THEN I FOUND YOU [mcd]

chapter eighteen

"The children want a picnic today."

I look at Garroth, my eyes full of shock. "Today? In this temperature? It's Kandi's day anyway."

He shrugs his shoulders and looks around the area. He goes on saying how Kandi has already agreed and is helping Kawaii~Chan prepare the picnic. He and Dante have supposedly set it up only mere minutes before his encounter with me. It's slightly bothersome to know I wasn't confronted regarding this decision.

I don't understand why the children would want a picnic in this type of weather. It isn't snowing, nor is it dreadfully cold, but it is winter nonetheless. The snow glitters on the ground, and it's at least an inch deep. Unless the snow is packed down, parts of the blanket will be lumpy due to the snow underneath it. Not to mention, it'll be cold under us without extra layers.

"Don't worry yourself over it too much," Garroth says, trying to lead us both towards the picnic area. I look around at the bare tree branches and the clumps of snow at the trunk of the trees. "If Kawaii~Chan and Dante are alright with the children eating outside, there's no harm in it. The food will be hot, and the children will be wrapped up."

"I'm still worried they'll be cold, even if they'd play beforehand."

I can only hear chuckling from beside me. Garroth appears to find humor in my worrying.

We finally make it to our original spot that we stumbled on during our walk one season ago. I recall wanting to have a picnic there, but I've also taken the children here often to play in the sunshine. Nekoette finds the wild growing flowers to be beautiful, and Dimitri likes how he can weave in and out of the trees. There's shade from the trees for me to place a blanket down and to watch over Lilith without having to worry too much about her overheating.

I don't see the children in sight, and I slowly turn myself around to see if they'll jump out at me in a surprise attack. Dimitri has pulled this often on Nekoette, so I know to be well aware of what's around me when it comes to those two.

"The children aren't here."

I'm looked down at once more before Garroth sits down on the blanket. "Oh? Oh, right. They'll be here soon. Dante and Kawaii~Chan will be joining us. . . Well, if you'd have me. Dimitri asked me to join, so he could try a practice spar."

"I don't see the harm. As long as Kawaii~Chan made enough food. Though, even then, I don't see the problem with it because she normally makes extras." A little giggle slips past my lips as my cheeks grow rosy pink. I'm suddenly grateful for the bitter cold nipping against my pale skin to camouflage the blush. "In the meantime, we can prepare."

Minutes pass and the children haven't arrived yet. I've kept the food inside the basket to keep its warmth within and to fight against the cold. I fear I will not be able to keep the food warm much longer if they continue to dilly-dally.

Silence radiates between Garroth and I during this time. It feels rather awkward because I am unsure what to speak about to disrupt it. Instead, I look down at my gloved hands and watch as my thumbs fiddle against each other.

Garroth clears his throat and results in me turning my attention to him. "When you confessed to me that night, did you mean to?"

I open my mouth but shut it directly after. "In all honesty, I wasn't thinking when I spewed that out. But now that it's out in the open, I can't take it back."

Garroth seems hesitant in his next words. "Did you mean it?"

I can't seem to voice my response, so I only shyly nod my head. I watch as his cheeks darken in color. It differs from the cold's effects on his skin. My head turns away from him. I fear to look him in the eye after confirming my confession out loud after speaking without thought that night.

"I, um, I was talking to Dante. . . I guess I've been talking to Dante for quite a while now." Garroth seems shy now. I've slowly returned my attention back to him. "Since you confessed to me, and even after learning of Aphmau's pregnancy, I've been confused. I thought maybe it was infatuation or misplaced emotions because we were together so much, but Dante thought differently. I feel silly admitting this to you."

I shake my head and go to reach for his hand for reassurance. I flash a soft smile, and I like to think it's more for him than myself.

"But he thought that perhaps I got over Aphmau. Perhaps I eventually just gave up and came to my own conclusion that we would never happen. I got to thinking about this. Something has felt different between us since shortly after I came back from the Irene Dimension. I put no mind to it then, but now. I think now is a different story."

My mouth opens at his words. In my mind, it's like Dante's school girl gossiping was correct and Garroth could have feelings for me. I know that love can be far-fetched, or maybe too soon, but there may be something there. This may not be a one-sided emotion.

"I know I probably sound incredibly stupid, but, I. Well, I." Garroth's flustered state appears to shut off his train of thought of how to word what he wanted to say next. He places his head in his hands because of it.

I glance over to the right and see the five walking towards us from a small difference. I take this small moment to see if I can finish his thought for him. "If you want to see what could happen with us, I'd be happy to try."