"Tell me, Dash, how was the movie?" Devon's father, Zac Lee, asked as they had dinner.
"It was fun..."
Devon coughed a bit and said, "The movie was good, but Dash fell asleep halfway through, so he can't say much about the story."
Zoé Lee looked at her daughter and said, "I guess you had other priorities than just watching the movie, darling. You are so charming."
"Cough, hahaha, I usually fall asleep in movies too, which annoys Devon a lot." Zac broke the tension caused by his wife to their daughter and smiled slightly.
"Well, lately, I've been training a lot..." Dash looked at Devon, who lightly kicked him to change the conversation.
"Oh, that surely improves the muscles."
"This is torture..."
Zoé stopped talking about this and changed the subject, "By the way, Devon mentioned that you would enter some kind of tournament. How does that work?"
Dash's eyes sparkled, and he said, "Well, I'm not sure if they would accept me yet, but it would be in China, and if I can enter, obviously, everyone would be invited."
After diverting the conversation many times, Dash and Devon said their goodbyes as it was time to sleep.
After dinner, Dash entered the guest room, and the smile on his face slowly faded. Once again, that unpleasant feeling began to take over his thoughts.
Dash Hale, an eleven-year-old, felt like the world was spinning, and because of that, he locked himself in a doctrine that might not be the best thing to do, but he couldn't bring himself to cry.
It was the year 2013; he couldn't remember when the main events involving the Kung Fu tournament and others originated, but he knew that at least he was the right age to participate.
Previously, Dash had thought a lot about it and believed that after many things, practicing was fun. Feeling that he could breathe was something that comforted him, and now that Devon practices with him, it's much more enjoyable.
But he didn't know why, since he arrived here, he had focused a lot on one thing, and that is the practice of Kung Fu. Before that, he spent time on many other things that he also liked, but that was the Dash who hadn't died in a wheelchair alone.
"It really is crazy, and I'm sorry for forgetting it for a moment..." Dash had accepted everything very quickly without realizing that he should be aware of everything around him.
Before wanting to be the Dragon Warrior at eleven, he should assume that he is a child who doesn't know the right path to take. Devon's anger might have been the concern that he had changed a lot. Currently, she is the only friend he has; there is no one else in his school life, and if he thinks that she will always be with him, it's thinking too much of their friendship. For that same reason, he should consider being more attentive.
He died alone, so in some way, he fears dying in the same way. To change that, he should first consider the close people he has. So far, he had only thought about himself; he even stopped considering Devon's opinion if she really likes Kung Fu.
Sitting in the dark room, Dash smiled as he felt more foolish than ever. What can he tell Devon that she's not just practicing Kung Fu for him?
"You're asleep..." A whispering voice reached the other side of the door, and Dash immediately got up.
Upon opening the door, Dash looked at his incredible friend and smiled slightly.
"Hey, sorry..." Lifting his head and taking a deep breath, this was the only thing Dash could say as his eyes filled with tears.
The memories of his entire life in the hospital, being connected to a machine that helped him breathe, and hearing every day how people were visited by their loved ones is something that hurt him deeply, even if he says he doesn't want to admit it.
"What happened?" Devon approached Dash very confused and scared by her friend's now strange behavior.
"I didn't consider whether you liked Kung Fu; I just dragged you into all of this because I didn't want to feel alone... You're the only one who can understand me, so forgive me if I wasn't considerate. I'm sorry also for only talking about one thing."
Devon didn't know what to say; seeing Dash in such a vulnerable state scared her a lot, as she never would have imagined that he felt that way. Maybe for many, she wasn't a good friend, but she had always been like that, and Dash was the only one who managed to understand her.
At all times, even in the most absurd fights, Dash followed her closely. Maybe sometimes he wasn't considerate, but he understood that maybe he had the wrong idea in his mind.
"Don't be an idiot, I also want to learn to kick some ass..." Devon approached Dash and hugged him tightly; this was the only way she felt she could bring relief to her friend.
Dash's mind was in chaos. Due to the constant pressure of his thoughts, he didn't find his friend at an appropriate moment and he cried. He wasn't ashamed; he needed this, and he hadn't realized it until now as he began to reflect in silence.
"I was just in a bad mood, but it wasn't because of you. Besides, you know I don't do something if I don't really like it or if it doesn't catch my attention." Devon also started crying without really knowing why.
Dash didn't stop hugging his friend for quite some time. It had been a long time since the last time he had cried, and only now did he understand that he was worse off than he expected. He didn't want to feel that feeling of loneliness.
In his dreams, it always happened: the feeling of loneliness and abandonment had consumed the thoughts of his past self, and although he thought it would disappear in this new life, it wasn't the case. He knew that if he didn't control this, it might lead to depression, and maybe it was good to have found peace in his friend, the one he could open up to. Although he had parents, he still remembered how he used to wait for them every day, and they seemed to have abandoned him over time.
He didn't blame them, but he couldn't trust them because they were the ones who left him alone. He should be happy; he felt that way every day, but when night came, he couldn't help but feel afraid that all of this might end. Although it never happened and might never happen, he couldn't find a way to rid himself of all that weight on his conscience.
"When did it happen?" Sitting on a couch side by side, Devon asked Dash while holding his hand.
It wasn't always like this; he started feeling this way some time ago. He didn't want to blame his parents because it wasn't their fault. This was something he felt only at night, and Devon took him by surprise by coming at this hour. Dash said with a smile, now that he had calmed down, the only thing he felt was a slight embarrassment for giving that impression.
"I joined the training with you not because of your invitations. No matter what we're doing, I'm happy to be with you. You're someone who understands me, so I don't want you to think our friendship will drift apart because it will never happen; I promise," Devon said, smiling slightly.
"I have to thank you for that, and just in case, I want you to always tell me if something bothers you. What happened today was strange, and I hope it doesn't happen again because I'll always be there for you," Dash said sincerely as he looked up with a more lively gaze than before. The usual Dash had returned, and that horrible feeling had disappeared.
"I still can't feel the excitement of training, but I'm sure you'll show me in the upcoming tournament," Devon said as she patted Dash on the back.
After talking about many things Dash wanted to do, he realized Devon had fallen asleep next to him and smiled slightly at that. Carefully, he picked her up and took her to bed. When he was about to walk back to the couch, he felt that Devon didn't let go.
"I guess it doesn't matter if we sleep in the same bed, right? We're just friends..." Dash thought as he lay down next to Devon and closed his eyes.
Although there were many things to overcome, Dash thought he would eventually overcome this and also reaffirmed the idea that he wasn't alone. In this life, he wasn't alone, and he would make sure to be a good friend.