It was late afternoon, Mickey and Rain was walking back home, until one of their phones started ringing. The noise came from Mickey's pocket, and he quickly took out his phone to see who was calling. It was Goh's fiancé, Nanami.
"Hello?" Mickey answered.
"Mickey are you almost home? If not, can you stop by the market and get some fish? I was planning to make some for tonight, but I forgot to buy it. I'll pay you back." Nanami said.
"Alright, I'll go there, and no need to pay me back. I'll be home soon." Mickey replied and ended the call.
"What did auntie want?" Rain asked.
Mickey scratched his head while staring off into the distance, "She wants us to go buy fish for tonight."
"Us?" Rain looked at her cousin playfully, "She only asked you, not me."
Unamused, Mickey glared at her like a snake ready to catch its' prey.
"I'm kidding! I, Rain would never be so cruel, to let my heartbroken brother go alone." Rain let out a loud sigh, "Ugh, we're almost home and now we have to turn back."
Mickey pointed at the alleyway, "It won't take us long, there's a shortcut here that leads to the market. Let's go before the place gets crowded!"
The two set off and walked through the compacted neighborhood. With Mickey's knowledge and sense of direction, they made it to the place in no time. The harbor was bustling with fishermen competing to sell their catch. The two teenagers stared in amazement at the different kinds of seafood. One stall however, caught Mickey and Rain's attention, and the two decided to go there.
What drawn the two to this particular vendor, was a strange looking fish on display. They were fixated on the creature's small sunken eyes, and large jaw, with needle like teeth. After looking over at the counter, Mickey was overwhelmed by his options, and did not know what to buy.
"I forgot to ask Aunt Nanami what kind of fish to get, and how many she wanted." Mickey spoke in a dreadful tone.
"How about this one?" Rain pointed at the fish that attracted them to this stall.
Mickey furrowed his brows, "Stop playing around, Rainie, that one is only for show. Plus, I don't even know if that thing is edible."
"But it's so cute, look at the antenna on its head!" Rain stated with enthusiasm.
Astounded by his cousin, Mickey could not understand how the fish was cute, but the longer he stared at the monstrous thing, the more fascinated he had become. Rain could see the spark of desire in Mickey's eyes and took this opportunity to persuade him.
"We can buy these, Mickey!" Rain pointed at the pomfret butterfishes laying on a bed of ice, "They don't have a lot of bones and they're really tasty. I ate this kind often with my parents back in our province. Four of them should be enough for all of us tonight."
A sense of relief was granted over Mickey, "Okay, we can get that kind then. Good thing you know-"
Before Mickey could finish his sentence, Rain eagerly interrupted him, "Since I was the one to decide. We should ask the fisherman if he's willing to sell us the cute one as well!"
Mickey could feel an imaginary palm slapping him in the middle of his forehead.
This girl is really serious about getting that hideous thing! Mickey thought to himself.
He then replied to his cousin, "Rainie, don't be ridiculous. I already told you, he probably won't sell it to us, and no one at home will eat it!"
"But WE will eat it! I know you want to." Rain said in a tempting manner.
Before she got to the vendor, she turned around to look at Mickey, "Let me handle this, I got it."
She met the fisherman and greeted him with a sincere smile, "Good evening uncle, may I buy four of these from you?"
"Of course, anything for a beautiful young lady like you." The man said.
Rain let out an adorable giggled, thanking him for the complement. While Rain was flirting with the man, she could feel two eyes of judgment staring at the back of her head. Mickey could not believe how easy people could fall for her act, but in situations like this, it was good to have her around.
"Oh, Uncle, how much for that one?" Rain innocently asked, pointing out at the dried-up creature.
The man hollered out laughing, his chest and shoulders puffing out with each chuckle, "I see you're interested in that thing, but it's not for sale. I intentionally placed it up there, to draw in customers."
Rain formed a cute pout, and bent forward, while holding her hands together.
