Lance
Aunt Christine went to Aera and held her hands. "Please visit here again. I would like to see you more," She then told Aera. "Let's go out with Lizzy, too. I heard a lot of stories about you from her. She really seems to like you. So I was excited about meeting you too. I didn't know you would be here. I should have prepared something you might enjoy." She added.
Aera nodded and typed on her phone. After she typed her reply, she smiled and showed it to Auntie.
'Thank you, Mrs. Espinoza. I am glad to meet you as well. I am looking forward to seeing you again next time. It would be more fun with Lizzy. Thank you for accepting me'
Uncle Abel, who is beside Auntie Christine, jerked his head as if he had read something not good. "Who would not like you? You are a sweet and kind child," Uncle Abel commented. "No wonder, Lauren―"
"Uncle," I interrupted. "Just no. Please, no. I am begging you." I pleaded. Aera looked at me, wondering. I waved my hands at her. "It's nothing. Do not mind it." I assured her.
The three looked at me, trying to suppress their laughter. I can only throw a death glare at Bricx. As much as I wanted to throw some kind of death glare at Auntie and Uncle, I couldn't. I wouldn't dare do that. So I have to give them all to their son, who is Bricx.
Well, I should really blame him since he never kept stories about me from his parents. Every time he hears a new rumor about me, he will make sure his parents know about it too. No wonder, Auntie and Uncle know me too much. I can't be with my family and his family. They are the ones who will kill me out of embarrassment. I am already old enough for that shit, but here I am saving myself from it.
Uncle Abel clapped his hands to gain Aera's attention. "As I was saying, Lauren likes you because you are so kind and charming," Uncle said, wriggling his eyebrows at me. "If you are not kind, do you think people would come to make friends with you? No, right? Why would they make friends with someone who is bad or a bad influence? Don't belittle yourself; you must be strong and capable. If someone makes fun of you, hit them." He continued, giving some bad advice.
"Uncle, don't teach him things only men would do." I scolded Uncle.
Bricx is already smiling widely at me. He really loved the scene of me, getting teased by his parents, and I hated it. They definitely know what, where and when to tease me.
"I think you should go. In this case, you won't be able to go out of this hotel if you keep talking to mom and dad." Bricx suggested.
I agree. We have already bid our goodbyes, but we are still here.
"Aera, please visit here again, okay?" Aunt Christine said, holding Aera's hands. "I can also teach you my cooking skills." She added.
Aera nodded and bowed at Auntie.
'Thank you very much. I will do that, Auntie. I am looking forward to learn from you~'
"We will go now, Auntie and Uncle." I bid my goodbye.
Auntie and Uncle nodded. "Okay, take care on the road. See you again!" Auntie Christine replied.
"Lance, you should go out and have fun sometimes, alright? You need the sun," Uncle Abel said. "Aera, please make him go out and have fun. He is working too much, he is very rich already. His mother does not want him to get married to his work." He added.
Aera smiled and nodded her head, as if she really got what Uncle Abel meant by that. I can't with this family, really. They are too much for me. Bricx is already enough to make my blood boil. He got his teasing trait from Uncle Abel, and I hate that.
I can't live another day with them under one roof. It would be the death of me if that happened.
After exchanging our goodbyes, I guided Aera and we headed out to the parking lot.
"How is it?" I asked Aera as I opened the car door for her.
She gave me two thumbs up and smiled happily.
"I am glad you enjoy it," I answered, and gently closed the door before moving to the driver's seat. "Like I told you before we went here, Bricx's parents were like mine. They are not strict and approachable." I added.
Before we went to UniSuites, Aera asked me multiple times if Bricx was only at his hotel. She is afraid that Bricx's parents might not like her. So, I had to assure her that Auntie and Uncle are also nice. She is being cautious about the people she is meeting.
She is still afraid of meeting new people. She still has trauma about people, although I noticed that she needs a little time to be comfortable with someone. She'd be fine if the person approached her gently or if she approached the person.
"Have you made new friends this week?" I asked as I started the engine.
I was waiting for her to show me her phone, but she did not, so I turned to her and saw her struggling with the seat belt.
"Why?" I asked.
She pouted and acted like she could not pull the seat belt.
"Wait," I replied, laughing at her reaction.
