next chapter, wrote most of it yesterday
~~~~~~~~
Chapter 44:
"Who are you?" Ricky instantly released an imaginary sigh of relief.
"Shorty doesn't recognise me!" He was lucky that his colours had changed quite a bit through the years. When he and Shorty last saw each other their skin-colours were pale. Now they were much stronger and darker. On top of that, their voices had changed; they were sounding less like a child but a little more mature and deeper though not like an adolescent's voice yet...
"Name's Ralph," Ricky lied. It was all part of his great plan – pretending to be somebody he wasn't. He belonged to Hart since he was the one who fathered him in the first place. Serving his purposes was the least he could do to show some gratitude. Therefore, Shorty also belonged to him so he hadn't been entitled to run away... Ricky wasn't sure if Hart, was he aware of his actions, would want him to do what he was planning to do but he assumed it so he carried out his plan...
"Whazzup buddy?" he exclaimed cooly, grinning at the green Longneck in front of him who gave him a reserved look.
"What do you want?" Shorty grunted suspiciously. He was full aware that he wasn't supposed to talk to anybody due to being grounded but if people were dropping by without asking for permission he thought he might as well be allowed to chase them off... The first impression the blue Longneck by the name Ralph made on him wasn't exactly positive either so he was actually quite in favor of projecting his anger on unsuspecting and unfamiliar targets... such as him.
"Easy pal, why so rude?" Ricky sneered with false outrage. "Was jus' sayin' hello, y'know?"
"Name's Shorty..." Shorty snarled, giving Ricky a cold glare. "You do know that this area is only free to enter for members of my father's herd?" Now Shorty entered the terrain of lying as well which was his element, frankly...
Ricky's level of excitement rose when he realised he indeed stumbled across his brother. He almost failed to hide it but caught himself in time. "Aww, c'mon! You probably made that up anyway!" Ricky snorted. "Ain't you got friends, bud?" he then insisted with some amusement. He knew too well that he didn't have any friends either but tried to act like the cool guy he wasn't, not needing any friends.
"Again I ask you, what do you want?" Shorty growled, more vicious this time, anger building up within him.
"Man, what's wrong with ya?" Ricky teased. "I'm being kind and you sound like you wanna kill me!"
"If you were kind, you'd answer my question..." Shorty remarked with a growl.
He had a point. Maybe he should tell Shorty what he wanted? Well, what he pretended to anyway...
"Besides, you were asking if I had any friends but you're wandering around all alone too? Suspicious if you ask me, Ralph..." Shorty pointed out. "And what were you doing here in this lonesome forest anyway!? There are more populated areas here y'know?"
"'Kay, if you insist..." Ricky spoke, piqued. "I jus' arrived here, y'know, so I was exploring this neat lil' place when I ran into you. Thought I should say hello, y'know, like a well-behaved Longneck does. Oh, and I DO have friends. They were just too cowardly to come here so it's just me and my dad. Stupid of 'em if you ask me. Who knows what we're here for? There must be a reason..."
The stranger's response didn't help Shorty to build any trust but at least he didn't seem to be up to anything so he'd tolerate his presence for the time being.
"That's less boring than just doing nothing!" he noted. He could still chase him off later... "Fair enough..." he simply replied.
"Wanna join me exploring the valley, mate?" Ricky then proposed. "Or got something better to do?"
That put Shorty into a tricky situation the outcome of which highly depended on his response. Of course he could simply say "yes" and go along. Nobody from the herd was watching and if anybody asked where he was, he'd just say he'd gone to the watering hole to drink. Surely he was allowed to meet his daily needs... Besides, Bron was busy talking to his replacement, Littlefoot. He wouldn't notice him either if he sneaked away. Still, Shorty knew it'd save him a lot of trouble if he just stayed where he was supposed to be.
Still, it was against his pride to admit that he was grounded. What should he do?
Yuyun was dosing in the warm rays of the afternoon sun when she heard a familiar, warm voice greeting her.
"Hello Yuyun," Ali spoke warmly. "Sorry if I woke you up..."
