Just Friends And Nothing More

Chapter 8

After finishing breakfast, both individuals selected some boxes and headed to specific areas of the house to carry out the organization process. At that very moment, Ethan was finishing organizing the last two boxes when his father appeared at the bedroom door.

"Sorry to interrupt, but do you know where your brother is?" Rodrigo asked, glancing at his wristwatch.

"No problem, I'm done anyway... And no, I haven't seen him since we had breakfast," Ethan replied, wearing a serious expression.

"Where did he go?" muttered the man.

"Have you checked if he's not in the attic?"

"Yes, I have! Only Kamilla was there, organizing things."

At that moment, both of them heard approaching footsteps, and after a few minutes, Nathan appeared at the entrance of the room, holding a can of soda and wearing a completely carefree expression.

"What's going on?" Nathan asked, confused by the stares from his father and brother.

"Where have you been?"

"Me? I went to buy more tape. Any problem?" Nathan replied, followed by a question.

"No, but I'll need your help to dismantle the office desk."

"Alright... Oh! Yeah. Ethan has a visitor downstairs in the living room, looking for..."

Before his brother could finish his sentence, Nathan hurriedly passed by him, heading straight to the living room. As he descended the stairs, he found his mother sitting on the couch, talking to her best friend. Ethan approached them slowly.

"Hello, Ethan," greeted Fernanda with a radiant smile.

"Hey, Nanda," the young man replied, returning the smile.

Nanda was a nickname Ethan had given her, just as the girl called him by a nickname. However, in front of his best friend's mother, she chose to address him by his name. Priscila was surprised to see her son smiling at another woman who wasn't her or her niece, leading her to deduce that the young woman before her must have a very strong bond with Ethan.

"You look elegant in that dress, I believe it's new, isn't it?"

Now Priscila was more surprised than shocked, as it was the first time Ethan had complimented someone, and not even Alice had received such a compliment.

"Thank you deeply. Yes, the dress is new. I bought it last week," replied Fernanda, expressing her joy at the young man's compliment.

"What is the reason for your visit here?"

"I came to invite you to go to the arcade, but your mother informed me that you are moving... If you're busy, we can go in the evening."

"No, not at all," commented Priscila.

"Actually, Mom, I'm fine..."

"Of course, you're not busy, right?" his mother asked, giving him a serious look.

"Yes, I just finished organizing the things that needed to be packed."

"See? I told you," she said.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Moraes," Fernanda spoke politely.

"The pleasure was mine as well. Please, just call me Priscila, or 'mother-in-law' if you prefer."

"Mom!"

"I'm kidding, but it wouldn't be such a bad idea."

"Hahaha," the young woman laughed. "No problem, Ethan. I'm used to people saying that. However, I have to agree with your mother, it wouldn't be a bad idea."

"Seriously, Nanda? Even you are joining in on her joke," the young man let out a light sigh. "Let's go to the arcade before it closes."

Both of them headed to the entrance and went outside. A few minutes later, Kamilla approached her mother-in-law with a radiant smile. Nathan and Rodrigo discreetly observed through the c***k of the half-open office door.

During the journey to the arcade, they remained silent, which was common for the girl, as she was used to the reserved nature of the young man. However, sometimes it made her a little uncomfortable. When she decided to start a conversation to break the silence, the young man was quicker.

"I apologize."

"Don't worry... I know your mother was just joking. By the way, Ethan, where are you moving to?"

"To an artificial continent."

"Erathia? Wow, that's far away. What is the reason for the move?"

"My father was promoted to president of a new branch that will be inaugurated in a week."

"When are you leaving?"

"Our flight is scheduled for tomorrow at 10 a.m."

After this brief exchange of words, they returned to the previous silence and remained that way until they arrived at the arcade. Upon reaching the location, they chose the "Street Fighter" machine, a game in which Ethan was a master, but ended up losing to Fernanda by 7 to 2, even though she was inexperienced.

After leaving the arcade, the two young people headed to a playground two blocks away. After a short walk, they reached their destination, although the place was crowded, which didn't bother them. They enjoyed some attractions, which made the young man remember a previous visit to the park with his niece and his brother.

After leaving the playground, they went straight to a small restaurant that was approximately 10 minutes away. Upon entering the establishment, they went to a table with two seats. Immediately, a waitress approached the table and handed them the menu. Both placed their orders and the waitress left.

"Where would you like to go after we leave here?" the young man asked in a neutral tone.

"I don't know... Maybe to the cinema," Fernanda replied, a little downcast.

"Nanda, are you okay?" Ethan asked again, noticing that she seemed a bit sad.

"Of course I am, after all, this has been the most fun day since we met," the young woman said, smiling at the young man.

Minutes later, the waitress who had served them returned to the table with their orders and placed them on the table before leaving again. Both started eating and occasionally exchanged a few words about the taste or something related to the food. Ethan paid the bill and as they left the establishment, they noticed that it was starting to get dark.

After touching his mobile device screen twice, Ethan checked that it was 6 p.m., which meant they still had time to go to the cinema. Upon arriving at the location, Fernanda chose the movie and Ethan bought the tickets. Then, they entered the theater where the movie would be shown and went to their respective seats.