The country was slowly recovering from the dreaded pandemic. Shops were now open as if it were business as usual; restaurants are allowing more and more people to dine in and in general… The restrictions were becoming lighter and lighter.
Naturally, there were still some constraints, such as wearing masks everywhere and observing social distancing. Schools and universities still required their students to learn from home, while those who were able to work from home are recommended to do so as long as they could. However, even with all of those restrictions, I could say for certain that the country was going on the right track.
Though, whatever the limitations were, Althea and I didn't have any changes to our daily lives.
Ah, I stand corrected.
There was one major change.
"Hah… Hah… Hah… Desir! You're too fast!"
"You don't have to keep pace with me, you know? In fact, if you're tired, you should rest on that bench. I still have some laps left."
"Hah… You… Okay..."
Dressed in her new exercise attire, Althea bent her torso down while supporting her waist with both her hands. Beads of sweat fell onto the park grounds, staining the synthetic rubber used for the running track. Her face was ghastly, and her mouth was quickly out of breath.
Well, that could be expected from someone who had never exercised in her entire life. I guess bringing her for a lap around the lake was a little too early, even for a youngling like her.
Ever since we'd begun exercising together, my living room space suddenly felt way too small to do any sort of cardio exercises. For a change of pace, I suggested that we take a run down at the park. Fortunately, the lifted restrictions stated that those who exercised outside didn't need to wear a mask.
Alas, who could have guessed that Althea didn't have the stamina to even complete one lap?
After running five more laps, I found my way to the bench I'd left Althea on. By this time, the girl had already settled down and had even gone out of her way to buy two energy drinks.
Seriously, this girl…
"You didn't have the energy to finish a lap, but you had enough to walk to the mart?"
"For your information, walking is less tiring than running, robot man."
"Oh really? I didn't know that. Maybe I forgot to code that into my program."
"Yeap, it must be a bug. I wonder if you can patch it?"
"You know what? Maybe I could patch your program? That way, you can run all day as well!"
"No, thanks! I'm happy with my current patch."
"Even the bug on your weighing scale?"
"Y-You! T-That's different!"
"Hahaha!"
I took the energy drink off Althea's hands and took one big gulp of it. Ah, this refreshing taste… Looks like Althea had wholly remembered which brand I liked. I smiled and glanced back at Althea. Like me, the girl was concentrating on her energy drink, even though it was more or less gone. Well, that was to be expected; it was her first day running, after all.
Althea had tied her luscious black hair up into a ponytail, revealing the snow-white nape of hers. It seemed like it hadn't seen a second in the sun, making it crystal clear with the suppleness of a rice sweet. Her small face made all of her features much more prominent, so I could see those large emerald eyes sparkling as the isotope water drained down her throat.
Even though she was modestly dressed, just the act of drinking alone was enough to gather the gazes of thirsty vultures everywhere and mesmerise them.
Wow… I'd thought I would have gotten used to her astounding looks by now… But wow...
How can someone be that pretty?
Some people are really built differently.
"So, are we done for today?"
"Hmmm? Ah, yeah! Unless you're willing to run for a few more laps, we can return home."
"Haha, that's a relief..."
I stood up, ready to head back. However, before I could even take a single step…
"Ah… Sorry Desir, my legs still feel a little numb..."
Althea fell back onto the stone bench, her face slowly churning red. She stuck her tongue out in playfulness and said: "Hold me, please."
"Does it hurt? We can stay here for a while longer if you're in pain."
"No, no. It's not that serious. Also, I wouldn't want you to be late for work. Don't worry, I can make do with this."
Althea's pearly white hand interconnected with mine, and she leaned her entire body onto my left arm. As if it were the most natural thing in the world, Althea's fingers found their way in between mine, and her head rested on my shoulders.
This girl… Hasn't her skinship escalated?
It wasn't the first time that she'd held my hand. It wasn't even the second. Recently, I think that we were holding hands every time we went out together. Sometimes, her excuse was that she didn't want to get lost. Other times, she claimed that it would be bad if we strayed too far from each other and contacted someone with the disease.
I get that Althea has some feelings of dependency for me, but… Does she really like me as a man?
I'd never dated a girl before, so I wouldn't know how someone would display their affection…
No, I can't think about this. I shouldn't think about it.
Let's just focus on other things.
Fortunately for me, it was Althea who changed the topic.
"Oh? Look at that!" Althea pointed towards the running track that we'd left and straight at a woman in her thirties running around with two young boys. "Wow, they look so cute! Like ducklings following their mother, right?"
