Our beloved youth

12: Her diary

"I hate how I get an automatic blush after something embarrassing," Elina thought, her face still flushed.

"Where do you live?" Kevin asked as he fastened his seatbelt.

"Huh?" Elina snapped out of her thoughts.

"Your address," he repeated. Elina nodded and told him.

Time skip

Kevin glanced over at Elina, who had fallen asleep, hugging herself. She looked cold, so he adjusted the temperature in the car and continued driving. When they reached her neighborhood, he debated whether to wake her up. Before he could decide, she stirred and rubbed her eyes.

"What happened?" she asked groggily.

"The car won't fit through the narrow streets, so this is as far as I can go," Kevin explained, trying to remove his seatbelt. Elina nodded and unbuckled herself.

"Okay, I'll get going," she said, opening her bag to put her earphones away. "Shall I accompany you? Is it far?" Kevin asked.

"No, no, it's alright!" "It is nearby" Elina insisted, shaking her head and putting her earphones inside her bag.

Elina was about to step out of the car with her bag when Kevin reminded her, "Close the zip first." She nodded but was distracted by a familiar voice.

"And just because of you, I looked like a fool carrying all those dresses for just a day!"

"Mom?!" Elina's eyes widened as she heard her mother's voice.

Weren't they coming next week?

"What?" Kevin asked, frowning as he looked at Elina.

"Look!" Elina started, but then shook her head. "No time to explain! You need to lie down and hide! Bye!" She quickly made Kevin recline his seat and then ran towards her house.

"What the heck is with her behavior?" Kevin muttered, watching her disappear before driving away.

"Such a fancy car in our neighborhood?" Mrs. Charles asked her husband with a frown. "Who could it be?"

"I don't know," Mr. Charles shrugged.

"You never know anything!" Mrs. Charles said, shaking her head as they walked away.

_______________________

"I bet that's Elina!" Sia said, coming downstairs with a slice of pizza. "First she comes home late and then rings the bell a thousand times," she grumbled.

"Coming!" she called out, opening the door. "Why are you lat—what the heck, Elina?!" Sia exclaimed, seeing her sister drenched in sweat. Elina quickly closed the door behind her.

"Mom and Dad are here!" Elina said, breathless.

"What?!" Sia's eyes widened.

"Yeah, I need to change quickly," Elina said, grabbing the pizza slice from Sia and running upstairs.

"But weren't they supposed to come next week?!" Sia shouted after her.

"I don't know! We'll find out soon enough," Elina shouted back.

Sia quickly brushed off pizza crumbs from her trousers. The doorbell rang again, and she took a deep breath before opening the door.

"Mom, Dad, you're back?" she said, trying to sound surprised.

"Yes, we're home," Mrs. Charles said, glaring at Mr. Charles, who smiled nervously.

"Uh... darling," he began to explain.

Sia closed the door and went to fetch two glasses of water. "Here," she said, handing them to her parents.

"Thank you, dear," Mrs. Charles said with a smile.

"Well, Dad, weren't you guys—" Sia began but stopped when her father signaled her to keep quiet. She nodded, understanding, but their efforts were in vain as Elina came downstairs.

"Woah, Mom, Dad, you're back?!" Elina said, pretending to be surprised. Mr. Charles widened his eyes, predicting her next words. "Weren't you supposed to come next week?" she continued.

"Yes, thanks to your father, who thought a one-day trip would take a week and made me look like a fool," Mrs. Charles said, massaging her forehead.

"Mrs. Pumphrey was giggling at me!" she added.

"Darling, I'm sorry, I didn't know it was just for a day..." Mr. Charles pleaded.

"Oh, so that's why you came now," Elina said, smiling. Mrs. Charles narrowed her eyes.

"Hmm... good thing we came, or else what would you have eaten after the pizza?" she asked, eyeing her daughters.

Sia and Elina exchanged shocked glances. Sia noticed pizza crumbs on Elina's lips and facepalmed. "H—how did you know?" Elina asked, amused.

"Because you didn't clean the pizza off your face," Mrs. Charles said with a smile.

"Ugh! I thought you wouldn't catch me this time!" Elina said dramatically, making everyone laugh.

"I will always find out. You're such a dramatic girl. Come here, both of you!" Mrs. Charles said, hugging her daughters. They spent the rest of the night reminiscing.

_____________________________

As Kevin stopped the car and removed his seatbelt, he noticed something shiny near the passenger seat. He picked it up—a diary covered in Harry Potter stickers. He turned it over and saw the name that confirmed whose diary it was.

!! WIZARD ELINA !! 

PRECAUTION: IF YOU PEEP IN, I'LL TURN YOU INTO A MOUSE!!

"It has to be her diary," Kevin said. "What's there to hide in this childish diary?" He felt the urge to peek inside but resisted, taking the diary with him to his apartment.

He placed his bag on a chair and was about to set the diary on the table when a picture fell out. He picked it up and was about to put it back when a familiar face caught his eye.

"That girl—"

"It was her?"

To be continued