Note: This chapter is dedicated to all of the fantastic fanart and fanfiction that has been created for Taiora week 2021. There has been some much amazing work that it is almost hard to keep track of it all (and that's not a bad thing). Thank you for all of your hard work!
Also Happy Halloween!
"Taichi your hand!" Sora yelps in unpleasant surprise. Reaching out rapidly and taking my hand in hers, she then turns it over so that my palm is facing her. A small pool of blood has gathered on the palm of the glove. Ever so gently she peels the glove from my hand. I cannot help but to whimper softly as she does this. "Sorry Taichi." she whispers, obviously having heard my pained noises.
My hand is instantly chilled in the air making the wound throb. I steady my hand as much as possible as Sora examines the injury. "It doesn't look too deep." She says after inspecting it for a moment or so. "If only I had something to bind it up with." She scrambles for my pockets digging through them, likely to see if I have any items that might be useful at the moment. She makes a frustrated groan as her search for some kind of spare cloth becomes apparently fruitless. "We should wash this out at the very least, not about to have you get some kind of infection." She looks around the lamplit area. "We are quite a walk away from either of our apartments, and the school buildings are bound to all be closed at this point." She furrows her brow as she continues to contemplate our options. "I wonder if the water fountains are still functioning. It's cold but not so cold yet that they would have to worry about any pipes freezing. Perhaps they have yet to shut them down for the season. Let's see if we can find one Taichi." She releases my hand and encourages me to follow her.
I bring my hand close so that I can have a look at the cut myself. Even through the dim light I can instantly make out the shape of a gash at the base of my palm, about a centimeter up from my wrist. I must have cut it on a particularly sharp rock for it to have gone through my glove as it did. Seems like a lot of blood for that kind of thing. I squat down quickly to have a look and within seconds can spot something glimmering in the glow of the nearest lamp. "Sora, I think I found our culprit."
She has already gone a meter or so up the path. I watch her turn suddenly, looking surprised that I am not already following her. "Culprit?" She says confused. I wave her over and point to the spot on the ground in front of me. Sora sees that I am squatting down so she does the same. I watch her eyes as she scans the ground. Her expression hardens when she sees the shattered remnants of a glass bottle at our feet. "Inconsiderate jerks." I hear her mutter under her breath.
I shrug slightly. "Probably some students out drinking where they shouldn't have been. And of course I had to pick this spot in particular to act like a jerk myself. What luck..." I groan.
"And now we have to worry if there are any shards stuck in your hand. Look at some of these larger pieces, that cut could have been much worse than it is. What if a child or pet had stumbled upon this mess before someone cleaned it up.." There is concern in her voice as she reaches forward and starts to pick up the shattered glass with her bare hands.
"Sora!" I protest at her sudden impulse to clean up the litter.
"I am not going to just walk away and risk someone else getting injured! This might go right through someone's shoe. One incident is more than enough Taichi." Sora is clearly quite determined as she carefully plucks up the largest pieces.
"I understand...just please be careful Sora." I say, worried that she will cut herself too.
Her tone softens once again. "I promise I'll be careful." She gently stacks the pieces in her hand and slowly stands up. We scan the surrounding area and I spot the recycling bin back towards the park sign, pointing it out to her. She walks carefully over to it so as to not drop anything. After discarding the remnants of the bottle, she dusts off her hands over the bin to ensure she got everything. Then, walking back to me in relative haste. "That is probably going to have to be good enough, it's too dark to be searching for tiny pieces amongst the gravel." She then looks at me rather seriously. "With all of that glass around, we should be certain that we only have one cut to worry about." With that Sora slips off my other glove and looks at my left hand; it seems to remain completely unharmed. Sora pockets my glove then kneels down and pats down my legs to ensure that I did not fall on any shards. After a moment she stands up and gives me a thumbs up, telling me that I'm all clear aside from my right hand. "Had you fallen in a slightly different spot...well honestly I don't even want to think about what kind of injuries we might be looking at." She pauses then, taking several deep breaths to compose herself. However, that expression of sheer determination returns to her face in short order. "Come on Taichi, let's find something to clean that cut with."