"Ali, what a surprise!" Cho's mother replied in joy, rising to her feet. "Don't worry, dear, I was just relaxing. We all need a break every now and then, especially after this demanding journey." The grown-up chuckled to herself. "Anyway, what are you doing here? I take it you want to see my little one again?" She gave Ali a warm, knowing smile.
"Oh yes, I'm indeed here to visit Cho again," Ali replied. After all, she had to make up for all the time she neglected the friendship horribly... "On the one hand, I'm just curious how she's doing;" the young girl spoke. "She's sleeping, isn't she?"
Yuyun nodded. "Sleeping like a rock since you came over in the morning..."
Ali emitted a short laughter. "Haha, so I thought." Turning more serious, she added. "On the other hand though I feel like I have to make up for the time I spent with Shorty, neglecting Cho who was so kind towards me when I was injured and weak..."
"Oh Ali, you know Cho doesn't blame you for that and neither am I," Yuyun assured the young girl.
"I know, still I feel like I should be there for her now," Ali responded. Littleoot is talking to Bron right now anyway so it's the best thing I can do to visit Cho right now."
"Fair enough," Yuyun admitted. "You know, Ali, Cho actually told me about you after she made friends with you..."
"She did?" Ali asked curiously.
"Yes, she usually never talks a lot about these things," Cho's mother mused.
Yuyun layed on the rocky ground, resting her legs after hiking across the mountains. Bron had called it a day in the afternoon since the place offered some safety and enough space for all members as well as a narrow stream with crystal clear water.
When she saw her adopted daughter Cho returning to her just around the dawn of night, she instantly noticed the happy face she was wearing. "Hmm, now that's interesting. She's hardly ever like that..." she puzzled. Usually, Cho was always kind of melancholic, depressed or just unsocial and odd but she still loved her little one. Moments like this were rare so she got very curious what made her so happy...
"Hello dear, what have you been up to today?" Yuyun asked her adopted daughter warmly, smiling at her lovingly. Usually, the little girl wouldn't answer her this question but today seemed to be diferent.
"Hello Yuyun," Cho greeted her adopted mother as formally as ever. "I think I have met a new friend. She is really kind. Kind of like a big sister I never had..."
"A friend?" her mother exclaimed in surprise. "Why dear that's wonderful! I'm so happy for you! What's your friend's name?"
"It's Ali," Cho replied. "Tomorrow I will meet her again if I can and introduce you to her, she is really kind."
Yuyun felt a deep pleasure as she heard her daughter telling her the news. She had never been able to find a friend; the other kids wouldn't play with Cho though she didn't exactly try to get engaged in their games. She rather played on her own so it was quite some developement of her.
"I would love to meet your new friend, Cho," Yuyun reassured.
"But Yuyun?" Cho suddenly asked.
"Yes dear?"
"Please don't be shocked when you see her. Ali is the girl we rescued in the desert."
"Oh, that is who you made friends with?" Yuyun was quite surprised about that.
"Yes, you see... I saw her and for some reason I knew she would be different than all the other kids. I was totally right. She's really like me... in a way..."
Yuyun didn't comment on that further. Instead, she nuzzled her daughter gently who didn't object at all (sometimes she would). The next day, she got to meet Ali indeed. Yuyun was just glad her injuries healed so quickly. She still remembered how terrible her skin looked due to the excessive sunburn.
"Well, do you think I can try to talk to Cho again?" Ali asked. She really wanted to talk to her again as she had just remembered how kind a soul the little girl was when she talked to her in the morning.
"Sure, let's see how our sleepyhead is doing, shall we?" Yuyun chuckled. "I'm just glad she made it and I'm sure she'll be fine in no time just like you, Ali."
"Should I be a coward? Should I be daring? Should I disobey Bron?" Shorty just didn't know... but then a thought occured to him.
"Why am I caring for somebody I barely know when I'm not caring for others I know too well?" In other words, why should he risk the truce with Bron for that idiot? Why should he try not to lose his face in front of somebody he didn't know? Surely, it wouldn't help restoring the little self-esteem he still had but it wasn't exactly someone he cared about. In front of Ali, he would've gone with Ralph to show her how daring he was. However, Ralph wasn't Ali so his decision stood.
