Chapter 26: Memories When It Rains

Lucia felt a strange sense of unease as Chris made it clear that there were times when he, Bryan and Pierre felt jealous of the closeness between Lucia and Leo.

To be honest, Lucia never expected that such a thing would ever exist in such a strange friendship. And now, if Chris said it frankly, Lucia felt that it seemed impossible to happen.

It used to be very clear that they hated her for all her ruthlessness, aggression and brusque nature. Although there was a point where she felt that they were always there when she needed them.

"Jealous, huh? I can't believe that such a thing ever happened!" She said with an awkward smile.

"You used to be very close to Leo, if you weren't there, you would have looked for him immediately. Whenever there was a pair group assignment, you would definitely pick him. If I say it now, it might sound pretty ridiculous, right?" Chris felt guilty for saying something awkward like that.

"It's okay! I used to think only Leo really wanted to play with me!"

"Oh, I see?"

"Hahaha...after all, he never protested every time I told him to do this and that! But, now he's become a little annoying!"

"Annoying?"

"Yeah! He often teases me! I'm curious, how many women has he attracted with his delinquent appearance? And what's with the tattoo on the back of his neck? He's becoming more and more like a thug!" Lucia continued to protest everything that was inside Leo even though the person wasn't here.

Chris chuckled, he felt that Lucia really hadn't changed. She still pays attention to even the smallest details.

"You used to help me when I fell into a hole in the woods behind the school. Do you remember?"

"Help you? Really?" Lucia asked. She felt a little forgotten about the incident Chris meant.

"In the fall of 2000, I was going to ask mom to knit a scarf back for you and when it rained I took shelter in an empty building and was chased by a stray dog. I fell into a big hole and couldn't get out, I waited for six hours until it finally arrived. You came to save me."

"Really? I forgot about it a little!" Lucia tried to remember the incident Chris had said and although she was starting to remember it, she felt that it wasn't an important enough memory.

"Is that so? You don't remember much!" Chris smiled sadly and from the look on his face he looked disappointed. It made Lucia feel guilty for being insensitive to Chris' feelings.

The atmosphere became silent, each of them just stared at the rain from behind the shop glass. It was raining, right, watching the rain fall could make Lucia remember the incident. As she picked up Chris and carried him out of the hole all the way to his house. But what happened after that was beyond expectation.

That night...

"Oh my God, Chris...!" Chris' mother cried hysterically when she saw Chris come home.

His house was filled with local residents and police trying to find his whereabouts. But that night, he came home with Lucia who faithfully carried him to his doorstep.

"Mom?" Chris' eyes were wet. After getting off Lucia's back, Chris immediately hugged his mother.

"Oh my God, where have you been, my dear? I was so worried about you!"

"Mom, forgive me...!"

"You said you didn't know where Chris was? Why is he with you now?" Instead of hugging his son. Chris' father actually approached Lucia who was very tired because she had to carry Chris for 30 minutes.

Lucia looked confused, but in front of her, Chris' father looked coldly at her as if she was the one to blame for Chris' disappearance.

"Dad, that's not Lucia! I was chased by a dog and fell in a hole. Lucia found me!" Chris fearfully defended Lucia even though he knew his father would not listen to him.

"How many times have I told you never to hang out with her? Why don't you understand too? Do you think I don't know that she beats you often?"

"B-but, Dad-"

"Honey, never mind! Don't talk about things like that just yet! Lucia who helped Chris, we have to thank her!"

"If you ever try to hurt my son one more time, I'll teach you a lesson!" He said threatening. Everyone in the place didn't dare to say anything, considering Chris's father's reputation as a respected doctor and head of the biggest hospital in this city and also almost everyone in this city already knew how naughty Lucia was so it was natural for parents to dislike her, if their children play with her.

Hearing the ultimatum from Chris' father, did not make Lucia flinch at all. She returned the gaze of Chris' father as if to show resistance. The parents think, how can there be a child like her? And how did her parents raise her? Even in the midst of the commotion in this city, Lucia's parents' faces were nowhere to be seen.

"All right, Uncle! It's okay for me to lose a friend. But ask your son, is he ready to lose a friend?"

Today...

Chris' face reddened at the memory. Until now he still felt very embarrassed because he couldn't say anything at that time. When Lucia was gone, when everyone was saying bad things about her, about her anti-social family, about her parents fighting and making a lot of noise and the times when Lucia left to talk to him for a long time.

Chris should be happy because when Lucia ignored him and stopped bothering him, he was no longer hurt from being hit or dropped, he no longer had to do Lucia's homework or do everything Lucia told him to do. But what he felt at that moment was sadness because he realized that the only person who always helped him at the worst times was Lucia.

Chris took a pen and a small notebook from his coat pocket and scribbled something on the paper.

"This is the address of the apartment I live in in London, complete with floor and unit number, address of the hospital where I work, mobile number and my home phone number. If you need my help, you can contact me. I know this will not be able to repay what you have done me that day, but just like you, I also want to do the best I can to help you when you need my help."

Lucia was stunned, she felt very touched. If she stayed here a little longer, she might cry.

"Okay, thanks Chris! Looks like I have to go home now. It's starting to rain too!" She said as she rose from her place restlessly. Chris also got up and with them walked towards the door of the shop to the terrace of the crepes shop.

"How about I take you home?"

"No, I'll just take the bus! If you left suddenly Molly would cry when she found out you weren't here!"

"She won't cry as long as Leo is around! I think maybe Leo deserves to be his dad more!"

"Leo? No! What woman would want to marry an aimless, delinquent man like him!"

"How about you?"

"Me? If I could choose, I would choose a nice, polite and gentle man like you!" Spontaneously said. Until she realized there was something wrong with her words when Chris laughed softly. Lucia was stunned, Chris' laughter never changed. Very warm and also makes anyone who sees it will feel stunned.

"Is that so? How about you marry me?"

"No kidding, Chris! You don't have to force yourself to fulfill your stupid pact. I know you really don't want to marry a woman like me!"

"How do you know?"

"Of course! Otherwise, you would never have made such a pact!"

Lucia smiled sadly, she tried to hide her low self-esteem because she was not considered worthy to be a wife. She was quite self-aware and didn't want them to bring it up again. But Chris who was standing in front of her was silent and didn't know what he could say to tell Lucia that they were the ones who were stupid because of her true worth and when she suddenly disappeared, it was very difficult for them to find the sincerity she once gave them.

Srrrrtt...

A car drove fast on a wet road, causing puddles of water to splash on the road. Chris realized that he immediately pulled Lucia's body and subconsciously hugged her so that the water hit her.

The incident that happened so quickly made Lucia very surprised. Now all she could realize was Chris' strong arms embracing her body tightly. The hug from his hand was so strong that Lucia realized that the weak and whiny Chris was gone, now the one with her was a strong and reliable man.

Heartbeat...

Lucia felt her heart skip a beat. She felt that she was too close to Chris so she felt very nervous. Realizing that Lucia was feeling nervous, Chris hastily let go of his embrace with a blush on his cheeks which showed that he was very embarrassed.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"N-nothing! It's not your fault. Don't worry about it!"

***