We continue marching up the path side by side, while I hold my right wrist with my left hand; keeping it somewhat elevated and to stop blood from getting everywhere. There is no small amount of blood covering the lower portion of my hand and upper wrist, but it is hard to tell if it is enough to warrant concern. Heading to the hospital at this hour would be a headache and most city buses stopped running over an hour ago. The thought of potentially spending the night in the emergency room while I get stitches in my palm frustrates me and honestly staring at my hand like this is making me a little nauseous; not for the wound itself but yet another thing that seems to have gone wrong tonight.. Just another screw-up to add to my list of screw-ups. I notice that Sora keeps glancing over my hand as we walk, and seems to subconsciously increase her pace each time she does. I work to match her quickened stride and before long we make it to a clearing beyond the rows of barren Sakura trees.
We find ourselves at the edge of Shinobazu pond, the large body of water seems dormant and peaceful. The remnants of hibernating lilies and brownish-yellow pond reeds stand stiff and still waiting patiently for spring to revive them. A slight icy mist rises up off of the water and sweeps it's way across the surface, carried off by the wind into the night sky. The mist seems to glow slightly as it reflects the light of a nearly full moon. This effect imparts a magical yet eerie look to the fog.
Encircling the pond itself is the main brick outlined trail, a number of benches, tarp covered food stands, a handful of shinto shrines, the boat rental station, public restrooms, lake viewing bridges that jut out of the water with tall black metal railings, and on the little center island named Benten stands a small red roofed temple dedicated to a Japanese buddhist goddess named Benzaiten. All the while the backdrop of the Tokyo skyline can be viewed from most any direction, a fragment of a more natural world surrounded by a sleek contemporary city. The skyline may serve to break the pond's old-world illusion, yet it brings with it a unique modern sense of beauty. At this late hour the skyscrapers gleam brilliantly with electricity. You can even easily spot the Tokyo Skytree giving off a unique cool blue luminescence. There is a certain comfort in that glow standing out against the darkened sky.
A sight like this often reminds me of the only that I ever saw this city truly engulfed in darkness. I was eleven years old and had recently returned from the Digital World with Sora and the others. A very cruel and dangerous Digimon named Vandemon invaded our home in search of the eighth child of destiny, who we now know to be my younger sister Yagami Hikari. He sought to destroy the latent power buried within her crest of light and to bathe both the Digital and Human realms in a darkness that only he could control. Vandemon attacked our power grids and communications networks; then used his unholy abilities to place many of Tokyo's citizens into a trancelike comatose state. Meanwhile his demon-like followers scoured the city streets and attacked anyone unfortunate enough to cross their paths. The adults, the government, the military all could do nothing to protect us. It was up to the Digidestined, our Digimon, and a few key allies to stop him; somehow together despite the odds we did just that.
If I ever told anyone that on those nights I wasn't afraid for Hikari, for Sora, my family, my friends, my very life, well I would have been outright lying. Something about being a kid almost made facing my fears easier though, I knew that I needed to keep moving, keep fighting or I and everyone that I loved would parish. We were significantly outnumbered but knowing that my friends were fighting beside me made it all feel less lonesome and hopeless. I recognized the potential consequences but never really stopped to consider the odds that a bunch of elementary schoolers might be slaughtered in their attempts to protect the lives of millions. It was like playing the hero in a video game, you do not tend to stop and consider the little details of what you need to do or what might happen to you. I feel fortunate for that fact however, had I hesitated, I may not be alive now to reminisce. I sometimes wonder if we would be able to survive those harsh trials today. If darkness returned to this city and threatened to consume all. But the vibrant Tokyo before me reassures me that I need not worry, not for right now at least.
Even as a small child I enjoyed the view of my city's outline, but now Tokyo's radiance helps me feel safe and secure. Bringing with it a hope that those nightmares of the past shall not be relived. Still...it was far from all bad wasn't it? I used to love those days, in middle school I would dream about going back. Back to adventure, back to the Digital World. Even in this moment I find myself terrified to go back yet wanting to. A deep desire to see the Digimon again, to be a kid again. Who would I even be without the Digital World, without Agumon, without her by my side? I think to myself as I watch Sora intensely scan the area for the nearest fountain.
