"So…" Zero prompted, as the Cyber-elf next to him continued to stare at her lap, cheeks tinged a faint pink. He couldn't help but think that she looked adorable when she was shy.
"Leviathan told me that you liked me," X blurted out, blushing even harder. "Actually, all four of them told me that."
Zero's cheeks exploded like landmines, and he looked awkwardly to the side. He knew those four couldn't keep their mouths shut…
"…So? Is it true?" X quietly prodded, still not able to meet his gaze. "That you… like me?"
The blond Cyber-elf sighed. "Yes, it's true."
"But why?" His eyes shot up to stare confusedly at X. Out of all the reactions and scenarios that could have occurred, this one didn't even cross his mind.
"What do you mean, why?"
"Why would you love me? I'm just a Maverick Hunter turned Cyber-elf, even if I did save the world a few times. I prefer words over fists, and I try my hardest to be as much as a pacifist as I can. Whenever we try to take down a strong enemy, it's always you who ends up dead trying to protect me. You can do everything, while I'm mostly just excessive baggage-"
Her words were cut off by a startled yelp as Zero leaned over and yanked her over his lap, so that she was lying across his crossed legs with her head supported by his arm and her left hand held gently, but firmly, by his left. Her big, expressive green eyes stared up at Zero's own midnight eyes in shock.
"X, I don't care what you say, but you weren't, you aren't, and you'll never be excessive baggage," Zero half growled, half murmured to the brunette. "You are so much stronger than I am, and, don't forget, you took down Sigma twice single-handedly."
X looked away from him bashfully, her cheeks blooming in pink again. "But that was because I didn't have a choice. You weren't there," she mumbled half-heartedly.
"And that just makes me excessive baggage," Zero replied, and delicately nuzzled her forehead. He placed a single finger to her lips when she was about to protest. "You were strong enough to defeat Sigma without my help. As far as I know, you've never needed my help. Doesn't that make me extra baggage?"
"…no, it doesn't, and you still didn't answer my question yet!" X growled, glaring up at him. "Why do you love me?"
Zero gazed at her for a few moments, before shifting the brunette so that her head rested on his shoulder. His thumb gently traced her knuckles while he rested his cheek against her temple, his eyes closed. Silence fell, and while X enjoyed the soft contact, she couldn't help but feel impatient, and after a while, she opened her mouth to ask again. But Zero cut her off.
"When I first saw you as a newbie, I just thought that you were another rookie trying to prove herself. A particularly pretty rookie, but one that would still utterly fail, just like everyone else. I tried to ignore the fact that I wanted to cuddle your figure close to me, that I wanted to stroke your hair, that I wanted to touch your lips with my own. But even so, I never dreamed that you would progress through the tests so fast, that, before long, you were a Class B Hunter."
"I also never dreamed that you would affect my heart so much. I tried to keep my distance, but it was impossible for me to fully separate myself from you. When you trained, I couldn't help but watch. When you smiled, I couldn't help but feel happier. When you frowned, I wanted to know what was bothering you so I could fix it for you. When you cried, it was like someone was ripping my heart to shreds, and I so desperately wanted to go over and hug you, comfort you."
"When it got to the point where the other guys started noticing you, I grew so jealous I literally went to the stimulator during every break I had to vent. When they smiled and flirted with you, I couldn't help but grow so much more envious. When they decided to freaking molest you, I just wanted to completely disembowel them, and wipe them off the face of the universe. And every time they went up to you to comfort you, I felt like something was dying inside me at the wrongness of it. I wanted to be the person easing your pain. I wanted to be the person making you laugh. I wanted to be the person at your side, the one that you would trust with your life."
"I couldn't stay away forever, so I decided to stop distancing myself from you. It broke my heart when you first viewed me as an emotionless commander, your superior. I wanted to be equals with you. I wanted you to view me as someone you could go to when you needed to.
Those first few weeks were agonizing for me."
"But then you started to warm up to me. You went to me more often, you smiled at me more often, and you began to relax. I felt like a ray of hope had just fallen on me. I grew so happy, I wished for you to consider me less as a commander, and more like a friend. And you did."
"During those times, I would have done absolutely anything to see you happy, whether it be spending a little more money at the cake shop, or comforting you in the middle of the night. I would have killed myself, if only to see you smile and laugh. I would have done anything for you. And I still would."
Zero paused in his narrative to gaze down tenderly at X's shocked look. The amount of love and affection he had in his bottomless eyes almost overwhelmed her. His eyelids lowered halfway, and he shifted his fingers so that they were entwined with hers.
"I have loved you since the very first time I have ever laid my eyes on you. I have never wavered in my love for you, and I still don't. Even if you were to reject me, I would still love you, and I always will."
As he finished his speech, X's eyes began to grow hazy behind the trembling wall of tears, and Zero's own eyes widened in panic. But before he could do anything, X punched him straight in the nose.
The blow sent him reeling, though more from the shock than pain. And then X's arms were around his neck, and she was bawling into his chest, tears pouring down her face.
"You stupid idiot! Why didn't you tell me this over 200 freaking years ago? You could've saved me from so many sleepless nights, worrying that you didn't like me, that you didn't see me as something more than a friend, that we'll never ever have a relationship and just shut up and kiss me already you stupid clueless bastard of an idiot!"
And then her soft lips were firmly pressed against his mouth in a slightly desperate kiss, her hands clutching the fabric of his coat, pulling him closer. After the shock wore off a bit, Zero wrapped his arms tightly around X's waist, burying his hands into her hair. Their mouths moved against each other, deepening the kiss, craving the touch they've been denied for over two centuries.
With a soft gasp, they separated, their cheeks flaming. The two stared at each other, lost in each others' eyes. A glint suddenly sparked in Zero's, and he kissed X again, this time pressing much harder, letting her down so that they were in their original position, hands entwined, eyes closed.
Eventually, Zero pulled away, gazing straight into the beautiful, sparkling emerald gems of X's eyes. A tender smile crossed his mouth, and he started kissing her fingers one by one.
"I'll make up all two hundred years to you, I promise," he vowed, and kissed her again.
Contrary to how she was back in 21XX, X couldn't have been happier.
…
"Mission: Matchmaker accomplished," Leviathan whispered, smiling happily as she watched her mother and Zero passionately kiss from behind a bunch of bushes. She was so happy for them both, since they had found their perfect matches.
"Well, technically we just blurted out that Zero likes Mother to her, then let them work it out together," Phantom commented from behind her. Leviathan rolled her eyes and turned around.
"Yeah, but pretending we did it tactfully is much more fun," she pouted. Fafnir snickered, before peeking out of the bushes again. "Man, look at them go. I've never seen Mother look so happy about anything since…well, never."
"All the more to be happy for them," Harpuia commented. Leviathan just smiled. Now to start cooking up a plan for her eldest brother and a certain ginger-haired Reploid…