Chapter 47

"Reo... Reo!! "

"Heyy! Reo!!"

My thoughts were momentarily halted by the sound of familiar ambient voices, and for a second, I was able to stop my trembling fingers. The tears still flowed, but a different feeling slowly nestled in my mind as I shifted my gaze towards a certain direction the voices came from.

"Reo… Mr. Cliff…!"

The voices reached out to Cliff and I, beckoning out attention and recognition from down the hill. And towards the said direction, the cherry figures of four kids stood there in place, with broad broad welcoming smile and cherry gazes. 

Or at least Lia, Kyle, and Trise did. The blonde boy simply awkwardly turned his face towards a different direction.

Regardless of this, my heart sank with bubbling relief. But this sensation was quickly replaced and overwhelmed by another as I watched the beaming expressions of the kids.

At the same time, Cliff shifted his gaze at me, and donning a reassured smile, he said;

"I told you they'll be fine," pausing, he turned back towards the kids and added, " plus it looks like they've been waiting for you."

Treading carefully and steadily, Cliff made his way towards the children along with me on his back. But the closer he got with each step, the further my heart sank with darker despondency, and my body continued to tremble uncontrollably once more.

I couldn't do it...I couldn't bare to face them.

Without really knowing, my fingers had moved on its own, gripping Cliff's shirt from behind, signalling him to stop. At the same time I could feel Cliff's questioning and concerned gaze from over his shoulder.

Since Cliff wasn't going to, Instead the kids came to me.

Silently, I was let down on my own two unsteady feet. I couldn't muster the confidence to raise my head to meet the gazes of Leon and the rest.

"Reo! You big idiot! You idiot!! I knew you were alive! Don't scare me like that again, ever!" Before I could realize what happened, I ended up at the receiving end of Lia's rush, when suddenly, I was tackled down to the floor. A small grunt left my lips as within the time Lia's whole body mass rammed into my guts, and at the same time she did, I heard a crunch in the back.of my head, throwing me off my unsteady feet and to the ground, my vision momentarily shook.

"L...Lia..." I grunted, her whole weight press down on me.

'Dead! Dead! I'm gonna die!' feeling my bones in my broken ribs shift by just a fraction, my mind was attacked by a blinding pain for a brief moment.

"I'm glad... I'm glad..." At the same time Lia continued to sniffle quietly, burying her face in her palms, which from the crevices and gaps between her fingers, small beads of warm tears dropped against my face.

"..."

"I'm glad you're alive!" With her palms out of the way, Lia's scrunched up face, red and swollen from all the tears, forced a broad bitter smile.

Watching this, I found myself catching my breath for a few moments. Chewing down my lower lips I held back the raging surge of emotion inside of me, I forced a bitter sweet smile of my own and nodded.

"I'm glad I am too."

I hated myself.

"Ohho? I didn't think you were so raw Lia. Having the guts to jump Reo and pin him against the ground... that's bold.." 

"You two seemed to have suddenly gotten a lot closer behind our backs. I wonder what happened... please, do tell." Kyle added.

Strutting forward to our position, I could see Trise and Kyle, both sharing a strange smile, walking side by side. Each time Trise would throw a side comment, Kyle never failed to make a follow up with one of his own. Over all, they both seemd to be enjoying themselves, picking on Lia's innocence.

I felt Lia's gaze on me grow more... passionate, prompting my attention back at the little girl sitting right on me.

"Hap!!" I had the breath forced out of my lungs, before I could find myself constructing my next words, by what I could only describe as a phantom punch into my guts by Lia herself.

'Wh...why...?'

Was Cliff just gonna watch?!

Lia, using the next moments jumped off me me and panickly rushed off to hide behind Trise.

"Ah, R-Reo, I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!! I didn't mean to, it just happened!!" Suddenly all frantic and red in the face, Lia lowered her head in a bow and began a marathon of apologies.

"C'mon, you guys. Knock it off."

As I grovelled against the ground, beckoning the question 'Why' to the universe, Leon walked passed the kids and stood over me. He stared down against me silently for a few seconds with an unreadable...and evasive... expression.

'What, is he mad again?'

With some trouble I dragged .y battered body and only just managed to sit up. Just enough for me to awkwardly return Leon's gaze.

"Reo."

"...Leon." we simply said, acknowledging each other's attention.

Repressing the urge to look away, I managed to sit up and looked Leon back in his eyes. The silence hung for a few more moments between the both of us, when the blonde boy finally made a move.

"…I'm sorry." He lowered his head in an apology.

"What?" Almost immediately, I uttered thoughtlessly.

"I said I'm sorry. I'm apologizing for back then in the forest. I called you names and even hit you. I really thought you were an arrogant jerk who would be the first to turn tails and run if things went south... actually, it was more than that..." He paused, a strange repressed expression lingered on his face.

"...But I was wrong." Leon bowed deeply in an apology, his actions leaving me in a slight state of confusion at how to react.

It was a little bit awkward for me, having someone, Leon have his head lowered before me. I couldn't exactly relish this moment, plus, I also felt u deserving of it.

"Ah, well me too, I'm sorry as well. I said some harsh things back then also. It can't be helped that you hit me." with a share of remorse laced in my tone, I said, equally reflecting on my earlier action.

Leon let out a small sigh, a sigh so small it was barely noticeable, but still failed to miss my attention. He took two steps closer and leaned forward, offering a hand at me.

"So... Are we cool?" The blonde boy donned a small smile, his blue eyes, for the first time since I could recall, glistened with a mild amicable light directed at me.

Despite all of this... Reaching for Leon's outstretched hand, I couldn't find it in me to return the smile in kin.

"Yeah, we're cool."

And with his help, I was lifted up the ground, still a little hunched over and was surrounded...by friends.

It was around the same time I finally realized the the sun rising, as if to finally mark the end of everything. And judging from the awe filled expressions of the kids, it was also something that should have signified as fulfilling, as the day yesterday felt like eternity, filled with sorrow, harrowing anguish, pain....and lots of tears, finally came to what can more or less be described as a fulfilling ending. 

But instead, the climbing rays of light stood tall in the sky as a stark realization of my inequity.

And thus ended my first adventure in my second life