High-Class Mob 18 18. One-meter

The world is not afraid to shit on you, Colt and Leo knows this as fact. As his tears stopped Mina gave him solace and peace, he held her hands and she became a pillar for him.

Mary smiled at the pair; she couldn't believe that Colt would be able to find someone as good as Mina. It was quite frankly sweet to see and as she held the pommel of the sword.

She waited for Colt to calm down before talking about the thing Colt came here to do, adoption. Picking up the red folder, Mary looked at Colt and passed it to him as she wiped his tears away.

"Quite frankly, I do not want to rain down on your parade but, can I ask you how you're going to tell Filla about the truth, better yet, how will you tell your parents and this young lady's parents. I believe Filla is going to face pressure once her identity as an Edgeworth is revealed."

Colt flipped through the pages of the red folder, his hands stopped and he began to remember why Filla was sent here to begin with. She was sent to the orphanage to avoid criticism of everyone around her.

Mary saw the change in Colt's expression and shook her head.

"You must be thinking that taking the blame upon yourself will be enough, but, taking care of a child is not so simple. To begin with, once she becomes an Edgeworth, she'll become a noble and the life of a noble is not exactly pleasant to begin with.

"The child of the wastrel with a commoner; the bastard child of the wastrel; the unneeded child. Do you think such titles will not befall the child? Do you?"

Colt's hands stopped moving. And he looked at Mary whose eyes is full of concern, he couldn't speak, a lump was stuck in his throat forcing him to stay silent throughout.

However, a word did come out from their side, but it was not Colt who spoke, but Mina.

"Your concerns are warranted and I do believe that my husband is being hasty, thus, I wish to say a few things that will clear this whole thing."

Mary was interested at hearing her words.

"We need only to create a way for the young woman to easily transition to becoming a Noble, without having been affected by my dear husband's…not so flowery reputation, correct?"

"Indeed, his not so flowery behavior…hehe." She couldn't hold it in.

Mina ignored her chuckle, "Then, that only means we just need to improve his reputation, and once that happens. The kid will be accepted easier even if there's a backlash of his lies being uncovered."

"That makes a lot of sense, but, the single most important question still stands, are we going to let Filla know of the truth?"

No one answered, Mina simply turned to Colt waiting for an answer. Mary did the same and now, Colt's decision was.

"I'll tell her, I have led a life that is full of lies for three years already. I am Filla's father, she is my flesh and blood and I have seen her cry far too many times I don't want to see her suffer more from those insecurities."

Creekkk!

Thud!

"Ah, we're sorry about this, um, I think we were going to ask Sister Mary for the stool and we just…um…"

Filla and Hylda looked up with effort. While Hylda was panicking about suddenly opening the door. These two had come to Sister Mary's office to ask about the stool that they desperately need, but when they were just about to open the knock, they heard it, the determined voice of Colt coming from the inside.

"I am Filla's father…" a single line was enough to make Filla's and Hylda's young mind go blank.

They didn't know what to do and as they panicked, the two lost their balance and fell. accidentally opening the door and letting everyone know of their presence.

Everyone was silent, even Hylda who had yet to calm down has stopped speaking. She looked at Colt, and to Filla before coming back to Colt.

The two had the same expression on their faces, blank. Filla was surprised to know the truth and Colt was too stupefied to speak.

The lump on his throat had come back. But he summoned his courage, his strength, and pulled everything out to say…

"I'm sorry."

Once again, his tears began to well up as he fell on his knees. Leo did not know what is causing him to do this, but he had already come to accept that he and Colt is but one person. And Colt's emotion is geniune and it is now his, the guilt he felt is not some foreign emotion, this is real.

The two was one meter apart from each other, but it felt like a giant chasm was between the two of them. Colt wished to crawl to cross that one-meter. So he reached out his hand, trying to get to Filla.

However, when he raised his head, he saw Filla's face, she was still silent, still unable to react in any way.

'She hates me; but that's understandable, after all, I was the one who left her.'

This is enough, if he pushes further, she would run away. He could tell, he had read enough novel and watched enough tv to know what would happen next.

Colt left Filla, she cried at night thinking about it; it is not so surprising really. It would be the perfect reaction an orphan would take, but, a warm hand clasped Colt's hand.

The one holding him was trembling; Colt raised his head and looked at Filla holding his hand and saw her shaking.

She was scared.

She looked at Colt and her tears also flowed, she moved her other hand and held Colt with all her hand as if telling him to stay.

"Do you not hate me?"

Filla profusely shook her head, she vehemently shook it as she tried to show her point as her ability to speak had already left her.

"I left you…"

"You didn't!" Filla raised her head and looked at each other's eyes, "You didn't leave Filla…big bro sparkly was always there for me…when I was sick you were there…when I am lonely you were by my side…you never left my side."

Filla sniffled as she tried to say what she wished to say but failed for she was too overwhelmed by emotion. Her eyes could no longer see for her tears had already flowed. She cannot wipe her tears, for she feared Colt would leave.

She was scared; scared that what she had nightmares of thousands of times before would come true…that she would be truly be abandoned.

So, Filla tried her best to speak with.

"Filla ish the one hu ish rong! Filla'sh fader never aban…doned her, she just never new he was always by her side! Pleash don't hate Filla!"

"No, no, never…never!"

Colt crossed the chasm and held Filla in his arms. He had done it so many times before, but this time it was different. Because right now, she know that she her parents didn't abandon her and Colt is finally free of his guilt, thus, this hug was the most genuine hug of them all.

Chapter end