Chapter 10

Van and Ersel went to a park within the campus that was located about several meters away from the building where the library was. Both of them looked for a shaded area, put their bags down, and sat on the grass before beginning to talk.

“So, what did you want to talk about?” Van asked with anxiousness upon seeing Ersel’s sad face.

“That Lino...He did something that reminded me of my childhood friend,” Ersel answered without looking directly at Van’s eyes.

“And what did he do?” Van asked in astonishment.

“He chuckled when he said that his girlfriend was the pretty type,” Ersel answered.

“So what does that mean?” Van asked curiously while scratching his head in confusion.

“My childhood friend Lino would chuckle first every time before he describes something that he likes or makes him happy,” Ersel answered with a very serious expression while looking at Van’s eyes for the first time. “Like, for example, before he would say that a certain food is delicious, he would always chuckle first. That’s exactly what the Lino there in the library did before saying that his girlfriend is pretty.”

Van thought deeply for a moment and, while smiling and feeling impressed, said, “I see. You remember even that aspect of him, huh? You’ve got such an incredibly sharp memory, man!”

“Yes, I do remember clearly,” Ersel replied while smiling a little at the fact that Van was praising him. “That’s one of the things about him that I’ll never forget.”

Van paused for a moment and asked, “So, why did you decide to talk over here?”

Ersel said nothing and looked away from Van again.

[I can’t tell Van that I felt jealous that Lino was talking about his girlfriend.] Ersel thought with his face looking rather gloomy.

‘’Ersel!” Van called out, startling Ersel.

“Yeah? What was that?” Ersel asked, trying to look innocent.

“I asked you why you decided to leave the library and talk here,” Van replied in a slightly irritated tone

Ersel thought for a moment and said, “I guess…I didn’t want to hear Lino talking about his girlfriend.”

“But why?!” Van asked in amazement.

“I just felt kinda...jealous,” Ersel replied hesitatingly while avoiding eye contact with Van.

“J-Jealous?! Ersel, d-don’t tell me...do you like him?!” Van asked in astonishment.

“Huh?!” Ersel burst out in amazement while blushing. “W-What are you talking about? I don’t!”

“Oh, really? Then why are you blushing like that?” Van asked in a teasing tone. “Are you gay or something?”

“I-I’m not!” Ersel shouted. “Don’t assume things on your own!”

Van laughed out loud and said, “I was just kidding. Don’t take it seriously.”

“Hmph!” Ersel muttered while turning his head away from Van and closing his eyes.

“Hey, man, I’m sorry,” Van said in a pleading tone. “I didn’t mean to go that far.”

“Don’t talk to me for now!” Ersel shouted angrily, surprising Van.

“Okay, then,” Van replied calmly and just looked away from Ersel.

Ersel took a few moments to calm himself down since he knew that he might say something to Van that he would regret.

[I can’t talk to him while I’m mad.] Ersel thought decidedly and determinedly. [I have to calm myself down first before talking to him again.]

After a few moments, Ersel had already calmed down and he said, “Van.”

“Yes, Ersel?” Van asked, turning his head towards Ersel.

“I’m sorry for shouting at you earlier,” Ersel said sincerely in an apologetic tone.

“It’s fine,” Van replied awkwardly. “I’m the one who should be sorry for teasing you like that.”

[It’s good that I managed to convince Van that I’m not gay.] Ersel thought while sighing in relief.

“Okay, apology accepted,” Ersel declared seriously. “But just don’t do that to me again, Van. Do you promise?”

“Yeah, I promise!” Van replied cheerfully while offering his pinky finger for a pinky swear.

“Great!” Ersel said with a smile while doing the pinky swear with Van.

“So, what now?” Van asked. “What do you plan to do?”

“I still don’t know,” Ersel replied gloomily. “That’s why I wanted to talk about a new plan with you here.”

“Okay,” Van replied. “But do you realize that you just missed one of your chances?”

“Huh? How so?” Ersel asked, his eyes widening in astonishment.

“You could have just kept on listening to their conversation back there,” Van replied. “You might have been able to gather more information if you chose to not leave.”

Ersel realized his mistake and said out loud, “Shit! I fucked this up so terribly! I’m so…so stupid!”

Ersel then covered his face in embarrassment while muttering various cursing words to himself.

“Hey, man, will you stop with that already?!” Van said in a slightly irritated tone. “What you’re doing right now won’t help with our Operation ULI!”

Despite Van’s words, Ersel still did not stop muttering the insulting and cursing words to himself. Upon realizing that Ersel wouldn’t listen to him, Van thought that he might need to do something else.

[Maybe he needs a hug and some comforting words.] Van thought while looking at Ersel. [After all, he has also been suffering ever since he met that Lino.]

Van then gently wrapped his arms around Ersel from behind the latter, and surprisingly enough, Ersel stopped muttering the insulting and cursing words to himself. Even though he was surprised that Van embraced him from behind, Ersel could feel that Van was trying to comfort him like an older brother would to a younger brother.

“Ersel, remember this,” Van said softly and calmly near Ersel’s ear. “It’s okay to make mistakes at times. Just don’t let them get to your head too much. And most importantly, please learn from your mistakes. Okay?”

Ersel took a few moments to absorb Van’s words before tears began to fall from his eyes. Van felt something wet that dropped on his arm, and in an instant, he realized that Ersel was crying.

“Ersel!” Van said out loud while feeling worried for his friend. “Why are you crying?!”

Ersel didn’t say anything for a few moments and, while in the middle of his crying, he faced Van, smiled, and said out loud, “I...I was just happy that you tried to comfort me, Van!” Then Ersel hugged Van tightly and cried like a little child and said, “Thank you so much, Van!”

Van hugged Ersel back while letting Ersel cry on his own shoulder for several minutes. He also caressed Ersel’s back gently in an attempt to comfort the latter.

After a few moments, Ersel finally stopped crying and wiped his tears with his hand.

“Here,” Van said while smiling gently and offering his handkerchief to Ersel. “Use this to wipe your face.”

Ersel nodded, took Van’s handkerchief, and wiped his tear-stained face.

“Thank you, Van. I’ll wash this at home,” Ersel said, referring to Van’s handkerchief. “I’ll return this to you by tomorrow.”

“Sure, man. No problem,” Van replied while smiling gently.

Ersel looked at his watch and said, “Oh, right! We still have a class! Let’s go, Van!”

“Yeah,” Van said while nodding. “Let’s talk about our next plan for another time!”

Ersel nodded while smiling and replied, “Come on, let’s go!”