Can We Kiss Forever? (Wattys 2022)

FLAN FLAN

Julio ignored Lombard for the rest of the night but decided to go home early after the second course was done. Yelena packed him a flask of her famous cinnamon coffee and half a flan along with some chocolate biscuits she made.

Having a baker as his 'Mama' was great, he thought as he walked inside and slammed the door behind him, and sat down at his table. Slumping down, he held his face in his hands and let out a sigh.

Why was Lombard, of all people starting to get to him?

He was just a ghost, right?

This was just a version of his consciousness and spirit that held no merit in the real world.

No one knew if he was alive, or dead, not even Lombard.

Not even his family.

It was starting to feel hopeless.

The best remedy seemed to be to let some more time pass and just go with it. Maybe some news would come out in the next week or so. Or even sooner?

Julio sat still for fifteen minutes and stared at the fridge.

Lombard was there in the distance, trying to ignore the shadow of Julio looming over the dimly lit lights; an unfamiliar sight, for an unfamiliar man, lost in the depths of his thoughts and mind, miles from his usual, confidently curious self.

A spark of light had left him.

It was unusual for things to get to Julio like this. He was always positive, and resilient. Something underlying was stirring up his spirit and making him uncomfortable; like a foreign object stuck in his sinking stomach, it was stinging him inside and out.

He couldn't take much more of it. He wanted an escape, even if it was temporary so he grabbed a spoon and the leftover flan and sat back down to start devouring it.

After a few moments, Lombard opened the window. He wanted to escape the loud chewing sounds, but he couldn't leave the building.

He was tied to this manchild for an indefinite amount of time.

Although he had what seemed like an eternity to reflect on his life and pay for his mishaps, he still missed his friends, family, and teammates.

Sitting down in the corner, he exhaled as he decided to float the light through the walls and into Julio's room. The bed sheets were messy, notebooks were strewn across the floor; the window was ajar, clothes sat in a pile on a beanbag, and a half-opened drawer caught his attention.

It wasn't a clothes drawer. It appeared to have magazines, photos, and other miscellaneous objects scattered inside.

Peaking inside, he reached in and pulled the drawer open in shock.

He could manipulate things with his hands.

Pulling out a series of photos, he let out a smirk. A chubby kid with dark, curly hair wearing an AFSC jersey and white shorts was grinning alongside a skinny kid with brown hair, and another well-built older kid with blonde hair. He flipped over the photo, and it said, 'Me with my bros Hayden and Josh. 2014 AFSC Summer Camp'.

He looked at another one of Julio aged about nine trying on a suit, which said: 'Getting ready for my uncle's wedding.'

He found one of him at a CNCO concert, and another one of him standing outside Angel Falls Community College with two girls by his side; some of him at the beach, some of him playing sports, working at Reyes Garage, and a few of him with Alexis in High School.

At the bottom of the pile were ones of him at the AFSC games, and him hanging around at the local swimming pool in the summer. The last one was a recent picture of Julio flexing in the mirror at the gym with the caption 'AYO! Look at how far I've come...'