Chapter 40: Bonding Fla
Finally, it was Friday and the night before was an experience and a half.
I had carried Tyell and Lila ho, one under each of my arms. Both ended the night blackout drunk.
Lila got caught up in the atmosphere. And having no prior experience drinking heavier concoctions left her with only one clear path to end the night. It didn’t help that my theory of her having the sa endurance as Rosa was confird very fast.
Tyell wasn’t much better. However, unsurprisingly I hadn’t seen Tyell’s drunken state before.
When he went to drink back ho, it was away from the family–a late teen boy not wanting to be embarrassed by his family, cause his mother would definitely try if she got the chance–and working in space basically ensured I would never see him drunk until I got back.
It started off easy, we made our way to the bar and connected our paynt thods, so that the cost of anything we bought during the night would be split three ways. Then we got to drinking, with so light refreshnts of chips and fish to go along with the drinks. Tyell started by recomnding so easy drinks for Lila–who very much enjoyed them.
But then it was a slow spiral into depravity. One drink led to two, two led to four, and four led to twenty–different flavours after different types.
Then, Tyell decided to try and outdrink . Lila, who was already slightly drunk, decided to join in for the fun.
He probably hoped that my dislike of alcohol made my tolerance for it lower. This naive desire was thwarted from the very beginning! My extrely high level, my prior experiences being poisoned, my physical body which had been upgraded with [Primal Guardian Lord], and even just [Fortified Stomach], each of those on their own would’ve been enough. So it was completely safe to say he stood no chance.
Sigh, I did try to warn him.
I changed the paynt halfway through the night so the rest of the bill would be left to . By that point, the split was already quite big, and the other two clearly couldn’t think straight. Espr also decided to not comnt on anything for the entire night as well which made the whole experience that much more sweeter.
…It was a fun night.
I looked back on the night warmly as while it was a chaotic ss, it brought a different kind of warmth that I hadn’t experienced in a long while.
Then when we arrived back ho it was a pleasant surprise to see Mother sitting in the dark in the early morning watching so dramas. As I had two payloads I needed to drop off.
I wonder if they got a decent sleep?
“Sorry for the inconvenience.” Lila bowed, almost to a perpendicular angle.
It was a Friday morning… for the drunkards… well it was 3 PM, they were out of it for a while.
I let Lila sleep in my room while I threw Tyell on the couch, I wasn’t going to wake lla up just so Tyell could sleep in his bed.
The reason I brought Lila to our hotel room was very simple. I didn’t know where she lived. I knew where her parents lived, but I could make an educated guess that she didn’t currently live with them and it was just easier if I brought her back with .
Mother laughed, “It’s fine dear.” She brought Lila over to the kitchen table where a glass of water and a large breakfast of salads and sandwiches were waiting for us. “I haven’t got to see my own son’s drunken face for a long ti, oh, what a sight it was to behold.”
“Mother…” Tyell groaned in annoyance and physical pain as he slowly trotted to the table.
The two of them sat down to eat while Mother stood by serving them, lla on the other had just sat on the couch, in arm’s reach of her chair.
… I should talk with her.
The talk from yesterday made realise I should try speaking about more… impactful topics. It was true I kept many things away from my family, and I still would, but there were so things I should talk about and so topics I had been avoiding for not wanting to upset feelings that I should have talked about sooner.
I walked up and sat next to her, “lla, want to go out for a trip?”
“Where to?” She questioned.
I shrugged, “Sowhere we can look at the sun and waves?”
“So near the beach?”
“If that’s the location, so be it, but as I said, do you want to go on a trip together?” I asked.
lla stayed quiet for a mont before asking, “Just the two of us?”
“Yeah.” I looked over at Mother giving a signal if it was all right to leave the two hungover individuals here.
She returned a large thumb’s up and smiled. Neither Lila nor Tyell noticed the interaction.
“Take care, everyone.” We waved goodbye while the two drunks barely registered what was happening. After a mont of morning clarity, the tiredness and hungoverness were pulling them back down again.
We rode on so public transport before getting off to eventually walk down a sidewalk going to the harbour.
lla's eyes constantly darted between the strangers we crossed. She tried to hide her behaviour, but it was really obvious to our family. However, no one comnted on it, scared to hurt her feelings. She was doing this to see how people were reacting, how they would react to her.
Maybe expecting looks of curiosity, sadness or even possible disgust. She got none of them, people just treated her like any other stranger. Which was a good thing, but this behaviour was just another one of the many signs that lla wasn’t dealing with this well.
We really should’ve forced her to get treatnt imdiately.
We ignored her behaviour and tried to make a compromise with her words. She always tried to delay it if the deal seed unfavourable for the family, that was how she was, so we forced her into a situation where she would be forced to get treated.
I guess we both inherited bits of Dad’s stubbornness.
I found a bench for us to sit on, not in the most public spot, but the view was still there and no one was around to disturb us.
“lla.” I sat next to her and cuddled her, “How… have you been feeling?”
She bluntly answered, “Fine.”
