-Can this guy get any heavier?-the kid asked while panting.
-Come on, kid… Don't overreact…-I answered with effort.
After talking about it for a couple of minutes, we decided to take the man with us and question him about the ring he had. If he had something crafted by my dad, then he could have any lead on what my dad's greatest works were. Still, I couldn't shake off the weird feeling I had on me, since I didn't have any memories of my dad making rings.
-Just a couple more steps…-I grunted before reaching the shopping cart.
We dropped the body beside the cart, falling into the ground with exhaustion.
-Jacob… you seemed stronger…-the kid laughed as she lied on the grass beneath her.
-Kid… we had to carry a whole ass old man…-I told her while flipping her off-Plus, look at him… He's a beast!
I pointed at the man's motionless body, indicating his build. He was a tall man, probably around 1.90 something, which meant that he was definitely heavier than me.
-Still…if he's not moving… shouldn't that make him easier to carry?
I stopped looking down after hearing her question. I moved my head up and looked at her with a tired stare.
-I don't know the science…-I took a deep breath-but deadweight like him is just harder to carry.
-Hmmm…
-Hmmm what?
-Am I heavy then?
I blinked twice at her question, trying to find some sense in it.
-You're a tiny ass kid, why should you be heavy?
-Because you said deadweight is heavier than normal weight… and I'm like deadweight for you, right?-she said while looking down.
A sigh escaped my mouth as I heard her question. Then, right after she finished speaking, I stretched my hand and gave her a karate chop. A faint "ouch" released in the moment of the impact.
-Was I able to carry you in the river?
-Yeah…-the kid said while caressing the spot of her head where she got hit.
-Then you're not that hard to carry, am I right?
-Yup…-A strange voice said close to us.
I turned my head around, seeing the allegedly immobile body moving his head. At the sight of that, my feet kicked the ground, making me move some centimeters backwards.
The kid was completely frozen, like if she was looking at a dead person coming back to life. And, to be honest, that was exactly how that looked like.
-I see that you speak a lot now, Jacob…-the man said while getting up from the ground.
-How the fuck do you know my name?-I shouted while looking for a suitable knife to defend myself.
-Oh, I know! That's because I said your name earlier!-the kid intervened.
Both the man and I diverted our attention to the kid. We gave her an awkward and judging look, watching her look at the ground trying to avoid our gaze.
-Wow, you seriously don't remember me, huh?
The man got on his feet quickly by jumping. I took out the left handed combat knife at the sight of his movements.
In the blink of an eye, the man took a quick step from where he was standing and got close to me. I was slow to react, bringing my knife in the direction of his throat later than I should have.
He looked at me with a smile and grabbed both my arm and forearm, pushing it to the left to impede my attack. Then, in the blink of an eye, he moved his head closer and right as I closed my eyes, preparing for any type of attack, I felt a pair of lips on my forehead.
-Is this the way you're gonna say hi to me after all these years? ¿Ni bendición ni nada?-he said as he patted my shoulder.
-What the fuck are you saying?-I grunted as I came back to my senses, kicking his heel and making him fall to the ground.
The man let out a soft "ouch" the moment he felt his head colliding. And just as he opened his eyes, he saw me trying to stab him.
-Did your father not tell you to be respectful with your family?!-he yelled as he rolled away, evading all of my attacks.
What was he talking about? Did he mean what he said about my dad or was it just a coincidence? And most important, why was he saying something about family? And why should I ask for his bendición?
I shook off the thoughts from my head and quickly put my right hand inside of my cape, taking one of the throwing knives and raising it as soon as it was in my hand.
But just as I was about to throw my weapon in his direction, I felt a pair of tiny hands grabbing my arm from behind.
-Stop! He said he's family!-the kid shouted as she tried to stop my attack.
My head turned around with an angry look in it. I moved my eyes to see her, talking to her as I tried to take her hands off of me.
-You're gonna trust him blindly?!-I screamed at her.
-Of course! He already said a lot of things that make it seem like he knows you!
-So what?! He could be one of the guys that killed my dad! Maybe that's why he was mentioning him earlier! Maybe he's trying to make fun of me!
I shook my right arm, making her let go of me. As my arm was set free, with a quick motion I moved it to the front, throwing the knife where the man was.
The blade of my knife got buried in the ground, confusing me as I tried to figure out what was going on. When did he move from there? Where was he?
Out of nowhere, the man emerged from behind me, commencing his surprise attack.
-¿No te parece de mala educación pegarle a los mayores?-he said while holding my head in place and flicking my forehead with his index finger.
At that moment, a memory flashed through my eyes. A memory from when I was little.
There I was in the living room of my house, playing with a toy car that my dad made me. While playing, the voice of my mom called me from the entrance, ordering me to go with her and say hi to the visits.
I ran with the toy in my hand, driving it through the walls as I went to my mother's side. Once there, two adults rushed inside and hugged me, speaking to me in both spanish and english.
-Awww… I've missed you so much!-said one of the adults, who was actually a woman.
-Ay mijo, tu estás como grande…-The other adult said.
After a long time being hugged, I was set free. My toy car fell to the floor during the hug, so I rushed to pick it up and tried to get back to the living room.
However, as soon as I took one step, a big hand held me by the back of my t-shirt. The big hand then proceeded to pull me back while another big hand came to turn my head back.
-Aren't you forgetting something?-the owner of the hands said.
I didn't say a word to him. Back when I was a little kid, I was too shy to even speak a little.
I tried to run from him and go back to playing, but the big hand that was pulling my t-shirt then moved in front of my face and hit me in the forehead with its finger.
-Mira, loquito-said the man who just hit me-que no se te olvide más la bendición…
That was the end of my memory. I couldn't remember anything else beside the names of those two adults and their faces.
The man withdrew his hand from my forehead and smirked at me as he saw the tear falling from me.
-¿Te dolió?-he asked me.
As soon as he finished speaking, more than one tear started to run down my face. While I started to cry, I dropped the knife in my hand and then raised both of my arms.
When he saw me, the man copied me and raised his arms too. Then, after I took a big breath, he wrapped his arms around me, patting my back as I did the same with him.
-It's been a while, padrino…
-Mira… ¿Cuál "It's been a while"?-he asked me- Habla bien, muchacho.
I smiled and hugged him tighter, crying even more as I buried my head in his chest.
-Perdón…-I answered in sobs-¿Cómo está, padrino?