Touching the Heart of Ace
Chapter 5

I saw the guy from bar almost every day when I went to diner.

At first he tried to smile event though he never made a move to come and greet me but I was not appreciative.

I gave him a nod on a good day. It was awkward.

But it was one of those everything was so slow and nothing was going right. So, I decided to have an early lunch and get some fresh air.

He was there again.

Should I leave?

I was planning to leave, when he took a huge bite of his sandwich and saw me.

He froze, then he swallowed the whole thing without proper chewing, wincing. He drank his cola in one go. He looked at his lunch and back at me.

What? He was leaving?

He was leaving! Without finishing his lunch!

What the hell!

Did he leave because of me?

He gave me a polite smile and left after dropping his unfinished lunch to a nearby trash can!

That man was clearly hungry. Did he really leave because of me?

Guilt was pushing at my chest.

I followed him to the exit on the other side but he was nowhere to be seen.

It was not noon yet and I was fed up.

I called mom from my disposable sim. I missed her a lot.

??Hi, baby.??

??Hi, mama.??

??I miss you so much. Will you make me a bouquet this Sunday, when you come home???

??Mom, about this Sunday... I have my review presentation.??

??Oh! It is okay then hon, make me one when you come here. Are you okay, son???

I forced a laugh. ??Of course, mom, I am okay.??

She sighed. ??So, did you make anything new???

??Yes, actually. A terrain walker.??

??Mmm.. what is it???

??It changes its wheels according to the terrain it is at. So far the wheels could be morphed to six different sets.?? ??That sounds so sci-fi. What did you name it???

??TW-NZ-12.36.??

??What does that mean???

??Nothing really, TW is Terrain Walker. Rest is the number of times I failed. Started with AA, it is NY now.??

??Oooh.?? She sounded so disappointed.

??What is it???

??You used to give your robots cute names. Now you don??t.??

I laughed. ??I am a post graduate student now, mom.??

??Three months. Only three months passed and you changed.??

3 months 17 days and 5 hours 37 minutes.

Time was moving so slow for me.

??It is not because of I changed, mom. Those projects were done along with Liz and it was more of playing. Now it is just me and it is more work than fun.??

??Whatever you say. I miss my baby so much.?? She started crying.

And I felt hurt, guilt and panic rise.

??Mama, please, I am fine. I am okay. I am coming for the party, you know. That was why I shifted my review presentation to Sunday. It was supposed to be a surprise.?? ??Really??? Her crying stopped, though I heard her sniffle.

??Did you trick me now? Oh, you! Bad bad girl.?? There! Her musical laughter.

??Of course, I tricked you. And come prepared. Fred bought this new cane to spank your butt.??

She hung up the phone.

God!

What was I going to tell Uncle Fred? I had to call Uncle Jack and beg him to make him ??happy?? before coming to the party.

The things the adults in my life made me do.

Why did I call my mom again?

That kind stranger who left the diner hungry because he somehow figured I was going to leave.

I went back to my faculty; my appetite lost.

I did not see him for next two days.

He was a regular appearance in the diner. The single seat by the corner was empty for long.

I did not know why I decided to wait. What if he changed his lunch time?

As if to prove my hypothesis right he came to the diner through the exit. He was the only one who used exit as both entrance and exit while others used entrance as both entrance and exit. He did not notice me and ordered his ??usual?? and waited.

He hummed and turned to my side and froze.

He was about the cancel his order and leave!

I walked to him quickly. ??Please do not leave.??

??I make you uncomfortable.?? There was no malice in his words. He was understanding and kind.

??Yeah, I am not used to that kind of situations. I am a bit socially handicapped.??

He smiled. ??I figured. That is why I stayed away. Please have your lunch. I can leave.??

??No! Let me buy you this lunch. You left hungry that day.??

??I am sorry; it was not my intention to let you know. You do not have to buy me lunch.??

I took the order from the cashier and payed amidst his protests.

I invited him to my table as the waitress brought my lunch.

??I take parcels, now-a-days.??

??Is that why I do not see you anymore???

??You noticed? Yes, I cannot afford to throw away my lunch every day.?? I knew it was meant to be a joke but it hurt.

??I am sorry. It was a bad joke. I am bad at jokes.?? He placed his hands over mine. He was warm, a bit sweaty too.

He yanked it back noticing my stare.

??I am sorry again. You looked sad. I...??

??It is okay. I never thanked you for that day. I did not even split the cab fare. You must think I am an awful human being.??

??No, no, no. Far from it actually. You were drunk. No thanks to me.??

??I did not even ask for your name.?? I was truly sorry.

??It is Tristian. Tristian Thompson and I did not ask for yours either.?? He was charming. He was capable of people making comfortable around him. Or was it just me?

I was sweating and worried about how to broach the subject and here we were talking like old friends trying to catch up.

??David Scott.??

?? You do not look a David.??

??What???

He stared.

?? Just your name. You do not look like someone with David as a name. You are soft and precious looking. So, some exotic name should fit you properly.??

I had a feeling he was talking to himself.

??Was I saying everything loud??? He asked scared.

??Yes.?? He squeezed his eyes shut.

??It is okay.?? I placed my hands on his to sooth him.

He relaxed. ??Thank you. I am not saying David is a bad name just...??

??I get it.?? I smiled. ??Well, you say I am precious, so I let you off the hook.??

He blushed and looked away. And that in turn made me blush.

We talked about his work as a statistical analyst for a private insurance company nearby.

They never let their employees have home-bought lunch at the office. How could they!

He only started a month before, so he could not voice his opinions at office.

Then Tristian added he could not cook to save his life, so it was not a bother for him.

But, it was still not right. Their office had a mess and they want the employees to buy over-priced food from there.

There was something else bugging my mind since we started talking.

??David??? He smiled looking at my eyes deeply. ??You stopped talking abruptly. Everything okay???

??Tristian???

??Yes???

??Why did you lie to me???

He froze.

??Wh...what???

??I did not tell me where I lived, but you said I did.??

He ducked his head and took a deep breath.

??I am not mad. I just wanted to know.??

??I did not lie per se.?? He was a bit disappointed. ??You did tell me where you lived, not at bar. You do not remember.??

I was confused.

??I worked at New Horizon Library before getting this job. You gave me the address to your department to deliver new books from Bolton on Mechatronics and some other textbooks. I delivered your personal books to your dorm and you tried to tip me.??

I was surprised. I remembered the incident just not him.

?? You are hard to forget.?? He blushed and played with his straw.

??Oh.??