If not for ice cream, we didn’t get a lot of chances to walk together that much. I worked during office hours, but he had part-time job. Schedule clashes. That is one of the most certain things in this world after tax and death.

It was even harder for me to walk with him in the rain. It wasn’t because it doesn’t rain here. It rains as frequent as a traffic light changes to red. The thing is he always had an umbrella with him. Please read this with a passive aggressive voice. I like walking in the rain. New Zealand’s rain is just a spray. It's refreshing, and an umbrella is not going to protect us from hundred thousand of droplets that come from everywhere. Moreover, he doesn't even need it. His skin is even better than a $399 rainproof jacket.

I, sometimes, didn’t mind the umbrella. It limited the space for the two of us. We needed to be closer to each other. Our height difference is not as much as age. I'm a bit taller but much older. He held the umbrella and I walked close to him. Still, there are many layers of fabrics and air between our arms. I might look arrogant for not carrying an umbrella, but I actually didn’t know where to put my hands on.

J.