Chapter 27: Birthday Gift
She pulled him down and whispered, "I'm gonna puke," and Nick immediately carry her out from the crowd, their bathroom was too far so he pulled behind a car and held her while puking. Behind that parked car was a wide grass field. They sat there after she puked and waited for her to recover. No one could see them since the car was blocking them.
"What a mess," she commented after gaining her breath back.
"You are a beautiful mess," he said. She smiled at him and raised him for a high five.
"That was fun," she only said and closed her eyes. Perfect timing of a cool blow of the wind. He pulled her to lay on his shoulder, he thought that she had fallen asleep already.
"It was," but his voice was too weak. And Fera suddenly raised her pointing finger and looked at him.
"I forgot something, where did my birthday gift go?" And realized that she lost it somewhere.
"It's fine, what matters is you are here."
"No! I should have a birthday gift for you." She looked at her body and found her necklace, she took it off and hand it to Nick. "Happy Birthday, Nicky." She greeted him in her most energetic voice.
"This seemed special to you, I never saw you without this, are you sure?" It was hee necklace with a cross pendant.
"And you are special to me, this special thing would look good on you." She put it on. He held its pendant and saw how beautiful it was. "My parents gave this necklace to me as a birthday gift too." She said while looking at it. Nick didn't know how to thank her, it was the best gift he had ever received. Not to mention Fera said he was special to her. Fera maybe drank and take it back, he wouldn't mind. He stared at her face and she had melted his heart.
He pulled her into a hug and simply wiped his tears, he even lost his cool. He tried all his best not to sniff, he couldn't afford to let Fera see his vulnerable state. After he calm down he let go of her and smiled.
"Thank you," they both sat in peace and Fera started to regain her consciousness, the effect of alcohol started fading away. "After a few years, I decided to celebrate my birthday today, I did not want to, because today is my parents' death anniversary, I felt like I shouldn't celebrate it the day I was born at the same time I lost my parents.
Fera knows how it felt to lose her parents, and she would do the same if she was in his shoe.
"I understand, it is hard I know and I don't have any advice for you since I lost my parents too and I am mourning still. Nothing can ease the pain." Their conversation made the atmosphere down. "And I lost my gift for you," she suddenly added that part out of nowhere. "If someone stole it, he or she better not cross paths with me," which made him smile.
"You might be left it somewhere." He only replied. But the terrace of Hernandez's mansion, there was where Nikolas was standing. He witnesses the whole scenario. When they thought no one saw them, several eyes have seen it. Fred was inside the heavily tinted car while Margaret was standing behind the tree next to them.
"I don't know, can I go home now? I'm tired." And she yawned. He immediately stood and held her hand.
"Can you walk still?"
"Can't you see my feet?"
"Okay-okay, just wait here and I'll go get my car," he took his blazer off and put it on her shoulder. Nick didn't take long and stopped in front of her.
****
"Nicky!" she shouted but he only turned his head to her. "You might want to help me with this effing project."
"I am trying to catch fish here, tone down." His only response made her scoff and storm to him at the river bank. They were having a picnic near the river to do their project together but Fera end up doing it all and Nick started fishing.
"I am starting to think that you only invite me here so I could do your project," she hissed at him and crossed her arms.
"No way, I thought that you'd be healthier if you would go out more often than stay at home and go pale like that." And he pointed to her arms. "You're not even eating healthy, so I'll get you a fresh fish this is way healthier than cup noodles."
Fera was guilty so she decide to shut her mouth and went to his pale where he store his caught fish. He already had three fishes there but Fera wasn't too satisfied with his catch since he'd been there for several hours.
"Do you want to try it?" he offered. She shrugged her shoulder and she took the fishing stick.
"Okay, we'll put this bait on this little hook and throw this to where you think you'd catch fish then wait until you feel any movement or a little pull." He instructed, he carefully put the worm on the hook, and Fera threw it to somewhere she saw a bit of bubble. She turned to Nick when nothing happened.
"Nothing is happening," she was about to pull it but Nick stopped her.
"Wait, we need a bit of patience in here, just wait." So they were both still on the edge and waited.
"We'll wait for a stupid fish to take the bait then?" He chucked as Fera said that.
"Why would you say stupid?"
"If I am a fish, I will never get near to something new in my place or eat something strange." She said which made him smile.
"That is why you are not a fish, you are Fera. Cause a fish is meant to die so you could survive." He said that silenced her.
"Do you believe in fate, Nick?" she asked.
"Yes,"
"If yes, do you think someone or something is behind everything that happens to you?"
"Yes,"
"Why?" she looked at the water down her.
"Fate lies on your hand, and everything that happened to you was because of you," he bravely answered even he knew that Fera had a lot to rebut. She opens her palm and shows it to him.
"Is it my fault that my parents die?" it was a tough question considering that they both lost their parents.
"It was never your fault but maybe it was for you," she glanced at him after he said those words.
"Ironic, losing parents for their child when a child needs its parents to survive." she stared at the calm water and Nick looked at it too.
"Things happened for different purposes, lives of individual go differently so the principle of every one of us was never the same." She smiled at his safe answer. She didn't see it coming. She was expecting a heavy debate but Nick knew that Fera never backs down when it comes to her stand.
"You never fail to surprise me, Nicky," she confessed. "You would always go destroy my expectation."
"Cause you expect negative and I always choose positive." He spoke like he knew Fera so well. She only nodded and her eyes suddenly widen.
She hand the stick to him and he confusingly took it.
"Why?"
"I don't know, something pulled it." He handed the stick to her again.
"You do it, it's just a fish." She hesitantly took it back and Nick told her to pull it carefully until she saw what it was.
"It is a fish," she whispered.
"Of course, what do you expect chicken?" she only rolled her eyes at his response.
"I don't know, maybe." But her annoyance subside soon as she saw how big it was. It felt like an achievement to her and she never dares to hide her smile. She became more transparent to him since his birthday. It was been a few days and he still has her necklace.
"Time to go," she declared when she saw the sky had turned into white. Anytime soon the rain would pour.
"Aren't we going to swim?" he asked.
"It's not clean," she exclaimed while looking at the water.
"It clear,"
"You better smell the fish so you would realize that it's not."
"That's what fish suppose to smell."
"But the fish came from that water," she points to the river.
"It's normal," he said while half laughing. "Or you just don't know how to swim." She was about to react when he wrapped his arms around her and jumped off the bank.
"Nick!" she squealed but they have already fallen in the water. She hurriedly swam up but she kept sinking so Nick held her. And he realized that she couldn't swim. "Holy shit!" and she slapped his shoulder.
"I'm sorry,"
"I'm gonna kill you."