It gets to seven o'clock. I'm out for a walk with Felix, telling him funny stories about the times when I didn't have him with me. I'm happy because I can finally cheer him up with my silly stories. Furthermore, I can't even describe this feeling of joy when I look at the sincere smile he gives me.
The unplugged printer, by far, is his favorite story, as I didn't know how to turn it on and lived with it for about twenty minutes until a kindly co-worker helped me.
Felix pushes back his black hair with his hand and looks at me with still laughing eyes.
- I missed that feeling. I missed it darned much. Being down all the time is something that really sucks," he claims.
I look at him with caring eyes and simply embrace his hand, entwining our fingers together.
- You will overcome this, and I will help you do it. I will make sure that every day there is a smile on your face," I announce, and he squeezes my hand harder.
- You really are my reward in this cursed life. I'm glad to have you, Selena.
I send him a slight smile.
- I, too, am glad you are with me.
We head along the sidewalk ahead, and at one point my eyes begin to shine with happiness when I spot a playground.
- No, no way. We're too old for that," Felix asserts, shaking his head. I look at him with the eyes of a child, adorably tightening my lips. - Selena, seriously? What if someone sees us here?
- And so what? In each of us, all our lives, there is a child, isn't that so?
He just succumbs to me, and I pull him toward the playground, feeling all my childhood come back to me.
How much I would give to go back to those times, at least for one day, and live carefree moments again, enjoying every second of my life.
Back then a person didn't appreciate it, today he misses it.
I sit on the swing and rock, making happy exclamations from myself. I do my best to make Felix laugh. Furthermore, I want the smile to never leave his face.
He looks at me with pity in his eyes, looking around to the side to see if anyone is watching us.
- Why don't you be a little quieter? I feel awkward," he says, hiding his face behind his hand. I know he's doing it deliberately to tease me. Deep down, he is laughing along with me.
I furrow my eyebrows when at one point he takes out his phone and records me with his camera.
- Are you going to make fun of me?
- I'm going to send this to Lucas and ask him, are you actually the right person to take care of me? It seems to me that when he sees this, he will start doubting you again," declares the brunet, looking at me with amused eyes.
At some point, I stopped swinging. Still sitting on the swing, I ask him a question:
- Would you like to meet with Mike?
I see his gaze change. He looks at me with a puzzled look.
- Why are you asking this so suddenly?
- Because he misses you. He would like to meet you and talk to you, like in the old days.
For a moment, I saw confusion on Felix's face. I'm afraid he won't want to, even though I've made arrangements with friends before. And they should be here any minute.
It's hard, at most I'll write them the truth.
- I would like to meet him and talk to him. He was my best friend, but I am ashamed to show myself in front of him in such a state.
- It's no shame, Felix," I declare, and he lifts his gaze and looks into my eyes. - A true friend is always by our side, no matter how serious the problem.
- Doesn't he think I'm a freak? When we were friends, I was popular and cool. It seemed to me that later he stopped seeing me as the best buddy.
I realize that in this disease, the imagination can create images that are not reality, so Felix has different beliefs than we do.
- If he had, he wouldn't have insisted on meeting with you.
He nods after a while.
- It's okay, I can meet with him. I'd even like to.
- That's a good thing, because I wasn't going to drive back home. - With a smile on my face, I look at the family that appears in front of the playground. A joyful Lily comes running towards me, embracing my legs.
- Auntie, I missed you so much.
- I follow you, too, baby.
Felix turns to face Mike. He doesn't particularly pay attention to Eve, who accompanies him. In the past, this was the person he disliked most in the world. He could not understand how his best friend could get involved with such a woman.
The brunet looks confused as Mike walks up to him and embraces him in a chummy hug.
- There wasn't a day when I wasn't worried about you, the bastard.
Eve walks past them and puts on the face of a contrite angel as she stands in front of me and her child.
I know she still feels silly for secretly dating Sebastian. She seemingly came to her senses eventually, but I still can't forgive her. I'm mad as hell at her.
- I promise never to make such a mistake again, seriously," she says to me in a whisper. - Don't be angry with me any longer, Selena. I am ashamed enough for what I did.
- If you lost Mike because of this stupidity and wrecked your family, I would kill you with my bare hands.
