Life Without You

Chapter 38 - Reunited

Andy sped through the bike trail as he tried to trace the location of his drone based on what he recorded on the app on his mother's iPad. He tried to locate that giant tree, but there were a few giant trees here and there. He stopped every now and then to check those trees but the drone was nowhere to be found. That was his one and only drone, an expensive but precious gift from a precious friend, and he was determined to find it!

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After waiting for more than half an hour with no sign of the culprit coming to collect his prizex drone, Leon lost his patience as his injuries continued to inconvenience him. He packed the broken drone and GoPro camera inside his haversack and slowly cycled back. The bruises on his head, arm and leg was hurting even more and he really needed to nurse his injuries and rest.

Nevertheless, Leon was still determined to confront the culprit. By taking away the broken drone which was obviously an expensive one, he hoped to weed out the culprit whom he was sure was now frantically looking for the drone everywhere. He was hoping the GoPro camera may give him some clues but after trying to switch it on multiple times, the camera was obviously dead and broken inside.

As he cycled almost halfway through, the cries of a little boy could be heard from a distance.

Who could that be?

"Mummy!" wailed the poor boy. "Where are you?"

His voice sounded familiar. Where was he? Leon followed the sound of his cry.

Sitting on the grass near the bike trail, a young boy in a grey sweater and a red cap buried his face in his knees. His self-balancing scooter was right next to him and he was all alone.

Was he hurt?

Beside him were a black remote controller of some sort and an iPad on the ground.

Leon got down from his bicycle and walked towards the young boy.

"Hey little fella, you alright? Are you lost?"

"I lost my white drone and tried to look for it and now I lost my way back. There's no WiFi on my iPad and I can't call my mum," the little boy explained while wiping his tears in between with his sleeves.

"White drone!" Leon suddenly pieced the puzzle together. He took the broken drone out from his haversack and showed it to the boy at his eye level, "You mean this drone?"

The little boy lifted up his head to see the drone. "Yes, yes!! That's the one!" he tried to take the drone from his hands but Leon pulled it back before he could grab it. The culprit was finally found!

"Nah-uh-uh," Leon waved his finger at him. "Did you know your drone hurt me really bad? See?" He took off his cap and pointed at the swollen bruise with his finger.

When the boy lifted up his head further to get a good look, Leon could clearly see his face in full. His eyes widened in surprise, "A-Andy?"

Andy blinked his eyes for a while. "How do you know me?" He could not recognise Leon from his disguise, but the man's blue eyes and voice sounded familiar. "Oh yes, my mum's famous. Yeah, everyone knows who I am."

"Andy, it's me, Leon!" Leon removed his fake beard.

"Leon?!" Andy's eyes popped in excitement, "It's really you!"

"Yes, it's me, Andy!" Leon leaned forward for a hug but Andy stopped him, his excited expression suddenly to an angry frown.

"What's wrong?" asked Leon, hurt by his pushing away.

"You pretended not to recognise me at the park, remember? So why should I acknowledge you?"

"Oh, Andy," Leon decided to tell him the truth. "That was a fake Leon. Do you think I'd really do such a mean thing to you?"