The small nine year old girl entered the porch of the block of flats. She pressed the button for the apartment 701's intercom. The chilled voice of an elder man answered it. ''Hello?'' he said, loudly and clearly. ''Who is it?'' The little girl shivered in the cold breeze. It was December, and getting dark, although it was only five o'clock.
''Garry, it's me.'' said the little girl. There was a pause, and the little girl figured it was to give the man a moment for his jaw to drop.
''Ib?! What's wrong? ...Is someone bullying you at school again?'' said the man known as 'Garry' through the intercom.
''No. I just need to stay here for the night.'' There was another pause. ''I have a letter from my mother for you here.'' She was met by silence for a brief second.
''Come in.'' said the man, and the door opened. A tall, slender figure was standing at the top of a flight of stairs. He was wearing an olive coloured vest top with worn jeans. His hair was different shades of lilac and purple. ''Hey, Ib. What's up?''
The little girl clambered up the staircase. ''Garry!'' she said with delight, hugging him. The man wrapped his arms around her tenderly. ''I have a note here for you,'' she said, offering him a white letter from her bulky coat pocket. The little girl named ''Ib'' was quite small. Her height was just under the man called Garry's waist height. She had long brunette hair with a full fringe, and crimson eyes that matched her fur-lined coat. She handed him the letter.
Garry's eyes scanned what he had just been given briefly. ''I see.'' he said, reassuringly. ''Your parents are going out with some friends for the night, but they'll be back to pick you up at eleven tomorrow morning.'' Ib nodded. Garry ruffled Ib's hair. ''I'll take care of you for tonight. Have you already had your dinner?''
Ib nodded. ''Alrighty then. Well, would you like to watch some TV with me then?'' Ib nodded again, but more enthusiastically this time. Ib took Garry's hand as she was led upstairs to his apartment. She hadn't been there for a while, but she used to go quite frequently for help with her homework. Garry opened the door to his apartment and walked in casually, as Ib slowly trailed behind. It smelled of cigarette smoke and lemon candy.
''What's wrong?'' asked Garry. ''Are you alright?'' Ib nodded. She hadn't seen Garry for three months, let alone talked to him. She'd missed him dearly, but wasn't sure how to tell him that. Her little mind raced as she tried to think of something she could say, or do.
''Hey, Ib, you're awfully quiet. What's up?'' Ib didn't know what to say. She wasn't sure if Garry would understand. ''Not talking, eh? Oh well. Give me your coat; I'll hang it up for you.'' Ib nodded as she took her coat off, not uttering a word. Garry hung the red coat up on his coat rack and closed the door. He knelt down in front of her.
''Ib... are you mad at me?'' he asked, clearly concerned. ''I'm sorry I didn't keep in touch... that was foolish of me... I'm sorry...'' Ib shook her head.
''No...'' She whispered. ''I could never be mad at you, Garry...'' She took Garry into her arms and held him close. ''When you were gone... I felt a pain here...'' she said, signalling to the left side of her chest. Garry felt ashamed of himself for not trying to see her more often. He'd missed her too. He wrapped his arms around her, and picked her up; then sat on his green sofa with her in his lap.
''I'm sorry, Ib... I really am...'' he whispered into her hair. ''I missed you too... I should've made an effort...'' Garry hugged Ib tightly, and she hugged him back with the same tightness.