"Uncle, please, is there any way you can give it to me? You must be a great fisherman and I know you'll be able to catch another one. I promise if you sell it to me, I will only come buy from you, and no one else!" Rain exclaimed.
Now slightly embarrassed from the scene Rain caused, the man responded, "Since you're so adorable, I'll give you the fish for free. As promise, come stop by here whenever, and tell your friends and family too!"
Rain then thanked the man and happily left with Mickey.
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The two returned home and presented what they had bought to Nanami.
"Thanks so much you two, and you guys got the good kind as well!" While looking through the bag, Nanami jumped and squealed, "Ahhhh! What is that!?"
Mickey and Rain burst into laughter and explained.
After listening to their story, Nanami smiled, "You two are too silly! But how are we going to prepare this thing? I've never cooked anything like that before."
Rain awkwardly replied, "Actually, I was thinking about soaking it in water. I saw somewhere online, where they brought a frozen fish back to life. Maybe mines will start to move again when it gets enough water!"
The invisible hand that smacked Mickey's forehead before had done so again. He could feel the pain pulsing from that area.
This girl is really something else! That fish we bought is dried, not frozen, but does it even matter? How dense can she be? Mickey questioned to himself.
Nanami giggled, wrapping her arms around her body, "It might work, let's try it!"
You got to be kidding me… Mickey said to himself out loud.
The three began preparing for dinner. Not long after, Goh and Mickey's grandparents had returned home. Mickey's grandmother helped set the table while his grandfather sat down, to listen to the radio. Once everything was ready, they all enjoyed dinner together.
Goh stretched out his arms, trying to relax after a days' worth of working, "Where's Jiang, he's not home yet?"
Nanami shook her head. Goh then opened a can of beer and took big refreshing gulps. The small house was quite lively with everyone's presence in it. As they ate together and shared about their day, it was something special to be a part of.
Mickey's grandmother soon caught glimpse of the creature, floating in a bucket full of water.
She gasped with astonishment, "Where did you find that? Its head and fins can be made into good medicine!"
Goh snorted, "Mother… you think anything can be turned into medicine…"
"No Grandma! Don't make it into medicine, I am trying to bring it back to life!" Rain explained, the tone in her voice was quite serious and pure.
Everyone in the room except Rain, roared with laughter. It was so loud, it could be heard from the outside, yet Rain did not understand what was so funny.
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The next day was Saturday, and as Rain promised, she took Mickey out to have fun. Before the two left the house that morning, Mickey saw Jiang walking in from the front door. Jiang did not come home last night. He often left the house and would return a day or two later.
As Jiang headed towards his room, Mickey stopped him, "Jiang, do you want to come with us to the mall today?"
The color beneath Jiang's eyes were dark, as if he had not slept in the past couple of days. Jiang yawned and replied, "No. I'm tired."
Mickey and Rain left to the mall. The shopping center was huge, and the architecture of the building was timeless and sophisticated. It was a gran sight to see. There were a lot of things one could do here, from shopping, eating, to sightseeing. Even an amusement park and a mini zoo was inside the mall.
"What do you want to go check out first?" Rain asked.
Mickey shrugged his shoulders, "There's so much to explore. I want to check everything out!"
"Well, if you can't decide, then let's go hit up the fashion boutiques." Rain said with excitement.
Throughout the day, the two stopped at every store that interested them. Rain had bought a couple of outfits while Mickey had bought a jacket. After roaming around the shopping center, they had reached the food court. The two found an empty table and decided to rest there.
"Phew, I'm exhausted from all this walking." Rain sighed, as she sat down on a chair.
"I'm hungry. Since we're here, we might as well get something to eat." Mickey suggested.
Rain was checking her phone, and answered, "Sure, I'm starting to feel a bit hungry too. Okay, wait for me first, I need to go use the restroom."
She got up and left to the nearest restroom she could find. While Mickey waited, he pulled out his phone and scrolled through the internet, to pass the time. Little to Mickey's knowledge, Hyung was at the mall as well. He was not alone though; Hyung was with the girl that Michelle mentioned the day before, and this was their date.
