I held her in place to see if she's hurt badly.
Thankfully, she sustained no wounds. Although her left cheek's becoming more purple-ish by the second. "I'm sorry."
"This is nothing. Thank God, I came by. He could have kicked you to death."
"Yeah... that's sort of his...coping mechanism."
"Maybe we should introduce him to a healthier sport. Maybe boxing or fencing-" She stopped mid-sentence and looked at my arm. "You're hurt."
"It's just a scrape."
"It'll turn into an infection if you don't clean it. You have a first-aid kit here?"
I pointed it to her and she went to get it. Then, she took my arm and dabbed the wound with betadine-soaked cotton.
I looked at her as she did so. After she placed a band-aid over the wound, she glanced up but avoided eye contact immediately.
I furrowed my brows briefly and laughed.
This is good. I've never had someone take care of me before.
It feels like a dream. The sun is up, the neighbors' noise have died down, Riko is here in front of me.
It doesn't feel true to feel warm and fuzzy inside while my father is unconscious on the floor.
"Let's put an ice pack on your cheek."
< Fifteen minutes later >
"Is it okay to leave him there like that?"
"Yeah. But he shouldn't catch us here when he wakes up."
"We're going out, then?"
I raised a brow at her.
"I didn't mean it like that."
"I hope you meant it like that."
"Shut up."
"Do you want to?"
"What?"
"Go out. With me."
YOU ARE READING
Dear Kafka
Romance[CPN] Riko was nearing the end of her life. What she decided to do for the remainder of it was to find someone to love. She never knew it would be so beautiful, maddening...turbulent. She got what she wanted and Lord knows it was the first time.
