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"You know, I think I know why you seem so distressed and worried, Ethan," Penny began to say, looking at me with narrowed eyes.
And hearing this Nick and I turned to her in surprise, "You know?" we both asked at the same time, with him looking at her curiously while I made a slight face.
"Yes, I know," she nodded, before bringing her face closer to mine, which made me very nervous and tense.
And seeing how she looked at me as if she was seeing through my emotions and words I started to sweat, feeling a slight sense of danger.
'There's no way she could have found out what's going to happen tomorrow, right?' I wondered, a little uncertain about it.
'I'm sure I didn't leave any clues or traces that could reveal my plans, and I'm also sure that Penny doesn't know what will happen at the end of the third task, so there's no need for me to worry, right?'
And I was starting to get anxious, because I had already underestimated Penny's ability to read people, so I wasn't so sure anymore if she hadn't figured something out in these few minutes we spent together.
And unaware of my internal dialogue, my immortal grandmother continued to stare at me, with a sparkle in her eyes, "Uh-huh... Yes, I'm sure that's it." she said, nodding to herself.
And Nick, who was watching Penny's eccentricities, could only roll his eyes, "Honey, stop being mysterious and tell me why our troubled grandson is so worried," he said, feeling his curiosity increase with every second.
"Oh, can't you see? Even though it's so obvious?" she turned to Nick, asking him in a condescending tone.
"No honey, I can't see it," he replied with a sigh, 'Whatever it is you're seeing' he thought, picking up his cup of tea to take a sip from it.
And at his answer Penny shook her head, 'Of course you wouldn't be able to see it. The only person between the two of us who can understand our grandson so well is me' she thought, looking at Nick smugly.
But putting her superiority as a grandmother aside, Penny decided she would enlighten her husband's small oblivious mind.
"Well Nick," Penny began, "Our dear, sweet grandson is actually worried because he is having relationship problems... or rather, girl problems."
And hearing what she said, Nick who was drinking his tea choked on it, coughing as he looked at his wife in disbelief.
'Seriously? Is that what you think is worrying him?!' he thought, not knowing if Penny was joking or not.
But knowing her, he realized that she was probably serious, and that she really thought I was having relationship problems.
And knowing that his wife was usually never wrong when it came to these matters, Nick turned to me, looking at me strangely but with a touch of curiosity.
And unaware of Nick's thoughts, Penny turned to me as well, "Well, aren't I right, Ethan dear?" she asked me, a mischievous smile appearing on her face.
And faced with her question I just remained silent, without doing or saying anything to Penny.
And I was quiet like that because I had frozen the moment Penny told me why she thought I was worried.
And thinking about what she said I felt all my nervousness disappear, but this feeling ended up being replaced by confusion and disbelief.
'How the hell did she come to the conclusion that my worry is because I'm having problems with girls?' I asked myself in shock, looking at my grandmother strangely.
And Penny, not knowing that she had made an assumption that was not even close to the truth, continued to look at me intently, waiting for my answer.
But after a few seconds she noticed that I was still quiet, so she decided to accept my silence and shocked look as confirmation of her suspicions.
And with that she nodded, a satisfied look and a smug smile on her face, happy that her guesses were 'correct'.
"Well my beloved grandson, I understand that it is normal for young boys your age to have relationship problems, but now you won't have to worry about that anymore" Penny began to say, taking me out of my dazed state.
"It may not seem like it, but your grandmother here is an expert in romantic relationships, and I know very well what a boy must do to capture a girl's heart."
"And I will use all my knowledge to help you in any way possible so that you can win over the girl of your dreams, you can be sure of that!" she promised, placing her hand on her chest as she raised her head proudly.
And upon hearing this I blinked without reaction, and I didn't know what to say because this promise of hers was even more shocking and unexpected than her assumption about why I was worried.
But apparently Penny wasn't waiting for me to say anything anyway, because she started talking again, in an excited and expectant tone of voice.