That was cute. I rarely see this frustrated expression on her face. I removed my seat belt and moved near her and pulled the seat belt over, but it was stuck, and it was hard to pull it out.
"I have to check this with a car repair shop later. Lizzy is complaining about this too," I shared as I tried to pull it out again. "There. Finally." I added and put the seat belt on her.
I looked at her and saw her as if she was frozen to her seat.
Stupid, Lance.
"Sorry, did I make you uncomfortable?" I asked worriedly.
I must have scared her. She immediately waved her hands at me. Worry was shown on her expression before turning to her phone to type something.
After typing, she showed me her phone.
'Sorry. I am fine. I am just a little bit surprised. I hope you will not find it bad'
I smiled at her. "Do not worry. It's fine. If I am making you uncomfortable, tell me immediately so that I will know what I should and should not do. Are we clear?" I told her and received a nod from her. "As much as possible, I don't want you to feel uncomfortable. Whatever situation it is, kindly tell me, okay?" I repeated my reminder to her.
She nodded, and a smile escaped her mouth.
"Good. Now that we are clear, let's go now," I added and started driving. "As I was saying a while ago, have you made new friends this week?" I asked her again.
She quickly types it on her phone and plays it using the word reader.
"I have a new friend named Aya. We have been hanging out a few times, and she introduced me to her friends. They are also kind and they like me."
I nodded. "That's good to hear." I responded.
She excitedly faced her phone to type again. Although I am just looking at her from my peripheral vision, I can still see her excited gestures.
"I am making a lot of friends now. And I can also feel that some of the students treat me normally too. I am really happy now."
Although the text reader is saying it without emotion, I can still feel the joy from Aera's message. I heard the news about what happened from Lizzy. I guess she did not want me to know about it, but Lizzy already shared it with me when she got home. I also remember the name Aya, who stood up for her that day.
It's a good thing that her friends, Leus and his teammates, went to help her. It's very useful to have them beside her, she is more safe than being alone. Now that she is making friends, she will be able to get some help quickly. I don't have to worry about her well-being inside the school.
I was really afraid of her condition and the bullying she gets from the other students. I see her happy with her new friends. I am fine with that and I feel relieved.
As much as I wanted to file a complaint against those girls who always bully her, Lizzy assured me that she had already told the guidance about it and would not think of letting it go if that kind of incident happened again.
I was about to ask her again when her phone rang. She answered the phone and put it on her ears. I can hear the voice asking her if she had already eaten her lunch. It must be Leus, her friend, since I can hear a manly voice greeting her joyfully.
"We still have practice here. I badly want to go home already. This is so tiring. Sometimes I wonder why I chose this path when I just wanted to be a chef. I don't get my own decisions either, but anyway, make sure to answer our assignment. Review for our report tomorrow too. Our leader said that we had the presentation ready with her. See it later when you get home and review it," I hear him reminding Aera. "If you find something hard to explain, message our group chat so that we can help you and explain it better. Ready your recordings too, so that we can just play them and have them ask you after our report." He added.
Aera is replying through chat. She was busy tapping on her phone.
"Yup! I am stronger than you know. I will just call you later, if you are free. You do not have to answer it if you are doing something, or you can just message me if you can't come to the phone. I am just checking on you, alright? Take care on your way home and rest." He said.
Why am I hearing it clearly? Was it just too quiet that I was able to hear their conversation, or is it just Aera's sound is at its max?
Weird.
I shouldn't have eavesdropped on their phone conversation, right? That's bad.
"I will! I will end the call now. Chat you later!" He said and bid his goodbye.
So do they also talk in the evening? Do they call each other in the evening too? They must be really close already.
I want to ask, but I do not want to sound like a nosy man prying into her life. I also know that Leus is kind and I can trust him with Aera, but still I am curious.
"Aah, Aera," I called her name. "What do you think about your friend Leus?" I asked.
I can see from my peripheral view how she quickly types on her phone. She put her phone near me and played it.
"Leus is very kind. He is taking care of me, which I am thankful for. So I am doing my best to take care of him too. If you meet him, you will see how good he is. He is good at cooking too. I learned a lot from him."
I nodded. "That's good to know. I can tell your closeness." I replied.
I do not know what to say anymore. I can't just tell her to go always be with him, right? She would not be able to see me if I told her that, and I do not want that to happen.
I met her first, so I still have the right to be with her. Right?