Sora seems to notice my day dreaming once again. "Come on Taichi, we need to get moving, we don't want that cut healing over before we get a chance to at least rinse it out." She pulls me down the path, gripping her hand tightly under my left shoulder. Upon reaching the main pathway we fork to the right towards the nearest restroom. As I had suspected most of the lamps that line the pound remain lit, making this walk of ours possible. Though it is nearly impossible for me to enjoy the walk as intended, with my hand throbbing and Sora worrying about my well being. She tugs at me energetically, her thumb digging into the muscles beneath my armpit. I feel she must be pressing a nerve as my arm almost goes numb, but I do not complain, I know she is just doing her best to help me like always. Suddenly Sora stops on a dime jerking me to a halt as well, then raises her left hand and points. "Finally" She says, directing me towards a free standing water fountain about twenty meters from the restrooms. "Let's hope we can actually get some water out of it." She then continues dragging me forward, over the grass this time in a beeline for the fountain.
When we reach the fountain, Sora releases her grip on me and my left arm is wracked by that pins and needles sensation that one often experiences after their leg falls asleep. The feeling shoots down my arm and into my left hand, I am tempted to rub the numbness out of my limb, but I am too busy cradling my other wounded hand. Besides the sensation is a minor discomfort compared to seeing my best friend worried like this. I suck it up and wait for the sensation to return to me.
In the meantime, Sora races to the front of the fountain in search of whatever button, step, or lever that will activate the pumps. In this case it is an old fashioned stone fountain with a small fourway lever below its spout. She reaches out to turn the lever and… "You have got to be kidding me!" I hear her moan with an exasperated fatigue as the fountain fails to produce any drinking water.
I see her frustration growing and feel guilty for placing her in this situation. I suspect that the park's water pipes may likely be shut down for the season, but I decide against vocalizing the thought. Positivity, for Sora. "Perhaps it's just this particular fountain, Sora. We should check another one." I say searching the area for another nearby fountain.
"Or…" Sora continues after pause. "What if they left the restrooms unlocked? Even if the water is shut down we could get you some paper towels."
Sora does not wait for me this time. Before I can reply to her suggestion, she is off and jogging towards the small building. I attempt to run after her but at this point I'm struck by growing fatigue. It has been a long night and I'm starting to feel it. Feet and ankles aching while my forehead is pounding from the booze. Following to the best of my ability, I observe as she rounds a corner towards the female entrance door. I keep moving, but prior to me even reaching the building, Sora bolts from the entranceway and makes her way towards the mens room. I force myself to break into a sprint so that I can close the distance with my best friend. When I round the corner by the doorway, Sora is wildly yanking at the handle; it does not budge despite her furious movements. She slams a closed fist against the door and a hollow metal echo follows.
"Damnit!" She shouts, her body slumping against the door. I can hear choked sobs coming from Sora, but this time I'm positive it is not sadness but overwhelming frustration. My heart sinks and I stand behind her not really knowing what to say. It has been a hell of a night. Every time things start looking up for us tonight, something manages to go wrong.
Instinctively, despite my body shaking with exhaustion and my hand throbbing in pain, I release the grip on my wounded wrist and approach my best friend. It's my jacket, if I get blood on it it's no big deal. I consider this momentarily before wrapping my arms carefully around Sora's sobbing body. "It's going to be alright Sora, I promise." I tell her softly but adamantly.
She stiffens at my contact, but quickly turns herself around in my grasp and hugs me back extremely tightly. Sobbing furiously now into the crook of my neck. "I...just….don't want you to get an infection...or have a permanent scar... over something so stupid Taichi. I'm scared... what if something happens to you?"
"We will find a way to clean the wound, we'll figure it out together. For the record, I would much rather develop a small scar and know that you are safe and sound Sora, than be at the party alone or wandering the streets, worried sick about my best friend in the world." She continues to sob, so I continue to hold her. The wind whips at my backside, but Sora's touch fills me with warmth. After some time she begins to calm down and I loosen my grip on her slightly. Wanting to still give her some time to collect herself, I look around wondering what the heck we should do next. Then suddenly I hear a faint but distinct sound. A jingle in fact. A vending machine? The sound is coming from the backside of the building. "Maybe we aren't out of luck after all." I say letting go of Sora, she looks up at me with red puffy eyes.
"Taichi?" She speaks my name softly, the confusion is clear in her voice yet I have her curiosity piqued.
"Follow me Sora, I think I might have an idea." I wait for her response, and she nods vigorously at me. We go around the building to the backside where Sora had yet to explore, and exactly as hoped, I see two vending machines standing against the brick wall, both fully lit up with electricity.
