A/N: The protagonist of this story is ambiguous. Feel free to imagine anyone in her place.
She picks up the helmet off the floor where it lay. She's horrible at catching things, but he always seems to want to throw things, so she's getting used to it. The other day, in fact, she managed to catch one of his tools without fail, laughing in victory when she realized she finally caught it. This time, she wasn't so lucky. She bends down, thoroughly embarrassed, smiling awkwardly, and is so nervous she places the red helmet onto her head facing sideways at first. He notices this as mounts his D-wheel, bends over, laughs softly.
Her nervousness melts partially away as she hears the wonderful cadence of his rare chuckle. She's filled with pride as she finds that, even though there's a poisonous voice at the back of her head that insists he's making fun of her, she had managed to make him laugh, and that alone defeated the shadow of doubt for now. Both hesitant and desiring to touch him, she gingerly lifts herself onto the D-wheel and, heart beating erratically, grabs onto his waist. The machine roars and she's filled with this wild excitement as it begins to move and her body is swept out of its inertia and into the D-wheel's momentum.
As it gathers speed, she instinctively holds onto him even more tightly and awkwardly presses her face against the warmth of his back. The road melts into a metallic blur, the everlasting blue sky blooms from between the city buildings, and the wind becomes a blanket, wrapping and comforting the both of them. She has always loved the way everything transforms like this into a whirlwind of color and sound, truly the "speed world" of the times.
The ineffable energy coursing through them shivers and wanes as the bright red machine pulls to a stop. She gets off, her long hair tossed and tangled and windblown, but for once she doesn't care about her appearance. She's laughing as she takes off her helmet and tells him all about how amazing that ride was, how she missed the feeling of open air and raw speed from her childhood, and he watches her enthusiasm with bright eyes. For someone who seems oblivious on the surface, she thinks deeply.
He takes advantage of this as the day wears on and they find themselves in a rare corner of the city: quiet, deserted, peaceful. There's even a tree nearby, peeking up in earnest effort to grow amid the stuffy air and hubbub of urban life. The two of them decide to sit and rest by the tree, even though midnight is approaching and the sounds from the inner city only reach their ears as faint whispers and the lights illuminate only the half of the sky above them. The stars are difficult to see through the smoky layers in the atmosphere, but he doesn't seem to mind as he smiles up at the dome so familiar to him and so foreign to her.
She speaks hesitantly, shyly, afraid of prying, but curious all the same. He responds to her question almost as if he had been waiting for her to ask all along, and begins to explain to her what this city means to him. She listens patiently as he describes his hometown, his friends, the nature of technology, all of these things he's passionate about. She smiles sheepishly at the shine in his eyes. She appreciates how much these things mean to him. He always thought deeply about things. He always found things to treasure and to live for, and her being fills with such inspiration that the words just come spilling out of her mouth. She's nervous, but the speech doesn't stop as she explains her past, because it often tugs at her mind, providing her with unnecessary doubts.
She looks up at him, finished, and waits anxiously for his response. He looks her in the eyes, and her entire body catches fire as those azure jewels seem to stare directly into her mind. Maybe they didn't seem to. Maybe they actually did. She starts to consider this as he moves himself closer and hugs her, his gloved arms wrapping all the way around her waist, his chin resting on her shoulder as she sits oddly straight, feeling his weight press on her. She eases into the comfort of his embrace once he tightens it, and yet she wonders why he even bothered. He replies, reading her mind again, telling her how much he pitied her.
Almost disgracefully, she bluntly refuses his pity and explains how this was part of her development and she's conquered it now. In an effort to lighten the mood, she speaks in a lighthearted tone and throws her hands in the air for emphasis. He pulls away from her and stares at her, a strange smile forming on his face. She looks back at him, an equally awkward grin tugging at the corners of her mouth as she fights it until she can't anymore and bursts out into laughter. She is pleasantly surprised when she hears his soft mirth escape him for the second time today. That must be a record, she says cheerfully.
As her own energy finally dies, she cuddles up to his side and latches onto his arm. She knows she's happy at this moment, and for once, she can be absolutely sure he's happy as well.
