Best Regards, Feli

Chapter 25

The three of them walked towards the escalator to go to the third floor of the mall. It had all the amusement that could entertain the kids.

Their first stop was the bookstore that sells second hand but good quality books. Aya's attention was grabbed by English story books with colorful drawings. Kai's sister talked non stop about nothing and everything. Feli wondered how their mother handled Aya.

"I'm sorry. She really talks a lot," Kai apologized for Aya's behavior.

"It's fine. Kids like her are easy to teach because they're curious and active."

He nodded. "Sometimes, she keeps her mouth shut."

"Oh? When is that?"

"When she's sleeping."

Feli started to laugh. What made him funnier was his stoic face as he delivered the joke.

Kaito obviously wasn't joking. By the looks of Aya who was reading the book aloud, he was actually telling the truth. But he didn't mind because he made her laugh.

"Can I ride on that one?" Aya asked, pointing at the choo-choo train driven by one of the mall's staff. Kaito looked at the train moving around the entire floor.

"I think you can. Let's ask the driver," Feli said. And when she did, the driver let Aya on the train but there should be an adult with her.

"You should go. I'll take pictures," Feli instructed Kai, who was about to argue but reluctantly agreed.

It was amusing to see Kai trying to fit his long legs on the narrow partitions of the choo choo train. Using her smartphone, she captured pictures of the two in the train. She patiently waited on her spot until the ride was over.

"Teacher Feli! I saw an arcade over there. I want to play there. Can we play over there?" Aya asked as soon as she got off the train.

"Let's ask your brother, okay?" She raised her eyebrows in silent questioning at Kai.

"Sure. Our uncle will fetch us to Laguna in..." he glanced at his Seiko watch, "five hours. We still have time."

While Aya walked ahead of them, Kaito and Feli talked about mundane stuff. He walked beside her, maintaining just the right distance from her and making sure that they don't bump shoulders. He didn't want to crowd her yet he also didn't want to be too far. And it would be too forward to hold her hands, wouldn't it?

They entered the arcade and the first thing that caught Aya's attention was the racing game. Its players need to sit on the designated chairs and maneuver the steering wheel depending on the direction shown on the screen. Feli had to teach Aya how to play the game, while Kai had to sit on the other side because he was Aya's opponent.

Then, Aya grabbed Kai's hands and led him to the basketball game. The players needed to shoot as many balls as they could given the time limit.

Feli just looked on the sidelines as Kai never missed a shot. She saw his clenched jaw and furrowed eyebrows and knew that he was in serious mode. He was absolutely competitive because it turned out, Aya had a really good aim. Feli's gaze zeroed in on his biceps and she realized that he wasn't lying when he said that he works out.

His sister won the basketball game because he faltered at the last minute. Kaito realized that Feli was staring at him and he suddenly became conscious of himself. But now the spotlight was on Feli because Aya dragged her in the Pump It Up Dance game.

The players need to step on the game mat and follow the dancers' movements on the screen. Kaito thought that Feli would decline but he was surprised when she removed her jacket.