The moment the teenage girls and Gulnas were out of sight, swallowed by the human sea, Misha turned on his heels and sprinted off to who knew where. Without a single glance backward, the boy rushed into the crowd, leaving a dumbstruck Gabriel behind him.

“….?!”

Soon enough, Misha heard Gabriel calling his name amidst the noises of the amusement park. But he didn’t look back and instead shouted to cover up the background noise, “You’re the cat!”

That being said, Misha let out a loud laugh before zigzagging his way through the crowd, running as fast as his small legs allowed him to. From time to time, he veered to the left, then to the right, trying to make it harder for Gabriel to follow him. It was already difficult to find his little, blonde head among the crowd of adults and teenagers, and with him running all over the place...

Still, Misha knew that it wasn’t enough to shake off the teenager. Although that guy was a bookworm, he was also a sports freak. If there was one thing he didn’t lack, it was stamina—unlike Misha, who was already panting his lungs out.

“Wait, wait, wait! Misha, wait! Please, stop running!” Gabriel screamed like a broken record, avoiding and apologizing to the passersby who crossed his path.

But Misha blatantly ignored him. It was as if he had suddenly turned deaf.

The reason for fleeing was simple. If Gabriel were to lose him in the middle of an amusement park, how would his mother and sister react? Even if they didn’t cut the teenager out of their life, he would undoubtedly lose a few points. They wouldn’t hold him in high esteem anymore, making it easier for Misha to plot against him.

Of course, the idea of frightening his loved ones and wrecking his sister’s birthday didn’t rejoice Misha; it even made him hesitate. But in the end, he had no other choice. If he waited for too long, Masha would grow more attached to Gabriel, and this trick wouldn’t have the same impact as it would today. 

Moreover, such a good opportunity was rare to come by. Misha thus pushed aside his misgivings, telling himself that he would make it up to his sister and organize the best birthday party ever for her next birthday. As long as the slag man wasn’t in their life anymore, everything would be alright, and the days, full of sunshine.

Misha took a deep breath and comforted himself. Yes, he didn’t have a choice but to ruin his sister’s special day. It was inevitable, and he didn’t have to feel guilty about it—he was doing it to save her life!

Although his mind was busy, his speed didn’t slow down. Misha recklessly moved around, almost bumping into the passersby every two seconds, always avoiding them by an inch. He had to run faster, so much faster.

‘After reuniting with mom and sis’, I’d have to put on a good show to discredit everything Gabriel will say,’ Misha thought. He pondered over it as he ran, and an idea finally popped into his mind after seeing a man on the phone.

What about this? It wasn’t him who started to run around without warning; no, it was all Gabriel’s fault. He was busy talking on the phone with another girl, too wrapped up in his conversation to notice his disappearance. If Misha added teary eyes to his words, it’d set his mother and sister on fire, and the scolding would only become fiercer. Yup. It was perfect.

However, Misha had forgotten one little thing; he currently had the body of a nine-year-old kid, which didn’t have the same endurance as his adult body. In addition, it wasn’t in good shape.

Before long, Misha felt sick to his stomach, and after a short while, his legs seemed to turn to jelly. Once again, the aftereffects of transmigrating into his younger self started to show up. Goddammit, it was so annoying! What about his grand plan?!

But his body couldn’t care less about his feelings, and Misha soon wasn’t able to run anymore. Once his legs gave up, he almost fell to his knees, gasping for breath.

Gabriel wasn’t far behind. And thus, he caught up with him in no time. The teenager put a hand on his shoulder, holding him in place as Misha was about to fall head first onto the ground. 

“I caught you,” Gabriel wheezed. “I won.”

Misha had small legs, but he sure knew how to use them. Even if it wasn’t as hot as yesterday, the sun was still shining bright in the sky, burning people’s skin, and their game of “Cat and Mouse” ended up being quite tiring. Every time the teenager was about to grab his tiny arm, the kid veered and dodged his hand at the last minute.

That game of “Cat and Mouse” had been a little infuriating, if he was honest.

“...You were supposed to let me win!” Misha grunted, puffing out his cheeks while glaring at Gabriel. “You’re a bad adult!”

How was Gabriel supposed to answer that...? He wasn’t even an adult, for starters!

