Mindful(l)

Chapter 9: Stories and Scooters Should Stay Separate

Kanna lived about twenty minutes away but, with the speeds that I was advancing at, we'd probably be there in ten. She thought of some very nasty things but never bothered to directly curse at me.

Kanna (screaming): "How are we going to talk like this?!" 

Me (screaming): "Do you want to stop at the nearby park?!" 

Kanna (leans into Me's ear and whispers): "Whatever you want to get you to stop driving!" 

It casually turns out that Kanna lives near my old house, the one I lived in with my mom. I wasn't surprised considering how close it is to the school that we go to. But, that also meant that the "nearby park" meant the one that Daisy and I used to play in. It made me a little uncomfortable, since I never thought that I'd be back there. But, I was already prepared to find familiar places like this one in this territory. 

I parked the Vespa next to the fence and we sat in the swings. I thought about the time that I met Daisy. 

Kanna: "So?"

Me (snaps back to reality): "Yeah?" 

Kanna: "Weren't you going to tell me about your mom?" 

Me: "Right." 

On second thought, why was I planning to tell her about Mother anyways? Maybe it was just one of those "spur of the moment" things. But, we were here now, and I had promised to tell her. So, I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell Kanna only about her death, right?

Me: "My mom's dead." 

Inner Demon: Yeah, blurt it out, why don't ya?!

Kanna: "Huh... Okay. So, she's dead to you. And why is that?" 

She doesn't believe me. Well, I did say it rather casually. Let's try again:

Me: "Probably because I saw never saw her alive after the accident."

Kanna: "So, by 'accident', do you mean that she had a fight with you or your dad and she left?" 

Me: "Well, she haunts me a lot." 

Kanna: "So, she still calls you... Do you answer?"

Me: "How can I answer when I know she's dead?"

Kanna: "So, you're in denial." 

Okay, she was either playing around or really dense about these things. Since I can read minds, I can confusingly say she was doing both. 

Kanna: He's probably making up a code for me. So, maybe his parents are divorced... Ugh, I feel like a psychologist with a P.I. (Private Investigator) certification...

I tried to figure out what was wrong with her and quickly came to the conclusion that it was the way I was telling her that made her think I was joking around with her. Attempt number three was set into motion:

Me: "Kanna,"

Kanna: "Yeah?" 

Me: "My mom can't come home anymore because she got in a car accident." 

Kanna (suddenly serious): "Oh. I'm sorry that I pressured you. It must be hard to talk about. Is she okay? Is it that you can't visit her?"

Me: "No, I tend to visit her in my free time, but it's pretty depressing." 

Kanna: "Are the wounds that fatal?"

Me: "Well, you can't talk to a tombstone, so I wouldn't know." 

She finally understood me now. I used the "Luring Hints" technique: you start closing in on what you want to say and indirectly lead them to understand it.