Thirty Years

The Past is the Past

"Brother. . . I need a favor."

"What is it?"

"I'll be leaving for a bit, can you take care of things for me?"

"Leaving?"

. . .

Telling only Maix and Asa, Via quickly arranged for a personal vacation after Leo let her off the hook.

It wasn't that she didn't want to tell her other friends, but she felt that if she didn't leave at that moment, she likely never would. Moreover, she trusted her friends, and knew they would understand how she felt. This vacation was a much-needed break on her part. For the last couple of years, she had either been working to help her brother, or to advance her own skills. Very rarely did she have the time to stop focusing on doing and reflect on all that had happened.

With Leo's announcement, Via felt this was the perfect time for her to step out of the picture for a while.

Taking only a small suitcase with her basic necessities, Via left quickly.

After the door closed, Asa walked into her room, his eyes widening in surprise.

She even left all forms of technology at home?

. . .

The place Via decided to go to was a small lakeside area. Most residents there bought cabins so that they could visit there in the summer.

Now, as it was the colder season, there were few people there.

Taking advantage of this, Via easily arranged for a small cabin. With the slow business, the rent wasn't too much, and she wouldn't be disturbed.

On the car ride, Via watched as the busy city scenery slowly faded into the sight of luscious trees on weaving hills.

She remembered one time when she went with the Royce family to their private cabin.

At that time, she had chatted happily with Molly in the car, paying little attention to the scenery, but stealing glances at Gavin.

Once they arrived at the cabin, Via surprisingly had some of the most fun in her life. It may sound exaggerated, but to her, being around her best friend and the boy she cared most about was enough at the time.

So for a small amount of time, she let herself go. She played with Molly in the lake, learning to water ski--mostly falling and getting water up her nose-- and wishing the trip would last forever.

She enjoyed herself so much that she even stopped paying attention to Gavin for the rest of the trip.

Reflecting on this trip, Via came to a startling realization: compared to all the other times she was with Gavin, she felt the most comfortable with him during that trip.

She remembered the first time she met him, how she felt so embarrassed he found her, peeking in the entrance of his debut party.

She thought of the first time she saw a new side of him while staying over at his house. Despite the people that flocked around him at school, he seemed so lonely while at home. He was only close to his sister, and even so, spent most of his time studying.

She felt she understood for him. She too had spent countless hours while she was younger studying. However, unlike Gavin, Via always had her brothers.

Seeing Gavin like that, Via had thought it was a pity for such a great person to be so alone.

But now she knew she was wrong. He wasn't alone. He was happy the way he was. Some people love to always be around other people, feeling lonely while alone.