- Auntie, are you threatening Mom? - asks Lily out loud, making Mike and Felix look at us with curiosity in their eyes.
- Honey, sometimes you have to be mean to your mother to make her come to her senses," I assert, stroking her hair. She moves away from me indignantly.
- I don't like your behavior, Auntie. Mom is strange, but you have to respect her.
This is the moment when Felix bursts into laughter. The little girl finally made him laugh to tears.
- Your daughter is very charming," he declares.
- She is the same as her father," Mike replies to him, putting his hands to his face. - Remember how cute I was in high school.
They both squat on the sandbar and talk to each other, catching up on all the lost years. I continue to fulminate my best friend with my eyes.
- Well, forgive me at last. You know I love you more than life, and you mean a lot to me," Eve confesses to me, puffing out her lips. - Don't be angry with me.
- I'll give you one last chance, scumbag. If you screw it up, you won't see me again.
Both she and Mike are forbidden to mention that Felix's parents are alive. They know about his serious illness and are supposed to pretend that everything is fine.
This is the condition I set for them to see him.
*
From Lucas' perspective
After meeting the man who watches over my interests in New York, I stayed in the bar for a while longer, feeling like sinking my mind into a few drinks.
I don't know what to do. They urgently need me there, they want me to come back as soon as possible, but I can't take Felix with me, because that would make him worse again. On the other hand, he would be away from his mother, but now that he has Selena by his side again and wants to fight, I know it could reflect badly on him.
The second perspective is to talk to her. I want to propose to her to leave together. In fact, there is nothing keeping her in Los Angeles, there is no job here at the moment.
I don't like her, but I could get her a good job as long as she was around Felix.
Sipping whiskey on the rocks, I pull my phone out of my jacket pocket and raise an eyebrow, watching the video my younger brother sent me.
However, I have to wonder if she should actually stick by his side. I think she has a worse problem than Felix.
Nevertheless, I lift the corners of my mouth, hearing my brother laugh.
This is a good sign.
- You bastard, however, fate made us meet again after you threw me out of the car like trash.
I look to the side and spot this great chick who catches the eye of every guy. She stands next to me, electrifying me with a look from those pretty eyes.
In a fairly short while, I was able to make her my toy, but with the return of Felix, I found that I had no time for her. I had to take care of my brother, who was in a nightmarish state.
- Hannah," I mutter under my breath, but quickly rouse myself as she grabs a glass of whiskey and pours the entire contents over me.
This girl has character and impressed me from the first meeting, but I don't like to be put in a state of misery and despair.
I wipe my face, get up from the chair and grab her hand, looking down at her with agitated eyes.
- You exaggerated, rat," I strain through my teeth.
- This is nothing compared to what you did to me. I was alone in an unfamiliar place, at night, with no way to get home.
- With your temperament, I knew you could handle it.
- You are mistaken," she replies to me, and tears appear in her eyes. This is astonishing. - I was scared as hell. I was afraid.
I look at her intensely, and she does not lower her gaze.
- I don't understand... after all, you wanted to get away from me. I only took you hostage, I wanted to play, I didn't expect Selena herself to send my brother away.
- Then you're an unlucky bastard, because you managed to like me," she replies openly.
I open my eyes wider, trying to suppress the laughter inside me, but eventually, it comes out that I am shocked.
- What, do you have Stockholm syndrome? Did you get attached to me that fast? - I ask her in an amused voice.
- It's not funny, I don't know what happened, but I can't stop thinking about you. I'm a chick who pounces on guys, I'm hard as a rock, so what happened in your case?
I roll my eyes, however, thinking that she is like any girl who quickly falls in love with my appearance and material status.
- You just felt that with me, you could be someone. It happened," I reply cheekily, letting go of her hand.
I'm about to leave, but stop in mid-step when she shouts across the bar, addressing me directly:
- Think what you want, but I'm a person who doesn't let go so easily! You turned my head, so you'll be mine, Lucas!
Standing with my back to her, I smile under my breath.
- Don't get ahead of yourself, rat, I'm going back to New York soon anyway," I answer her, then leave the bar, guessing that she will let it go after all.
And so there is no chance, I don't like girls who lose their heads for me so quickly.