Life Without You

Chapter 26 - Leon?

Andy lifted up the collar of his coat to hide his face further. He hated the noises and the nasty comments the people were throwing at his mother and them pestering him. He was feeling frightened. Ariel felt helpless and could feel Andy clinging tighter onto her waist.

Pro-Leon fanatics began to chant Leon's name in an attempt to put her off, "Leon! Leon! Leon!"

"BACK OFF!" Evan yelled as he rushed to their rescue. He gestured the crowd to distant themselves from Ariel and Andy. "Follow me," he shielded them with his arms and whisked them away into a taxi that happened to be nearby.

"You okay?" Evan asked, helping them into the backseat. Ariel gave her nod of thanks and he closed the door.

"Stand back!" he held back the crowd until the taxi drove off.

———

Back at home in the living room, Andy was still visibly shaken to the point he was breathing abnormally hard and sobbing in between. Ariel rushed to feed his anti-arrhythmic medicine to him, and after a few moments, he finally calmed down. Nevertheless, he was quite downcast, no mood nor appetite.

Ariel was trying her best to comfort him, letting his tears fall into her embrace.

"I'm sorry, I should've brought the bodyguards with us," her voice was filled with regret. She stroked his head. His eyes narrowed at the drone that Leon gave him, displayed proudly on the wall shelf.

Ariel noticed his gaze on the drone.

How could Leon do this to a young child, pretending not to know him and humiliating him before the crowd! How cruel and callous!

After all that she did for him, taking the bullet for him and making soups to bring him back to the pink of health - why was she so foolish again and again to bother to care about him!

Andy uttered with a sniff, "He's strange."

"I understand. It must be so hard for you to-"

"It's not that, Mum," he furrowed his brows as if deep in thought. "Doesn't feel like Leon."

"What do you mean?"

"When I hugged him, he felt thinner. His voice sounds different too."

"He recently got out of the hospital, that's why."

"No, mum, seriously. Did you see his eyes? I mean, the blue looks weird - not the same blue. And he seems shorter. Really doesn't feel like Leon."

Ariel pondered for a moment and replayed the encounter in her mind. Little details that she missed out were crystallising in her memory. Andy was right, Leon did look and act different, and he was a little shorter. She recalled the shape of his lips when she confronted him up-close, the pair of lips she used to kiss - there was definitely something odd about the shape.

Did he go for a surgical makeover? It did not make sense that he would need any work done to his famous good looks. And did his illness make him shorter? Did not make any medical sense but maybe she and Andy may have been too overwhelmed and imagine things.

Well, whatever he wanted to do to himself and whatever the case, Leon was no longer her problem. She shrugged.

"Anyway, I can't accept the way he treated you. If anyone doesn't treat my Andy right, they're not treating me right either," she got up and took down the drone from the shelf.

When Andy saw that his mother was about to dump the drone into the trash can, he jumped out from the sofa and rushed to stop her in time.

"No, Mum, don't!"

"I'll get you a new one," she assured.

"It's my toy!" Andy snatched the drone from her, holding it protectively.

"Alright, alright, I won't," she sighed with her hands surrendered. "Would you like to watch a movie?"

Andy shook his head, still not in the mood.

Just then, Ariel's phone rang. It was from Hiroshi.

"Hey Ariel, would you and Andy like to join me for dinner and bowling tonight? The bowling alley is at the seaside country club which I'm a member of."

"Dinner and bowling? Hmmm...I'm not so sure, because me and Andy had just-"

"Bowling?" Andy lit up at the word. "I want, I want!" He exclaimed with hands clapped excitedly, forgetting the troubles from the park instantly. He never played bowling before.

Seeing how Andy keen was, Ariel replied, " Ok, sure. We'll join you."

"Right on! I'll come over and pick you guys up."

"Oh Hiroshi, will the bodyguards be with us too?"

Hiroshi laughed, "I thought you don't like having bodyguards around? You know I'm your best bodyguard."

Technically, he could but she was not willing to take any chances this time.

"Well, I just need 1 or 2 to accompany us. I'm being recognised and chased more now."

"You're right. If you insist," Hiroshi agreed. "I'll see you guys then, bye!"

"Bye."

Ariel smiled at the thought of Hiroshi's sweet invite. It was just what they needed, at the right time.