The couple were at a jewelry kiosk near the food court. The girl who accompanied Hyung was busy browsing and trying on accessories. Hyung slowly became weary, as he waited patiently for her. While mindlessly observing the view, Hyung noticed a familiar face. To his surprise, he saw Mickey sitting alone from a distance. Without hesitation, Hyung headed towards the boy.
He grabbed the chair across from Mickey and sat in a cool yet charming manner. He crossed his arms while leaning his elbows on the table, greeting Mickey. Mickey was still looking at his phone, until he noticed the person sitting in front of him. He could see the devious smirk on Hyung's face. Unlike the times Mickey would have been happy to see him, this was no exception. Unable to control his expression, Mickey could not help but arch his brows, and his face darkened with resentment.
Hyung could see the bitterness in Mickey's eyes. He scoffed, while glancing away for a brief moment. He then locked eyes with Mickey, and spoke as if they were still good friends, "What's with that look you're giving me? Are you mad at me?"
Mickey was suddenly choked up by Hyung's presence. All of the words he wanted to say to Hyung, only echoed through his head. The walls of his throat had collapsed, leaving him mute. Mickey was paralyzed with fear and shock, wishing that someone would come intervene. To his luck, a loud cry could be heard from afar.
"Hyung, Mickey!? Is that you guys!?" Michelle shouted out, while waving her hands.
She was with a group of friends and they all came towards the two boys.
"What are both of you doing here?" She questioned.
The anxiety inside of Mickey vanished, and was able to speak again, "I'm here with my cousin, and Hyung happen to find me."
Though Mickey was grateful someone had come, he wished it were not Michelle. As if the heavens were trying to play a dirty trick on him. Today was supposed to be an enjoyable and relaxing day, but Mickey was constantly encountering the people he tried so hard to forget.
Michelle placed both her hands on the table, "Oh, That's right! Hyung is this where you are taking Anako out on a date?"
Hyung nodded his head.
Michelle looked around, "Where is she? I don't see her."
He pointed out at the girl who made her way towards them. Michelle and her friends turned their attention to Anako. Mickey took this opportunity to get away from the group. Hyung had caught glimpse of Mickey's escape and watched the boy's every movement.
"Hyung, how could you leave me alone like that, and without even telling me!" Anako cried out.
Hyung recollected his thoughts and looked towards his date, "I'm sorry, I just saw a friend and wanted to say 'Hi', that's all. Now Michelle and the gang happen to be here too."
"Okay… but don't ever do that again, do you hear me?" Anako demanded.
Mickey was now by a bakery, that was far enough for Hyung and Michelle to lose sight of him. Mickey texted Rain about his whereabouts and told her to meet him there. After sending the text, he placed his phone back in his pocket and silently waited. He crossed his arms, while staring at the desserts the bakery had to offer. Mickey was staring at a western style pastry shaped like a crescent moon.
Mickey tried to count the layers on the flaky croissant. His mind was completely focused on the baked good, until a hand suddenly stuck out in front of him. In that hand was the same kind of pastry, Mickey was so fixated on. Slightly taken back, he lifted his head up to see who it was, believing it to be Rain. Caught off guard it was a stranger, a boy wearing a cap around the same age as him.
A sincere smile was present on the stranger's face and he spoke in a genuine manner, "Here." He placed the croissant in Mickey's hand, "You've been staring at that thing for a while now. If you want to try it, you can have this one."
Mickey was speechless. As quick as the stranger came, he left without saying another word. Not long after, Rain finally arrived.
"Sorry I took so long. I was fixing my make-up and hair, please forgive me?" Rain said, making a sorry gesture by pressing her hands together.
She saw the pastry that Mickey held, "That looks yummy. Can I have a bite?"
Without a second thought, Mickey handed it to her, "You can have it. I don't really like eating these."