Always Around - 1

1

On the outskirts of the big city, traveling upstream along the river, you can easily reach the lovely spot where we used to camp when the weather and our spirits were good, and if we had some time to spare.

Luckily, all those conditions were met that day. Getting out of the car, I could feel the cool breeze on my skin and see the beautiful green of the grass beneath my shoes.

Being far from civilization there were no other people, vehicles, or machines to be heard. However, it was not as if the place was completely silent.

I could hear the river flowing, the leaves rustling, some birds singing, and even my own footsteps heading toward a wooden table.

There, sitting, was a girl covering both ears with large headphones, swaying her head from side to side to the music (or at least that is what I thought, but I could not hear it).

Slowly, her gaze shifted to the side until she seemed to realize she was not alone there. And, naturally, her eyes met mine.

For a second she seemed paralyzed, perhaps because she was taken by surprise, but quickly her initially expressionless face erupted in a burst of happiness.

She hurriedly uncovered her ears and stood up from her seat, doing both at once and, therefore, not in the most majestic way possible.

Anyway, her feet touched the ground and, in an instant, she was running toward me, arms outstretched, shouting my name.

Zena: LANIII!!!

Lani: Zena! … Wait, wait! Be careful with this.

Knowing her, I knew her intention was to greet me with some variation of a hug (stopping in front of me, jumping, charging at me, trying to crack my back, etc.).

However, that time I could not just accept it. I was carrying a large white box, and I was not going to be able to withstand Zena's explosive energy.

Zena: Huh? What's that?

Lani: A cake, obviously.

Zena: For me?

Lani: Yes.

Zena: Made by you?

Lani: Yes. Happy birthday.

Her smile changed slightly, but it did not to disappear. It was just different, as if she was happy about something else this time. And, with that expression on her face, she did her best to wrap me in her arms without destroying my gift.

Zena: Thank you so much… Now we have to find a stick to use as a candle!

Lani: No, I actually brought real candles.

Zena: But that's no fun! We're in a campsite, so we have to make it super ultra natural.

I looked behind me and saw Mom taking some things out of the car. When I looked back at Zena, I saw her large headphones, and I remembered that my cake itself was not "super ultra natural" anymore. But…

Lani: Well, it's your cake anyway.

Zena: Huh? You'd really use a stick as a candle for a cake? Don't you care about germs and all that? Wow…

Lani: What?!

She laughed and then went over to the wooden table, where she moved some plastic cups to make room for her cake. That is where I left it, and where it stayed for quite a while, since nothing should happen to it inside its white box.

I asked her if there was anything else I could help her with, but she said it was not necessary because they were going to prepare what they needed for the evening after the guests left.

Those guests in question arrived maybe an hour after I got there. First, some girls arrived, some alone and some with friends.

After almost another hour a large car arrived, full of people packed like clowns. And, judging by their attitude, maybe I was not so wrong to think that.

A boy our age got out with a soccer ball in his hands, and without thinking twice kicked it with all his might into the air, yelling that it would reach the "geosphere." Then six more boys got out, and they all ran to catch it.

???: So shouldn't he have kicked it down...?

Lani: I was thinking the same thing.

???: In the end, it fell and touched the ground, so he’s not wrong.

???: Yeah, I guess...

Those two were a couple I had met not too long ago, but I liked them, and Zena did too. After they helped us with a project, Jean and Noe had become new friends.

Jean separated from us because he also wanted to play with the group that had just arrived, and Noe was left wondering about the fact that this person clearly did not know what the "geosphere" was.

Time continued to pass, and when the greetings were over, the conversations began. At that point, the initial silence completely disappeared.

As young people still learning, we always had something to talk about, like things we had recently learned, episodes of a TV series, the volleyball club needing more players, and there was even an attempt to help a girl talk to a boy.

I had heard a few days earlier that the boy was interested in the girl, but this time the conversation came from the other side, aiming for the same outcome. Some people were very interested and paid attention to the couple almost all day.

That is why, when it started to get colder, the boy lent his jacket to the girl, and the reactions could be heard all over the campsite.

Right at that moment I was with Noe, who wanted to see how my hair looked tied in a high bun, but she did not have time to finish it. Since it was already getting late, we had to start setting the table to eat cake and sing for the birthday girl: Zena.

Jean called Noe to ask her for something, so I was left alone for a few seconds. Not knowing what to do, I immediately grabbed a plastic cup and poured myself a drink.

