The boy ran through the whole schoolyard as he trembled by the cold aura from the dogs that chased him. He knew exactly how the older bullies almost kept up with his pace. His heart raced in his chest as he cringed at the thought of getting caught by them. But how long would it last? Their legs were longer than Fabiens and they had surely more stamina than him. It wouldn't take long for them to catch up with him and then hanging him with his underwear from over the fence as he would see in cartoons.
Fabien's eyes lightened up as he suddenly saw a familiar car waiting for him in front of the school gate. It was a red mustang. He only knew of one person who could've owned this familiar car. He saw a glimpse of a familiar man sitting in the front seat, smoking a cigarette. It was his Dad.
Garen widened his eyes as he noticed his son running towards him like a mad dog as soon as he left the school gate. Even though he was curious, he didn't question it any longer and put a big smile on his face. Maybe he is excited to see me? he thought with a smirk. He threw his cigarette away while stepping out of the car. He opened his arms with a caring soft smile as he saw Fabien run towards him with sweat running all over his face.
But the boy rather ran past him while sliding with a fast speed in the car. Garen stood there dumbfounded for a moment.
"Dad, start the car please!", his son shouted from his lungs. Garen twitched for a moment by the sudden haste but noticed Fabien's schoolmate running at them from afar. They seemed to be mad about something by their bitter facial expression.
"Please, it's a really good idea to talk about this later", Fabien begged and Garen finally gave in. He sighed deeply as soon as he walked to the other side and slid himself back into the driver's seat. His son was sitting next to him with sweat covered on his body. He started the car with a stern look as he peeked to the boys that were chasing his son.
The boys took the hint as they suddenly stopped running and looked at the car in shock. Fabien and his Dad already drove away. Garen sighed while looking at the road in front of him. I'll have a long chat with his principal later. But first... He glanced over to Fabien who was melting in his seat in relief. The boy let out a deep breath as he closed his eyes. But something still seemed to bother him as he twitched his brows together. Somehow, Garen couldn't get mad at him but there were some lingering curiosity and fretfulness. He finally turned to his son with a bright smile.
"So... Are you playing tag with your friends? They seem to take the game quite seriously by the look on their face.", he laughed and Fabien looked down on his knees.
Fabien didn't say anything throughout the ride. His father accepted the silence and just continued driving to the promised place. It didn't take long for the awkwardness suddenly to calm down as Garen whistled one of his favorite tunes. Fabien slightly peeked at his Dad who seemed to be lost in his mind. What was he thinking about? He suddenly seemed so calm.
The scenery started to kick in as the shadow from the trees covered the sunny road. Fabien saw many of them in different colors even though it wasn't autumn yet and there was a wide lake not far from him. His heart started to pump in his chest, louder than ever. Somehow... This place was oddly familiar to him. He got this kick of nostalgia out of nowhere as he stared out of the window with excited eyes. Garen smirked by the astonished look his son made.
"We are going to Greenwood!", Fabien said, laughing in excitement. The worry was blasted from his face and his Dad was satisfied with this.
"Of course! I told you I'll surprise you with something you would like... Remember how uncle Damien and I always did a barbecue party there?", he smiled while looking at the road. Fabien nodded while smirking at the memory.