I asked, “More words please.” lla had figured my plan was to get her to talk about stuff, so she had decided to be a bit stubborn about it.
She rolled her eyes, “Pretty good, everything’s been fun.”
“So more words?”
“Why?” She failed to look into my closed eyes.
“Cause, you’re important to .” I tightened the hug.
“You’ve been treating like a kid,” lla comnted.
“Doesn’t matter how old soone is, they are always a kid.”
“And? What about the talk you had with Tyell?”
“Been spying I see.”
“Been keeping things hidden to yourself I see.” And there was her complaint, the sa one Tyell had, who would’ve guessed they were siblings or sothing? She realistically knew about the talk thanks to the mont when Tyell barged into my room to ask about it.
“Well, I'll tell you when you're fixed up.”
lla frowned, “Why not now?”
“You would’ve gotten your answers if you played nice and got your treatnt without trying to halt us, hurting yourself in the process. I will keep what happened between and Tyell a secret until you’re fixed up.”
lla let out a frustrated sigh, “Really?”
“Yes,” I could hear lla gritting her teeth, worried I was lying to her. “I will tell Tyell myself, that our conversation will beco public knowledge to you once you’re better, I promise.”
lla sighed in relief this ti, happy enough at my compromise. I would tell lla and Mother about the possible appearance of Dominous Hood activity, but that would be saved for conversation for both of them.
With that said, I asked, “How have you been feeling?”
“Well, fine.”
“No, you haven’t.”
“Don’t project feelings onto ,” lla replied.
I chuckled, “Then get better at hiding them.” I raised three fingers one at a ti, “, Mum and Tyell. Have all noticed lla. Every small twitch, every depressed smile, every glance, every painful failed attempt to reach an object.”
lla stayed silent.
“We have noticed… we just stayed quiet, cause we knew you would be getting better soon.”
I leaned back in the chair, “Was that the best decision? Most likely not, which is why I’m talking to you now.”
“So… what?” lla cried, “It doesn’t matter.”
“Fuck we are all so stubborn, aren’t we. It matters cause we are family, it is the reason you are bugged about doing things without telling you three.”
“Well, are you going to stop that?”
“Not completely. I am my own person, but you are very clearly still hurting.”
“Says the person whose body is covered in burns and scars. You even have a massive one on your face.” Said lla, trying to deflect the topic.
“From experience, unless in extre scenarios, emotional distress usually trumps physical pain. It is easier to march through the physical than be drowned in the ntal.”
I clicked my fingers, and… a small orange fla appeared.
lla reeled back ever so slightly and her eyes dilated, before after a mont of realising everything was fine she went back to normal.
“Still affecting you?”
“Yeah…” Her head tumbled forward, “Weirdly enough I know it has gotten better. When I was… trapped in my dreams, the fire felt like such a suffocating presence but after I woke up I was fine? It made no sense but I was… then I saw it a couple more tis. On the tv, during VR, or when we neared the sun… even when I get a small glimpse at your arms” She gulped, “For a mont I would be afraid, then realise everything was fine.”
…
I gestured towards her with my left hand holding the fla, “Care to hold it?”
“No.”
lla looked away. Fire wasn’t her biggest problem any more thanks to Espr’s help, so it was best to dampen that fear so she could at least start moving on.
“I love fire…” I declared, “It’s not my favourite thing, but it's warm, and I could do so much with it.”
With my other hand, I created fire stars, planets, ships and teors that flew around, which caught lla’s attention.
She swallowed and swore under her breath and turned towards it, and she reached her hand out.
lla’s biggest problem was her missing limbs, her fear of fire was still and would still be there, but Espr treatnt did wonders and I needed to help her with the final touches.
lla’s shaky hand moved over, as it neared mine, I had the fire gently jump over to hers.
“Ee!” She jumped back and tried to shake it off but it just stayed there still.
lla, I know you’re a brave girl, and there was a reason you chose [Warm Wind Mage].
“It’s okay lla… just looked at it.”
lla opened her forcibly shut eyes to see the fla on her hand had changed, into five figures of our family.
“I… had a lot of ti on my hands, I got just… a bit good at making constructs.”
The constructs stood around and hugged the smallest mber–lla.
“It’s…” lla’s mouth widened, “Beautiful.” She started to fully cry. Seeing the living image of the five of us, Mum, Dad, lla, Tyell and myself together stirred emotions within her.
“It is a family bonding mont made of fire? One could say it's a bonding fla.”
lla wiped away her tears just to roast , “Your jokes are horrible.”
“Well, neither of our parents were good at making them.” I shrugged.
Then we both laughed.
We laughed for a little bit but soon it was ti to end it. I dispersed the flas, transforming them into birds that flew off into the distance.
“Do… you think I could do that one day?”
“Definitely.”
“Would you tell at least a little of what you are keeping hidden?”
“...So of it I will reveal soon, just for now I just want to spend so quiet ti with you.”
“Promise?”
“Sadly yes.”
“Better not break it.”
“I won’t, and if I sohow do… you can smack .”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Deal?”
“Deal.”
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