The Bond

Ch 112

"Bold."/"Bold italic" : animatronic is talking/animatronic is talking in mind

"Normal."/"Normal italic." : human is talking/human is talking in mind

=o^o=

"So, are you really okay here?" Michael put a spoonful of soup into his mouth after asking, looking curiously at Lucy who was sitting opposite him. Lucy stared back at him confusedly, didn't seem to understand the point of his question. He leaned back against the head of the chair and folded his arms across his chest. "Well, Ennard seems worried—"

"He's worried?" Lucy interrupted Michael quickly, she was more dumbfounded by that than about Michael's question. "Him?" Lucy glanced at Ennard who was charging in the corner of the living room. "Okay, sorry to cut your words earlier, but Ennard and worry is the worst combination ever, you know?"

Michael refrained himself from chuckling. "Come on, he's changed a lot," he shot back. "Ennard used to shoo me away whenever I got too close to him and now he likes to be around me. Why do you think he chose to charge there," Michael pointed at the animatronic, "when he usually charging himself in a bedroom?"

"But it's you!" Lucy narrowed her eyes at Michael for a moment. "And it's me, I'm not you, and knowing Ennard seems worried about me? It feels horrible, scary."

Hearing that, Michael silently agreed and nodded understandingly. "Anyway," he said after that, he spooned the soup into his mouth again in a moment. "Ennard's a bit concerned, he told me a few things in the house have changed, like the arrangement of the furniture."

After Michael's explanation, Lucy seemed to understand. "I moved it." She giggled. "I can't believe he can feel worry about a small thing like that."

"I know why, your apartment was bugged once." Michael looked at Lucy closely. "Maybe that's why Ennard stayed up all night and rummaged around."

"That's why this house was such a mess when I woke up."

Michael grinned. "I helped him."

"But it's nice to know he feels that way," Lucy responded, she sounded sincere. Then she seemed to remember something and immediately leaned over to Michael excitedly, making Michael frown briefly. "Don't you know Jillian Hall?"

Michael automatically groaned in annoyance and rolled his eyes in boredom. "She was so annoying." Michael stirred the soup carelessly. "But I never knew she was lesbian—or maybe bisexual? She was always changing boyfriends back in high school."

Lucy's smile widened. "Regardless, I'm lucky she gave me her number."

Michael snorted. "She was a popular student, her friends were more irritating. I was already quite depressed by the death of my siblings and they were always making fun of me—except for Hall, Hall never physically bullied me but only made some weird assumptions about my family, so there was a lot of gossip going around." The eldest Afton grumbled.

"I called her several times before you guys came actually, we talked for a while and then slipped into high school memories a little bit." Lucy took a sip of her tea. "She told me about this boy she often bothered at lunch and she feels guilty about ... looks like it was you."

"How did she describe me?"

"Brown hair, blue eyes, short."

"Short? My height is still quite normal!"

Lucy grinned, looking Michael up and down. "It's still kind of short for a 26-year-old male like you. You must have been shorter at 17, so I can't blame Hall for calling you short."

"That damn bully."

"But blue eyes? Wow." Lucy cupped her chin with the back of her hand, she looked into Michael's purple eye.

"My father had blue eyes, my mother had green eyes. Everyone always said I looked a lot like my dad, like a copy of him. Yuck. Hearing that from when I was small to growing up pissed me off a lot."

Lucy chuckled. "Now that your eye is purple because Ennard killed you, I don't think it's a big deal anymore."

Michael just shrugged his shoulders, he stared back at the girl concernedly. "But you really are fine, aren't you?" he asked, sounding really worried this time. "You're getting involved in our troubles," he said quietly, feeling guilty.

A smile plastered on Lucy's face again, she stood up and approached Michael to pat his shoulder briefly as a sign that Michael didn't have to worry about it all. "I'm fine" Lucy said, she took her cutlery and put it in the sink.

At least that relieved Michael, a little. He watched as Lucy stepped towards the clothes hanger in the living room, his eyebrows pulled up. "Where are you going?"

"Buying more flower seeds," Lucy answered cheerfully. "Since you guys left, I've been spending time planting flowers in the backyard." Lucy put her coat on and faced Michael who stood up. "You don't have to come, Mike, I won't be long."

Michael pursed his lips. "But ..."

"I can take care of myself." Lucy cut him off and smiled reassuringly. "It's alright. The shop isn't too far from here."

"Fine."

Lucy smiled wider and immediately opened the door, she was about to step out but she stopped to turn around again and looked back at Michael. Her smile was sweet and genuine. "I'm happy I met you and Ennard."

After that Lucy's figure was no longer visible after the door was closed, and Michael couldn't get rid of this bad feeling.