Held in the palm of her hands were dark purple flames that every so often showed hints of indigo and lavender.
Through the dark and wild rain, it clearly lit her face up.
"...Grandma Guanhuai? How...did you..."
"Get up, the curb's wet, ya know."
"..."
I buried my face deeper into my arms.
Because I shouldn't be allowed to feel this kind of warmth.
Please just go away.
"...Are ya just gonna make me wait here? An old granny like myself?"
"..."
"And here I thought ye were excited for today...."
"..."
"...Well, do ya wanna talk about what happened?"
"..."
"Believe it or not, this granny's good at keeping her mouth shut, ya know."
I don't deserve this.
Not after what I just did.
"...Just...just leave me here...I-I need some time right now."
I could barely muster up a sentence.
The warmth of her flames slowly disappeared as I felt it stray farther and farther away from me.
And now all I could hear was the roaring of the wind.
It was cold again.
...she's gone.
"Did ya really think I'd leave ya here?!"
Strong arms suddenly gripped my shoulders firmly and pulled me up all on their own, making me stumble a couple of feet forward.
"Ah, w-what are you-"
She held an umbrella over my head.
It was decorated with pink hearts and bunnies, just like my towel.
"Dammit, yer gonna catch a cold, I just know it."
"And why would you even care! I don't want to go back yet, so just leave me here. I'll come back later anyway..."
A bitter taste filled my mouth as soon as I said those words, and I wished that the ground would just swallow me up already.
She stood in the rain as the umbrella shielded me.
Her white hair slowly got wetter and wetter until water was dripping down like the rain, until she was in the same condition I was.
"...stop it....stop.....AND JUST LEAVE ME HERE...please...."
Just go back to your annoying self and start bickering with me already.
Tell me how stupid I am.
Just stop caring.
Was that so hard to do? Why is it so hard for you?
My head hung, yet I could still feel her gaze on me.
"Ye might want me ta leave, but I ain't going anywhere but here."
"....."
Although there was no fire,
My heart felt warmer,
and I hated myself for it.
For feeling warm when she was cold.
I finally looked up.
I saw a grandma, a grandma who was old and had wrinkles around her eyes, who gently held out her hand to me.
She looked directly into my eyes, never looking away, not even for a second.
"Kiddo, let's go home."
"....okay...."
Even while walking back, her umbrella stayed with me, and only me.
Her flames kept both of us warm, but they didn't save her from the rain.
"...Why? Why are you only giving the umbrella to me?"
"My flames are keeping me warm, that's why."
"...But that won't save you from the rain. You're still going to feel those cold droplets of water hitting your skin...you say I'll get sick, but what about you!?"
"Hey Kiddo, I ain't sure what ye take me for, but a little rain ain't ever made me sick! So don't ya go yapping sayin I can't handle a bit of rain!"
"..."
"Got it?"
"Yeah, I...I got it."
Bright purple flames light up our way, and even in the pouring rain, they stood proud, with not a single flicker seen.
***
We were finally back at Grandma Guanhuai's house.
It was unusually bright, with warm, yellow-tinted lights covering every inch of the room.
"Ah, I get it, I get it, I can dry myself off properly on my own!"
"Tch, this granny's doin' ya a favor and yer sittin here runnin yer mouth off!"
"...You're ruining my hair."
"Well, who's the brat who sat in the rain?!"
She stumbled off after attempting to dry my hair with my towel...except she was horribly rough, at the rate she was going, I might've actually ended up bald.
"Go change yer clothes, don't need ya smelly butt sleepin on my sofa!"
"You could've worded that kinder, y'know..."
Walking over to a folding screen, I put on a new set of clothes, the classic white T-shirt and black shorts, and went back to the sofa.
Grandma Guanhuai seemed to be doing something in the kitchen.
"...What are you making...?"
"One of my proudest creations, that's what!"
I...would rather not know what this woman's proudest creation is, considering her strength potions looked like a poorly made combination of dirt and water.
Multiple bottles and kitchen tools blocked my view of what she was making.