The child didn’t give him the time to think of a reply, demanding with the tone of a king, “Buy me ice cream! Then I’ll forgive you. Maybe.”

Since Gabriel was loaded, Misha thought that he might as well lighten his wallet a little. The ice cream was only the beginning of a long list. As a kid, wouldn’t it be expected that he wanted many useless things that cost an arm and a leg at the amusement park? And Misha knew perfectly well that Gabriel had never loved to rack his brain over minor problems. If money could put an end to his tantrums, then he’d gladly bring out his wallet.

“Sure,” Gabriel coaxed as he suppressed a sigh.

Squinting, Gabriel looked around. Amidst the numerous stalls, he noticed the pink and blue sign of a small ice cream shop and a bench not too far away. But before buying the child’s ice cream cone, he took a bottle of water out of his backpack and gave it to the boy. “It’s better to drink a few mouthfuls of water. You ran a lot.”

A hint of worry glinted in the teenager’s emerald eyes. Just yesterday, the kid fell on the bed, knocked out in a second. He said he was fine this morning, but that was obviously a lie. Before Mrs. Brown left with the teenagers, she had told him, again and again, to take care of her stubborn son. He had to call her immediately if Misha seemed too tired or if the fever seemed to have returned. They would then leave asap.

With this in mind, Gabriel observed the small flushed face for a second before putting his hand on the child’s forehead, verifying the temperature. Although his face was red, he didn’t seem to be feverish. Good.

When Misha saw the hand rapidly getting closer to his forehead, he instinctively froze, his whole body tensing up. His grip around the bottle tightened, and the plastic made a crushing sound. Since the bottle was open, the water came up, soaking his white sailor t-shirt, but he didn’t notice it.

“Hey…? Are you alright?” Gabriel asked, removing his hand before crouching in front of the boy. “You don’t look good.”

Misha refused to meet his eyes, turning his head to the side. “Yeah, I’m fine. Perfectly fine.”

“You are sure?”

“Yes! Of course! Why wouldn’t I be fine? But I’ll feel even better after eating an ice cream cone!”

“Ok, ok, I got it. I’ll go buy it,” Gabriel chuckled, pretending he hadn’t noticed the fear hidden deep in the boy’s eyes. “Come and sit on the bench beside the shop. And please, don’t start to run again without saying anything. This poor old man is too tired and cannot play “Cat and Mouse” anymore.”

“Ok,” Misha nodded, albeit a tad reluctantly.

Afterward, Misha followed the teenager to the bend and then sat. He had planned to ditch Gabriel the moment he turned his back, but he had to admit that he didn’t have the strength to do so. Thus, Misha hung his head low, closing his eyes.

Now left alone, he couldn’t help but think of what had just happened. He honestly never thought he’d react in such an exaggerated way when all Gabriel did was check his temperature. For a second, he had seen his father’s shadow instead of the teenage boy and his whole body froze. It was something that hadn’t happened for a very, very long time, and his own reaction left him at a loss.

Misha snorted, thinking that this small body of his sure brought back many unwanted memories.

Between the teenager and him, the height difference was too significant. The sudden movement of his open hand also appeared as if he was about to grab him. Misha unconsciously remembered his father, who often grabbed him by the neck before slamming him into the wall or the floor. There were too many similar elements, and the two scenes overlapped.

As an adult, Misha was a tall man, and almost no one could tower above him. He was the one who towered over everyone, looking down on them. But as a child, he once again felt powerless and weak when faced with a taller man, his body reacting before he could even think. He knew nothing would happen in his heart, yet his body still didn’t listen to him. It was one hell of an infuriating feeling.

A self-mocking smile slipped onto his lips. He had long thought that he had overcome his past, but Misha now realized that he had only put on blinders and never dealt with the roots of his issues.

He sighed. It was so hard to confront bad memories; it was easier to forget them.

Mini Theater

ML: Author, give me a leash.

Author: Ok?

ML: And a collar.

Author: ?????

ML: Thank you. Misha, come here for a minute.

MC: Fuck no! Do I look like a dog!? (ノ｀Д´)ノ彡┻━┻

ML: If that’s the only problem, I can buy fake dog ears. It seems like I’ve too much money to spare, anyway.

MC: …I won’t run away next time, I promise!

ML: I don’t believe you.

MC:...

Author: Well, you reap what you sow.

MC: QuQ