"Great idea Taichi, I hadn't even thought to check!" Sora almost shouts in excitement. The compliment and her brightened tone raises my spirits. Sora gently pushes past me and digs through her pocket. "Good thing I kept my wallet in my jeans." In a few seconds Sora produces the slim athletic wallet that she uses when she wants to travel light. Opening it up she grabs a one thousand yen note and begins to straighten it out against the drink machine.
I watch as Sora studies the vending options for a brief moment, nods to herself, then inserts her money. The buttons below each drink begin to flash and glow, confirming payment. Sora then smacks the button below the bottled water, with more force than is likely required. The machine whirls for a brief moment before dropping a water bottle into the lower compartment with a thud. She eagerly opens the flap, scoops it up, and slides it into the pocket of my jacket. So eager in fact that she ignores her clanking change returned by the machine. "Come on, let's get you near a lamp so I can see what I'm doing."
We walk a few meters to the nearest park light and I hold up the gash so that Sora can take a look at it. She holds my hand in hers and squints at the cut through the lamplight, tilting my hand back and forth as she does. I can tell that the bleeding has already started to slow slightly and that the edges of the cut are caked in dry blood. The center of the wound however, is still oozing fresh blood. "Hmmm. Taichi, do you have your multitool on you by chance?" She asks looking back up at me.
"I think I might, yeah. Let me check." I say starting to reach towards my left pocket since I'm fairly sure that's where it would be.
"Wait." She cuts in. "Your hands are both covered in blood, I'll grab it. Which pocket?"
I pause for a moment, a little thrown off by the idea of her digging through my pants, not that I have anything to hide. "My left...I think." I say finally, knowing she has a point. Sora then walks up to my side and somewhat awkwardly sneaks her hand into the pocket of my jeans. She fishes around for a few seconds and I can feel her grabbing my wallet only to release it again. I feel her hand brushing against my outer thigh and I look away. I turn back to Sora when I feel her hand leave my pocket; she is now holding my small orange multi-tool in her hands. She opens up the tweezers; a handy tool which she and I have often used to remove ticks from each other after a hike in the woods.
I guess she found something. I think to myself as Sora slowly lowers them towards my palm.
"Try to hold still Taichi." Sora says, warning me that this might hurt. And good thing she does, the next thing I know the tweezers are digging into the raw flesh of my wound. I wince and let out a sharp exhale of breath. "Sorry, I'll be as quick as I can." Sora says to me without looking up, a focused expression plastered on her face. It really fucking hurts, I almost pull my hand back a few times but fortunately, Sora is able to hold me in place well enough. I clench my eyes shut and do my best to endure it; yet I cannot contain the exasperated noises that escape my lips. She retracts the tweezers once or twice, only to go back at my hand again.
"It was starting to heal over the glass. You certainly don't want this stuck under your skin." I open my eyes. I had not even noticed that Sora removed the tweezers until now, as the stinging sensation remains. She slowly lifts the tweezers up to eye level and I can see it now; a blood covered, semi triangular piece of glass about the size of a ladybug. It shimmers in the lamplight.
"Did you get it all?" I ask with a gasp, feeling rather exasperated.
"This is the third piece I have found, in case you weren't counting." She states simply. "You're doing really well, hang in there, I just want to be sure I haven't missed anything." She drops the fragment into the trash bin next to us and then once again lifts my hand for a closer inspection. "Ah! A tiny little chip here." She exclaims after a moment, before digging into the corner of my hand and producing a sificangly smaller piece of glass this time. "I think that ought to do it." She finishes, which is music to my ears. Especially as the tweezers, necessary as they may have been, have renewed the flow of blood from my hand.
"Thanks for the help Sora, I would have surely ended up at the hospital if it weren't for you." I say, trying to ignore the stabbing pain which radiates from my palm.
"I'm just glad you noticed the bottle before we let the wound close up." She smiles at me softly, before pulling the bottled water out from my jacket and unscrewing the lid.
"This might be a little uncomfortable but we need to wash it out ok?" I simply nod at her, trying to grit and bear it the best I can. The water is frigidly cold as she slowly tilts my hand at an angle and pours a steady but small stream directly onto the wound. The water spills over the side of my palm, washing onto the bricks beneath us, taking some of my blood along with it. I shudder from the icy temperatures, which only serves to irritate my pain receptors. I can't help but to groan loudly as shivers travel up my arm. After washing out the wound channel itself, Sora proceeds to gently scrub the majority of dried blood off my hands. She stops pouring once a little over a third of the bottle is empty. She releases my hand and I instinctively pull it back, cradling it once again in my uninjured hand.