"I made these for little kiddos like you all the time, and every one of 'em ate it up!"
Her crooked and confident smile scared me a little.
"Here ya go!"
She brought over a small white mug with colorful little hand-painted flower designs drawn all around it. Steam poured out of the mug as I saw a little bit of an earthy brown peeking from inside the cup.
"Careful, boy, it's hot!"
"Yeah, I could see that..."
I took the mug from her and looked inside.
"Bottoms up, boy!"
...I guess here goes nothing...
I slowly tipped the brown mixture into my mouth....?
It was creamy and sweet, and its warmth created a tingly sensation on my cheeks.
"Is this hot chocolate?"
"Well, what does it taste like, huh? I also added just a pinch of my healing potions, so it should also be making ya feel better. Maybe ye won't even get a cold."
"....It's...really good."
"...Well, I'm glad ya like it."
She promptly plopped down beside me, almost making the hot chocolate spill out of my cup.
But she didn't say anything like I thought she would.
She just absentmindedly stared at the coffee table in front of us, while I slowly drank the hot chocolate she had made.
I don't think I've ever had something like this.
I didn't mind the silence.
Every sip I took became even richer than the last, with the taste of cocoa still lingering in my mouth even after I finished everything.
My hands were now warm from holding the mug, and my inner self even felt relaxed in a way... it was weird.
"How did it taste, boy? It's been a while since I made it."
"...I already said it was good, you're not fishing for compliments, are you?"
"...Don't make me smack ya in the head."
"Aha, as if you'd hit me."
For a brief moment, I had forgotten about what happened, and Grandma Guanhuai seemed to see straight through my realization.
For some reason, from the deep depths of my heart, something…something was telling me to say something, anything.
To at least explain, and to ask.
Perhaps it was because I was feeling tired, or maybe too relaxed, but I did it.
I said something.
"....Hey, Granny..."
"Yeah, ye Jitter-bug?"
"...What if...what if you let someone down. Like, really badly, and all the signs were there, yet you still couldn't see them, and when you finally realize...it's too late.
"...."
"They're gone. Because of you not noticing, because I didn't try hard enough, because I didn't even try to try...What if I'll...never see them again because of that?"
"...."
"S-she...We're living in the slums...if...if the restaurant closed down like that, then what the hell is she doing now?! I...I can't...even, I-I don't even want to...imagine it."
"...."
She stayed silent for a while, looking at the ceiling, as if there were words forming before her, until she finally spoke.
"...Kiddo, in all my life, and truthfully, in everybody's life, there's always things ye'll regret...But I think what matters is what ya do afterwards, and what ya take away from it."
She paused a little before going on again, except this time, seemingly more determined.
"What ya regret has already happened, ya can't go back and change it, but...what ya can do is try ta atone for it, got it? So, I guess what I'm trying to say is...instead of moping yer ass around, ya should learn what ya did wrong, and improve on yerself, and improve yer situation."
"...Grandma Guanhuai..."
Before I could utter another word, a small droplet of water went down from my face, below my chin, and fell right on my shorts.
It seemed that I wasn't completely dry yet, which was weird because I was almost certain I had dried myself off properly.
More and more droplets rained down my chin, obscuring my vision, so that all I could see was just a blur.
And maybe because of allergies, I had also started sniffling.
There were so many words I wanted to say, so many more things I still wanted to ask, but nothing would come out of my mouth anymore.
Anytime I tried to say anything, more water would just form, ending with me sounding like a bubbling mess as I was reminded of the words she just said to me.
Why was my body acting like this when her words made me feel the opposite?
"There, there, boy...let it all out."
That night, I cried, and cried, with all my snot and tears smothered onto Grandma Guanhuai's shoulders, yet she didn't bat an eye, and slowly patted my back.
Her words didn't lift the weight off my heart.
Instead, they gave me the strength to carry it.
And I think that...
That's exactly what I wanted.
What I needed.
So in the end, all I could say back to her was two words...
".....Thank you....."