Touch Of Solicitude

TREINTA Y CUATRO

"We are-" I cut him off, "We are friends, Mother," I awkwardly smiled and pushed her back to the kitchen.

As she prepared the meal, she started to ask me questions, "How do you know that Model?" She asked, "He is my classmate, back at the academy," I responded, washing the carrots.

"How about his family? Do you know something about them?" It feels as if she was interrogating me, "His Father is the owner of Vista Hotel. He is also friends with Luigi's Father; apparently, when his company was on the brink of bankruptcy, Luigi's Father helped him establish a strong foundation that helped the hotel thrive."

"What about his Mother?" I shook my head, "I do not know about her,"

"Is he married, perhaps? Does he have a lover at the moment?" I shrugged, "I did not hear about him being in a relationship; maybe he is single,"

She stopped peeling the carrot and looked at me, as if her eyes were sparking, "Mother, you do not-" She showed her palm to me, "Looking at it, he seems like he likes you, I never thought that you would have a classmate like him. Tell me, does the man like?"

I took a deep breath, "I do not know," She showed me a displeased look, "He looks like a good man, and you are of the same age; how do you feel about him, Sun Hee?" I just shook my head and ignored all her questions.

As she finished preparing dinner, we soon ate. What made me feel uncomfortable was Mother's continuous conversation with Elias, "Here, you should eat more," She offered him food, placing it in his place, "Thank you, Missus Kim."

"Mother, Elias' plate is already full," I snickered, "It is fine; your Mother's cooking is good; I can eat this every day,"

Mother's face brightened with what the man said, "Is that so, then eat more!" She continued to add food to his place; I shook my head, "I heard from Sun Hee that your Father is the owner of Vista Hotel,"

"Oh, yes, he really liked hotels from the very beginning," He chuckled, scratching the back of his head, "It must be nice to have a son like you; your father must be proud of you,"

The dining was filled with laughers from Mother and Elias while the three of us continued to eat silently; as the dinner was halfway through, I felt someone's feet poking mine. With Luigi in front of me, I already knew that it was him. I lowered my head in embarrassment.

As dinner ended, I showed Mother and Elias out, "What about Luigi?" He questioned; Mother then laughed out, "Oh, they live here together," She replied.

I waved bye, soon closing the door. Luigi continued to stay silent even after they left; he had a gloomy atmosphere around him enough to make me feel guilty. Do I really like him after all? I am also someone who feels an attraction to others.

However, why can't I accept it fully? Is it because of the past? Am I still afraid that everything will go down to drain? I know that I need to move on and bury the past, but the trauma Manuel brought me still lingers that keeps making me feel like everything is too hard to swallow.

I do not know how to face him after what happened earlier; my heart constantly beats for him, but knowing that we grew up together and know that he is a brother to me, is somehow a door to another side to remind me that I must never cross.

Head back, I saw Luigi, leaning from the staircase, "Let us go," He held my hand and guided me to my room, "What?" He first laid down on my bed.

"What are you doing?" He chuckled, "We used to sleep together when we were kids," He pulled me to bed.

"Idiot, that is when we were kids; we are adults now," I covered my face with the blanket, "What is the difference with that?" He took it back, revealing my flustered face.

I turned around, but it did not end there; he hugged me from the back, snuggling his head on my neck, "Before we just lived in the same community, I cannot believe that we are living together now," He whispered under his breath, "We always share everything back then, toys, food, we even take a bath together. We share everything, even memories when we grew up,"

"With those memories, you probably forgot that we stopped sharing everything when you left; now, we are no more than strangers who once shared everything; if not for these, we would be completely unknown to each other," I responded, holding his hand, "Do not worry about me too much, Sunny. All that matters is that I like you, no matter what."

We have not seen each other for years; I cannot trust everything that I hear from him, "I do not know what you thought of me when you were away from Ylury, but I will tell you repeatedly, I have changed, Luigi," I retorted, "The little girl that lived in your memory is long gone, you should not wrap yourself in that time,"

He took a deep breath, "It can all be changed if we continue to spend time together; you will also realize my changes; that way, I cannot disappoint you," He uttered, "My affection for you will never change, after all. I am the first to fall in love between us, and I have no plans on quitting and letting you go,"

I just shook my head, "How can you be sure when you have not seen me in those years?" I turned around, facing him. He just smiled and ruffled my hair, "I am sure because I have seen you over the years,"

My forehead creased, "That is why the image of you from the past and present is what I love," He patted my head, "I came back to Yury from time to time, but I could not bear to show myself in front of you," He showed a bitter face.

"I want to show up in front of you as a reliable and grown man to show how worthy I can be," He caressed my head, "That is why right now, I came back and dared to show myself right now,"