+5 Free Coins
Maybe this was what they called the thrill of the forbidden–like when you were a kid, finished your homework properly, and your parents let you go outside and play for a bit. You didn’t even do anything special, but it still made you ridiculously happy.
As she munched away, Freya noticed Louis hadn’t touched a single snack. She started to feel a little self–conscious.
“Do you want some?” she offered. “Snacks aren’t that bad, honestly. The additives are all within safe levels. Plus, you never eat this stuff normally, right? Eating a little once in a while won’t kill you. It’s not as dramatic as people make it out to be.”
“You eat,” Louis said. He didn’t outright reject her, but the meaning was clear. Freya could only continue eating by herself, but she still made another attempt.
“Want some water? I brought bottled water.” As she spoke, she dug through her backpack and handed him a bottle.
Louis paused a second before accepting it. “Next time, get the Evian bottles.”
“Oh.” Freya sighed inwardly. The man had no money and still insisted on brand–name water? Like there could be that big a difference between waters. What, a $5 bottle was better than a $2- or $3 one just because of the label? Please. She’d already gone the extra mile and gotten a $5 one for his sake. Didn’t he notice she was drinking the cheap $2 stuff herself?
After a short break, Aiden wanted to go see a movie, so the three of them headed toward the animation theater. On the way, the little guy kept chattering non–stop.
“Last time I came here, we were supposed to watch a movie, but my mom and dad were in a rush, so we missed it. I’ve always wanted to know if the movies here are different from the ones at regular theaters. Finally got my chance today! A classmate of mine said the ones here are way better, and I’ve been dying to find out.”
How different could it be, really? It was all just about mindset. Freya shook her head privately. Smart kids always ended up ruining their own fun because everything turned out to be exactly what they expected–no surprises left.
Sure enough, Aiden started off excited, but after watching for a bit, he was clearly unimpressed. He tugged at Freya and Louis to leave early, then started ranting as soon as they were out the door.
“Ryuji totally lied! That movie was nothing special! I can’t believe I got so excited for that–it was just a waste of time. I bet he tricked me on purpose. Ugh! I’m definitely going to give him a piece of my mind at school!”
“Hey now,” Freya tried to reason with him. “Maybe he did think it was really good. Everyone likes different things–some people like carrots, some people like cabbage. It’s all personal taste.””
“Oh, I guess that’s true. Still, if someone thinks that was good, they clearly don’t have great taste,” Aiden muttered, full of disdain. Louis lightly tapped the back of his head.
“Watch your mouth. Talking behind someone’s back is very rude.”
Rubbing the spot where he got bopped, Aiden’s expression shifted. The smug disdain vanished, replaced by his usual sweet look. But his eyes looked oddly thoughtful.
Freya couldn’t help asking, “What are you thinking?”
The little guy sighed, almost regretfully. “I was just thinking… if someone can enjoy that kind of movie, they probably haven’t seen much good stuff in life. When I get back to school, I’m gonna tell everyone to be nicer to him. We shouldn’t look down on someone just because we’ve seen more. Our teacher told us to treat classmates with kindness.”