"Sorry, but I can't," Shorty spoke outright. He really did mean it. Even though Ralph appeared to be a jerk, he was still better company than his shadow or his reflection in the water. "Honestly, I'm technically not even allowed to talk to anybody right now."
Ricky, remembering hearing about Shorty hurting other children, quickly realised he'd have a better chance to keep the conversation going if he didn't act like a jerk this time. Nothing would be gained if he made his brother dislike him or even wake his anger that he already felt earlier.
"Grounded, eh?" Ricky questioned, attempting to sound empathetic though he wasn't so sure if he succeeded.
Shorty nodded, swallowing down his pride. He prepared himself in case Ralph had in mind to make fun of him.
"Ah, that's uncool..." Ricky replied, trying to sound sorry. "Don't worry buddy, I've been there too. Your dad's as strict as mine then?" Ricky was really curious now. Who was that "dad" his brother was referring to? Surely, it wouldn't be his actual dad?
Shorty, being quite surprised by the boy's reaction, began to drop his surveillance. "Well, actually he's absolutely not..." Shorty admitted. With some anger, he added. "Though I don't think he really cares about me. He's just busy getting to know his real son. I don't matter anymore all of a sudden..."
"Oh..." Ricky began to like that development. "So... you've been adopted? That sucks."
"Yeah..." Shorty grunted.
"You can be lucky you were adopted though," Ricky remarked. "Most orphans just get killed out there without anybody giving a damn. My dad wouldn't give a damn anyway but that's just my dad..." Ricky suddenly realised that he had let down his guard too much. His brother mustn't figure out who he truly was..."So anyway, your dad's not strict at all?" he questioned as if nothing had happened.
"Mmh, he really isn't," Shorty replied honestly. "I usually get away with a lot of mischief. He'd scorn me but who cares?" Shorty had a feeling the other boy maybe wasn't so much different at all. He certainly seemed to be understanding of his problems.
"Then how'd you get yourself grounded when you normally get away with everything?" Ricky wondered, trying not to tease Shorty. His brother seemed to open up and he'd better make sure he'd stay on good terms with him for now...
"Well, I've gone too far this time..." Shorty sighed, annoyance and regret welling up in him.
"Oh?" Ricky decided to see if another theory of his was true. "I've heard somebody almost killed a youngling from their herd the other day when I arrived here. That wasn't you, was it, Shorty?"
Shorty was surprised to be accused of almost killing Cho, but then again he was not. The fact alone that Ralph had heard about this made him suspicious again but Shorty knew how fast gossip was exchanged when such a huge number of dinosaurs met at such a small place. He'd probably picked it up from some conversation. In fact, Shorty had done that earlier that day when he was so bored that even the most boring gossip was still more interesting than staring at something doing nothing at all all day...
"Y'know, Ralph," Shorty spoke casually. "Usually, I wouldn't tell you this since I barely know you..."
"But?" Ricky grinned. He knew he had him where he wanted him.
"But you seem to be understanding and not judgemental so I'll tell you. Maybe I'll feel better afterwards..."
"Sure thing, bro," Ricky replied, relaxed. "My dad's judging everyone right away and it sucks! Just trying not to become like him, y'know?" Again, Ricky slightly recoiled.
"Too much info again..." he reprimanded himself. But it'd benefit him as long as Shorty didn't find out.
"Yeah, so... yes, I'm the one who almost killed the youngling..."Shorty admitted. "Go ahead and hate me..."
"Don't worry, why'd I hate you?" Ricky quickly answered. "Though, why'd you do this?" This question was of particular interest for the blue Longneck. If he knew how to spark Shorty's wrath without becoming its target himself, then he might even be useful in the end. And he'd enjoy manipulating him...
"Remember what I told you about my dad not caring about me anymore since he met his real son he abandoned before his hatchday?" Shorty explained. "Y'see, I was jealous of course and just generally pissed off because my girlfriend seemed to know that flathead, therefore I wasn't interesting for her either."
