Before I forget

Okay, now, I shall continue with my story. The one I left hanging a few days back.

So, we were on our way to Coimbra with the intercity train. All we did during the journey was talk, talk, draw, talk, joke, talk, learn Latin, talk, drink, eat, laugh, talk, draw, talk, learn more Latin. Yeah, pretty boring I know. But we are excited with our linguistics discoveries with the Portuguese language. And how the language change and how Latin influenced the Romantic languages.

I know nuts about Latin. I regretted that I told him that. That is when he started to search for Latin ebooks on his iPod and I have to listen to it for about half an hour. I understand nothing. But being courteous, I just stuck them to my ears and listen. Like a teacher, he asked me about the things I know in linguistics and relate it to Latin. Oh my gawddd...I was like...so out of school but I tried nevertheless.

"I am stupid, don't ask me. I always sleep in class and it is a wonder that I graduated."
"You are not stupid. You are smart. Don't be so humble."
"I am telling the truth."

But in the end, I finally know the advantage of knowing Latin. So many words yet so little time.

About 12 midnight we finally reached our destination in Coimbra B. Crazy. It was cold and we were in another station. I was supposed to meet up with my friend in Coimbra A station. It is about a kilometre from Coimbra B. And as you know, Coimbra is indeed a very small town. Everything was closed and we were lost. All we did was, with our broken French, Spanish, Latin and whatever languages we both know combined together, we asked the nearest living Portuguese for direction. A security guard that is. And luckily, he knows where we want to go but we don't understand a single thing he said. But we know we have to walk along the road fromt he way his hands moved. So we did.

"I am glad that you let me go with you."
"Go with me to where?"
"Here!"
"Jeez, why are you so glad? We are lost now."
"I am happy to be lost with you."
"Crazy. No one will be happy to be lost with me. No one likes to be lost in some unknown place."
"But I like to be lost with you. It's so fun to be with you."
"Pfuuuuuhhhh...WHAT? Crazy!"
"I like you."
"O_o...Okay, I don't want to talk to you."

He knows I am pretty upset being lost. Dragging my luggage, looking sad, with my cellphone battery dead on me. I wanted to just give up looking for my friend's place and stay some where else.

He asked me to stay in a place while he go look for the right direction. And when he came back, he has breathing difficulties because of his asthma. OH MY GAWD!!! Asthma!!! Why on earth did he not tell me about this? I was scared to death when he reached for his inhaler. Never in my life I know about asthma, I don't even know how an inhaler looks like in real life. I was really shocked. I was speechless and I felt guilty. Really really guilty.

I mean he has asthma partly because of me. Because I was fed-up being lost and he went to somewhere and suddenly his asthma came attacking. That was when my heart fell on the floor being in that situation. SHIT!

What he did was a very selfless act. I appreciated that. Somehow, I grew to care more for the people around me after that incident. I was brought up in a very cold family. I.e. not knowing much about caring and loving other people as money is more important than blood.

As we walk, I kept on asking, "Are you okay, are you okay?" Another part of me doesn't care anymore if he tells me that he likes me a lot and so on and all the nonsense that I have heard endlessly for the past few years where people say they like me like the passing wind.

After about 30 minutes of walking, we stopped and a group of drunken girls came up to him and flirted with him. He panicked. Being "attacked" by a group of girls in a small little town. I laughed. But I decided to leer off the girls in the end.

As usual, being protective. I told the girls that he's my english teacher and he comes with me. In a very stern but friendly way. And they get lost. That makes me a possesive bitch to be exact.

We waited at the same spot for my friend. I tried to on my cellphone, with hope that it has enough battery to make a simple call. As soon as I on my 99.99% dead cellphone, my friend called and I told her that we are near some stinky market. She knew the place. Thank god! And the battery went flat...really really flat.

Finally, I met up with my friend and it's so great to see her again after a few months. We hugged and I told her about him. She was shocked and excited at the same time, and she can't wait to listen to my stories. So the both of us stayed at her house and he was placed in another room.

"Are you not going to sleep with me?" he asked
"Don't you wish. I am of course going to sleep with my friend." I said.
"Awwwww....," he sighed.
"Don't ever dream about it. Haha." I said sarcastically.

Eventhough I was really tired, I told her everything that happened since I reached Lisbon. And she couldn't believe what she heard and said, "This is FATE." She updated me with her life and etc etc. I was shocked too. And said, "That's FATE."

The next morning, my friend left the both of us at home with a very grumpy old lady. She speaks only Portuguese and has hearing problem. She banged my door at around 8 am. Asking me to wake up to meet up with my friend at the university (from the body language and some keywords).

