Tatiana's POV
The playground is at the center of the right wing of the hospital. The place was like a mini park with trees and the playground itself has a lot of variety. There were slides, seesaw, outdoor playground set, swing, sand pit, a trampoline, monkey bars, and they have tables and chairs for children who likes to play cards, or board games. Misha and I were just sitting at the benches for the adults, watching little Johnny play with the other kids.
"Misha, why don't we join them play", I suggested.
"What are you, 5?", she said and chuckled.
I looked at the kids playing cards at the other table. I saw a child with cards in her hand but no one to play with. Other kids played "UNO", but that kid was not interested in those so she played solitaire instead.
"Hmmmm, okay, I will play with that kid over there and you stay here to keep watch on Johnny, okay?", I said and she nodded. I smiled at her before jogging towards the children's table.
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Misha's POV
"Urgh! How can she leave me here when I am clearly bored", I though to myself.
I watched her trying to get the trust of the child at the table. Though I am annoyed with her, I think she's kinda cute dealing with the shy kid. I just let them be and returned to watching over Johnny.
It was quite weird as he looked petrified when he looked at someone next to me. I didn't even notice that someone sat beside me.
She's somewhat the same age as me, not really sure, I can't see her face clearly because she's so engrossed in reading her newspaper. It's not really common for a teenager to read newspapers, I would rather read novel books than newspapers, but anyways, to each her own.
I was about to disturb her and start a conversation but I was dragged by small hands towards the playground. I looked over and found Johnny struggling to pull me so I followed along.
"Lady? Please play with me. Don't talk to anyone okay?", Johnny said. I was a little taken aback but, yeah okay.
"Sure, I would love to play with you, but why play with me when you have other kids your age to play with?", I asked out of curiosity.
"They are too boring. Let's play with the other beautiful lady and the girl right there", he suggested and pointed towards the table where Tatiana was at.
"Hmmm, alright, we will check what they are doing then", I held his hand and accompanied him to the table. I couldn't seem to put a finger on why Johnny kept on taking a glance at the girl at the bench, and whenever he does he tightens his grip on my hand. My gut feeling tells me that we should stay far away from her. If that is how a kid responds to her presence then I guess she is bad news, but I still don't know why. I better ask Johnny later. For now, I need to distract him from being scared.
"Hey guys, what are you doing?", I asked Tatiana and shy girl while helping ourselves to the seats next to them.
"Shhhh, we are playing poker, don't distract me", Tatiana said. Say what now? Poker? The kid was around 6 or 7 yrs old, how come she would know how to play poker.
"Haha! quit playing with me, what are you guys really playing?", I asked not believing what Tatiana told me.
*sigh* "Will you please keep quiet lady? We are trying to play here", the girl seemed annoyed. I too am annoyed and just sat there with crossed arms and pouty lips. Tatiana took a glance at me and chuckled.
"You look cute when you're mad", she said and smirked.
"I DO NOT!!", I raised my voice at her and pouted even more. I saw Johnny face palmed and signaled me to stop, silently saying "No". Oh my God! I felt so embarrassed at how I reacted. I covered my face to hide my flushed face.
"It's okay lady Misha, they are too busy to even notice what you did", he said comfort me and patted my back. He went back to his seat and just watched them play.
"Do you want to give up now young lady? I am clearly going to win this time", Tatiana said with confidence.
"You kept on telling me that since we started, and I won every time, so, that's my answer", the child responded with attitude. It looked cute because she was still a kid. I actually find it amusing to see a kid win over a person way older than her. It's not even an ordinary card game, it is poker, the one they play in casinos. I guess this child will go a long way in that field.
"Johnny, be friends with her, she's very cool", I whispered to my little friend.
"Already planning on it, I could be her manager someday if she wants me too", he said and grinned. I guess this kid is a little something too. I giggled at the thought of that.
"Hmmm. How about we bet on who's going to win", I suggested.
"What's in it for me?", he asked.
"Well, if the little girl wins, I'll treat you to whatever food you want, and if she loses, you have to give that girl a kiss on the cheek", I whispered.
"We can hear you", both players said in unison.
"Hehe. Sorry", I smiled at both of them and smirked at Johnny.
"I won't lose to her, so don't worry", the little girl told Johnny with confidence. I saw a lil' bit of disappointment in the little boy's eyes but he just nodded and smiled.
"Okay, deal", Johnny finalized.
"Wait, I think the ice cream is not too heavy for Ms. Misha here. How about if I win, you will have to kiss me, on whichever part of my body", Tatiana said and winked at me. I just wanted to tease Johnny but I know the little girl will win. Nothing to lose here.
"Okay, sure.", I said and raised a brow at her.
"That's great! All is settled then.", Tatiana said and smirked at the girl in front of her. The girl just ignored her.
*after a few minutes*
"You can give up now lady", the little girl proposed.
"Oh no I won't. I could get a great prize out of this if I win. So I am not going to lose to you missy", Tatiana said. They have to show their cards now. I don't know why but this got me quite nervous. What if Tatiana wins? I have to deal with the consequences after this. Ugh!
The little girl showed her cards with her poker face on. She sat back and smiled at Tatiana.
When Tatiana saw the cards, she brought her hand to her face. Clearly she lost the game. She just left her cards on the table and stood up.
"Let's go guys, it's late", she told us and looked away. The little girl opened Tatiana's cards and was shocked from what she saw.
"She won", the girl said. I couldn't hear her that much though.
"What did you just say?", I asked. My hands started to get sweaty.
"I heard her!", Johnny said and kissed her cheek. The girl was dumbfounded and touched her cheek. She suddenly got shy and I could see a tinge of red on her cheeks. Wait, what? Why did Johnny kiss her? Oh, yeah, she lost. I realized.
"Oooh! That reminds me. Where's my prize Ms. Misha?", Tatiana asked anticipating my reply.
"What are you talking about?", I asked.
"Well, I won, so I definitely have to get my prize", she said and licked her lip.
"Stop it. Kids are watching", I whispered a little bit loudly.
"Oh we don't mind!", the midgets spouted off.
"Yes, you are right, it is getting late! Let's go back inside no Johnny. We'll go now uhmmm", I was trying to say goodbye to the little girl but I don't know her name.
"Crystal, my name is Crystal", the little girl informed, looking at Johnny when she said that.
"You already know my name, so I'll see you around", Johnny responded and waved goodbye.
"You still owe me a kiss. I will tell you when's the right time to do it. Alright?", Tatiana said.
"Sure, whatever", I responded. It's not like she would remember anyways.
We returned to the nurse's station and bid goodbye to Johnny. Tatiana escorted me to my room and tucked me in to bed.
"See you tomorrow, get a good rest", she said and I nodded. She left and closed the door.
*sigh* "I hope she'll have amnesia or something", I thought to myself. It was too early to sleep but I was tired, so I closed my eyes and dozed off.
- To be continued -