"Now that you mentioned it… I do see the resemblance."
Haha, how did she come up with that? But yeah, those little boys did look adorable.
"Is it normal for parents to make their children exercise when they're that young?"
"I see no problem with that? In fact, I think that all children should start exercising as soon as they can! It would solve our high obesity rate."
"Oh, health freak Desir is out now! What happened to robot Desir? I missed him!"
"You silly lass..."
I flicked Althea's nose gently, making her tickle just a little bit. She smiled for a bit before returning to say: "So are your parents health freaks like you? Did they make you exercise a lot when you were young?"
"Ah, that..." I paused for a while, considering if I should tell her. Looking at that innocent face… I could tell that she meant no harm. Alright, it wasn't like it was a big secret anyway.
"My parents are both gone."
"Huh?"
Althea turned from my side and stared at my face. I met her gaze, and she locked her eyes with mine. For a moment there, she wasn't able to comprehend the gravity of my words. However, it didn't take long for the girl to reboot.
"A-Ah! S-Sorry! I-I didn't mean to..."
"No, it's alright. It was a long time ago, anyway." I placed my free hand over Althea's to reassure her.
"My biological father left us when I was too young to remember, and I was raised solely by my mother. However, she passed away four years ago. And to answer your question, no. She wasn't a health freak that made me exercise. That's why I got so fat when I was a child."
I joked in good fun.
"... what was she like?"
"I'm sorry?"
"N-No, I was wondering… If it's not too much, could you tell me what your mother was like?"
"I don't mind… Where to start?"
Memories about my mother, huh? It's been a while since I'd thought about them. When she'd first passed away, I did my best to block all of those memories out to ease the pain. But now that four years have passed, I was fine with talking about them.
"My mother was a kind and upbeat woman. Always optimistic and always happy-go-lucky. She's the epitome of a glass-half-full person. I remember one time, our apartment experienced a blackout due to a heavy rainstorm. Instead of complaining about it, she made a makeshift tent in the living room, lit some candles and pretended that we were in the wilderness."
I chuckled as I recalled one of my fondest memories. Thinking back, the woman had never raised her voice at me once. Even though I was pretty mischievous, my mother always tried to be the best parent that she could be.
"She sounds lovely..."
"Yeah, she was..." Unconsciously, I showed a bitter smile. "She was the best person I'd ever known. She would often sacrifice her own happiness just to make sure that I would grow up well… Sometimes, a little too much."
I sighed and looked to the sky.
"It's just a shame that she'd contracted breast cancer way too young."
"..."
"Ah, sorry. I must have bored you with all this heavy talk."
"No, I'm fine," Althea replied with a coy smile. "Your mother sounds like a wonderful woman. I would have loved to meet her."
"Haha, I think that she'll like to meet you too."
I wasn't kidding. My mother loved adorable things, and she would often say that she wanted a daughter. Althea might be tedious at times, but I'm confident that my mother would have loved to have befriended her. Heck, she might even try to adopt Althea, given her fondness for cute things.
As I looked at the sun rising higher in the sky, I shook my head to push away the unnecessary memories and remarked: "Alright, let's head back now. If we dally here any longer, you'll be late for class, and I'll be late for work."
"... Okay!"
❖❖❖
I had trouble falling asleep that night. It has been a while since I'd experienced any sort of insomnia. Ever since I'd let go of the emotional trauma that Paul had inflicted on me, I rarely had any sleepless nights. Yet, today… I couldn't shut my eyes at all.
And I knew the reason very well...
Why did you have that expression?
Lying on my bed, I recalled Desir's face in the morning. I'd casually asked about his parents and got an answer that was far beyond my expectations. How could I have known that both his parents were gone?
No, come to think of it, I should have anticipated that. Desir never talked about his parents before, even when we talked about our childhoods.
How could I have been so dense? And I'd thought that we knew each other quite well by now…
To make it all worse, I'd never seen Desir with such a sad expression in my life. The Desir I knew was always strong and aloof, always in control of his emotions. A solid rock that could never break under pressure. And yet…
That face…
That sombre face that looked to the heavens…
Why? Why did you have that expression?
"Haha… Really, why am I so useless?" I sighed into my plush toy and dropped my gaze.
I'd thought I knew Desir quite well by now… Oh, how wrong I was. I didn't even know that his parents were no longer with him. I didn't know that his mother had passed away. I… didn't know anything about him.
No… This can't continue.
If I want to know more about Desir… I should consult with an expert.