''Alright then. Let's watch some TV.'' Garry handed Ib the remote control. ''Here, Ib, you choose.'' She tapped the TV Guide button and looked to see what was on. She flicked through the channels aimlessly, not seeming to like any of them. ''Hey, we could watch a film instead if there isn't anything good on TV.'' said Garry. ''Let me get up a sec,'' Ib pouted. She didn't want to leave the warmth of Garry's lap, but she didn't want to disobey him, either. Slowly, she obeyed, and sat next to him. Garry stood up and opened up a small glass cabinet, filled with DVDs and videos. ''Come have a look,'' he said, beckoning her over to him. She stood up and walked up to him, stopping by his side. She was wearing a red fleece and a light pink skirt with red tights and small baby pink uggs. ''Pick out a movie, Ib. We can watch it together.'' Ib nodded, and knelt down next to him, scanning the shelf briefly. The only light in the living room was that of a small lamp which stood atop the cabinet. Ib didn't really seem to fussed about which film they watched. Garry squatted awkwardly next to her. ''I can show you your room, if you'd like,'' Ib nodded briefly. They both stood up, and Ib held onto Garry's hand naturally as he walked her to her room. He opened a door and flicked on the light inside. It was a clearly unused room with green wallpaper and a small single bed with olive bedding. ''It's not really something a queen would use,'' he said, rubbing the back of his neck. ''if you'd like, you could use my bed and I'll use this one. Maybe you'd be more comfortable that way.'' Ib shook her head abruptly. ''No... it's alright... I'm fine with it...'' she said, quietly. Garry wasn't convinced, but he wasn't going to get into an argument. ''Alright then.'' He flicked the light off and shut the door. ''Just let me know if you change your mind, okay.''
They walked back into the living room together. ''Hey, Ib. Do you want me to take your luggage into your room? It must've been hard to carry it all the way here.'' Ib shook her head. ''No... not really... I took a cab to the end of the road...'' Garry sighed in relief. ''Good. I wouldn't really want you straining yourself on my behalf. You should've rang me, Ib. I could've got the bus with you.'' Ib shook her head. ''That'd be bad for you...'' Garry's expression turned from kind to surprised. ''Ib, of course it wouldn't! Where on earth did you get that idea from?!'' Ib looked down at the carpet with a sad expression on her face. ''Ib... sorry for raising my voice... um... you know you can tell me anything, right?'' Garry knelt down in front of her, taking her small, pale hand into his large yet dainty ones. ''Ib, what's wrong? You don't seem like yourself lately. Did something happen?'' Ib had tears brimming her eyes. Garry's mouth dropped open. ''Ib, what's wrong?''
Ib put her arms around Garry's neck. Now that he was kneeling, she was just about taller than him. ''Garry... I missed you so much... I didn't know what to do... I... I thought I'd never be able to see you again...'' Tears slinked their way down Ib's cheeks. Garry wrapped his arms around her. ''Ib... I'm so sorry... I was a fool for not keeping in touch with you...'' he paused. ''I thought I'd be an inconvenience if I called-'' Ib cut him off. ''No! Garry, you'd never be an inconvenience!'' she hugged him tightly, nearly choking him. ''Ib... I'm sorry... How can I make it up to you...?'' Ib stopped crying and let go of Garry, then wiped the tears from her eyes. ''Don't leave me again.'' Garry looked startled. She said it with such seriousness. His expression mellowed, and he gave her a warm smile. ''Okay then! Ib, I'll never leave your side! From now on, I am your knight in shining armour!'' Ib's expression returned to neutral. ''You wouldn't make a very good knight because you leave me all the time.'' Strike one. That really hit Garry, like a kick to the shin. ''Uh- You may be right on that one, but... uhm...'' Ib giggled. ''Just be Garry.'' she said. Garry blinked. ''Huh?'' Ib put her hands on his shoulders. ''Keep being Garry.'' Ib knelt in front of him, so he lowered his gaze. ''Stay you. Because you're the thing that makes me smile the most.'' Garry stared at her smiling face. He was filled with joy to hear her say that. He itched his cheek. ''Well... uh... if you say so, Ib...'' Ib giggled again, then turned to the cabinet behind her. She knelt down and put her hand on the second shelf. She pulled out the film Shrek and turned back to Garry. ''Let's watch this.'' she said. Garry nodded and turned the television on, then put the video in. Ib and Garry watched Shrek till seven o'clock when it finished. Ib was asleep in Garry's lap at this point, nuzzling her face into his chest. They both fell asleep.
