Everything is still ahead

ㅤ The sight of her always made Genis's heart flutter. Because of which, unfortunately for him, his brain switched off, and therefore he could not show all his genius and adult nature to charm the girl. That's why she always looked at him exclusively as a child... But that didn't stop Genis! After all, he didn't consider himself a child. One day he saw a beautiful flower, picked it with the thought that girls like such flowers, and plucked up the courage to give it to his beloved. His heart was pounding, but the words were completely unwilling to leave his lips. Genis simply held out the flower and smiled, looking at her with hope. "I can't accept it," Presea said evenly, with her usual indifference. "You're putting too much importance on it. It would be wrong of me to accept this gift." "But… why?" Genis hesitated: he hadn't even said a word about his feelings. "It's just a gift. I don't ask for anything in return, I just want to make you happy." Genis blushed: this was the most frank conversation they had ever had face to face. "But you mean it. Even though I try to ignore it," Presea looked away with a hint of sadness, "I'm perfectly aware of your attentions. But I'm too old for you, and you're still very young. You should find someone more suited to you…" "Nonsense!" Genis said in a restrained but sharp voice as soon as Presea finished her last word, without even having time to close her mouth. His emotions were boiling. And not at all because of the refusal. "You may have lived much longer than me, but can you really call that time life? It was as if you didn't exist at all. So why count that time? You've been through real horrors. But now, finally," he allowed himself the audacity to take Presea's hand carefully in his, "you've awakened from the nightmare." Genis placed a flower in Presea's hand and raised it to her eye level. "Life is just beginning," he continued with a benevolent smile. "And I want to teach you to smile again." Presea's heart sank. Barely, but it meant a lot to her. She gazed thoughtfully at the flower. Her soul ached painfully, torn between doubts. It wasn't that his words were illogical: she had spent most of her life unconscious, and her body had stopped growing. Presea existed outside of time, while the world around her evolved without her. And now her time had begun to flow again, but she… She still seemed to exist somewhere else, somewhere where there was no place for her. "Think," continued Genis, letting go of Presea's hand, making sure that she herself was holding the flower firmly. "I'm not asking anything of you. At least not right now," he said, worried, afraid she'd stop thinking about their possible future together altogether. He wished Presea the best, but he wasn't about to give up on his own desires either. "I…" Presea resigned herself, "I'll need time." "As much as you like!" smiled Genis. "We have plenty of it," he said enthusiastically. Genis was even glad that for once he was at an age that really allowed him to wait a long time. If she took too long, he'd just grow up. Perhaps Presea would look at him differently, too, when they both stopped looking like children. For a while, Genis left Presea alone with the flower and her thoughts. He smiled softly as he left, because he now had hope of actually winning the heart of his beloved girl, and not just in his dreams. ㅤ