The Past (9) I Can't Help It

"Then does that mean you are attractive?" He asked and Delilah blinked her eyes many times before clearing her throat,

"I do not know."

"How unfortunate of me, I wish I had eyes for this reason."

Delilah looked at his face in horror before smiling a little. "I should get going, my mother would be getting worried, or perhaps looking for me as we speak."

She stood up and adjusted her skirt, "Where do you live? Is it far from here?"

"A little." The blondie replied and rose his chin as if to look into her eyes, "What's your name?"

"Delilah Kenneth. You?"

The blondie blinked his eyes frequently before replying, "Your name sounds familiar."

"Uhm...Kenneth is somewhat a popular name. My dad owns a very big company."

"Wow, really?"

"Yeah... but my dad sent my mother and me away and we ended up here."

"Sorry about that. Everyone indeed has a story to tell." The blondie added, "I'm Ezekiel."

Delilah smiled, "Let's be friends." She outstretched her hand and expected him to do so but recalling that he couldn't see anything, she held his wrist and attached his palm to her left palm, "Uhmmm... friends?"

"Uh-huh." He smiled. "Delilah... Are you in any way related to Mrs. Kenneth, the seamstress?"

Hearing this, Delilah blinked a few times before opening her lips to speak, "You know my mum?"

"I don't. My uncle does, I think Mrs. Kenneth is a good friend of my uncle."

"A good friend? Mum never had one." Delilah paused for a split second before interjecting..." Oh no... you mean Mr. Landon?"

"Yeah."

Delilah's eyes widened more, "Are you for real? Wow... You don't know how excited I am."

"Uh... Why?" Ezekiel held his stick before standing up, "I think my uncle and your mum are good friends. My uncle talks about your mum every single minute."

Delilah frowned in confusion, "uhh why?"

"Can you ask your mum instead? Who knows if perhaps they are dating?"

"What?!" Delilah frowned, "My mum is married of course."

"Duh! I see, you are quite younger than I thought."

"Let's forget about it." Delilah immediately stopped the conversation. "This is my last bye for today, I can't believe that I stayed this long with you."

Ezekiel nodded. "We will see some other time."

Delilah was hesitant. She did not want to leave him for many reasons. It wasn't because she enjoyed his company, well, she did but it was because she thought those bullies would appear again and display their insanity. Apart from that, she was doubting if he could go wherever he wanted to go but recalling that he was used to it and the environment, she had nothing to bother about. "Wait a minute, can...can I ask you a question?"

"Go on, as long as you admit that you don't want to leave here."

Delilah smiled anxiously. "Since you were not born this way and it wasn't an accident, how then did you become blind?"

"Are you sure you want to know?"

"That's why I asked I guess."

The blondie sat down back on the bench and looked forward. "I would love to ask you a question too and if you answer that honestly, I will answer your question."

Delilah became curious as though what she wanted to hear was what she had been hoping to. The reaction on the blondie gave her some kind of goosebumps. "Positive," she said, mimicking him.

"Come closer." He raised his hand and waved it towards himself as if blowing something to himself. "Come closer, it's a secret."

Delilah scrunched her face before clearing her throat. "I am close enough," she was already peeking directly into his eyes. The more she stared, the more frightening he became. In his eyes were rings that looked somewhat a bit red, she held her breath and continued looking before she heard his voice,

"Closer." She heard him whisper to her, she almost wanted to just hit him on his head and walk away. Not like what she wanted to know about him was anything beneficial but the way he was behaving just because of what he wanted to tell her about something to be kept confidential, she even became a curious cat.

"What's your question?" She asked again, but she wasn't concerned about the question, she was concerned about something else. As she continued to stare at the boy's eyes, some images began to display in them. She crouched closer, now she could feel his breath on her nose which made her uncomfortable, and also she could vividly see the image she had been seeing from afar previously. She blinked her eyes, trying to come back to her senses.

"Young woman, I mean Delilah," she heard the blind boy call her. "I can see your face now." Hearing that, Delilah immediately pulled away and she ended up falling to the ground due to the force she had pulled into it.

"What did you just say?"

"I will first answer your question before I ask you a question then."

Delilah couldn't tell if she was still going to continue sitting on the floor and staring at this boy who looked somewhat innocent and dangerous. Had she just imagined seeing those images? "What do you mean by you can now see me?"

"Well, not any longer. I am not completely blind."

"What?" Delilah's voice out. She looked around thinking passerbys wouldn't be startled by her outburst. The first thing that came to her mind was the slight kiss. He was aware? He wasn't completely blind? Why was she thinking like this? She questioned herself. All these emotions were strange to her.

"You heard me right. You don't need to feel too pity for me. I am not completely blind. At least, I can see when it's slightly dark, the darker everywhere becomes, the clearer I see."

"What? What...I have never heard of that before."

"Now you have. And about how I did become blind, it was the very first time I sucked blood."

"Blood? You've tasted blood?"

"I don't know why I am telling you this even though it is obvious that you are an enemy."

She gasped, "An enemy?"

"You are surprised? Don't be, well, I do not need to tell you everything when you already know about it."

Delilah kept shaking her head, trying to somewhat erase what she had just heard, "I don't understand. What do you mean by tasted blood?"

"I never said I tasted blood. Well I don't think there is a big deal in doing that, when you have a cut on your palm or finger, don't you suck it? Never tried doing that?"

"Ah...ah I get. But it's crazy for you to put it that way."

The blondie stood up from the bench and knelt, by this time he was at the same eye level with her, "what way?"

She gulped and stood up, "You shouldn't be that close to a girl."

"Yes, you are right." He stood up and then breathed calmly, "But I can't help it. You have a special aura which I have been longing to perceive."