My Heart Is Yours

Chapter 6

Alden gave a sigh of relief but Maine pouted and let go of her father's arm. She went back to eating what was left on her plate silently.

"Maine?" Alden asked worriedly. He was relieved that Maine's dad might consider allowing him to take his sick daughter around the village. It was all he could hope for at that moment as he knew that it was too early to get the trust of people you've just met today, let alone entrust his daughter to a total stranger. But Maine's reaction worried him.

He was about to ask when her father said, "I didn't say 'no', Maine."

"You didn't say 'yes' either."

"We haven't even settled here yet, Sweetheart," he explained. "We have a lot of things to fix to make this house a home before I could think of allowing you to go out. Besides, we need to see your doctor first before I could make a huge decision like this."

"But I feel fine!" Maine argued.

"Your dad's right, Maine," Alden said silently.

Maine turned to him and Alden saw that there was hurt in her eyes. She felt betrayed. He hated that look. He tried to explain, "I was so excited to show you around the subdivision that I forgot you guys haven't settled yet. I'm sure your dad will allow you to go out once everything is fine and you get a go signal from your doctor. Besides, your house is sparsely furnished. I think your room is the only area that's livable at the moment."

He said the last part as a joke to try to ease the tension between Maine and her father. He was relieved that Maine's demeanor changed from hurt to uncertain, trying to gauge his reasoning. Her lips were still pursed and her eyebrows were furrowed as she silently thought of something to say.

Ted looked at Alden appreciatively. He gave the young man a small smile of thanks. He knew that Maine was getting frustrated with her situation. Most days she doesn't complain but there were those moments like this one when she just wanted to be a normal teenager. He knew that growing up in this situation wouldn't be easy for his daughter. He just really need to be very patient to make her understand.

Ted appreciated how Alden tried to clear the tension. He looked at Rio and nodded his thanks for raising such a fine son. He could see that Maine was thinking, trying to choose her words carefully.

"I just don't want this to be like when we were in Bulacan," she finally said, her head bowed and eyes closed. "You're my first real friend, Alden. I don't want to waste it."

Alden smiled as he carefully reached out to her right hand that was still holding onto her fork, pried it free from the utensil, and held it tightly. Maine looked at their connected hands and then faced Alden.

"There'll be plenty of time for us to take that bike ride," he said as his smile deepened showing off his dimple. "It was a premature move on my part anyway. What's important right now is for us to fix your house and then get you cleared by your doctor. Then, we'll take that bike ride when you're ready."

"Give us time to settle in, Sweetheart," Maine's mom added. "Baby steps. We'll get there eventually."

Maine just nodded and gave a small smile. When that was settled, the conversation went back to normal.

By the end of dinner, everything was settled and both families were excited for the coming days. Mary Anne and Rio have become fast friends and made plans on how to decorate the interior while Ted had asked for Alden's help in fixing the garage and some heavy lifting. Maine was just happy that she would be allowed to spend some time at their front yard doing some gardening while the others were busy elsewhere.

When the Faulkersons were about to take their leave, the Mendozas walked with them to the front door with the adults three steps ahead of the teens. Suddenly Maine stopped at her tracks and exclaimed, "wait! I forgot to give you something."

She turned to head up to her room but Alden reached out and grabbed her arm. She turned back and looked at him curiously.

"Don't rush," he said softly. "I'll be right here until you come back down."

As he let go of her arm, Maine felt herself blush. It was a good thing that she already turned or he would find her so red and giddy.

Alden tried to be discreet in asking Maine to slow down. He observed that when she gets too excited she would be too energetic and forget about her condition. He couldn't blame her though, he could see that Maine just wanted to feel normal. So he tried not to remind her of her condition but still make sure that she didn't over-exert herself.

Maine slowly went upstairs to her room as she followed Alden's request for her not to rush. The short walk helped her calm down from her giddiness. She went to her study table to get what she wanted to give him and was about to head out when she double backed and went to her bookshelf. She reached out and took a book from her shelf, and went downstairs to find that Alden didn't move from where he stood. Maine held out two items for him: the first one was Twilight (the first book from the Twilight Saga) and the second was a two-way radio.

"You're not seriously asking me to read the book, are you?" Alden said, as he reluctantly took the book and the radio from Maine. "I've already watched the movie."

"Humor me, Alden."

He sighed in defeat and reluctantly nodded. He then checked out the other item she gave him.

"When mom decided to invite your family to dinner," she explained. "I've charged it already. It's one of those two-way radio that has a five hundred meter reach. Ate Jenny and I used to use it if I wanted her to buy me some stuff at a convenient store back in Bulacan. I hope we'll be able to talk even if there are times when I can't go outside."

Alden smiled at Maine and said his thanks. He pushed his glasses back to the ridge of his nose to hide the giddiness that was forming. They looked at each other for a few more moments before Alden reluctantly broke the eye contact and turned to check on his mom who was already outside with Maine's parents.

"Thanks for these, Maine," Alden said once more. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yup!" She answered. "I'll see you tomorrow. Good night, Alden."

"Good night, Maine."