We were waiting for Zena to return from talking with her family, who had been talking with mine all day, so I did not really have much to do but watch.

However, I noticed something strange. On the table was the cake I had made with a candle marking Zena's fifteenth birthday. But next to it were two more cakes. Not only more than at the beginning, but more than had been there ten minutes ago.

While I wondered what had happened, I considered the possibility that someone had arrived with more cakes, but no one had arrived that late. It certainly seemed as if those cakes had appeared out of nowhere…

Then, something flew past my eyes and landed on my head. I also felt a strange pressure around my cheeks, and when I reached for it, I realized my glass was gone.

???: Hi… I'm sorry, you didn't have your party hat.

All my questions, not one by one, but all at once, were answered. Just hearing his voice was the missing piece of information I needed to connect the dots and make them seem possible.

Lani: So it was you.

???: Yes! Did I surprise you?

Lani: I guess so… But I was thirsty, so I was going to have that.

???: Oh! Here, take another one. Sorry!

That person clasped their hands together, one on top of the other, bringing the black gloves that covered them together. And, as he lifted the top hand, something seemingly impossible happened.

There, between his two palms, a new object simply appeared. It was a plastic cup filled with orange juice.

Lani: Thank you.

???: You're welcome!

Lani: By the way, those cakes are yours too, right?

???: Yes! What do you think? They look pretty good, don't they?

Lani: Of course they do.

They looked perfect, indeed. From where I stood, those were exactly like the ones my mother could make. They were possibly better than any I had ever made myself.

???: I copied them from the ones I knew from the X-Café because one of the guys said he hadn't had the one on the left in ages, and then another said he didn't like it much and preferred the one on the right.

I spent a long while staring at those cakes. Maybe too long, because I caught the attention of the person next to me.

???: Should I not have done that?

Lani: No, it's a good idea. Having variety better caters to more people's tastes, and more cake means more and bigger slices.

With a smile on his face, he adjusted the glove on his right hand (something I had seen him do many times). Then, we both turned our heads because we heard some noise.

Zena had finally returned, and people were forming a semicircle so that she would be the center of attention.

And so, we all sang, and Zena smiled, happy with the wonderful day she was having. And, to tell the truth, I was having one too, as was probably everyone else there. It was a great day, a great birthday…

However, I could not help but glance down at my own hands. Just a pair of human hands.

…

An oven mitt covered my slender hand, and I noticed how the expression on my face had changed. Something that often happens when you remember something important.

However, I had to push those thoughts aside to get back to what I was doing, so I bent down next to my oven and opened the door.

Zena: Oh, is it already—? Ah!

Driven by her own curiosity, Zena put her face close to the oven to see inside, but the blast of hot air ended up burning her. Nothing serious, obviously. Just a little pain for about five seconds.

Of course, being her, she squirmed and screamed loudly during that time, until she calmed down and smiled.

Zena: Ah… It looks so good! I want to eat it!

Lani: Great! Then we're on the right track…

As the blast of hot air had passed by, I stood in front of the oven and looked inside. Just a quick glance told me it was ready, although while doing that, I remembered how at the beginning I had to prick each one with a thin wooden toothpick.

Finally, I took it out and left it on the wire rack to cool, which made me feel glad that my mom had so many kitchen utensils at home.

I was left whit a pale, round, fluffy, and flat cake in front of me.

Zena: Lani, that looks… Perfect!

Lani: Perfect?

Zena: Perfect!

I seriously considered what Zena said. A perfect cake. Honestly, I did not know what that meant.

If all the pores inside were evenly distributed, all the same size, if there were not any variations in tone from having received more heat in specific areas… Perhaps, if it were that perfect, it would look industrially produced. Fake.

From a human perspective, where those variations are not really imperfections, then it was possible that what we had in front of us was close enough to deserve the name Zena gave it.

And, to be honest, I was kind of proud of that cake. It was not the first one I had made, and I certainly did not see any point where I could say I had made a mistake.

Lani: Who knows, maybe it is, but…

Zena: It is! And Twen's going to love it!

Right… That cake was not made for me, but for him. The masked one, and also the birthday boy in just a few hours.

The fact that Zena reminded me of it made me think that, perhaps, the perfection of my cake could not yet be established. The final presentation, the flavor, where, how, and with whom it is eaten… Maybe that mattered too.

Lani: Zena… He'd better like it.