"Wake up, wake up, I need your help." I went beserk as I came in to his room.
"What?"
"Just come out when you are ready okay. I need your language abilility to communicate with the old woman."

The old lady was telling me something in her language and I couldn't understand a thing.

Her body language showed as if we have to go out and not stay inside the house. So we did.

We decided to go around the town as it is a better way. I think that we are actually being chased out of the place rather than any other thing.

We did some sightseeing around the small university town, to some small little narrow roads with loadsa shops.

In Portugal, there's this thing called the Sun which rarely exist in Berlin. The sun was shinning brightly and sometimes I couldn't see properly. I left my sunglasses at home and that's when I stopped walking halfway and wait for other people to cross first. "Stupid me, again and again I forgot my sunglasses. Damn it." I was mumbling that to myself. He is already in front and a lot of people made the gap between us.

A few moments later, he came to the back to get me. This time, pulling me away from the crowd and holding my hands.

I looked at him and I was stunned. Not that that's the first time someone ever hold my hand, but it's another kind of feeling.

"Your hands are so warm," he said
"Of course. I come from Malaysia. It's a warm country with warm people."
"That's why I like you."
I just smiled. I felt like a 13 year old again. It's like having a first crush.

He did not let go my hands even for a moment.

We went around the town for a few times and stopped at the university for lunch with my friend. And then we continued walking until we reached another part of the university. We stayed there and we chatted.

"You are always so cheerful and happy. Have you ever cried?"
"Why? You wanna see me cry?...Of course I do. I am human. In fact I cried more than you can imagine."
"I wouldn't wanna see you cry. It makes me feel sad."

That's when he asked a lot of questions about me. About my background, about my life, about everything. I just sat there and answered everything and I asked him back the things he asked me.

There are a few times where he tries to kiss me but I turned away. I turned away on purpose. I wouldn't want to be seen kissing in the university area. I am not playing hard to get. But I felt it's not a good place to do so.

So we went around the town and to the other side of the river. Sat on the stairs near an old church and start talking about everything.

"You are a romantic person aren't you?"
"No, I am not."
"Yes, you are. You are just avoiding to be romantic."
"Avoid? No. I will only be romantic to the right person I can be romantic with."

I knew he would ask me this as I avoided to be kiss by him nearly the whole day.

Then as we walked back, we reached another bank of the river. A very nice place to be and the sun is setting down. Watching sunset by the riverside with him.

I stood up as I wanted to snap a photo of the nice view. That's when he stood up and hug me from behind. I tried to shook his hands off but he said, "Stay still. Let's keep memories of this together."

He hugged me so tight sometimes I felt I couldn't move. It's like I-am-afraid-to-lose-you kinda hug. And he kissed my forehead. And slowly he turned in front of me and kissed me on my lips.

I cried. Tears were rolling down like the rain. I couldn't stop crying as I kissed him.

"Why are you crying? Please don't cry. You hurt my feelings too when you cry."

"Why should I not cry? Every time, the same thing happens. When I feel I like someone or found someone, I have to part with him. Just like last year. I am tired of being in such a situation. It hurts a lot, you know?"

"Owww...don't be. Please don't cry anymore."

My phone rang. My friend called and she was shocked why I sounded different. I told her that I will tell her everything after we meet after this.

"Look...there's always a way that we can keep in touch with each other. You can come to America and other way round. There's the internet. But of course it will be different with the internet."

"Let's not talk about this anymore. We'll see how it goes."

I kept silent during dinner. But I forced myself to smile and laugh and my friend's jokes. He knew I was not happy.

Then we spent time in the computer room with other students while waiting for my friend to come. He showed me his passport and started to tell me about his journey throughout the world. And he tries to cheer me up by choosing funny songs in his iPod for me to listen. I finally laugh and it's silly to be angry with him for such a long time.

Half an hour later, my friend came and we did some change to our travel plans as there are some disruptions. And then after that, 3 of us cramped together in a room, helping my friend to pack her things as she was fed-up living with the old lady and she's moving out the very next day. Drama eh? Well, that always happens.

We spent the time teaching him Chinese and Malay and malaysianizing him with our culture and food and with our very own malaysian flag. Everyting with Malaysia in it. Suddenly we are being very patriotic. And then he turned to me and say,"See, that's why I like you. Because you are from Malaysia." I laughed.

It was really late at night but he refuse to go back to his room. He said, "The time with you is getting lesser and lesser. I want to spend more time with you." But the time and place doesn't allow us to do so as my girlfriend was quite emotional that time due to her problems with her landlady. And we tried to console her in every way we can. Another way of spending time with me is to be with my problems or what I am indirectly involved with. Nevertheless he still get to spend some quality time with me.