Chapter 17: Chapter 17

Traizle

Zarsuelo suddenly embraced me.

"Mentioning someone who is not worthy of your voice can make them sound worthwhile," Zarsuelo said. "Don't be mad at me for hugging you. Let me do it for a minute." he added.

To lessen the awkwardness I am feeling, I am doing my things quickly. My heart is beating fast as if I am running endlessly. I can hear the beatings of my own heartbeat. I hope he can't hear it. I would die of embarrassment if he did.

"You are so fluffy, and you smell so good. What shampoo or perfume are you using?" He commented.

I hit his hands that were embracing me. "You can now stop hugging me." I told him.

I could feel him shaking his head behind me. "Can we still stay for a few minutes? I still wanted to hug you. You are skinny yet fluffy. Be my wife, I will promise to be good and handsome as always." He said, so I hit his arm hard enough to cause him to remove his hands from me. "Ouch! You are ruining the lovey-dovey moments we are having!" He complained. "I know you are somewhat cold or just shy, but can you just let this one pass?" He added.

"Not me!" I exclaimed and faced him.

"But I want you!" He retorted. "I don't want anyone else aside from you now," he added. "No one else can show good reactions to my bugging style except you." he continued.

I glared at him. "I am not your toy, asshole." I cursed at him. I suddenly had this urge to throw this boiling water at him.

He raised his hands and said, "I can be your toy or pet, I am willing!"

"I don't want you." I answered.

"I will squeeze myself into you!" He replied.

I finished cooking with Zarsuelo bugging me. I even pinched him, but he never surrendered to teasing me. He only stopped when Lyndon came.

"Traizle, did you talk with Layzen's babysitter already?" Lyndon asked while eating. We finished eating when Lyndon came, so he was eating by himself.

"Someone will babysit Layzen?" Zarsuelo butted in.

I turned to him. "We need to. So that Lyndon can focus on his studies. It's better for us because he can watch Layzen and won't get worried about leaving him alone." I explained.

His forehead creased. "What? He? I thought it was only for girls?" Zarsuelo asked again.

I couldn’t help but to roll my eyes at him. "Now you know." I replied.

He shook his head and said, "But I don't want him already, can you find someone who is a girl? I can find one if you want me to—"

"You don't have to." I said, cutting him off.

He shook his head again. "I insist. Layzen might find him cooler than I do." he complained. "Why are you worried about that?" Lyndon asked him.

He then turned to Lyndon. "Of course, I should be. I don't want to lose a friend," he answered. "You might also find him okay and you will start to play with him. You all will abandon me." he added, pouting.

"Don't worry, Matthew," Layzen said, consoling Zarsuelo. "We are still playmates. You can be friends with him if you want to." he added.

Layzen is thinking more maturely than Zarsuelo. After a long talk with oddball, I decided to go outside and breathe some fresh air.

"What are you doing here?" Zarsuelo asked. "I went out because I didn't want to see you, but here you are again." I answered.

I thought I could cleanse my mind, and it is now just a thought. "That is bad. I came here just to see you, but you are not happy with it? It is unfair," he complained, sitting beside me. "Don't make friends with the babysitter, okay?" He spoke.

"Who are you to give an order?" I asked.

"I am your boss?" He answered, not sure of his answer. "Ah! I am your future one." he added.

"Future or dark future?" I mocked him.

He pouted. "You have rejected me thrice already. So cold-hearted." Zarsuelo said, complaining.

"I won't fall for your tricks, Zarsuelo. I was not born just to be stupid." I replied.

Silence ensued. He didn’t say anything and just stood beside me. I looked ahead and saw the stars shining.

"My ex-girlfriend broke up with me because I stopped giving her so-called happiness." he suddenly shared.

I looked at him. He was looking at the night sky. "So called happiness?" I asked in confusion.

"When we say happiness, it means a feeling of contentment," he explained. "She does not feel contented, like my parents. As a handsome human living on this earth, I waited for her to break up with me." he added.

My forehead creased. "What?" I asked again.

"I stop myself from giving her favorite ones. She can shop all day, all night with my money. So, I blocked her black card." He continued.

So, it was a money issue? I don't think she loves him at all. Giving advice, I told him, "You can still find someone who can love you and not your money."

"I found her already. She is sitting beside me." Zarsuelo said, looking at me.

"Scram!" I replied.

He shook his head. "Don't want to," he responded. "When I was young, I met someone," he shared again. "She told me that I am still lucky. I should make good use of what I have instead of using it for bad purposes. She couldn't have it, so I should be thankful." he continued.

I agree with what she has said. "She is right, you are indeed lucky. So use it in a good way. None of us can have what you have already." I added.

"I thought that she was the coolest person I knew that day," he replied. "I can still remember her, but I don't think she can remember me." he added.

This time, I glanced at him with curiosity. "Why? Has something happened to her?" I asked.

He shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe there is. I am rich now. I thought she would find me or something, but she never went to me or told anyone that she knew me. Do you think she has forgotten me already?" He asked back.

"Maybe," I answered back. "You will never know unless you meet her again." I added.

He smiled, looking back at the night sky. This is the first time I saw him being serious. This is also the first time he shared something about his past—himself. "You should go home and rest. We still have work tomorrow." I told him.

"You know what, I realized that living in this small house is much better and better than in my own house." he replied.

"Because you are alone?" I asked him back.

"That is one of the reasons too. I don't have anyone to talk to there or anyone to hug there. Unlike here, there is someone whom I can hug while she is cooking." he replied, going back to his oddball self.

"Scram, Zarsuelo!" I exclaimed.

He stood up from his seat. “It was nice to hug you. I will make sure to hug you as well tomorrow," he teased. "I am going home now. Don't miss me too much, okay?" He added.

"Miss your ass." I responded.

Scram, Zarsuelo. Scram!