Lose Myself

Chapter Forty-Three: Back To The Future

I can't believe her, but I'll do it anyway – for the charity.

Dominic

Just like Claire promised, the car was overflowing with flowers. It was beautiful not going to lie but the mess it'd leave behind would be punishing. Petals everywhere for sure.

We drove for a good forty minutes into the city before pulling up to the building, it was emanating a homey vibe – the gardens were well groomed and there was old people everywhere, slowly going about their day. Amara and I shared a look before entering the facility, the lady at the front desk was early twenties at least and seemed to identify us immediately.

"Oh my g-" she stood up, Amara looked much more interested in the décor of the foyer than the actual humans in it. "Welcome! Are you here to visit anyone?"

I hated the fact that the first thought that went into my mind was 'did she really believe our family would send our elderly to a place like this?' I'd have to shut myself down and start working on the 'becoming a better person' ideal we'd agreed on.

Amara seemed to catch up quicker than myself and spoke up, "No," she laughed, "We were just exploring the neighbourhood and thought of visiting here, meet some of the wiser of our city."

"Oh, how wonderful." The girl smiled.

"Yeah, a real learning experience." Amara returned.

The girl introduced herself as Matilda, which is such a unfitting name since she hardly looked like nor dressed like one. Matilda took us around introducing and naming the people we met along the way, luckily there were no paparazzi bothering us – thank god – I would've thought Claire organised for such. Amara got along really well with a couple old ladies, I got sat with the men who continued to tell me to 'savour them while they're young' because apparently the 'fun ends soon'. Which would apply to us, had our lives not been artificially extended by about sixty years.

Soon it was time for afternoon tea, Amara tugged my arm and nodded toward the door. I was guessing she was hungry and wanted to hurry up, give out the presents and be on our way – she wasn't one to eat food meant for people without any other source for some.

"You hate being offered food in facilities don't you?" I chuckled as she tried to pry the boot open before I'd even opened the car.

She stood, "I just don't feel comfortable eating their food. It's meant for the old people."

"I know." I replied opening the car.

She huffed, "It won't be long until my stomach starts making ungraceful sounds."

I smiled shaking my head.

We went around to all the tables, reading nametags and handing out flowers. They thanked us repeatedly and needless to say it was well worth the time and effort. Had we not done this we would've regretted it, honestly the feeling post-charity was all that and more.

It was really out of nowhere, maybe I'd gotten caught in the moment but I found myself at the front desk again – writing out a cheque for a donation. The place could use some charity honestly, Claire made sure not to pick a privileged retirement home and didn't tip off the media either – I'd thank her for that later.

I leaned on the counter watching Amara saying goodbye to everyone, giving a hug to almost every person. I smiled to myself – she was just too cute. I admired her ability to get along with everyone young and old, she genuinely loved it too.

We'd be young for a pretty long time but not forever, that got me thinking about a lot of things. My dad still looked mid-thirties but he definitely was not, he would live for much longer as well. That meant 'forever' was much longer for us than most people or people like my sister.

I was very grateful, I couldn't stop thinking about it. Amara had given me a gift I could never pay back, she allowed me to be able to build relationships with other people – genuine relationships. And I had to admit, I'd become attached to some of the people here. I'd become dangerously attached to Amara herself, which was expected no?

"Let's go." She bounced tugging my arm.

Amara

I sat on the armrest of an old lady's chair, her name was Anna and she was the sweetest thing. She talked to me about cooking and random old people things for a while, I couldn't help but sneak a peek at Dominic who stood at the reception desk – a thinking face on display.

She noticed my distraction and started telling me something quite interesting, Dominic had apparently spent most of his afternoon with this lady and her friends. They joined in admitting he was quite 'charming' and 'considerate' which I found hilarious. Dominic and Anna seemed to have an already blossoming relationship, I found joy in seeing her eyes sparkle as she talked about how interesting and wonderful it'd been talking with him.

"Amara darling, I'd like to ask a favour of you." She slowly placed a hand on my shoulder, I nodded eager to do anything for the nice woman. "Take care of him, he reminds me so much of my son."

"Of course," I smiled, "I won't let him out of my sight."

"Yes," she smiled sadly, "You never know what could happen."

I stopped joking, "I'm sorry, did something happen to your son?"

Another woman spoke up since Anna didn't seem like she was going to, "He died a while back from cancer, he was 22 years old."

"Oh," I looked to Anna, "I'm so sorry. I promise I'll keep him healthy as a shark" I winked.

"Why a shark?" Another woman spoke.

I smiled, "They are the healthiest species alive, they are immune to everything – even cancer."

"Golly aren't you a smart one." She chuckled. I smiled at her.

I stood, bending over to pull Anna into a hug. "We'll be sure to visit."

I said goodbye to all the women and men alike, giving hugs to those who seemed all too eager. I approached Dominic who didn't seem to realise my presence in the moment, I stood watching his face – he seemed at peace with his thoughts, it must be good then. Nothing to worry about.

"Let's go." I jumped to get his attention, he smiled at me then we started making our way out.

Dominic started the car, somehow triggering me to voice my thoughts, "After we get food..."

"Mmhm." He hummed.

I brushed a hair back, "Maybe we should visit the hospital too. And give the rest of these flowers to the cancer patients."

He looked to me before turning back the road, "I think that's a good idea."