CHAPTER 2

"Alright, we're done for today," The old Mr Lee waved a hand as he sipped his mug of coffee, "Goodbye, Darrien." The brown-haired boy stood up from his chair and started packing his books. "Oh, and may I ask...what time is it right now?" The old man added, looking up from his mug. "It's 5 o' clock, Sir." Darrien replied straightly and the man nodded. He continued packing his books, but was again interrupted by his tutor. "What time will Lillian be going out?" He asked.

"Uhmm..." The boy blurted and his cheeks turned bright red, "I don't know...8?" A drop of sweat trickled down his face as the old man chuckled. "8? That's late. It's not exactly the safest out there. What time can I expect her to be back?" Mr Lee retorted. "10? Maybe 11?" Darrien stumbled upon his words, "D-Don't worry. She'll be safe with me." The old man raised an eyebrow at the boy. "A-Ah...it wasn't my idea! She said she wanted to go, so I was just being nice and offered to bring her there!" The boy cried out in defense.

"Alright, alright. Go home and have a nice dinner, then." Mr Lee sighed as Darrien bowed and exited the house. The old man sat down on the couch alone and took another sip of coffee. He looked at his dull grey bedroom slippers that were worn on his feet. He closed his eyes and felt the wind coming from the open windows on his old skin. Then, he felt the couch sink in a little bit. He opened his eyes and looked to his right, only to be greeted by his lovely only granddaughter. 

"Hi, grandpa. Were you spacing out?" Lillian asked in a gentle voice. Her long chestnut hair was tied up in a messy ponytail and she gripped the material of her red sundress tightly in her small fists. "No, I'm okay." Her grandfather replied in a rather melancholic tone. "Spit it, grandpa. You look and sound so sad." Lillian said, her voice a little bit more annoyed and forceful. "Okay." The old man started and then paused for a while before continuing, "It's lonely here." "Oh." Lillian replied with understanding in her eyes, "But I'm here, aren't I?"

"Yes, but it's lonely without you. The only company I get is when Darrien comes around for tuition." He explained as his granddaughter nodded her head vigorously. "Well, doesn't he come around all the time?" Lillian raised an eyebrow. "Yes, but..." He sucked in a deep breath and spilled, "It's different from when your grandmother was here." Lillian could catch tears threatening to spill out from her old grandfather's eyes. She herself, too, was sad. Her grandmother had been such a great woman. 

"I..." Lillian began, not knowing what to say to comfort the poor man, "I'm sorry...I'm sad as well. I miss grandma as much as you do. She has always been there for us. That day in November, three years back...I never thought that day would come. We were preparing for Christmas, weren't we?" She smiled slightly to show comfort and she could feel her own tears trickling down her rosy cheeks. It was her grandfather, who didn't break and stayed strong and composed. "Yes, me too." Was his only reply, and silence enveloped them afterwards.

After a few minutes, Lillian finally got up from the couch and shot her grandfather a wide toothy smile, "Alright, it's time to cheer up, grandpa! What do you say we visit grandma tomorrow morning?" The old man looked up at his granddaughter in surprise of her sudden change of mood, and then smiled warmly. "Okay, tomorrow morning it is. I think she'll love it." He said as Lillian chuckled a bit. "She sure would." 

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It was 9 o' clock when the doorbell rang and Lillian straightened her red sundress. She grabbed her phone and tiptoed towards the door to open it, being ultra careful so she would not wake her grandfather up. If he did, she would get a whole lot of nagging and not be able to go out at all. She slowly pulled the door open and was greeted by the sight of the boy in a t-shirt and beach shorts. He looked absolutely stunning as ever, she had to admit. "Hi, Darrien." The girl whispered as she tiptoed out the door and sneakily shut it.

"Hello. Why are you being so secretive?" He asked casually. "My grandfather doesn't know I'm going out this late." Lillian explained in whispers, "If he did, I'll be grounded!" "Isn't that like...uhmm...sneaking out?" Darrien shot her an incredulous look, "And I'll be charged for kidnap if he catches us." "Don't worry. He won't." Lillian smiled another one of her signature toothy smiled and grabbed her new friend's hand, "Let's goo!" Darrien turned an unnatural shade of red as he nodded sheepishly and guided her towards the beach.

They walked along the uneven roadside in silence for a while. The brown-haired boy flushed continuously. The feeling of her small warm hand in his own felt magnificent. She never lost her warmness, just like a human flask. "How much further?" Lillian finally asked in a whiny voice. "Another 10 minutes and we'll be there." Darrien assured her and unconsciously squeezed her hand. She looked up at him with a confused expression etched on her face. Damn, did she look beautiful under the moonlight.

"S-Sorry." The boy apologized in embarrassment of his own actions. 'Brain, why do you do this to me?!' He mentally scolded himself as they continued walking. 5 minutes passed and they could at least hear the waves rushing up to the shore. "I can hear the water!" Lillian gasped excitedly, "We're near, aren't we?!" "Yes, we are." He smiled as he dragged her around a corner. Lillian jumped up and down in excitement at the sight of the dark moving waves.

Without further thinking, she let go of Darrien's almost paralyzed hand and ran towards the water. She stood right at the edge of the waves, the water tickling her small toes as the waves rushed in and out. She giggled to herself as the boy walked towards her and did the same thing. "So...how do you like it?" He asked. "I love it! It looks a bit scary though. I guess it's much better during the day." Lillian sighed and he nodded in agreement. "Much less scarier. And I usually come here with my friends during daytime." Darrien said.

"I see...it must be fun living around here." Lillian smiled. "I don't know. I've always wanted to live in the city..." Darrien's voice trailed off as he looked at the large full moon, "Say, how do you like the country life so far?" "It's beautiful here! It's so much better than the city, though it has less resources. The air's cleaner. The people are...different." Lillian answered. "How long are you going to be here?" The boy asked. "About...2 months. I have to go back to school after this." She said.

"Oh. I guess schools there must be bigger and more majestic as well. My school's around here. But it's the holidays now so...yeah." He said and she just nodded. They began to walk along the soft sand with nothing but the bright moonlight to guide them. "Want to join me and my friends here tomorrow morning?" Darrien suddenly piped up as the thought swam into his head. "I'm afraid I can't." Lillian replied softly in a sad tone, "I'm going to visit my grandma with my grandfather tomorrow morning. Sorry." "Oh." He said flatly, a little bit disappointed, "Your grandma? She doesn't live with you guys?" 

Lillian opened her mouth to say something but nothing but a croak came out of it. She shut her mouth immediately after and breathed in. "What's wrong? Did I...say something?" Darrien asked with an obviously concerned look on his face. "My grandma isn't with us anymore. She's gone. To a better place." Lillian mustered up all her strength to blurt out. That very second, Darrien mentally punched himself and apologized for asking such a stupid question.

"It's alright. It's not your fault. You didn't know." Lillian sighed, "She left us this month last year." "Hmm...a month before Christmas, huh? Sorry." The boy frowned. Lillian put on a cheery smile and placed a hand on his broad shoulder to assure him that it was fine. He smiled back and shook the depressing thoughts out of his head. They continued walking along the sand.