That Summer

Chapter 8

When we landed back home, he opened the sliding door on the balcony and fell straight on to the living room floor. He must have been tired from working in the spring heat wearing all black. So, I dragged him over to the couch and put his head on a pillow. I went to the kitchen and grabbed some ice from the freezer. I put it in a plastic bag and placed the bag on his head to cool him down. I guess being in human form and working under these kinds of conditions put limits on him. He wasn't an all-powerful god so it made sense that he was reaching his limits.

"I'm not weak." He interrupted my thoughts.

"Shh, stop talking and reading my thoughts. You should rest." I got up and tried to leave the living room but he grabbed my arm.

"Where are you going?" His voice sounded strained.

"I was going to give you some personal space so you could recover." I thought that was what he wanted.

"No, don't leave me." His arm was shaking.

"Okay, I won't." I grabbed a pillow on the other couch and sat next to him.

The sun started going down while I waited for him to recover. His eyes were closed but he wasn't sleeping or at least I didn't think he was sleeping. Actually, his eyes were always closed. He just looked relaxed with a slight smile. He was still holding onto my hand. Even if I tried to free myself, he didn't let go. There was no helping it after several attempts. So, we sat there in silence until it was pitch dark. While I was moving his silver hair away from his face, one hair at a time to pass the time, my eyes started to feel heavy.

I woke up to the sound of those off-pitch chimes and I realized I was on my bed. I felt my hand around the bed and a white chrysanthemum greeted me again. I saw my small hands and I remembered that I was still 14 years old. I remember falling asleep in the living room waiting for him to recover from working so much. I don't remember going to the bedroom. I must have walked there myself without realizing it.

"Morning." He greeted me when I walked downstairs.

"Good morning." I was happy to see fresh fruit salad on the dining table.

"You seem to be in a good mood." He put fruit on a plate for me.

"Yeah, these fruits look ripe." I took a bite of the strawberry.

"Of course they are." He laughed.

"Can we go to the park today? I want to spend my last day there." I continued eating.

"I'm surprised by how much you like that park." He watched me eat.

"Me too." I couldn't stop smiling.

"Are you sure it isn't the park and not something else?" He smirked.

"What do you mean?" I tried to laugh it off.

"Interesting expression when you lie." He put more fruits on my plate.

"What are you talking about?" I tried to play dumb.

"Stop trying to play dumb. I know you want to go over there because you want me to suffer under that old lady's command. Even though she acts senile, she's crazy." He smirked.

"Oh, that. I think she's really sweet." I was relieved.

"No, she's so mean. I had to dig 50 holes and then she filled them in because she thought moles dug them. But, then she told me to dig another 50 holes so we could plant seeds. I wanted to run away." He pouted.

"That's so silly." I haven't laughed so hard in a while.

"But it's fine. If you want to go to the park, we'll go when you're done eating." He sounded a little hesitant like a child but it was cute.