"Aww Taichi...look at you, you're trembling. This isn't good." Sora says with apprehension. I look down and realize that my entire right arm is shuddering slightly. "Maybe we should go to hospital after all, just to be safe?"
I look down at my hand, the skin around the wound is red and irritated but the cut itself doesn't look as bad as expected. "Let's not be too hasty Sora, I think I might just need a few minutes to compose myself." Feeling exhausted, I slump down, with my back sliding against the light pole. I look up to see Sora staring at me with unease. "Just need to catch my breath for a sec." I say trying to reassure her.
"Still feeling the alcohol?" Sora asks me in that worried motherly way of hers.
"Yeah a bit" I respond " I guess it was all that running around but I'm feeling a little queasy to be honest, don't think it's bad enough that I'm going to throw up though."
"I'm really sorry Taichi, take your time, if you do end up needing to puke there is a trash bin right here at least." She unscrews the lid of the water bottle and lowers it down to me. "In the meantime you're almost certainly dehydrated. Drink some water; hopefully you'll feel a little bit better after you rest for a few. Sorry that the bottle is so cold."
I nod and accept the bottle with my left hand. It's freezing within my bare-handed grasp but Sora is absolutely right, I've been drinking too much alcohol and not enough water to balance it out this evening; a surefire path to a dreadful hangover. The icey temperature would be refreshing on a hot summer day, yet freezing as I am right now, this feels more akin to snacking on shaved ice in the middle of a snowstorm. I suck it up however, taking a few big swigs from the bottle and the ice water runs down my throat causing me to shiver all over again. I leave about a quarter of the bottle full, partially because of the temperature and partially in case we need it later. Shaking slightly, I hand it back to Sora who closes it and returns it to the jacket pocket.
Sora then looks between me and my hand for a moment, before suddenly unbuttoning the jacket that I lent her. She works quickly to pull it off her body, until she is standing before me in her jeans and blouse once again.
"Sora, I gave my jacket to you tonight for a reason. I don't want you to be cold either." I say protesting, what I assume is Sora offering my jacket back to me for warmth.
"You're going to get sick if this keeps up. Just put it on while you're catching your breath, I'll take it back shortly, I promise Taichi." I nod slightly and grab for it with my left hand. I slowly and carefully work it onto my body, but decide against covering my wounded arm, opting instead to drape it over my shoulder. When I'm finished I look up and to my immense shock see Sora pulling her blouse over her head.
I open my mouth to say something, but can't find the words as I sit practically frozen in place. I watch as Sora's toned lower abdomen comes into sight briefly before her white Uni Tokyo undershirt falls back into place. Why is she taking her shirt off in the middle of a public park? Why is she taking her shirt off at all for that matter? I find myself completely dumbfounded as my best friend seems to be undressing on a frigid late-autumn night.
When she is finally free of her blouse, Sora grabs hold of it in her left hand then slowly looks back down at me. I can't help but continue to stare at her in silence. Her facial expression which is at first rather neutral, twists into one of nervous embarrassment when our eyes meet. A blush creeps up her face, obviously recognizing the way that I am staring at her. We sit there for a moment, eyes locked in awkward silence, until she suddenly speaks. "Can you uh...hold this for me for a minute...I'll be right back...just...wait here ok?" Sora stutters practically tossing her blouse at me. Usually I would attempt to catch it with my uninjured hand, but I'm so stunned that her top simply just falls into my lap. The next thing I know Sora is sprinting off back towards the restrooms, my multitool still clenched in her fist. Then she rounds the corner of the building and out of my line of sight. What the heck just happened?
I catch my breath and the shivering seems to subside as I lean against the pole for a number of minutes. Hopefully a drawn-out trip to the emergency room can be avoided thanks to Sora's quick thinking, but I must admit my body is kicking me right now for its recent mistreatment. I've already been running on a lack of sleep with my class assignments recently, so when you factor in tonight's alcohol and sprinting around campus I suppose my fatigue is only natural. It really is bitter out right now, but the jacket is somewhat warm from being on Sora's body, and that warmth seems to reinvigorate my tired muscles. My hand on the flip side is still freezing and in no small degree of pain, but I do my best to ignore it. Honestly, I'm a bit worried about Sora randomly running off in her undershirt like that, plus I can't hear her at all from this distance over the wind. That being said, I trust Sora with my life and know she would not just run off on me like that. So I decide to rest my eyes for a minute and wait for her to come back.
