♛♡♛

on her presence

presence

noun /ˈprezəns/

the state or fact of existing, occurring, or being present in a place or thing

To be fair, I wanted to stay next to her until she woke up. However, I did not know how long it would take for her to wake up. She was a deep sleeper, I noticed. No wonder people could leave when she was sleeping.

Well, that is not the point.

The point is, I was getting hungry and tired of doing nothing. So, thinking that she would not wake up for an hour or so, I left her to find something to eat. Yes, there was nothing to eat or cook at her place. I had a few coins and things that I could not disclose to her; I could make use of them while she was sleeping.

Thus, I left. The town in the morning was not all that bad. The area was a bit of a run-down, but in the morning, everything was bright and busy. People passed by, greeting each other and doing their business. Surprisingly, it was a lively place with a lot of noise.

Back in the mansion, there was no such noisy time. It was constantly quiet and boring. But, in the town, I could look around and discover new things. The people, despite leading a fairly modest life, were friendly and generous.

Then, a crunchy smell of freshly baked bread lured me into a small, local bakery. The bread looked mouthwatering, so I came to get some. Talking and befriending the owner of the bakery was not difficult. He was a kind middle-aged man; it was easy to strike a conversation with him. In the end, he gave me an extra slice of bread. Such a generous man, he was.

Only after I left, that I realized I had spent too long in the bakery. I rushed home while hoping that Vega did not wake up yet. Or, at least, had not left the house to find me.

Well, luck was not entirely by my side.

Vega was already awake the moment I arrived, looking dreadful as though a part of her life was drained from her.

“Oh, you’re awake?” I said, trying to suppress my guilt. I think I was not convincing enough, as Vega remained still and unfazed.

I sat down next to her, taking her hand in mine.

“I’m sorry, Vega,” I said. “I woke up early this morning, and you looked like you won’t wake up any time soon. So, I thought, why not stroll around for a minute. I guess I got too into my stroll and forgot the time.”

Vega hung her head down; her expression blank and unfazed. She gave me a curt nod as a respond, and nothing else.

Oh, how guilty I felt.

Maybe she did not believe of my words. Maybe... she realized how I had a thought to leave her prior.

I dug into the paper bag filled with warmth, taking out a loaf of bread and various things. “I went and found a bakery a few blocks away,” I explained, glancing at her to read her emotion. She did not give away anything in that blank and lifeless expression. “I talked with the owner, and he was nice to give me some.” Well, it was not entirely a lie, although it was not entirely the truth, either. I handed a bread with chocolate filling to her. “Here, eat up. You have not eaten yet, have you?”

Vega, still without a word, accepted the freshly baked bread and chomped it out. Oh, at least she did not shun me entirely. Made me wondering, though, if that was simply her being cranky right after waking up.

However, the moment she was about to cry, I understood it was more than that. Oh, how I wish to protect her. Yet, all I could do was smiled and said, “Tasty, right?”

Vega’s eyes met mine, while her tears were demanding to rain down. However, she bottled up her tears. Instead, she showcased a gentle and sincere smile. Even without words, I knew how grateful she was. In that moment, I swore to protect that smile and to never let those tears of sadness escape her eyes.

We ate our bread until we were full, and I set aside some of the remaining in an old container she had. “Anyway,” I struck up a conversation. “What do you do usually?”

Vega was caught off guard with my question. How curious, did she not know what she did on daily basis? Thinking long and hard, she shook her head. “I... do nothing, mostly. Well, looking for food and all that, that’s it,” she answered, trying to sound casual about it.

I raised my eyebrows. Wow, I did not expect such an uninteresting answer. In such a place with so many things to explore, she did nothing? What a waste! So, I stood up and extended my hand. “Then, why don’t we go on a stroll?”

Without much hesitation, she took my hand and said, “Sure!”

So, I took her on a tour around the neighborhood. I had been staying and hiding in the area for almost a week before meeting her, so I had explored a lot of corners. To hide, to run, to find something; I had found a lot of things, and I showed her all.

As expected, she did not notice the little things around her. She did not notice how the river was clean; she only noticed how people washed themselves there. She did not know of species of birds and butterflies, so I explained her the things I knew. I spotted a funny cat, and later she spotted a funny dog. Then, I showed her to my hiding spots. The corner of an alley that was clean and cool, behind a building that was quiet, an abandoned building where I spent the night once, and another rundown building that had a staircase behind an alley, the one where we could ascend to the rooftop and watch the cityscape without interruption.

The sunset was beautiful, and we enjoyed it above the rooftop.

Golden hour gleamed and painted happiness in her face, and I could do nothing but adored the beauty of joy.

what could be more beautiful than a genuine joy?

happiness is in the eye of the beholder.