And she began to say out loud all the methods and strategies she knew that would be effective in winning over a woman, also talking about what a man should say and do and what he shouldn't.
And Penny was so lost in her own world, making plans for my future romantic relationship, that she even forgot that Nick and I were in the same room with her.
And seeing her so excited like that I couldn't help but sweat, 'Penny, weren't you the one who was upset because I didn't spend as much time with you anymore? Why are you ignoring me now? Where is my loving and affectionate grandmother?'
And looking away from her I looked at Nick, wanting to ask him what we should do now that Penny was in her cupid mode.
And Nick who felt my eyes on him turned to me, and seeing my look he immediately understood its meaning.
But he just shrugged at me with a wry smile, meaning there was nothing we could do now that Penny had awakened her natural feminine matchmaking instinct.
'Urgh... All because of a weird misunderstanding' I thought, before a slight grimace appeared on my face, 'And why do I feel like this is going to end up becoming a headache for me?' I wondered.
And it was at this very moment that Penny decided that I, as the main part of all her plans, should have my mind enlightened by her precious teachings.
And with no way to escape this cruel fate, I could only remain obediently beside the sage of love, also known as my grandmother, listening to her talk about everything she knew about romantic relationships, while she also told me the plans she was creating to help me win the heart of the 'girl I was in love with'.
And while this was happening, Nick was looking at the two of us intently, and he didn't know whether he should find my situation amusing or feel sorry for me.
But since he knew he couldn't help me, and didn't want to get involved in Penny's plans, he just decided to continue drinking his tea calmly.
'Hmm, Penny's teas are wonderful, but I still prefer a strong cup of coffee,' he thought, nodding to himself.
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-Some Time Later-
'I guess it would have been better if Penny had found out that I'm planning to face a dark lord tomorrow' I thought with a tired sigh after leaving Nick and Penny's room.
During that time when I was staying with my grandparents I ended up receiving a 2 hour lecture from Penny about love and romantic relationships, and when she wasn't talking about that she was questioning me, or rather, interrogating me to try to figure out who the girl I was interested in was.
And while I did know a few girls who I was physically attracted to or who I thought would make good girlfriends, I had no romantic interest in them.
However, Penny was so convinced that I was in love that she didn't believe me when I said it, thinking I was just being shy.
And because of that she said she would make it her mission to find out who the girl was, and remembering how excited and thrilled she was about it I felt a headache coming on, and I didn't even want to imagine the crazy things she would do to try to prove she was right.
But not wanting to think about it anymore, I shook my head, deciding to leave all this confusion for the future Ethan to resolve.
And then with one last sigh I turned and started walking towards the library. And I was heading there because I knew my friends would be there getting ready for another session of our study group.
And I was looking for them because as I said before, I intended to use the whole day of today to spend time with all my friends and loved ones before the third task.
And of course, in the meantime I also intended to use this time to fully recover my physical and mental energy.
However, I didn't know if this would be possible, because after leaving my grandparents' room and even before that I could feel that my body was reacting in a strange way.
Today was supposed to be a day for me to rest and enjoy my time with my friends, but my body was abnormally tense, and it couldn't just sit still and do nothing, it was begging for some kind of action.
And I knew this was happening because my body was already very used to performing arduous, heavy and exhausting tasks practically every day.
However, in addition to that, my body was also reacting this way because of my abilities, or more specifically, my instincts, which knew that something important and dangerous was going to happen tomorrow.
And as my instincts were sensing the crisis and threat in the air, my body began to react unconsciously, becoming agitated and alert, as if it were entering a state of preparation for the fight that was to come.
And unfortunately this was something I couldn't control or suppress completely, so the only thing I could do was try to ignore these feelings and my inner turmoil.
The only problem was that it was easier said than done.
'Well, I also feel a certain anticipation for tomorrow's challenges, so in a way I wasn't lying to Nick when I said I was excited for the third task' I thought with a wry smile.
End.
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