18. Playing Arcade Games.

Elena.

The next day, I had an alarm given on the shelf in my room set, I didn't want to get told or have to go through the same mistake again. I then woke up the kids even though they were both grumpy, to drop them at school, one of the drivers which was also assigned as bodyguard for the kids assisted.

I was also told that Mia returns back to school in her school bus in afternoon because she's involved in sports extra curricular activities that require her to stay in school for longer times and Diego is the one I have to go pick up.

During the coming and going out of the Ferrari's estate, I knew I had to protect myself from being recognized or seen I'm the outside world so I always made sure to have a scarf and a facemask on at all times. I could afford being snatched away because of my own recklessness.

I was quite happy and excited to be picking up Diego alone as I wanted the chance to be with him and get to connect with him. I even planned to take him to a park while we play around or something.

I got to his school which screamed extravagance. On a plastic hallway chair sat a child, legs kicking in the air, clearing the floor by several inches as they swung back and forth. He looked mesmerized by the red rubber boots on his feet and blue duffle coat, somehow the kid reminded me of Paddington Bear. His face had unhealthy look to it and his eyes were hardly open as he stared at nothing on the wall.

I was able to find my way around and soon, I found Diego amongst his peers.

There was something about Diego that drew people to him. I guess it didn't hurt that he was a good looking boy; but it was more than that. He was a little bit quiet, but not out of painful shyness. It was a reservedness, like a conscious choice to observe the lie of the land before he got involved. Yet he wasn't stand-offish, he remained friendly faced and welcoming in body posture. It wasn't like he sat down one day and planned to be like that, it's just the way he was.

I have never seen him go out and deliberately make a friend, they just came to him. There was nothing threatening about him, nothing at all. He was an easy listener, a good audience, giving encouraging feedback laced with intelligent comments, at least, for a boy his age. Only once in a while would he sink into and sulk over getting some school work wrong, it didn't happen to him often, and he had poor tolerance for the feeling when it did.

When he was finally handed over to me, he didn't look too excited to see me.

"It's you?" He said with no hint of interest.

"Uh, yes, Diego. How was school today? I'm sure you had so much fun?" I asked, trying to ease the awkwardness between us both, I even held out my hand to hold his in mine but he merely looked at it and continued to walk instead.

"Wait, Diego." I called out as I caught up with him, I then bent to his height to have a conversation with him, "Diego, why do you not like me? Did I do something wrong? Are you okay?" I asked, almost sounding like a kid desperate to make a friend with the popular person in school.

"I don't know. But I don't like you either, you nannies aren't any fun, you don't care, you only want money and pretend to care." He said and I was so impressed at his diction and ability to express himself so well.

“I’m sure you’ve had a few nannies or potential nannies at this point? Did you not meet them and talk to them to let them know how you feel?”

“Yes, I did but I didn’t like them,” he said, “they were too old and boring, just like these books. One even looked like a witch.”

“She was a witch,” He added in certainty in a small voice. “And she smelled, daddy didn’t like any of them either. And I do not like you as well." He concluded adamantly.

"It's so sad that you think that way, Diego. I'm not trying to say I'm different from whatever nannies you have had but I'm sure we could be friends? Don't you think?" I asked.

"Mia wouldn't like that, she told me to avoid letting you be my friend, because at the end of the day, youll leave too and I would be sad because I wouldn't want you to. You all leave at the end of it all, nobody stays for long." He said again, a bit sad this time.

"What if I tell you that I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, that I'm going to be with you unlike the other nannies who left so early?"

"Is that true? Will you?" He asked in a small voice that was just too adorable.

"Yes, and will you also tell me how to be your friend?" I added.

"Will let me run? Will you allow me play arcade games? Daddy and Ms. Sofia never lets me. They don't want my clothes getting dirty for any reason or me playing the games too." He said and after pretending to think about it for a while, I nodded.

"Let's play!" I yelled as we finally got out of his school and began to walk to a playground next to it. It was void of kids.

As we ran around, Diego was all instant smile. His energy spilled out just as much as the drink in his cup and every other noise was his laughter. It was as if fun was printed in his DNA and all it took was a little sunshine and a dash of sugar to bring that out.

We stopped at the arcade games arena too and played a game he specifically pointed at, I soon got to know that it was his favorite one and he played through like a pro. He looked very happy and before we both knew it, we were bonding through the activities. It was pretty much easy.

Diego laughed and screamed so much, it was very much obvious that he hadn't be allowed to do this in a while, we even tried to make the arcade game a competition with one another and he kept winning. It was a kind of fun that even I didn't know that I needed but our bubbles bursted when we suddenly heard the voice that we didn't expect behind us.

"Elena? Diego? What on earth do you think you're doing?" The voice almost yelled amidst our excited noises.

We both turned back to see who it was and I wasn't totally surprised.

Of course, it had to be Sofia.