Chapter 39: A repressed memory
It was a baseless worry on Kellen's part. He didn't see the Captain again that night. He didn't even hear a peep from him in the apartment next to him, allowing Kellen to calm down, change into something more comfortable, his slippers, and make himself some tea before calling his parents. His Dad answered right away, while Kellen finished making his tea.
"Hello? Kellen, is that you?" He chuckled at his Father's tone.
"It's me, Dad."
"Oh really? Because I would have thought if I had a son named Kellen he would have called me right away. He would have called me right after a public press conference while his new Guild so that I wouldn't get caught up in all of the drama surrounding said press conference." The older Guide was quite upset, which only made Kellen chuckle more. He had expected this kind of behaviour from his Mother, not his Father, so it was a little refreshing.
"I'm sorry. If it makes you feel better, I've been not keeping track of where my phone is. The Captain already has gotten made at me about it."
"It does not make me feel better to be compared to that S Class." His Father's voice was full of gloom, which only made Kellen chuckle more.
"He's not all bad." Kellen defended, even as he remembered his time in the cafeteria. "We're still just getting to know each other. I'm sure as time goes on he'll grow on you two. He seems...more stable compared to other S Classes? When I compare him to my Uncles, he seems to have his head on his shoulders." Kellen knew his Mother was listening in, which meant he wasn't surprised when he heard her sigh.
"Well, I put in a little bit of work to research his past. He spent some time in the D.E.C. Had a great track record there. Tom had nothing but nice things to say about him, even if he seemed a little edgy talking about him. The only thing that they had a complaint about was the fact he was hard to guide. He would go in at the last minute every time. It was like he hated guiding." Mom said, and Kellen took a sip of his tea. He wasn't one to sit down when he chatted on the phone, was more prone to wandering around the house as he spoke.
"Huh. That's interesting. I forgot that he had been in the D.E.C." Kellen muttered. He had no idea how he had. Now that his Mother said so, he remembered that the Captain had been quite popular back in the day. Kellen was also fairly certain he had a poster of his somewhere in among his belongings. Curious, Kellen put down his teacup and wandered upstairs where all his spare boxes were.
"He's also been voted the top rated Esper any Guide would want to be paired with. Or sleep with." His Father added dryly and Kellen almost slipped on the stairs.
"Oh? Really? I didn't know." Kellen choked out, and his Father laughed at him.