Chapter 6: A Walk Outside
The next morning, Asbel and Cheria just ate their breakfast quietly. Cheria remained silent, not wanting to tell Asbel what was her nightmare last night that caused her to wake him up at 1 in the morning. Asbel chose to remain silent as well.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it!" Pascal yelled as she rushes out of the kitchen and heads her way to the doors. Asbel and Cheria could hear Pascal opening the doors and saying, "Hello Mr. Bailey!"
Asbel perks up as he looks at Cheria. "Cheria, Bailey is here!"
Cheria nods her head in response while still keeping a gloomy expression on her face. They heard the doors closed and both Pascal and Bailey walk into the dining area to see them.
"Good morning kids." Bailey greeted.
"Good morning." Asbel replied. Cheria remains quiet as she continues eating her breakfast.
"Is Cheria alright?" Bailey asked in concern.
"She just had a nightmare last night." Asbel said.
"Oh." Bailey then rubs his chin to ponder for a moment. Then, a smile appears on his face and he said, "Cheria, how about after breakfast, let's go for a walk in the park! Maybe a nice walk around the park will make you feel better!"
Cheria turns to Bailey and a small smile appears on her face. "Sounds great, Mr. Bailey." She said. Bailey nods his head and Cheria turns to Asbel.
"Asbel, do you want to join us?" She asked.
"Nah. I don't think so. My feet are still kinda ached after all the walking we had around town yesterday." Asbel said.
"You two had a walk together yesterday?" Bailey asked the two.
Cheria turns to Bailey. "Yes. We do. We mostly did shopping and playing games at the arcade."
"I see. Well, I'm glad you two had fun yesterday." Bailey said.
Cheria turns back to her food and quickly finish eating her breakfast. After eating, she gets up from her chair and goes over to Bailey.
"Have fun, you two!" Asbel said to the two.
"We will." Cheria said as she and Bailey turn around and walk their way out of the house.
After the two left the house, Asbel finishes his breakfast and he and Pascal take the dirty plates to the kitchen. The two clean the dishes together.
"You know, you're really helpful Asbel." Pascal said to him.
"Thanks Pascal." Asbel said, smiling at her.
"But seriously, you can just leave the cleaning of dishes to me next time."
"Oh no, it's okay. I insist." Asbel chuckled. When the two are done, Asbel takes a towel to wipe his hands. He passes it to Pascal and she said to him while drying her hands, "So Asbel, your feet are aching?"
"Yeah, why do you ask?" Asbel asked.
A huge grin appears on Pascal's face as she places her fists on the sides of her hip. "Well, it's your lucky day because I happen to be an expert of acupuncture!"
Asbel widens his eyes. "Wait…acupuncture? As in-"
"Inserting needles into your body? Yes! That's the thing I'm talking about! I just so happen to have the needles for it in my pouch right now and…hey, where are you going?!"
Asbel quickly runs out of the house, not wanting to have the acupuncture Pascal is talking about. Even if she is an expert, he sure doesn't want to experience the pain of having a needle piercing into his skin. He quickly runs down the pavement and after making sure he is safely far away from the mansion, he slows down to a brisk walk. His feet still ache though so maybe along the way, he could find a bench to sit and rest on.
Asbel smiles as he walks down the pavement on the side of the road. He looks down and watches the squirrels and chipmunks scampering away. He then looks up and enjoys the nice cooling wind blowing through his hair and clothes.
As he was walking, he saw somebody walking along on the other side of the road. Asbel widens his eyes, recognizing the person immediately. He stops and yells at him while waving his hand. "Richard!"
Richard jumped in surprise. He turns to Asbel and sees him waving at him. He watches Asbel running across the road and going over to him. "Hey there Richard. Remember me? I was in Bailey's car with Cheria and Pascal the other day and we help bring you back home."
Richard nods his head and stuffs his hands into his pockets. "Yeah…I remembered…" He said nervously.
Asbel places his hand on Richard's shoulder and chuckled. "Hey, there's no need to be shy. Anyone who is a friend of Cheria is also my friend." He said. Richard is about an inch taller than Asbel but he's definitely quite shy, even to people who are younger and shorter than him. "So where do you live?"
