Chapter 42 - Less Than Lovers

"What do you mean?" I was not sure of the invitation he was talking that was why I asked him right away. Mama just went outside to buy some snacks.

"We'll climb a mountain, and we'd like you to join us." It meant another mountain climbing. It seemed exciting.

"What mountain?" I immediately asked. Better to be sure before agreeing.

"Mountain Head."

"But it is prohibited to climb that mountain. People believe that demons went to live there. However, for me, nothing is off about the mountain. In fact, it is just an ordinary mountain. The police might put us in jail if they catch us climbing it. We can't risk our future."

"It's Zen's plan and we'll climb Mt. Head during her birthday. I'm assuming that one of her birthday wishes is to see you and to be with you during the mountain climbing. It seems that she wants to show the beauty of Mt. Head to you. It looks like she is trying her best to let you see that she can be a nice person again. It can be an adventure for us. It would be our last mountain climbing before we graduate from college. You don't need to worry because we won't do nasty things there. Rest assured that nothing wrong will occur. We'll go there at dawn, so that no one could notice us climbing the mountain. I hope you can join us, kitty. And don't forget that you can bring Draco with you."

I gave myself some minutes to decide whether I would come or not. I also thought of Draco. I was not sure if he would accompany me in a mountain climbing again.

"Tell Zen that I'll come. I’ll convince mama to let me join you, guys. I don’t want to be a killjoy also."

"Yes!" he exclaimed, but with a moderate voice. He was also smiling. "I'm definitely excited!"

"Me too."

I knew that mama would let me join them in the mountain climbing because she was supporting whatever I wanted. Moreover, she also knew that I would be with Dego which meant that I would be safe and that nothing bad would happen. My mama trusted Dego because she knew him and his family way back when we were young. He was definitely a well-raised son. Becoming part of CINCO did not make him ruthless because he chose not to get involved every time others had to do something horrible. He just became part of the group because Lura was his girlfriend. It was his way to support her even he did not really want to be one of them.

"I'll just text you the date and the things that you should bring." It was so calming to see him smiling while he was inside our house. It made me remember the old days.

"Lift me up! Waaa...I'm so excited!" I exclaimed, trying to convince him to sit on the other edge of the seesaw.

"Y-you! Y-you made me cry!" He was still sobbing, but I could not stop myself from smiling because I had made him cry.

"That's how I love you. I made you cry because I love you," I joked. I was just trying to make him feel that I did not intend to play with his feelings. He was so cute when crying, so I decided to hide his toy gun. It was a plastic toy gun with a color resembling the hue of charcoals and about six inches long.

"I don't want to play with you huhuhu. I couldn't forgive you!" He was trying to catch his tears using his palms and seeing him like a crying baby pinched my heart. I felt guilty of what I did to him. He was my only playmate, but I could not stop myself from being so silly to him.

"Stop crying please. Okay. I'm sorry. I promise you that I won't to do it again. Just dry your tears and I won't make you cry again. That's a promise." I smiled to him as he was trying to dry his tears using the handkerchief that he had just got from the pocket of his pants.

"Just make sure of your promise ha. I don't want to cry again. It doesn't look good for a cute boy like me to cry like this." For me, he was cuter when he had tears on his pinkish cheeks. At the age of eight, we were like doves, naively flying on the vast sky where the direction of winds was unpredictable.

"I promise."

"Kitty?" he called.

"Ah...S-sure! Just send me a message," I replied with a smile.

I joked him before when I said that I made him cry because I loved him as a friend. I never thought that I would love him more from afar even we separated ways. And when our paths met again, the love grew. But I did not have the confidence those time to approach him and tell him my feelings. I lost the chance. Lura won his heart. Sometimes, a person fell for someone who was there during the times that he or she needed a shoulder to lean on.

"Sure thing! But I better go. Lura texted me a while ago. She needs my help to lift the decorations that she brought for her room. See you in the campus!" The way he told me about how Lura needed him was admirable. I could tell that he really loved her and that I should be contented on my role in his life. I should be happy that I was his friend.

He told me that he could not wait for mama to come back because he was in a hurry. He stood up and I just led him to the door until he bid goodbye and finally went away. I already made him cry more than twice that was why I would not bother his heart anymore. He was my only crush. I liked him. I loved him. But we were meant to be just friends… Less than lovers.

"Don't let me journey alone," I whispered after I sent the message to Draco. I was sweating and my hands were trembling even I had already sent the message. I felt anxious on what he would reply. I asked through a text message if he could accompany in a mountain climbing once again.