"You got a girlfriend? Good job, mate!" Ricky jeered.
"Not really," Shorty grunted. "As I said, she seems to like that other guy better than me." The thought of Littlefoot talking Ali away from his awoke his fury again but Shorty suppressed the urge to release it. " Anyway, so I ran away, furious. I was full of energy and I just needed to let it out on somebody... That somebody happened to be one of the annoying kids I often bully around. It's especially fun when I bully her because she's just a weirdo. Sometimes I can yell the ugliest insults at her and she'd just ignore me and then again she explodes at the littlest mention of an insult..."
"So Shorty's turned into a bully too? That's very interesting..." Ricky mused. He knew very well why Shorty became what he was now. Apparently, when somebody felt worthless, they'd lower others to rise themselves, even if these others stood no chance. Yes, that made Ricky actually quite proud. His brother wasn't the annoying brat he used to be after all.
"Anyway, when I finally caught that girl, I started beating her and I started to feel better. I lost control over myself and started torturing her. When I was done, she was bleeding so badly, that she'd have died without quick help from some herd members."
"Geesh," Ricky was sincerely shocked. "Well, I see why you did that but that was stupid!" Ricky's outrage was acted of course but deep inside he grew a little bit of respect for his brother, knowing he could technically do that to him if he wasn't careful. Ricky was of strong built, but Shorty seemed even more muscular than him, his tail in particular...
"I know..." Shorty cursed. "If anything, it made everything worse. Now everybody just views me as a threat to their children and those I care about despise me. Admit it, I'm a loser with no friends everybody hates!"
"Oh, so I was right about you not having any friends after all?" Ricky asked teasingly, forgetting that he shouldn't act like a jerk. However, Shorty took it lightly.
"Well, not anymore, Ralph..." the green Longneck sighed. "Not anymore..."
"Well..." Ricky was thinking hard. He had to find the right words now. "Looks like we both are pretty lonely right now. My friends are a bunch of eggs and your friends probably just don't understand you, not understanding why you did this, or they never really cared about you in the first place! A true friend would stick to their friends no matter what, right?" Ricky realised just how much crap he was saying but it seemed to have the desired effect on his brother. He wouldn't tell him any of this if he were still sane and if it wasn't necessary... What he was talking about right now was against his philosophy. "So..."
Shorty suddenly realised what the other Longneck was alluding to. The thought seemed a bit strange – after all he never really valued having friends nor did he ever get any until recently.
"Does he want to be my friend?" Shorty wondered.
"So... wanna be friends?" Ricky offered.
"Hello little sleepyhead," Yuyun cooed. If it weren't for her injuries, one could think she was slumbering peacefully. In truth, she wasn't really sleeping. In fact, it was much closer to nonconscience. "Your best friend Ali is here again to visit you, Cho."
At first it seemed like Cho would just keep on sleeping but when her mother mentioned Ali's name, she shifted ever so slightly.
"Are you awake, dear?" Yuyun wondered.
Ali observed how the little Longneck slowly shook off her unconscience, her mind slowly beginning to process the information that Ali was standing right next to her. Yawning, she slowly opened her eyes just a bit, her adopted mother's warm smile greeting her. Cho tried to return the smile but failed at it since pain erupted in her head. Instead, her features were contorted into a grimace of pain.
"Are you alright, Cho?" Ali spoke softly, a spark of worry in her voice.
Hearing Ali's voice, Cho's motivation to fight the drowsiness in her head increased, and the pain was suddenly a lot easier to endure. Cho tilted her head towards Ali, relying on her hearing sense. Then she opened her eyes again, this time much wider. Ali's bright, blue eyes met her – her friend was smiling at her.
"Hello again," Ali spoke, smiling.
Cho returned the smile even if it was hardly noticeable.
"I'll leave you girls alone now, okay?" Yuyun voiced up, knowing that Cho didn't like having too many other dinosaurs around her. She could have a talk with her once Ali left.
"That's fine," Ali replied.
