A Confession and a Kiss
After they had both calmed down, Adrian sat next to Elsa's wheelchair. He gazed at the background photo on his smartphone. Elsa didn't let go of Adrian's hand beside her and rested her head on his shoulder.
"You already know what happened, don't you?" Adrian asked.
"Yes, Dr. Kelvin told me," Elsa replied.
"Oh, I see. No wonder you cried when you saw that photo. Why did you open my smartphone, anyway?" Adrian asked.
"It accidentally turned on, hehe, sorry," Elsa replied.
"Owh, it's okay," Adrian said.
"Lia talked about her brother who was hospitalized there. I just listened at the time, but then she suddenly invited me to meet her brother. I was too shy," Elsa said.
"Shy because you don't have legs?" Adrian asked.
"Yeah. She even tried to force my hand once, and I fell into the leaves," Elsa replied.
"No wonder that kid had so many leaves on her clothes when she came to my room," Adrian retorted.
They both fell silent, though smiling, remembering the cheerful and seemingly carefree Lia. Elsa turned to look at Adrian, who was smiling next to her, and then looked at the table.
"Sorry, I made you remember again," Elsa said.
"I will never forget my family. So you don't need to apologize, it's okay," Adrian said.
"Yeah, I'm the same," Elsa replied.
"The photo in your smartphone case is your family, right?" Adrian asked, pointing at Elsa's smartphone on the table.
"Oh, this (taking her smartphone and opening the cover, then showing the photo behind the cover) this was when I was little, Mom and Dad were still together. We took this photo at my grandparents' house, with them too," Elsa said.
"Oh, I see, in Bandung?" Adrian asked.
"Yes, in Bandung," Elsa replied.
"Someday, if you go back to Bandung, don't forget about me... just kidding," Adrian said.
"Um... I won't go back to Bandung. I don't have any family left in Bandung," Elsa said.
Adrian was shocked to hear this. He immediately turned to look at Elsa's thoughtful face, her eyes glistening with tears, yet smiling.
"What do you mean?" Adrian asked.
"My mom, dad, grandpa, and grandma are all gone. I'm just like you, alone," Elsa replied, looking at Adrian's face and smiling.
Adrian turned his hand and tightly gripped Elsa's hand on top of his. He was silent and couldn't say anything. On one hand, he felt relieved, but he also felt guilty for being happy that Elsa was just like him.
"I'm sorry," Adrian said.
"Sorry for what?" Elsa asked, confused.
"Nothing, I just feel weird these past few days, ever since I first started school," Adrian replied.
"Why?" Elsa asked.
"Never mind, it's nothing," Adrian replied, sipping his drink.
"If you're going to say weird, honestly, I feel weird too," Elsa replied.
"Weird how?" Adrian asked.
"Like now, I'm holding your hand, I'm resting my head on your shoulder. I've never been like this before. I've always been alone because of my condition and because I chose to stay away from everyone except my family, oh, except Lia, haha. So honestly, for me, this is the first time I've felt like this," Elsa said.
"Is that so? I'm actually the same. Since I was little, I've been at home. I've never interacted with other people, and I don't understand human relationships like friends, best friends, boyfriends/girlfriends, and so on. I was alone. Mostly, the only one who talked to me was Lia, who liked to tell all sorts of stories. There's a lot I don't understand, like this morning," Adrian replied.
"This morning? Oh, when you almost hit that person, right? Don't do that again, okay? I was scared. What did you actually read in that person's little box?" Elsa asked.
"He... wanted to do something to you. His thoughts were dirty when he saw you. I don't know why, but I got angry when I read it, and I unconsciously acted," Adrian replied, looking down.
"Oh," Elsa's face flushed. She understood what Adrian felt. She turned her face away but smiled, not wanting Adrian to see her face. However, her hand tightly gripped Adrian's hand next to her.
"Sorry, I promise it won't happen again. This is the first time I've felt close to someone, and for some reason, I don't want to lose that person, even though I don't know what my relationship with that person, it's confusing," Adrian said.
"Um... who?" Elsa asked.
"You, who else would be with me now if not you," Adrian replied.
"Is that so, and you're confused about what our relationship is, right?" Elsa said.