If not for the chill in the air and the radiating pain from my palm I might have passed out right here against the light post. It is for the best that I cannot despite my body's clear desire for slumber, I recognize that I need to be sharp and present in case Sora needs me. I'm honestly not sure if I could stand up if I wanted to right now, but if Sora needs me I'll make it work as I always do; just as she would for me. So I sit quite still for some time in a meditative silence with my eyes clenched shut but my ears tuned and ready. Not really thinking about much of anything just sitting, listening, and waiting.
Eventually, I hear the sound of her footsteps approaching. I open my eyes to yet another unusual sight. As Sora gets within a few meters of me, I quickly realize that her belly is exposed to the cold air. I almost double take as I see her doing her best to cover the newly exposed skin with one arm. When I see what she is holding in her other hand, it all clicks into place in my head.
"Sora you didn't have to do that." I say feeling rather guilty. "You've had that shirt since orientation."
When she reaches me, a slight smile forms on her face. "Yeah I liked the shirt Taichi, but believe it or not I like you more. Crazy I know!" She grins at me now. Before I can even attempt to stand up, Sora gets down on one knee directly in front of me. "Now let me see that hand."
I bashfully extend my right hand to her, and Sora begins wrapping the long strip of cloth around my open palm. She wraps it rather tightly, causing me some momentary discomfort as the cotton material digs into my skin; that pain soon eases however. She then ties the excess length into a firm knot on the backside of my hand. Finally, she checks her handiwork to ensure that the temporary bandage will stay in place. "That should do well enough until we get back to my apartment, then we can get that cut properly cleaned and dressed." Once satisfied, she stands back up and extends her left hand out for me to grab. I do just that, and Sora helps me back to my feet while I clutch her blouse against my stomach, preventing it from falling to the ground. I stumble slightly upon standing, but she helps to stabilize me against the lamppost.
"Thanks Sora...really thank you. Don't know what I would ever do without you." I say as I find my balance again.
"Hey, what else are best friends for?" She responds quickly, giving me a gentle and playful punch on the shoulder. "Now can I have my top back, it is unbelievably cold like this."
I hand the blouse back to her and she rushes to put it back on. I begin to slip my jacket off as she does this.
"Taichi wait… you don't have to." She starts.
"Sora you promised! And I'm even more adamant about this now that you've ripped up your under shirt!" I exclaim, cutting her off. I had a feeling she might try to get out of it.
"Fine…" She pouts, grabbing the jacket from me as I finish removing it. "I'm concerned for your wellbeing in this cold too, you know." She gripes.
"I know I know" I chuckle softly. "I just won out this time." She crosses her arms to this response, before begrudgingly slipping my coat back onto her body.
After bundling up, Sora looks around at the park surrounding us for a brief moment. Perhaps just now being able to take it all in, as she was too concerned over my injury beforehand. "It's a good thing the park is so dead right now, we must look like quite the pair. You, intoxicated with your hand cut up and wrapped in a scrap of shirt. Me walking around with a makeshift crop top and my eyes all puffy from crying." She chuckles then, seemingly more exasperated and amused than upset at our situation.
"I suppose they would have quite a few questions for us." I reply giggling, with a slight amusement of my own. Sometimes you just have to find the humor in the unexpected absurdity of a situation. "So what do you think Sora? Back to your apartment or should we actually enjoy the view since we're here?"
She raises a finger to her chin for a moment, furrowing her brow as she thinks. "Part of me wants to head home before we experience any other turns of bad luck, plus I do wanna see to your hand. But...I guess we did walk all the way here, and how often is it this quiet at Shinobazu? Are you sure you're ok to be out longer in the cold? And I want an honest answer Taichi, don't go acting all tough for me." She finishes bluntly.
"It's cold Sora sure, but honestly I'd like to hang out here with you, at least for a little bit. After all, like you said we already went to the trouble of coming down by the pond. Besides, if I am being totally honest, my legs are killing me at this point."
She smiles at me sympathetically. "Let's find ourselves a bench with a nice view in that case, in fact, I have an idea."
"Oh?" I ask inquisitively.
"Just follow me." She says softly, grabbing hold of my arm.