leading her towards the dark path ahead.
Silence. There was complete silence for a couple of minutes before a black figure suddenly emerged from the dark. There were spooky noises, strange sounds from who knows where but what's weirder was Charmaine's reaction towards them. She was unfaze. It was like she wasn't seeing anything. They continued to walk in complete silence, ignoring the scary stuffs around them, until Charmaine suddenly stopped in front of an illuminated altar. She stared at an old doll hanging in the middle. Yes, the doll had a string tied around her neck and was suspended in the air. With it's eyes open, it was as if the doll was staring at her. Those bloody red eyes were the last things she saw. Her body trembled before her mind succumbed to the darkness.
"Charmaine!" Leo shouted her name while he was catching her as she fainted.