"Friends, right? Or not?" Adrian asked.
"Hmm... when Erik asked me if I was serious or not, what did I answer back then? You must remember," Elsa said, smiling.
"Future husband? But that was because you wanted to avoid him, right? You apologized to me for involving me, right?" Adrian asked.
"Oh, you (both hands went up and squeezed Adrian's cheeks) Erik asked if I was serious about you, and I answered you're my 'future husband.' What does that mean?" Elsa asked.
"Oh, you were serious back then? We had just met?" Adrian asked.
"You said it back then, that you felt like you had known me for a long time, to the point you asked if we had ever met. Well, it's not just you who feels that way, I do too. Whether this is all because of the influence of our hearts or not, I don't know, but what's clear is that this feeling exists, so I don't want to lie to myself, understand?" Elsa replied.
"Um... what you said is true. For some reason, I also feel that way. I even got angry like this morning, even though I only read text, and that person hadn't done anything yet. I can't understand the meaning of my actions," Adrian said.
"But I'm happy you'd go that far for me. One more thing, you just said if I go back to Bandung, don't forget you. That means you're afraid of being left behind, right?" Elsa asked.
"Oh... you found out, sorry," Adrian said.
"Hehe... I'm happy, you know. I'm happy you're like that. So I am your future wife, and you are my future husband. Now we're dating, hehe," Elsa said.
"Is that so? I'm still confused," Adrian replied.
"Confused about what? Our two hearts are already husband and wife. Everyone at school says we're husband and wife. Even the teacher suspects we live together. We're actually more than just a couple, that's why we're future husband and wife because we're not old enough to get married, unless we go overboard," Elsa said.
"But we've only been together for a few days, right?" Adrian asked.
"It's enough. These past few days, I've seen a lot. You've also seen a lot. We've talked and shared our hearts. Plus, today I found out you're Lia's brother. She once told me that if I was lonely, I should look for her brother. Well, now her brother has been found. What more do you need?" Elsa asked.
"When I read online, it said we needed to get to know each other's backgrounds..."
"Too long!"
Elsa pulled Adrian's head and immediately kissed his lips. Adrian's face immediately flushed, but he hugged Elsa tightly. "Phew," Adrian released the kiss and wiped his mouth. He immediately turned his face away.
"That's enough proof. I understand. So everything I've done all this time is because I love you ?" Adrian asked.
"See, you finally get it! It's so hard, hehehe (Whaaa, forced breakthrough, I'm so embarrassed, but if not, he'd be stubborn)," Elsa said with a red face.
Then they began talking to their heart's content without paying attention to their surroundings. After being kicked out, by the owner for being deemed disruptive and returning to their respective units, Adrian lay on the living room couch, watching television. He stared blankly at the ceiling, touching his own lips with his finger, then, embarrassed, he immediately covered his face with a pillow.
"Aaaah, why did she do that? She could have just talked. Besides, that was my first kiss... it tasted... like coffee, hehe. Aaaaah, what am I thinking?" Adrian thought to himself.
Meanwhile, next door, Elsa lay face down on her bed, using her watch's legs to swing them up and down while burying her face in a pillow.
"Aaaaaaah... I kissed him! Why was I so brave to just go for it? Is this Auntie's influence too...? Aaaah, that was my first kiss. This is the first time I've ever done something so reckless... What will I do tomorrow when I see him? How will my face be? I'm confused... It's Auntie's fault. Now what, Auntie? I'm too shy to meet him," Elsa thought to herself, intensely moving her legs.
"Click," Elsa's foot accidentally kicked a cross mark on the wall. "Creak," Elsa immediately sat up, but the wall was rotating.
"Whoa, whoa, don't spin... hey, don't!" Elsa yelled in her mind, holding onto the wall.
"Thud,"
"Hmm," hearing a sound behind the couch, Adrian woke up and sat up. Then he turned to look at the wall, which had transformed into a bed with Elsa on it and with legs, looking back at him. Adrian glanced down slightly and was surprised to see that Elsa had legs.
"E-Elsa?" Adrian asked.
"Hi...hi... how are you, hahahahaha," Elsa replied nervously.