"I was…heading my way home actually." Richard replied.
"Oh. Can you show me your home?" Asbel said.
"Sure…you can follow me…" He said, nodding his head. Asbel followed Richard as the two walk down the pavement together. They eventually reach Richard's house which is a simple white suburban house with white wooden walls and a grey tiled roof.
"Here we are…" Richard muttered as the two stood in front of his house. Asbel looks at the doorway and notices Richard's bike placed next to it.
"Is that your bike? You were pushing it the other day." Asbel said, pointing at it.
"Yes." Richard nods his head. The two walk over to the bicycle. As they stare at it, Richard explains to Asbel, "The bicycle broke on me two days ago. The back wheel of my bicycle constantly gets jammed and the crank wouldn't rotate properly."
"I see. Mind if I fix it for you?" Asbel said to Richard. Richard frowns nervously and remains silent for moment, unsure of how to respond. Asbel gave him an assuring smile. "Don't worry Richard. I just want to help."
Eventually, Richard nods his head in response. "Alright." Asbel said. "Do you have a tool box in your garage?"
"Yeah. I'll get it." Richard turns around and heads his way to the garage. He returns to Asbel a minute later with the tool box in his hand. He places the tool box in front of Asbel. Asbel kneels down and examines the tools inside the box. He nods in approval, making sure he has the right tools to fix the problem.
"Great. Stand back Richard. I'll fix your bike in a jiffy." Asbel said. Richard obliged and backs away, letting Asbel have some space to do the fixing. Asbel takes a closer look at the crank Richard was talking about earlier. He grabs the pedal, lifts the bicycle up and rotates the crank until it gets stuck. He then leans his head forward and narrows his eyes at the chain around the crank. He then turns to Richard and said, "I see the problem, Richard! There is dirt and pebbles jammed inside the chain. That's why the crank can't rotate properly and the back wheel can't move!"
Asbel turns to the toolbox and takes a small screwdriver. He then uses the screwdriver and pushes the pebbles and dirt out of the holes of the bicycle chain. Richard stood silent as he watches Asbel pushing them out. After a few minutes, Asbel finally pushes them out of the holes. He puts the screwdriver down and lifts up the bicycle. He rotates the crank with the pedal again and this time, it rotates freely with no problem at all. Asbel places the bicycle back down and puts the screwdriver back into the toolbox. He gets up, carries the toolbox and places it aside. He turns back to Richard.
"Give it a try!" He said to him. Richard then nervously mounts onto his bicycle and lifts the brake up. He then begins pedaling. To his surprise, his bicycle is gliding away smoothly, no longer afflicted with jamming like before. Richard picked up speed and cycles around the driveway of his house. Pulling back up, he went over to Asbel and he gave him a smile. It's the first smile Asbel has ever seen from him. Richard then stops the bicycle in front of Asbel, gets off and walks over to him.
"Thank you very much." Richard said to Asbel.
"Ah, no worries. I just like to help people. That's all." Asbel smiled at him. He extends out his hand. Richard looks down at Asbel's hand and after a few seconds, he grabs it and the two shook hands.
"So Richard, where were you going earlier?" Asbel asked as the two boys release their hands.
"Nowhere." Richard shook his head. "I just like to walk alone."
"Are your parents at home?" Asbel asked.
"No. They're on their honeymoon."
"I see. Well, I guess I better get back to Cheria's house. She and Bailey are probably back home by now after their walk in the park. And Pascal is probably worried about me where I ran off to. See ya later Richard!" Asbel turns around and was about to walk off but suddenly, Richard grabs his arm.
"No please!" Richard said with a frown. Asbel turns back to Richard with a puzzled look. "Would you…mind staying with me for a while?"
"Why?" Asbel asked in confusion.
"I hadn't…had someone to talk to…for a while and…you're the first person I…ever talk to in a while. That's why." Richard lowers his head.
"Really?" Asbel arches an eyebrow. "Don't you have any other friends?"
"No." Richard shook his head. "After Cheria left, I…hadn't had any friends for a while."