Cho nodded slightly.
"Have fun!" Yuyun tweeted before turning around and resuming her late afternoon sunbath.
Shorty considered his options. He knew he was technically not even allowed to talk to Ralph but he also realised the chance Ralph offered him here. Shorty still didn't fully trust him but he trusted him enough to hang around with him. If Ralph didn't hate him for what he'd done, maybe that was Shorty's chance to make a fresh start? Besides, Shorty had learned to value friendship when he met Ali. A friend was better then no friend. Maybe Ralph could even turn out to be somewhat useful to him?
"Are you serious?" Shorty responded carefully. "Nobody wants to be friends with a loser like me..."
"Aww, don't worry bro. You're alright. Really." Ricky reassured.
"And you don't mind that I can't leave this place for some time?" Shorty inquired. "I won't be able to do anything fun!"
"Well, you could always sneak off..." Ricky offered.
"No, I won't." Shorty had already made up his mind about that. "If I show my dad that I'm trying to redeem myself, behaving and not causing any fuzz, then he might lift the punishment. He usually isn't one to hold a grudge for very long..."
"Fair enough, I'd just be glad if I had somebody here I can consider a friend," Ricky explained. "So... my offer still stands. Wanna be friends, Shorty?"
"Well, I don't see why we shouldn't..." Shorty replied. Then he grinned at Ricky.
"Great!" Ricky exclaimed, surprised how easy it was to act like a good guy. He even kind of enjoyed it... kind of.
"Well, I'd better buzz off before we're caught chattin' ," he then called happily. "I'll drop by again tomorrow around this time, 'kay?"
"Sure, seeya!" Shorty replied, smiling. Maybe this day would start his redemption. It'd take him weeks, if not months, and he probably really had to change, not just pretend to do so. Yet Shorty felt like he could succeed. He already had a good idea what to do in the near future...
The two girls watched the grown-up Longneck leave. Only when she was out of hearing range, Cho spoke up. "Hello Ali." Her voice was weak but not nearly as croaky as it had been in the morning. "I didn't expect you to visit me again so soon..."
Cho's ability to form full sentences again greatly relieved Ali. This time, they would be able to have a longer chat.
"Well, I was spending most of the day with my friend Littlefoot but now he's talking to Bron so I thought I'd come over again," Ali explained.
"Littlefoot?" Cho asked. "Who is that? I don't remember any Longneck of this herd by that name. And why is he talking to our herd leader, Ali?"
"Oh, your memory doesn't fail you, Cho," Ali chuckled. "You see, Littlefoot is someone I met long ago when I was travelling to the Great Valley with my old herd. We had lots of fun and a really cool adventure, he's really nice!" Ali's gaze became very dreamy.
Cho couldn't help but chuckle despite the pain it caused her to do so. Even though she had absolutely no idea about these things, she just knew what Ali felt there.
"I'll introduce you two tomorrow when I visit you again, Cho. I'm sure you'll like him!"
Cho didn't particularly want to meet a dinosaur she didn't know but she knew that Ali would greatly appreciate it if she didn't act like the unsocial creep she usually was. Though in a strange way, she knew she would get along with Ali's friend when Ali was with her.
"Okay, I'm curious," Cho replied. "Though, what does he have to do with our herd leader? Why is he talking to him?"
"Oh right... You see, Cho... you probably know that Bron had a son he never found?" Ali started to explain.
Cho nodded slightly.
"Well... Littlefoot..."
"He is his son?" Cho suddenly piped up in excitement.
"Why yes, good guess!" Ali exclaimed in surprise.
"Hey, that totally makes sense..." Cho suddenly thought out aloud.
"What?" Ali wondered. She just hoped Cho would talk in riddles again like last time.
"Did Shorty oww..." Cho froze when her excitement got the better of her. She had moved her body around just slightly but was instantly greeted by a tsunami of pain.
"Oh no, are you okay?" Ali was quite worried about her friend now. She didn't want to imagine what pain she went through right now...
Cho took a while to respond. "I... think so..."
