I looked at her, shocked.
"That isn't true."
Liz tilted her head slightly.
"And why do you think so?"
"Because I met him again."
Her eyebrows lifted.
"But you said you only remember the birthday event."
I scoffed softly.
"I meant I remember only up to there clearly. But I do remember meeting him again."
Liz leaned forward, curiosity written all over her face.
"What did you two talk about the next time?"
I looked at the lake again for a moment before answering.
"We met again the next weekend."
I exhaled slowly and began.
"It was a weekend. His father had a meeting with my parents again."
"I was sitting on the carpet in the playroom when he came running toward me. He was carrying a few books in his hands."
"I remember staring at them because I didn't know what they were."
"He looked at me and asked, 'So… did you learn?'"
I smiled faintly at the memory.
"I told him yes. I learned the spelling."
"And then I proudly said it."
"Spider Lily."
"Black Dahlia."
Liz listened silently.
"He jumped happily when I said it correctly," I continued. "Like I had just won some competition."
"He sat down beside me on the carpet and handed me one of the books."
"He said, 'This is manga.'"
"I asked him what that meant."
"He said, 'You love watching cartoons, right?'"
"I said yes. Then I asked him how he knew."
"He shrugged and said, 'Every kid does. And you'll love anime too. My nanny suggested it.'"
"He had brought translated manga with him."
"We started reading together."
"Until evening."
"We laughed a lot."
"Giggled."
"He kept teasing me whenever I mispronounced words."
I remembered the feeling clearly.
"I got annoyed and told him, 'You're so mean.'"
Liz smiled a little.
"He chuckled and said, 'I'm not mean. The fact is you're mean. You hit me whenever I tease you.'"
I looked down at my hands.
"I told him, 'Then what should I do? Give you sweets for teasing me?'"
"And we both started laughing."
The lake water moved gently in front of us.
"We played tic-tac-toe too," I added. "And catching games. Sometimes hide and seek in the hallway."
I paused.
"But now… everything is just a memory."
My voice lowered slightly.
"How could I forget my very first friend?"
I looked at Liz.
"He was the only one who understood me."
She stayed quiet for a moment.
Then asked softly,
"Did you ever meet him again?"
I shook my head slowly.
"No."
"That was the last time."
"I asked my parents about him many times."
"But they always ignored it… or changed the topic."
Liz studied my face carefully.
Then she reached out and gently lifted my chin so I would look at her.
"I know you two became best friends even with just two meetings," she said quietly. "Some people are meant to connect like that."
"But I think something happened during that meeting between your parents and Perez's father."
She looked toward the lake thoughtfully.
"Something big enough to break that connection."
"And I think that's when everything started."
I frowned slightly.
"Liz… I don't know which part of your theory is right."
"But in some way you might be correct."
"My parents never allowed me to mention Perez again."
"That always felt… strange."
"My nanny told me he had gone out of town with his parents."
I looked down at the ground.
"And as a child…"
"I believed her."