Asbel couldn't help but sigh in pity. He does feel sorry for Richard, being all alone at home because his parents are away and not having any other or new friends after Cheria left, thus making him an outcast.
"Alright. I guess Cheria, Bailey and Pascal can wait for me a little longer." Asbel said to Richard. Richard lifts his head up and perks up.
"Thank you Asbel!" He said to him. "I appreciate it."
Richard and Asbel both sat together at the dining table in Richard's house. The two sat in front of each other, playing a game of Go Fish. As they play, Richard became more interactive towards Asbel. Asbel learnt from Richard that after the incident involving the death of Cheria's father, Richard became extremely traumatized and lost his sociability to talk to other people, especially after Cheria, his only remaining friend at the time, left town six years ago. Her father may not be related to him, but seeing his dead body definitely gave me a lot of trauma. Asbel does feel sorry for Richard and he could tell that until today, he never fully recovered from the incident. But thankfully, he is able to make Richard talk more today and Asbel believes he may be finally taking some small steps to regain his sociability.
After they finished their game, Asbel thanks Richard for inviting him over. The two said goodbye to each other and Asbel walks his way back to Cheria's house.
By the time Asbel reaches the house, the sun is setting. Pascal, dressed in an apron, opens the doors for him and he steps into the house.
"Cooking dinner now, Pascal?" Asbel asked Pascal.
"Yup! And we're having a big one tonight too!" Pascal grins at him.
"Surprise me." Asbel smirks at her. He then turns his head to the front and cried, "I'm home!" While Pascal rushes back to the kitchen, Asbel stops when he could hear noises coming from the TV. He walks into the living room and finds Cheria and Bailey sitting together watching TV. Bailey had his arm wrapped around Cheria and she sat close to him.
The two turn their heads to Asbel and they smile at him. "Hey Asbel! What have you been doing while we're out?" Bailey asked.
"Ummm, went for a little walk." Asbel replied as he strokes his hair.
"Little, yeah right." Cheri laughed, rolling her eyes. "Then why did we return back to my home before you did?"
Asbel sighed in defeat and droops his arms. "Alright. I was at Richard's home."
"Richard? He invited you into his home?" Bailey asked.
"Yeah. We talk to each other and played a game of Go Fish." Asbel said.
"How is he doing?" Cheria asked.
"Oh he's fine. He was able to talk more than the last time we saw him." Asbel goes over to an armchair and sat down, letting out a sigh of relief.
"That's unusual of him. Richard has always been very shy and doesn't talk to other people. Maybe he invites you into his home because he likes you." Bailey said.
"I guess so." Asbel replied, shrugging his shoulders. He then asked Cheria and Bailey, "So what did you guys do at the park?"
"Oh it was fun!" Cheria smiled at him. "I was able to explain to Bailey about the nightmares I had and thanks to his words of advice, I do feel better now."
"That's great." Asbel said.
"Yes. And after that, Cheria and I had ice cream together. You should try out the ice cream at our town's park sometime, said to be one of the best in New England." Bailey said smiling.
"Heh, yeah. I will when I get the chance." Asbel chuckled.
"Ah well, at least you can eat the fish we catch together today later for dinner." Cheria said.
"What?!" Asbel widens his eyes at them in surprise. "You two went fishing too?"
"Yup." Bailey nods his head. "We went to the park by my car today and all of my fishing equipment is inside. So after Cheria felt better, I took out my fishing rod from my car and we went to the river to catch some fish."
"And boy was the fish we caught together a big one!" Cheria added. "Pascal is cooking it right now so I hope you enjoyed our big catch!" She ended with a giggle.
"Wow." Asbel smiled. "Must have been one hell of a day for you two."
Cheria turns to Bailey and said anxiously, "So Bailey, tell me about what happened next?"
"Oh, you mean my days in college I was telling you back at the park?" Bailey asked. Cheria nods her head in anticipation. "Alright. Well, so after Raymond and I walk out of the dressing room…"
Asbel watched silently as Bailey tells his story to Cheria. He couldn't help but smile, watching how close Bailey and Cheria are together.
END OF CHAPTER