"Don't move yet," Ali advised. "I'm already glad you can talk. That's more than I hoped for. Just make sure you don't cause additional pain."
"Don't worry, Ali... I will not move... again," Cho replied.
"Oh I still don't get why Shorty hurt you like that!" Ali suddenly shouted at noone in particular. Seeing her friend suffer while trying to stay strong without whimpering enraged her. Cho didn't deserve that. Ali was amazed that the intense pain didn't make her cry. She would've cried when she was hurt at Cho's age...
"I think I do now," Cho whispered. All the talking slowly seemed to take on her voice. "Did... did Shorty see Littlefoot?"
"Huh?" Ali was confused for a moment. "Why yes, he was right there when Littlefoot found out that Bron was his dad. So was I by the way... why did you ask?"
"Then it makes sense..." Cho gave Ali a serious look.
"What makes sense, Cho?" Ali asked, confused.
"Don't you see it, Ali?" Cho wondered. When Ali shook her head, Cho sighed. "How did Shorty react then when he found out about Bron's real son?"
Ali considered for a moment. Then realisation finally hit her. "Oh, now I get what you mean, Cho..."
"It was my bad luck that I happened to cross his path," the girl explained. "He needed a vent – that was... me." Cho's expression went dark. "It could have been anyone smaller than him..."
"Then why you?!" Ali demanded in fury. "He always picks on you the most as it is!"
"As I said, it was bad luck that he ran into me," Cho repeated. "It is true that he hates me most."
"Why?! Why you, Cho?" Ali just didn't get it and she knew the next talk she'd be having with Shorty would be a very long interview...
"I'm the only one who doesn't submit to him, Ali," Cho answered. That wasn't the full truth but it was a valid reason. She was a dreamer, an individual. She had her own, sometimes stubborn, view of the world. She wanted to do what she wanted to do and not what others told her. Of course there were some rules she had to follow that actually made sense... like staying in a herd, not wandering too far from the others, being polite and so on... Shorty's rules didn't make sense to her so she didn't care about them... which earned her Shorty's loath.
Being the awkward girl she was, she also didn't want to reveal certain things to Ali. They had always been her very own secret she'd never give away. Unfortunately, one particular dinosaur knew them anyway...
"I will not tolerate this any longer, Cho," Ali shouted, determination in her voice. "Shorty will be up against me if he ever harms you again!"
"No Ali, that doesn't seem right..." Cho retorted weakly.
"So it feels right that he's almost killed you?!" Ali couldn't help mocking Cho for her naivety.
"No..." Cho's answer was simple but Ali wasn't any wiser.
"Then what is right in your eyes, Cho?" she inquired, sighing.
Cho sighed as well. "Nothing, Ali... nothing is."
Ali felt some anger rise in her stomach. Why couldn't Cho just say what she was supposed to say for once?!
"Again, I don't get what you mean, Cho. Sorry..." Ali admitted, swallowing her anger. "If only you were more direct sometimes, not talking in riddles all the time..."
"I'm afraid that is a part of me, Ali... I have always been like that and I don't think I can change; I don't think I want to," Cho admitted. "Let me try to explain, okay?"
Ali nodded.
"For some reason I... I just can't blame him for what he did to me... I know I should hate him, fear him, feel the desire to pay it back... but, frankly, I just feel sorry for him."
"You feel sorry for him?" Ali couldn't believe what Cho told her.
"Yes, I do," the smaller girl replied almost defiantly.
"You'll have to explain that, Cho..." Ali sighed.
"If you knew Shorty for as long as I do, then you would see what I mean," Cho explained. "You know his backstory... you know the violence and wrong views he was confronted with in his early childhood... you know how he was never formally adopted and therefore feeling unwanted sometimes, especially now that Littlefoot is more important to Bron than he ever was... you know how all the other kids in the herd didn't want anything to do with him..."
"Well, they also don't want to play with you..." Ali remarked carefully.
"Yes, but that is because I chose not to play with them," Cho explained. "I am who I am; I am different, I am weird and odd. You try to understand me, Ali. You didn't judge me because of my skin, you didn't mind that I'm a loner with no friends, you didn't mind me being much younger than you... You are what every other dinosaur I have met so far wasn't... You are a true friend, Ali."