The next morning, Ib woke up to the smell of lemon. It was 9 o'clock. Garry was no longer beside her, and she had awoken in her bed. She was wearing the same clothes as yesterday. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, hearing the birds chirping in the trees outside. She walked into the kitchen and saw Garry wearing a pink apron, patterned with hearts, while he was cooking pancakes. ''Good morning, Garry...'' said Ib sleepily, as she rubbed one of her eyes with her fist. Garry flipped a pancake so high in surprise that it hit the ceiling. ''Oh, good morning, Ib,'' he said, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck. She giggled. ''Sorry about this... This was going to be our breakfast, aw man... I've screwed it up... and now I've run out of eggs... darn it!'' Garry banged his fist against the table in rage. Ib chuckled. ''I'm sorry, Ib... I just screwed everything up again...'' Ib giggled and shook her head. ''No you haven't, silly.'' Ib took a hold of Garry's hand. ''There's gotta be other stuff in here.'' Ib knelt down in front of the mini fridge, and took a peek inside. There was some ice cream, macaroons, and chocolate sauce in there, along with some milk and yogurt. ''I've got an idea,'' said Ib. She took everything out but the milk. Garry smiled. ''This is perfect!'' he said. ''I have some wafers in the cupboard,''
The warm water felt nice against Ib's body. She was taking a shower. She hadn't changed her clothes from yesterday, so she felt really unclean, and had asked Garry if she could use his shower. She'd brought a towel and a change of clothes into the bathroom with her. The towel was one of Garry's, and the soft scent of lemon lingered on it. After rinsing herself off, Ib dried herself and put her clean set of clothes on. She walked into the kitchen whilst drying her hair. Garry was sitting at the table, waiting for her. In front of him was a large sundae, made from the remaining vanilla ice cream, crushed macaroon pieces, and chocolate sauce. It had a wafer sticking out of the top of it, too. ''I've been waiting,'' said Garry, cheerily. Ib sat in the dining chair opposite him, and he slowly pushed the sundae over to her, then handed her a spoon. ''Bon appetit.'' Ib dug into her macaroon sundae. It was delicious! Who knew you could make this out of some leftovers, huh? It was 9:25. Ib's parents would come to pick her up in just under two hours. ''So, do you want to watch some TV?'' Ib nodded, her mouth full. Garry stood up and handed her the remote. She flicked through the channels, till she finally got to ITV1. The Jeremy Kyle Show was on. She munched her ice cream while she watched. Ib had always found it entertaining; probably because she had no idea what these things were really about. There was a mother on for stealing her son's money from his bank account to pay for her drugs. Ib laughed, and Garry was surprised by this, till he realised that a nine year old would never be able to grasp what drug abuse actually is. Truthfully, she was only laughing at the appearance of the people, and not paying attention to what they were saying. She watched it till it finished at half ten. It was almost time for her to go home. She didn't know what she could do in her remaining time. So instead, Garry read her a story book. It was actually one he had written himself. He'd secretly always aspired to be a writer, and this was his chance to show someone his works. He didn't tell Ib that he was the one who wrote it, of course. He was afraid she wouldn't give him her honest opinion to be polite.
It was about a prince who was blind, and therefore couldn't find a bride. Although he was very handsome. He had always questioned women about why they had chosen to propose whenever they did. The reply he usually got was ''You seem like a nice guy.'' or ''You're handsome.'' He hated it to no extent. Every proposal he had turned down. Until one day, it was different. A woman from a faraway kingdom had came all this way just to meet him. She was different from all the rest. She visited him everyday, and helped him drink his tea. They always discussed their interests, and found out new things about each other. Two years after they met, she proposed. This time, like all the others, the man asked why. Her reply differed from the rest. ''Because I know you're a kind person.'' She'd said at first. Then she took a hold of one of his hands. ''Also, because I love you for who you are.'' This time, he did not turn down the proposal. They were married soon after.
When Garry had finished telling Ib the story, he asked her what she thought of it. She was sitting on a red bean bag next to him. ''I think it's cute,'' she said. ''she took the time to get to know him when others didn't, and didn't just judge him by what he looked like.'' Her explanation truly warmed Garry's heart. That is what he'd always wanted to hear. After Ib's explanation, it was 10:57. She went into her room and packed up her things, then waited on the couch for her parents to arrive. At 11:02, they finally arrived. Ib put her coat on, and her parents thanked Garry for taking such good care of her, giving him a bottle of sake as a thank you gift. Garry smiled as they walked down the stairs, although inside, he was rather sad to see Ib leaving. ''Goodbye, Ib...'' he whispered to himself. ''I hope to see you again soon.''