Chemistry

Fading in the Crowd

I looked at him, and he looked back at me.

"Why are you still here? Haven't you seen your family here in the mall yet? We've been walking for a while and we've reached the second and third floor already," I said to him.

"Oh, that? They texted me; they're already home," he replied calmly.

"What?! So why did you still come with us if they had already left? What else are you going to do here? You should go home, too," I said.

"Maybe later. I just wanted to hang out with you," he said.

"Huh? Why?" I asked, looking at him.

"Nothing," he replied.

"Up to you," I said. "Come on, let's go around this whole 3rd floor. My treat, for paying for my snacks that night," I added, smiling at him as I grabbed his hand.

"Let's go, don't be so shy," I teased, pulling him along.

He was just looking at me. I didn't realize at first that I was holding his hand. "Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to," I said, quickly releasing my grip.

"It's okay, I don't mind holding your hand," he replied. I looked at him for a few seconds before answering, "It's just a habit."

But then, he reached out and held my hand.

"W-wa-wait, why are you holding my hand?" I asked, looking at him in surprise.

"Don't you want us to be holding hands?" he replied.

"What?! No!" I tried to pull my hand away, but his grip was too strong. I couldn't break free, so I just looked at him furiously. **"You've done this several times now!" I said, kicking his foot. He didn't even let go.

"Nice kick," he said calmly.

When I was about to punch him this time, he didn't even try to dodge. "Why didn't you dodge?" I asked, still looking furious. "Whatever. If you want to hold my hand, fine." When I said that, he finally softened his grip, and I decided to let him.

We walked through the mall holding hands; I just ignored it and kept dragging him everywhere I went.

"Come on, let's go here. Do you like sweets?" I asked, dragging him toward a*****e selling tanghulu. Before he could even speak, I talked to the seller. "Ma'am, how much for one?"

"It depends. For grapes, it's just 50, and if it's strawberry, 70," she said.

I looked at Reign. He was just watching me, still holding my hand. "What do you want?" I asked him.

"You," he replied.

"No specific answer?."Alright, strawberry for you and then grapes for me. Should I even buy some for Raina and Hezi? They aren't really into sweets anyway," I mused. "Oh well, whatever happens. Ma'am, I'll buy one order each of the grapes and strawberry, please.”

I turned back to Reign. "Oh, why are you staring? Do you have no intention of letting go of my hand? Maybe you think I'm your mother, hahaha!" I said, laughing.

He just responded, "No."

"Okay," I replied. What sort of reply is just "no"—I never met a guy that has a similar personality to a robot.

You know what this guy is really weird but not in a bad way. While we were standing there waiting for the tanghulu, someone approached me. It was a guy—Leon. He called out, "Ivy! Ivy!"

I went to him, finally pulling my hand away from Reign's. Reign just stood there silently. "What are you doing here, Ivy? Who’s with you?" Leon asked, glancing at Reign.

"Ah, this? He's Reign, just my friend. Also, I'm with Hezi and Raina, but they're with their boyfriends, so I was left alone," I replied.

"Are you with him?" Leon asked.

“Ah, no. We just ran into each other here. Apparently, his family left him behind. It seems like he still wanted to wander around, so we let him come along. That's why he’s with me now." I explained.

I ran back toward Leon. Reign just stood there, watching us. I ignored him and went with Leon to find Hezi and Raina. I felt terrible for what I just did, but I thought it was for the best. It's better not to be involved with someone like that. Even if I didn't want to believe it, he had hurt one of my friends, and I couldn't be friends with someone like him.

"From now on, I will stay away from him, okay? You don't need to look afraid," I told Leon. "I also said goodbye to him, and maybe he won't bother us—or me—again," I added.

Leon smiled at me as we walked away. I looked back one last time, but Reign was gone. I guess he finally decided to go home.

Leon was like a brother to me, which is why I was so worried seeing him in that state. We walked through the mall together until we found Hezi and Raina with their boyfriends. Throughout the hangout, the image of how Reign looked when I left him at the store stayed in my mind. We were having fun, but I wasn't really in the mood to join in. I kept smiling just to keep things from being awkward.

I tried to keep my distance from Leon because he can be a bit too "touchy" sometimes. I've always believed that boys and girls should maintain some boundaries.

I moved away whenever he got closer, and I think he noticed because he eventually stopped trying to get near me. By the end of the night, the other three were drunk. Hezi and Raina's boyfriends took them home, leaving me alone with a wasted Leon.

He was only a few inches taller than I, but he was incredibly heavy.