Ali brushed all reservations she had aside. Giving Cho a look of gratitude, she gently nuzzled her cheek which the girl returned, smiling.
"Strange, isn't it? I understand how others are thinking but nobody understands how I am..." Cho mused. A particularly nasty wave of pain delayed her next words. "I can somewhat relate to Shorty, Ali. He's an orphan just like me. If he has known his mother, he will miss her." With a lot of sadness in her voice, she added. "I miss my mother too – my real mother..."
"He won't miss his dad for sure..." Ali murmured.
"At least he knew him..." Cho mentioned, her mood becoming a bit darker again.
Ali realised that Cho had probably just told her something no other dinosaur had ever got out of the Longneck with the black skin. According to Bron, she had never said a word about her family. Hinting at the situation in her family already was more than she had ever expected. Already in the morning, she had mentioned her mother, now she was mentioning her dad. Ali felt that Cho was on a good way.
"But true, he won't miss him I think," Cho admitted. "Anyway, I can also relate to Shorty because he knows what it means to be lonely. I believe it is why he became such a jerk. He wasn't important to anyone..."
"While you became the victim of the jerk even though you were in a similar situation?" Ali remarked. "Come on, Cho.You could've also become like him but you became the very opposite!"
"Shorty isn't like me, Ali," Cho argued quietly. "That's why he became what he became and I became what I became. However, I believe Shorty can change if only he has someone to whom he really matters – someone who really matters to him."
"I don't doubt he can, Cho," Ali replied. "However, he will have a very hard time redeeming himself and I'm not sure if the constant negative reactions he'll obviously still receive for a while won't make him doubt his decision..."
"We will see, Ali," Cho spoke optimistically.
"Yeah, we will..." Ali replied, not as optimistically.
A short break occured between them. Now that they had finished their discussion they had nothing to talk about anymore... or did they?
Cho stared into Ali's warm,blueish eyes. She still didn't know how she was able to endure the pain in her small body. It was always there, like something was slowly feasting on her from her inside. Yet, when Ali was around, she had something else than the terrible pain to focus on. Right now, it were her eyes fascinating her. They were exactly the colour of her mother' s eyes – those loving eyes she'd first looked into on the day of her birth... those eyes so full of pain when she saw her mother fall victim to him...
"No, I mustn't think about that right now!" Cho tried to force her thoughts in another direction. Luckily, Ali spoke up just at the right time.
"You know, Cho... there's something I didn't get when I visited you in the morning..."
Cho, happy to have something else then her physical and mental pain to focus on ,replied eagerly. "Yes, what would that be, Ali? I'm not sure if I was thinking straight earlier..."
"You're now at least," Ali chuckled. "Remember when you mentioned that we two have a lot more in common than I could imagine?"
Cho commissioned her brain but it refused to deliver what she needed to know. Eventually, she resigned. "I'm afraid I can't remember, Ali," Cho answered, smiling apologetically. "Did I say that before I snoozed off?"
"Oh yes..." Ali laughed. "You were half asleep already!"
"That explains it..." Cho would've joined Ali's laughter but she supressed it to avoid the eruption of pain that would follow inevidently.
"Do you think you can remember what you may have meant when you said this?" Ali requested. "I'm sure that's one of your riddles again, isn't it?" The pink girl giggled.
"Ah yes, I think I know what I meant but I will not tell you, Ali," Cho answered. "This is something I had to figure out myself when I met you so you should also figure it out yourself."
"Aww, any hints?" Ali begged.
"I shall grant you one hint but no more, okay?" Cho grinned at Ali.
"Alright, what is the hint?" Ali was very curious.
Cho grinned even wider until the point where it started hurting. She knew Ali wouldn't approve of the answer. "The answer is hidden in your eyes... happy puzzling."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So there you have it
Let me know what you think about the various developments in this chapter and I hope you liked it ^^
The next chapter will resume where chapter 43 left off...