Just one day

Chapter 13 - Warm and Fuzzy

Chapter 13 - Warm and Fuzzy

We took the train to go to Disneyland, and since it was rush hour on a weekday, it was quite cramped.

He pulled me closer and used his body to shield me from the jostling every time the train stopped at a station.

It was not a good place for a serious conversation so I stayed quiet, but the curiosity was killing me.

I did not know how to bring it up, though, so I just waited for him to open up on his own.

"You looked like you were coming in from the street when you came by my room this morning," he suddenly asked.

"Oh, I woke up too early again so I decided to walk over to the bay and watch the sun go up," I explained.

"You should have called me. I'd have gone with you," he said, sounding disappointed.

"I did think about it, actually," I told him. "But then I wasn't sure if it was your thing and I didn't want to wake you up unnecessarily."

He just nodded and waved it off, staying silent for the rest of the ride.

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We reached Sunny Bay station and transferred to the Disneyland train line. This time it was much less crowded - there were only four of us on that car, and the other pair were on the other end.

It somehow gave us privacy and I decided to give him hints that I'm waiting for him to talk.

I quietly stared at him and gave his hand another squeeze.

He stared back and smiled. "I'm sorry about earlier."

I raised my eyebrows. What was he sorry for?

"I was not exactly the best company, I half expected you to leave me behind," he explained.

"Hey, I understand. You said something happened at home, right?" I reassured him.

"Even if I don't know the details, I could see you were upset, so it couldn't have been anything good," I continued.

He stared quietly at me for a long time, I could sense he was trying to decide whether to tell me about it.

Then I saw his eyes change expression and he seems to have come to a decision.

"You remember I mentioned my dog last night?" He started.

I nodded and gave him a questioning look.

"His name is Whiskey and he's been with me for four years," he continued. "I'm not exactly close with my family so I rarely go home anymore, it's Whisky who has been keeping me company all those years."

He paused and took a deep breath.

"Before I left for this trip, I entrusted him with my best buddy. And this morning, I got a fucking message from him that Whisky has been missing since last night," he shared, starting to sound angry again.

I'm not really a pet lover so I couldn't empathize with what he was going through, but I could see he was really in pain.

I didn't know what else to do so I just hugged him to let him know he wasn't alone.

I felt his body shiver in response and he hugged me tighter until I found it difficult to breathe. I pulled back a bit and he let go, but he kept an around around me.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly. "You don't know how much your presence is helping me calm down right now."

I smiled and nodded. "I'm glad I could help somehow."

"Has your friend asked his neighbors if they've seen your dog? How did he get lost, anyway?" I asked, hoping that talking about it would somehow make him feel better.

"They forgot they had a dog in the house and left the door open," he said, getting agitated.

"Whiskey doesn't know that neighborhood, he wouldn't know how to get back!" He exclaimed.

I leaned my head on his shoulder, hoping that our closeness would have the same effect as before. It worked, I felt his heartbeat start to slow down.

He gave my shoulder a squeeze. He knew what I was doing.

"I messaged all our friends already to keep an eye out for Whiskey," he shared. "I'm hoping to hear from them in a while."

"That's great, you have stay positive. I'm sure they'll find Whiskey soon," I tried to reaasure him with a smile.

He made an effort to smile back. "I hope so. That's why I wanted to keep myself busy today, so I can keep those negative thoughts away."

"I can help you there," I teased. "I'll make you get on all those kiddie rides you won't have time to think of anything else."

The train stopped just then and we stepped out.

The message at the entrance seemed to be customized for us that day:

Here you leave today and enter the world of yesterday, tomorrow, and fantasy.

I realized that I had been denying the fairy tales in my head only to walk into a real one, like literally. Somehow, while I was thinking of where to go and what to do here in Hongkong, I just considered Disneyland by default.

Just great, Addie. Welcome to the happiest place on earth.