Chapter 99- A Snippet Of The Past (Part 1)
The two walked in complete silence for a while. It wasn't that Rin didn't know what to say but he wanted Elise to calm down first before he actually can speak to her again.
Soon, they reached a beautiful park with a few people sitting on benches, reading a book or admiring the natural scenery around them.
"Let's sit there."
Walking to a random yet secluded seat, they sat down. Rin then looked around him searching for something. Luckily, slightly far away from them, he saw a small shop that seemingly sold ice cream. It wasn't the same exact ice cream as the one he was accustomed to but it was still delicious.
"Do you want some ice cream? It's on me."
"No, I don-"
"Do you like strawberry or vanilla flavor?" He cut her off and didn't allow her to refuse. He knew that Elise was refusing out of guilt and not because she didn't want some ice cream.
But, now that he closed any possible escape route for her, she could only agree.
"Vanilla."
"Ok, wait a moment. I will be back."
He then walked to the ice cream shop, and the worker there seemingly saw the interaction between Rin and Elise. He could clearly discern the weird mood the gorgeous girl was in from one single glance.
"Hello, can I have two scoops of vanilla ice cream and one scoop of chocolate ice cream?" Rin asked while oblivious to the man still eyeing him.
"Right away. Mm, may I ask if your lady is ok?"
Rin was slightly surprised but then calmly responded.
"Does she look that way to you?"
"I can see how close both of you are. She can only be your girlfriend, am I wrong?"
"She's not."
"Really? Then you must be very close." The shop owner said, blinking a few times.
"You can say so."
"If you don't mind me asking, why is she sad?" The old man asked again as he scooped another spoon of ice cream and put it in a small container.
For some reason, Rin didn't feel any malicious intent from this old man when he asked so he just answered while keeping many things unknown.
"She had a rough childhood and it's affecting her life even now."
"Oh my. That must be tough."
"It is. So here I am, buying her a few scoops of ice cream and hoping she could get better. I don't really know what else to do." A flash of complex emotions appeared in Rin's eyes.
"You don't have to worry. Having someone who deeply cares for her just like you is more than enough to heal the deepest of wounds. Don't underestimate the small things as they are what create big things."
"Sigh, maybe you are right. But, I know that simply won't be enough this time."
Thinking for a little bit, the old man smiled and replied.
"How about you do this…"
Then, he whispered something to Rin that only the two of them heard.
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Elise was still fighting with her own thoughts oblivious to what Rin was doing.
'I almost killed him. I almost killed someone I considered a friend.' She kept saying to herself again and again like a cursed mantra.
She could clearly recall the memories that she sealed in her head all this time igniting again. Even though weeks passed since that nightmare she had, she was still scared of sleeping from time to time. It was still haunting her mind even though she knew and was aware that it was nothing but her imagination taunting her and playing with her sanity. No matter how much she tried to ignore it, it would still come back to her even stronger than before.
'Should I just detach myself from Rin before I end up hurting him badly? Yes, that sounds like a good idea.'
For Rin to not get hurt or to get in deep trouble because of her, she decided to just start working alone. He was just an innocent friend that she could drag with her to trouble even though he didn't anything wrong.
The more she thought about that, the more she found it the best course of action for the two of them. Elise simply doesn't deserve any friends or people that she can care for, she should just be alone forever and ever. That's how she was meant to live for the rest of her life and that's exactly what she needed to do.
'I don't even want to know why I tried to change that. I should've kept away from everyone.'
Getting to know Rin made her think that she might have a chance at creating relationships with others and learning how to love or care for someone else. But, it seems that she was too naive thinking it was all good and dandy.
The gloom around Elise kept getting stronger and stronger the more she was left alone. Fifteen minutes passed and Rin still didn't come back.
Then, out of nowhere, Elise felt a cold sensation on her cheek which made her flinch instinctively. Looking to the side, she saw Rin holding two ice cream cones.
"Missed me?" He asked with a joking tone.
But, Elise was in no mood to retort to his jokes and merely took the cone and looked at it silently. Rin also sat down and started eating his ice cream.
But, when he looked to the side, Elise was still looking at the cone as if she was admiring a piece of art.
"You don't like it?" He asked.
"No… It's just…"
"Try it, it's good." He said.
Nodding her head, she extended her small tongue and licked the ice cream lightly. Luckily for Rin, she seemed to have enjoyed it since her face lightened up a bit. Even though she had already thought about starting the conversation and saying what she needed to say, she instead found herself enjoying some ice cream instead.
"Did you like it?"
"Not bad…"
"Well, did it make you feel better?"
"Slighty…"
"Good…"
"I think we should start working separately…"
Rin halted eating for a second then resumed as if nothing had happened. His face was as calm as ever.
"You saw how I acted before. I almost ruined everything. It's not ideal for you to bet on me not ruining things again." Her face was as calm as ever but only Rin understood how hard it was for her to say that.
"Sigh…" After shaking his head, Rin extended his hand and flicked her forehead lightly.
"That's my answer for you."
"...What?"
"For a smart person, you have a dumb side, Elise." He said lightly.
"Well, my answer is a hard no. Did you forget that we are friends? I don't give up on my friends just because they are struggling with a problem."
"But…"
"No buts… We are partners and we will stay partners until one of us grows bored of the other."
Elise was speechless at Rin's stern tone. He gave her no way of retorting back. Why was he so adamant about letting her drag him down like that? Is he a masochist? An idiot or maybe both? She didn't know the answer.
"Our lives are not certain, Elise. We don't know when we might die or when the worst could happen. Having two people is better than one after all. And if I know one thing for certain, it's that you are going to beat whatever is dragging you like that. I said it before and I will say it now and as many times as you want 'Don't give up on yourself, Elise'."
Rin knew how dangerous it was to actually lose hope in oneself. It was worse than death as, at that moment, the person becomes an empty shell of their old self. They lose their ambitions, goals, and their wishes. It's akin to a guillotine that kills one's soul.
He knew that if Elise was left alone, she will definitely break apart like a house of cards. Thus, he must not let her do that and end up regretting it forever. Elise was his closest friend, a person he can trust and a kind soul who although hides behind a cold facade, still care for those that need help from her.
After that Rin ate whatever was left of the ice cream and continued.
"So, are you going to tell me what ran through your head when you tried to attack Phillipe? Maybe I can help you with it."
Elise closed her eyes and took a deep breath and opened her mouth to start speaking. For the first time in ages, she finally spoke about her past a little bit. A snippet of what made her reach this point.
(I'm slowly burning this part just to finish the last touches on Elise's character development for the time being. Then, we will be submerged into madness again.)
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